Individual drivers and barriers to adoption of disease control and welfare practices in dairy and beef cattle production: a scoping review

The implementation of disease control and welfare practices is an essential part of limiting disease exposure in livestock, however successful adoption of these practices seem to be low in both the beef and dairy cattle industries. The main objectives of this scoping review were to characterize literature published exploring beef and dairy cattle producers' perceptions on the implementation of various disease control and welfare practices, identify major themes of drivers and barriers that influence producers' adoption of these practices, and identify current gaps in knowledge. A total of 2,486 articles were obtained from two database literature searches and screened, from which 48 articles published between 2010 and 2021 were deemed eligible and charted. Europe was the most common region for articles (58%). A majority of articles focused solely on dairy producers (52%). A wide range of barriers and drivers which were categorized into 4 and 5 key themes, respectively. The most commonly mentioned driver was animal health, welfare, and safety, while the most common barrier was costs. Potential gaps in literature were identified, including the underrepresentation of beef producer perceptions relative to dairy producers in current literature.

Assessment of a joint farmer-veterinarian discussion about biosecurity using novel social interaction analyses

Veterinarians are trusted by farmers and play an important role in assisting them to implement biosecurity. More research is needed that particularly focuses on the impact of joint farmer-veterinarian discussions to further understand the role of communication in altering biosecurity behaviours. The aim of this study was to analyse joint dairy cattle farmer-veterinarian discussions about the adoption of on-farm biosecurity using novel social interaction methodologies. Farmer and veterinarian stakeholders were invited to take part in a face-to-face meeting. Introductory presentations were given, followed by separate facilitated veterinarian and farmer discussions. All stakeholders were brought together for a final facilitated group discussion which was audio recorded. Corresponding transcripts from the recordings were analysed via thematic and conversation analyses. Conversation analysis assessments such as turn taking, repair, sequence organisation, overlap and asymmetry were employed to investigate the nature of the conversation. Thematic analysis identified the negative repercussions of conflicting information or ineffective communication surrounding biosecurity implementation. The type of, and importance of, the relationship farmers had with veterinarians and other stakeholders was highlighted. The need to provide personalised biosecurity protocols on farms was identified. Four key factors were identified via conversation analyses. These included: 1) how the conversation facilitated agreement, 2) how the conversation allowed the farmer and veterinarian participants to learn from one another in real time, 3) how the discussion enabled participants to expand upon points they were making, and 4) how participants were able to obtain a greater understanding of the other participants' opinions, even without total resolution. Debate around the effective implementation of biosecurity measures on farms, explored using novel techniques, demonstrated the potential for utilising a discussive approach between veterinarians and farmers to lead to solutions not previously considered. Because of the nature of the discussion, conversation analysis resulted in an informative approach to encapsulating the nuanced dialogue between stakeholders, highlighting the potential of this analysis framework.

The attitude-behaviour gap in biosecurity: Applying social theories to understand the relationships between commercial chicken farmers' attitudes and behaviours

Introduction

Traditionally, it is believed that people's behaviours align with their attitudes; however, during COVID-19 pandemic, an attitude-behaviour gap in relation to preventive measures has been observed in recent studies. As such, the mixed-methods research was used to examine the relationships between farmers' biosecurity attitudes and behaviours in Taiwan's chicken industry based on the cognitive consistency theory.

Methods

Content analysis of face-to-face interviews with 15 commercial chicken farmers identified their biosecurity responses to infectious disease threats.

Results

The results indicated the mismatch of farmers' attitudes and behaviours towards specific biosecurity measures, in that they act differently than they think. The findings of the qualitative research allowed the research team to conduct the subsequent quantitative, confirmatory assessment to investigate the mismatch of farmers' attitudes and behaviours in 303 commercial broiler farmers. Survey data were analyzed to discover the relationships between farmers' attitudes and behaviours in relation to 29 biosecurity measures. The results show a mixed picture. The percentage of the farmers who had the attitude-behaviour gap towards 29 biosecurity measures ranged from 13.9 to 58.7%. Additionally, at the 5% significant level, there is an association between farmers' attitudes and behaviours for 12 biosecurity measures. In contrast, a significant association does not exist for the other 17 biosecurity measures. Specifically, out of the 17 biosecurity measures, the disconnection of farmers' attitudes and behaviours was observed in three specific biosecurity measures such as using a carcass storage area.

Discussion

Based on a fairly large sample of farmers in Taiwan, this study confirms the existence of an attitude-behaviour gap in context and applies social theories to provide an in-depth understanding of how infectious diseases are managed in the animal health context. As the results demonstrate the necessity of tailoring biosecurity strategies to address the gap, it is time to reconsider the current approach by understanding farmers' real attitudes and behaviours in relation to biosecurity for the success of animal disease prevention and control at the farm level.

