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Animal husbandry

Assessing the welfare state

Nature volume 410, pages 31–32 (2001)Cite this article

Animals kept for human use should surely have conditions that are as conducive to their welfare as possible. A study of captive mink illustrates how animal welfare can be assessed.

Do mink in fur farms suffer if they are denied access to resources such as water for swimming? This seemingly esoteric question encapsulates much of the debate about animal welfare and the conditions in which animals are kept on farms, in laboratories and in zoos. It is also deceptively complicated, as is evident from the item by Mason and colleagues on page 35 of this issue1. The take-home message of their paper, however, is that science can inform argument about animal welfare by providing objective evidence about how animals respond to captivity.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Clinical Veterinary Science, Centre for Behavioural Biology, University of Bristol, Langford House, Langford, BS40 5DU, UK

    Michael Mendl

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  1. Michael Mendl
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Correspondence to Michael Mendl.

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Mendl, M. Assessing the welfare state. Nature 410, 31–32 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1038/35065194

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