
Assessing Animal Welfare
A Guide to the Valid Use of Indicators of Affective States
Wiley (Publisher)
1st Edition
Will be published approx. on 6. August 2026
Book
Paperback/Softback
352 pages
978-1-394-18219-0 (ISBN)
Description
Praise for Assessing Animal Welfare
"This exciting book addresses the most complex and challenging questions head-on, providing the conceptual tools and empirical benchmarks necessary to stimulate a great leap forwards in animal welfare science."
-Professor Christine Nicol, Royal Veterinary College, UK
"... a very timely book on a subject of emerging and highest importance in animal welfare science... It is written in an easily accessible, yet scholarly thorough language and will therefore be of great interest to anyone concerned about animal welfare, laypeople and scientists alike."
-Professor emeritus Per Jensen, Linkoeping University, Sweden
"Throughout the book it is emphasized that affective states should be studied rigorously before drawing conclusions, and the authors provide guidance through text examples and illustrations on how to achieve this. Overall, this book is a must-read for animal welfare students and researchers regardless of their career stage."
-Dr Irene Camerlink, Polish Academy of Sciences, Poland
"An essential resource that will shape how animal welfare is taught, studied, and interpreted for years to come."
-Dr Carly Moody, UC Davis California, US
"This urgently needed book addresses a core ongoing challenge in animal welfare science: how to validate indicators of animal affective states. It brings together clear explanation of the theoretical background with a comprehensive review of current indicators, to help practitioners choose the best indicator (or set of indicators) for their context. It's accessible even to non-specialists, with effective use of examples and diagrams throughout. An essential resource for anyone working in animal welfare."
-Dr Heather Browning, University of Southampton, UK
"...not just scientifically authoritative but also an unapologetic, elegant, accessible and joyful portrayal of the core work of those dedicated to understanding and improving the welfare of other animals."
-Professor Ngaio Beausoleil, Massey University, New Zealand
"This exciting book addresses the most complex and challenging questions head-on, providing the conceptual tools and empirical benchmarks necessary to stimulate a great leap forwards in animal welfare science."
-Professor Christine Nicol, Royal Veterinary College, UK
"... a very timely book on a subject of emerging and highest importance in animal welfare science... It is written in an easily accessible, yet scholarly thorough language and will therefore be of great interest to anyone concerned about animal welfare, laypeople and scientists alike."
-Professor emeritus Per Jensen, Linkoeping University, Sweden
"Throughout the book it is emphasized that affective states should be studied rigorously before drawing conclusions, and the authors provide guidance through text examples and illustrations on how to achieve this. Overall, this book is a must-read for animal welfare students and researchers regardless of their career stage."
-Dr Irene Camerlink, Polish Academy of Sciences, Poland
"An essential resource that will shape how animal welfare is taught, studied, and interpreted for years to come."
-Dr Carly Moody, UC Davis California, US
"This urgently needed book addresses a core ongoing challenge in animal welfare science: how to validate indicators of animal affective states. It brings together clear explanation of the theoretical background with a comprehensive review of current indicators, to help practitioners choose the best indicator (or set of indicators) for their context. It's accessible even to non-specialists, with effective use of examples and diagrams throughout. An essential resource for anyone working in animal welfare."
-Dr Heather Browning, University of Southampton, UK
"...not just scientifically authoritative but also an unapologetic, elegant, accessible and joyful portrayal of the core work of those dedicated to understanding and improving the welfare of other animals."
-Professor Ngaio Beausoleil, Massey University, New Zealand
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
ISBN-13
978-1-394-18219-0 (9781394182190)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
About the Editors
Professor Georgia J. Mason, Campbell Centre for the Study of Animal Welfare (CCSAW), Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Canada.
Dr Birte L. Nielsen, Research Director, Science for Animal Welfare, United Kingdom.
Professor Michael T. Mendl, Animal Welfare and Behaviour Research Group, Bristol Veterinary School, University of Bristol, Langford House, Langford, United Kingdom.
Professor Georgia J. Mason, Campbell Centre for the Study of Animal Welfare (CCSAW), Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Canada.
Dr Birte L. Nielsen, Research Director, Science for Animal Welfare, United Kingdom.
Professor Michael T. Mendl, Animal Welfare and Behaviour Research Group, Bristol Veterinary School, University of Bristol, Langford House, Langford, United Kingdom.
Author
Campbell Centre for the Study of Animal Welfare (CCSAW), Canada
Universities Federation for Animal Welfare, UK
University of Bristol, UK
Content
1 Animal welfare and affective states
2 Measuring the unmeasurable: the construct validation of affective state indicators
3 Preference and avoidance tests
4 Vocal signals
5 Acute Glucocorticoid Responses
6 Body temperature and heart rate
7 Judgement biases
8 Play behaviour
9 Reactivity to rewards
10 Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and glucocorticoids-to-DHEA(S) ratio
11 Abnormal Repetitive Behaviours
12 Telomere length
13 Hippocampal structural plasticity
14 The importance of construct validation, and (more) tools for valid use of indicators - what have we learned and what is still missing?
2 Measuring the unmeasurable: the construct validation of affective state indicators
3 Preference and avoidance tests
4 Vocal signals
5 Acute Glucocorticoid Responses
6 Body temperature and heart rate
7 Judgement biases
8 Play behaviour
9 Reactivity to rewards
10 Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and glucocorticoids-to-DHEA(S) ratio
11 Abnormal Repetitive Behaviours
12 Telomere length
13 Hippocampal structural plasticity
14 The importance of construct validation, and (more) tools for valid use of indicators - what have we learned and what is still missing?