Structure of the welfare assessment report for communication with farmers

Assessments of farm animal welfare can be presented to the livestock farmer using a welfare assessment report. The structure of the report depends on the objective of the welfare assessment. Further, the report is an integral part of the welfare assessment process, and it should be able to function as a decision support tool introducing animal welfare considerations on the farm. The report may aim to provide an overview, or an evaluation of prese nt welfare levels in the herd, or detailed data which document the welfare situation. The overview allows priorities to be set among welfare-motivated interventions on the farm. Documentation serves to link conclusions on ani mal welfare to exact observations on the farm regarding the chosen welfare indicators. It thereby enables the farmer to relate to the welfare assessme nt. The evaluation provides a frame of reference and a conclusion as to whe ther the level of animal welfare on the farm is satisfactory. All three ele ments are important to the farmer. A prototype of the welfare assessment re port has therefore been developed presenting overview, evaluation and docum entation in a hierarchical structure. This ensures that the report is reada ble and problem-oriented.