Government veterinarians' perceptions of routine biosecurity focused on dairy cattle farms in north-western and north-eastern Spain

The implementation of biosecurity measures in livestock production systems can be affected by the psychosocial factors of its stakeholders, which can be observed through their knowledge, attitudes and perceptions/practices. In Spain, there are no regulations per se to promote biosecurity. Of all stakeholders, farmers and veterinarians have been addressed in previous biosecurity studies, but not veterinarians belonging specifically to the government services. This study explores this particular group's perceptions of routine biosecurity in livestock production systems in north-western and north-eastern Spain, an understanding of which could help to improve the implementation of biosecurity measures on farms. Eleven interviews were conducted with veterinarians from different levels of the government services in Galicia and Catalonia, and were analyzed through content analysis. Dairy cattle farms were considered as the reference livestock production systems. The respondents stress the limited availability of staff and time resources for biosecurity. The advisory role of government veterinarians is not well recognized among farmers, who feel that their services prioritize their sanctioning role. In fact, government veterinarians consider that farmers only implement biosecurity measures to avoid being sanctioned, and not because they are aware of the importance of biosecurity. Meanwhile, the participants comment that biosecurity regulations should be flexible and need to consider the contexts of the farms where biosecurity measures are implemented. Finally, government veterinarians are willing to attend biosecurity meetings together with all farm stakeholders, at which the government services could be informed about biosecurity issues on farms. The person who could take on the biosecurity advisory role should be defined, along with further discussion of such matters as the responsibilities of each stakeholder. Government veterinary services need to be considered in studies of biosecurity operations in order to improve their implementation. It is therefore concluded that government veterinarians are seeking to balance their own institutional perspective with that of farmers and veterinarians in the routine implementation of biosecurity measures.

The Role of Quarantine on Post-Mortem Performances of Charolaise Young Bulls

Biosecurity is essential to prevent the spread of diseases in livestock animals such as the bovine respiratory disease which can lead to negative effects on growth performance, and carcass and meat quality, as well as to an increase of antimicrobial use. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of the quarantine on post-mortem performances (hot carcass weight, dressing percentage, pH 60 min after slaughtering, carcass SEUROP conformation, and fat cover) of 576 Charolaise young bulls imported from France and fattened in specialized Italian farms. Approximately half of the animals followed a standard fattening procedure without initial quarantine upon arrival to Italy (NO-QUA) and the other half underwent a 30-day period of quarantine (QUA) since their arrival to the farm. Post-mortem performances and parenteral administration of antimicrobial use were recorded. NO-QUA animals had lower average daily gain and slaughter weight but scored higher for carcass SEUROP evaluation and pH than QUA animals (p < 0.05). NO-QUA received more than double the number of parenteral antimicrobial treatments than QUA animals for respiratory diseases (139 vs. 56). Overall, quarantine applied on-farm contributes to improve post-mortem performances while reducing antimicrobial use in beef production.

Promoting Judicious Antimicrobial Use in Beef Production: The Role of Quarantine

Judicious antimicrobial stewardship in livestock industry is needed to reduce the use of antimicrobials (AMU) and the associated risk of antimicrobial resistance. Biosecurity measures are acknowledged for their role against the spread of diseases and the importance in reducing AMU in different species. However, their effectiveness in beef production has been scarcely considered. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of the quarantine strategy on AMU in beef cattle. A total of 1206 Charolaise animals in five farms were included in the trial. Roughly half of the animals followed the standard procedure of the fattening cycle (no-quarantine; NO-QUA group) and half followed a 30-day period of quarantine (QUA group) since their arrival. Performance and antimicrobial data were recorded and a treatment incidence 100 (TI100it) per animal was calculated. Penicillins was the most used class of antimicrobials. Differences between groups were significant for males only, with NO-QUA group having greater TI100it (3.76 vs. 3.24; p < 0.05) and lower body weight at slaughter (713.4 vs. 723.7 kg; p < 0.05) than QUA group. Results suggest that quarantine strategy can reduce AMU in males without compromising their performance, whereas further investigation is needed for females.

Influence on the implementation of biosecurity measures in dairy cattle farms: Communication between veterinarians and dairy farmers

This study was carried out in two regions in Spain (Catalonia and Galicia) through eight focus groups; four for dairy farmers and four for veterinarians. The results showed that dairy farmers and veterinarians attributed responsibility to one another for not following biosecurity practices. The study brings to light contradictions among veterinarians and certain individual veterinary practices that participated in the study, which lead to doubt and confusion on the part of dairy farmers. Distinct perceptions were also identified of the role that government authorities should play in relation both to training and sanctions as a means of improving biosecurity on dairy farms. Additionally, the participants expressed varying opinions as to whether biosecurity measures ought to be made mandatory or remain voluntary. Results from this study highlight the need to promote initiatives through which distinct stakeholders such as veterinarians, government authorities, and dairy farmers can develop consensus-based messages on the implementation of biosecurity practices.

