The Welfare of Goats

The Welfare of Goats focuses exclusively on the welfare of goats, which have peculiar behavioural characteristics and needs, and distinct individual personalities. Despite the many differences between goats and sheep, welfare and health issues of small ruminants have often been addressed together.

Readers of this volume are introduced to the goat species, starting from its origin and domestication process, and presentation of its natural behaviour and characteristics, including recent data on goats’ ability to communicate, cognition capabilities and personality. Knowledge of these features is indispensable to allow a welfare-friendly approach to goat management. The authors then address all relevant aspects of goat welfare, covering issues related to housing, feeding, painful procedures and end-of-life management, with special emphasis on welfare challenges in adverse environments. An additional chapter is dedicated to the main health problems that can jeopardize goats’ welfare. Finally, this volume highlights the latest research to on-farm welfare assessment with indicators and protocols for evaluation.

This work will appeal to scholars of animal welfare science and biology, stakeholders in the livestock industry, as well as experts in goat-assisted interventions and pet owners. Video and audio files enrich the reading experience and can also be played from the print book using the free Springer Nature More Media app.

• Exclusive book on goat welfare
• Considers current research trends into animal personality, welfare indicators, and disease aspects
• Free audio and video files to understand communication signals and support welfare assessment

First Edition. 402 Pages. 4 b/w illustrations, 118 illustrations in colour. Published by Publisher Springer Cham. Part of the book series: Animal Welfare (AWNS, volume 25). Each chapter available as PDF.

ISBN: Hardcover: 978-3-031-62181-9, Softcover: 978-3-031-62184-0, eBook: 978-3-031-62182-6

Hardcover: EUR229.99, eBook: EUR128.39