Determination of Dairy Cattle Euthanasia Criteria and Analysis of Barriers to Humane Euthanasia in the United States: Dairy Producer Surveys and Focus Groups

Abstract

There are currently no clear guidelines in the US and some other countries regarding euthanasia decision making timelines for dairy cattle that become injured or ill to the extent that recovery is unlikely or impossible. Our study aimed to identify decision making criteria and the most common factors considered when making and carrying out euthanasia decisions. Dairy producers were recruited to participate in a mailed survey (Part I, 307 completed surveys were returned) or in one of three focus groups (Part II, 8–10 producers/group, n = 24). Part I (survey): Farm owners were most commonly responsible for on-farm euthanasia and most respondents would treat and monitor compromised cattle for a majority of 15 health conditions. Responses were highly variable; for example, 6.3% and 11.7% of respondents would never euthanize a non-ambulatory cow or calf, respectively. Part II (focus groups): Three main themes (animal, human, and farm operation) were identified from discussion which focused primarily on animal welfare (16% of the discussion) and human psychology (16%). Participants expressed a desire to eliminate animal suffering by euthanizing, alongside a wide range of emotional states. Development of specific standards for euthanasia is a critical next step and more research is needed to understand the human emotions surrounding euthanasia decision making.

Determination of Dairy Cattle Euthanasia Criteria and Analysis of Barriers to Humane Euthanasia in the United States: The Veterinarian Perspective

“…Veterinarians serve as experts in animal husbandry and disease for livestock producers and play a critical role in training caretakers. In the United States (US) dairy industry, veterinarians are often responsible for training caretakers on euthanasia and assist on-farm with developing euthanasia protocols to ensure timeliness to minimize animal suffering [ 1 ]. However, timely euthanasia remains a challenge for dairy farms.…”

Preliminary Exploration of Swine Veterinarian Perspectives of On-Farm Euthanasia

“…Wagner et al [ 23 ] reported similar findings with dairy veterinarians; 68.9% of study participants indicated that someone other than themselves performed the majority of euthanasias on the dairy operations where they served as veterinarians. A study focusing on dairy producer perspectives on euthanasia reported that approximately a third of participants indicated consulting a veterinarian on euthanasia decisions, substantially more than was reported in the current study [ 2 ].…”

“…When asked what resources the survey respondents used to determine method of euthanasia, many of these aforementioned organizations and materials were identified, indicating that these resources are likely readily available to veterinarians. Past studies exploring caretaker and veterinary perspectives regarding euthanasia in various livestock industries have all identified the importance of euthanasia training [ 2 , 22 , 23 , 27 ]. Training, in general, is important to employee success [ 43 ] and positive interactions on-farm between animals and the caretakers, particularly when talking about a challenging task such as euthanasia, and can truly impact caretakers’ job satisfaction [ 44 ].…”

“…Interestingly, despite the strong message across studies that euthanasia training is needed on livestock production facilities [ 2 , 29 , 43 , 47 ], in all the recommendations there is rarely a direct suggestion that the euthanasia training should include mental health awareness. As has been mentioned, even if individuals appreciate the importance of euthanasia as a tool to alleviate animal suffering, which most do, actually performing the job can be stressful.…”

“…Euthanasia is a critical component of on-farm management used as a means to alleviate suffering of diseased or injured pigs that have little chance of recovery [ 1 ]. Veterinarians play a crucial role in the development of on-farm euthanasia standard operating procedures that are adopted and implemented on-farm by caretakers [ 2 ]. In accordance with the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Guidelines for Euthanasia of Animals , it is the veterinarian’s duty to put the animal’s best interest and welfare at the forefront when making euthanasia decisions and to ensure techniques chosen induce death rapidly and painlessly [ 3 ].…”