A risk-based scoring system to quantify biosecurity in cattle production

Farm biosecurity includes all measures preventing pathogens from entering (external) and spreading within a herd (internal) and is important in facilitating the shift from cure to prevention in veterinary medicine. To assess biosecurity on farm level quantitatively an objective measurement process is required. This study describes the development and implementation of risk-based weighted biosecurity evaluation tools for veal, beef and dairy cattle farms. Based on risk factors and biosecurity measures associated with priority cattle diseases and the results of a cross-sectional survey on Belgian farms, questions were selected for the Biocheck-tool. The scoring system consists of three separate questionnaires that contain 69 (veal), 104 (beef) and 124 (dairy) questions. Experts in various fields of veterinary medicine were asked to weigh the different biosecurity categories and questions according to the method of Gore. The system obtained provides biosecurity scores per category (external and internal biosecurity) and subcategory (e.g. purchase, transport, health management). The Biocheck tool was subsequently used in a survey to assess biosecurity in 20 veal, 50 beef and 50 dairy farms. For all production systems, both internal and external biosecurity were considered low, resulting in low mean total biosecurity scores of 39.7 points for veal (SD = 7.4), 44.3 for beef (SD = 8.4), and 48.6 points for dairy farms (SD = 8.1), out of a maximum of 100 points. For all farm types, the scores for internal biosecurity were lower compared to external biosecurity. Veal farms scored significantly lower for "purchase" than beef and dairy, while scoring higher for the other subcategories of external biosecurity. In dairy and beef, "purchase and reproduction" was the highest scoring subcategory. For internal biosecurity, "health management" was particularly low in the three farm types, while subcategories exceeding 50 points were rare. With this tool, implementation of biosecurity on cattle farms can be assessed in a standardized and reproducible manner. This evaluation allows for benchmarking of farms and herd-specific advice for improvements.

Biosecurity practices in Belgian veal calf farming: Level of implementation, attitudes, strengths, weaknesses and constraints

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Biosecurity awareness among veal farmers was very low.

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On average, veal farms were filled in 11.4 days.

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On average, 124 calves originated from 100 farms of origin.

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No difference in biosecurity level could be found between different veal companies.

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Fundamental changes are needed to improve biosecurity regarding introduction of animals.

The shift from cure toward prevention in veterinary medicine involves the implementation of biosecurity. In cattle farming, the application of biosecurity measures has been described to a limited degree, yet no data on biosecurity on veal farms is available. A high degree of commingling of veal calves from multiple farms causes frequent disease outbreaks, and thereby high antimicrobial usage and increased risk of antimicrobial resistance. Therefore, this study aimed to describe the current implementation of biosecurity on veal farms in Belgium. To this extent, a list of the most important calf diseases (n = 34) was created, and risk factors and related biosecurity measures for these diseases were determined and included in a questionnaire. Herd visits and face-to-face interviews were conducted on 20 randomly selected veal farms, comprising 8.3% of the target population. A categorical principal component and clustering analysis were performed to determine the influence of the veal companies on the farms’ biosecurity level. Awareness of biosecurity was very low among the farmers. All farms used an “all-in, all-out” production system with calves originating from multiple farms without quarantine. On average, farms were filled in 11.4 days (range 2–52). The degree of commingling for these farms was 1.24, meaning that, on average, 124 calves originated from 100 farms. Veterinarians wore farm-specific boots on eight farms (40%) and farm-specific clothes on six farms (30%), while technical advisors wore farm-specific boots on six farms (30%) and farm-specific clothes on four farms (20%). Disinfection footbaths were only used in five farms (25%) despite being present in all farms in the sample. Concerning internal biosecurity, none of the farmers isolated sick animals; only one farmer (5%) had a physically separated hospital pen, and only 11 farmers (55%) both cleaned and disinfected the stables after each production cycle. In most farms, animals were of comparable age. Healthy calves generally remained in the same compartment during the entire production cycle, limiting the risks associated with the movement of animals. No influence of the integrations on the biosecurity level could be determined. It can be concluded that a few biosecurity measures, such as “‘all-in, all-out” and compartmentation, are implemented relatively well, while other measures, such as good cleaning and disinfection and proper entrance measures for visitors and personnel can easily be improved. The improvement of measures regarding the introduction of animals of different origins will require more fundamental changes in the veal industry.