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In the Alps, the traditional breeding system for dairyc attle is based on the alternation between af ree-ranging period on mountain ranges during the summer, and an indoor period in tie-stalls in the winter. Severalwelfare issues mayarise in tiestall housing systems.W ed escribe the situation in 47 farmsi nt hree villages in westernI taly,t rying to identify possible relationships among structural and management characteristics, animal health and behaviour traits. Along duration of the grazing period, associated with frequent manure removal during the housing period, are probably key factorsf or limiting the occurrence of lameness. Te at trauma is more common in narrower stalls.G etting-up behaviour is unnatural in most of the visited farms. Some lack in the farmers' knowledge of animal behaviour was noted. Some structural and management characteristics are strictly related to geographical constraints. However, circumstances permitting,some expedients may be achieved for improving welfare levels.

Milano and ASL Provincia di Cremona, Italy). A descriptive analysis of welfare indicators measured on Italian dairy farms: preliminary results. Acta Agric. Scand., Sect. A, Animal Sci. Supplementum 30: 69-72, 2001. © 2001 Taylor & Francis.The aim of this work was to evaluate the possibility of introducing in Italy a system for assessing animal welfare at farm level. For this purpose a questionnaire on the environmental characteristics of dairy farms and the reactions of cattle was prepared and submitted to 220 dairy farms. The data were obtained from interviews with farmers and from veterinarians' direct observations of the animals' reactions and farm structures. Preliminary data show that on the majority of the farms the animals were calm in the presence of the stockman and had no negative reactions relating to the presence of unfamiliar man. However, it is interesting to note the rapid turnover of milking personnel in 66% of the farms. Regarding abnormal behaviour, intersuckling in cows was detected on less than 20% of farms. This study, the rst done at diary farm level in Italy, is a rst step towards nding a tool for veterinarians and farmers to assess dairy cow welfare.

On-farm welfare-assessment protocols should be based on valid, reliable and feasible indicators which reflect the animal's state in the context of the housing and management system. This paper focuses on the selection of parameters for cattle and buffalo from welfare research, from assessment protocols used in different European countries and from the literature. Three groups of parameters are described: (1) parameters which can readily be included, such as lameness, injuries, body condition score, cleanliness, getting up/lying down behaviour, agonistic social behaviour, oral abnormal behaviours, human behaviour toward the animals and measures of the animal-human relationship; (2) parameters which require more information on reliability, such as indicators of good welfare and housing factors; and (3) parameters which are regarded as important but so far lack reliability in most countries, such as the incidence of clinical diseases and mortality.