International congress on behavior, animal husbandry and animal well-being in Vienna

For its 46th Congress, the International Society for Applied Ethology (ISAE) is coming to Vienna. International experts will come together at the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna (Vetmeduni Vienna) from 31 July to 4 August 2012 to exchange knowledge and opinions on the latest developments regarding the behaviour and well-being of animals kept by man. The general theme this year is the quality of life of animals in man-made surroundings: domestic and laboratory animals, as well as pets and animals kept in captivity, all live under conditions that are more or less restricted.

Considering the animals' needs

Consumers are increasingly demanding that animals used for food production are kept under appropriate conditions. There is a widespread belief that farm animals are kept outdoors in the summer but many farm animals spend their entire lives inside. And many pets rarely or never leave their owners' houses or flats. Zoo animals are often kept in complicated open-air enclosures but even so their lives are dramatically different from how they would be in the wild. At the ISAE 2012, international experts will discuss how stables, animal enclosures and other facilities in which animals are kept can be arranged to meet best the needs of the animals that live there, enabling them to have positive feelings about their surroundings and to experience positive emotions.

A broad range of topics

The long list of topics to be covered at the 46th ISAE Congress will include how accommodation for animals can be designed and managed to promote the animals' well-being and quality of life; the part played by access to open areas; how animal well-being is reflected in animal behaviour; the contribution to well-being by (positive) social interactions between animals as well as the relationship to human keepers; and the roles of experiences during individual development and of genes and epigenetic effects in animal well-being.

The 2012 ISAE Congress is being organized jointly by the Institute of Animal Husbandry and Animal Welfare of the Vetmeduni Vienna and the Division of Livestock Science at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU).

More information:
isae2012.com/

Provided by University of Veterinary Medicine -- Vienna