Male sheep, cattle, goats and pigs are routinely castrated in order to reduce aggression and subsequent injury. Methods of castration are either by blade or rubber ring. At present, castration is carried out as a routine husbandry procedure on young animals without the use of anaesthetic or pain relief. The…
The RSPCA believes that nose ringing for the purpose of controlling bulls is only acceptable when performed by a veterinarian. The ring should be smooth and well-fitting and must not inflict pain. The procedure requires appropriate restraint, the use of local anaesthetics, and proper post-operative procedures to aid healing without…
An electronic identification tag enables farm animals to be tracked from their property of birth through to slaughter. The National Livestock Identification System (NLIS) tag is placed in the animal’s ear and stays with the animal on farm, during transport, at saleyards and at the abattoir. The use of the…
Tethering is where an animal is fastened by a chain to a central anchor point, causing it to be confined to a specific area. Tethering is sometimes used as a method of confining grazing farm animals (such as horses, donkeys, sheep, goats or cattle) under conditions which may otherwise cause…
The frequency of exceptionally hot years, low rainfall and low soil moisture has been increasing in recent decades and this trend is expected to continue across Australia in the years to come. The resulting droughts are not isolated events; they occur over vast areas across the country and have significant…
The RSPCA Approved Farming Scheme is Australia’s leading independent certification scheme focused on animal welfare. Through the Scheme the RSPCA works closely with farmers committed to raising turkeys to higher animal welfare standards. Since releasing our first animal welfare standards for turkeys in 2010, more than 2.4 million turkeys have…
The process of killing an animal for the purpose of producing meat and meat products is referred to as slaughter. There are a number of steps involved from the time an animal leaves the farm until they are slaughtered and processed into meat and meat products. In Australia, the slaughter…
Wild mice are omnivorous, often eating grasses, seeds, grain, and occasionally invertebrates. Fortunately for the owners of pet mice, the nutritional requirements of mice are well established from work done in mice kept in laboratories (the same species as those we keep as companions). This means that there are formulated…
Location Where you place the enclosure for your pet mice is just as important as the type of enclosure and its accessories. So, where can you place the enclosure? A good option is on a table in a room that is not too busy or noisy but that you use…
Donkeys have evolved over thousands of years to live in semi-arid environments where the nutritional quality of the food available is very poor. They have adapted to eat fibrous plant material in small quantities throughout the day. This is known as trickle feeding and helps to keep the donkey’s digestive…