Currently, Hispanic and Latino caretakers makeup 17.2% of the total animal production and aquaculture workforce in the United States (U.S.). Yet, little is known about swine euthanasia attitudes between male and female caretakers. The objective of this project was to investigate if there were euthanasia attitudinal differences between male and female swine caretakers on a TN-visa from Mexico working on a commercial sow farm. An online Qualtrics survey was delivered in Spanish language and completed by 32 participants (16 males and 16 females). Eligible respondents were swine caretakers on a Trade NAFTA (TN) visa who spoke and read Spanish as their first language. Results will be presented descriptively. Caretaker mean average age was 32 yr (range 24 to 53 yr), and 97% had received a higher education, with 62% never euthanizing an animal prior to working with pigs. Average time living in the U.S. was 2.8 yr. Regardless of caretaker sex, all caretakers reported being confident, knowledgeable, could make decisions, and were comfortable in performing euthanasia. Furthermore, there were no differences when euthanasia was being considered for an adult pig versus a neonatal piglet. In conclusion, these results suggest pigs and piglets are likely to receive timely and humane euthanasia to alleviate suffering on-farm by male and female swine caretakers on a TN-visa from Mexico.
Caretaker turnover rates and labor shortages plaguethe United States (U.S.) swine industry. In order to meet labor needs,producers may seek out qualified migrant workers through visas. Therefore, theobjective was to investigate Spanish-speaking TN-visa caretaker demographicsand swine euthanasia attitudes on a commercial sow farm.An online Qualtrics Spanish survey wasdelivered and completed by 28 caretakers. Results will be presenteddescriptively. The majorityof respondents were male and 30 yr old or under. All caretakers were fromMexico and held a master’s or professional degree. Average residency in theU.S. was ~2 years. The majority of caretakers indicated comfort in performingeuthanasia. Additionally, caretakers did not have trouble deciding to when toeuthanize diseased pigs or piglets and did not delay euthanizing pigs andpiglets. Finally, most caretakers did not feel badly about conductingeuthanasia, but many indicated dissociating from the pig or piglet feelingsprior to euthanasia. Overall, it was encouraging that Mexican caretakers on aTN visa did not differentiate between making euthanasia decisions between adultpigs and piglets. Hence, all pigs should receive timely euthanasia to alleviatesuffering on-farm.
Hispanic and Latino workers represent a growing sector of the swine industry, yet their attitudes euthanasia remain unclear. The objective was to investigate how Mexican TN visa caretaker age affects their euthanasia attitudes. Forty caretakers from a single swine company were enrolled and allocated to 1 of 2 treatments; ≤30 yr (n = 20) and >30 yr (n = 20). All completed a 47-question online survey in Spanish. Demographic questions included age, sex, highest educational degree earned, and euthanasia experience. Non-demographic questions were ranked on a 5-point Likert scale (1 = Strongly Disagree to 5 = Strongly Agree). Questions were categorized into 4 groups (a) confidence defined as knowing a pig is unlikely to recover, and can identify what is wrong (b) knowledge defined as having the skills to care for a ill or injured pig before euthanasia, and knowing how to complete euthanasia (c) decision defined as their thought process that results in a timely euthanasia treatment option and, (d) comfort defined as their feelings towards conducting euthanasia and how they cope afterwards. Furthermore, questions were delineated into adult pig and piglet. A total of 25 male (63%) and 15 female (38%) caretakers completed the survey, 99% had higher education, with 55% never euthanizing an animal prior to working with pigs. Median caretaker responses indicated that they were confident (≤30 yr 4.1 pig/4.0 piglet; >30 yr 4.0 pig/piglet), had knowledge (≤30 yr 3.0 pig and piglet; >30 yr 3.0 pig and piglet), could make timely euthanasia decisions (3.33 for both ages and pig types) and were comfortable performing and coping with euthanasia (≤30 3.08 and >30 3.17 pig; ≤30 3.10 and >30 3.20 piglet). In conclusion, for Mexican TN visa holders, age does not affect their attitude towards euthanasia, which was positive. This is encouraging because their actions will support swine welfare.
Hispanic and Latino workers represent a growing sector of the swine industry, yet their attitudes on euthanasia remain unclear. The objective was to investigate how euthanasia attitudes differ between male and female Mexican TN visa caretakers. A total of 32 (16 male and 16 female) caretakers from a single swine company were enrolled. All completed a 31-question online survey in Spanish. Demographic questions included age, sex, highest educational degree earned, and euthanasia experience. Non-demographic questions were ranked on a 5-point Likert scale (1 = Strongly Disagree to 5 = Strongly Agree). Questions were categorized into 4 groups (a) confidence defined as knowing a pig is unlikely to recover, and can identify what is wrong (b) knowledge defined as having the skills to care for a ill or injured pig before euthanasia, and knowing how to complete euthanasia (c) decision defined as their thought process that results in a timely euthanasia treatment option and, (d) comfort defined as their feelings towards conducting euthanasia and how they cope afterwards. Furthermore, questions were delineated into adult pig and piglet. Caretaker mean average age was 32 yr (range 24 to 53 yr), and 99% had received a higher education, with 63% never euthanizing an animal prior to working with pigs. Median caretaker responses indicated that they were confident for both pigs and piglets (Male 4.25; Female 4.13), had knowledge (Male 3.34; Female 3.17), could make timely euthanasia decisions (Male 3.33; Female 3.33) and were comfortable performing and coping with euthanasia (Male 3.08 pigs/3.14 piglets; Female 3.17 pigs/3.40 piglets). In conclusion, for Mexican TN visa holders, being male or female does not affect their attitude towards euthanasia, which was positive. This is encouraging because their actions will support swine welfare.
and Implications Currently, Hispanic and Latino caretakers make up 17.2% of the total animal production and aquaculture workforce in the United States (U.S.). Yet, little is known about swine euthanasia attitudes as it relates to age demographics. The objective of this project was to investigate if there were euthanasia attitudinal differences between ≤ 30 years and > 30 years swine caretakers on a Trade NAFTA (TN)-visa from Mexico working on a commercial sow farm. An online Qualtrics survey was delivered in Spanish language and completed by 40 caretakers (n= 20 ≤ 30 years and n = 20 > 30 years). Eligible respondents were swine caretakers on a TN visa and who spoke and read Spanish as their first language. Results will be presented descriptively. The majority of caretakers were male (63%), and 97.5% had received a higher education, with 55% never euthanizing an animal prior to this job. Average residency in the U.S. was 3.1 years. Regardless of caretaker age, all reported to being confident, knowledgeable, could make decisions, and were comfortable in performing euthanasia. Furthermore, there were no differences when euthanasia was being considered on an adult pig versus a neonatal piglet. In conclusion, these results suggest pigs and piglets are likely to receive timely and humane euthanasia to alleviate suffering on-farm regardless of caretaker age that are on a TN-visa from Mexico.
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