In order to evaluate the welfare of lambs reared up to 4 months of age in different management systems in
Europe, nine lamb meat farms (3 in Spain, 2 in Portugal, 1 in Germany, 1 in Slovenia and 2 in Italy) belonging to
different production systems (intensive, semi-intensive, semi-extensive, extensive, shepherded) throughout
Europe were visited. The first level welfare assessment according to the AWIN protocol for sheep was used, the
data collection flow being as follows: (1) qualitative behaviour assessment (QBA), social withdrawal, stereotypy,
excessive itching, panting; (2) fleece cleanliness, fleece quality, tail length, faecal soiling, lameness; (3) familiar
human approach; (4) stocking density, access to shade/shelter, water availability; (4) lamb mortality. A great
heterogeneity was observed because the breeds and the productive systems in which the animals have been
raised are very different; only one of the purely extensive farms had no sheds for the animals, whereas the
stocking density in confined animals was always appropriate. The results showed a high degree of compliance
with the needs of the animals, which also corresponded to good productive results, but the objectification of the
emotional state through the QBA yielded highly variable results, those animals reared under intensive and semiintensive
farms grouped around positive descriptors, which may indicate that lambs reared in intensive conditions
show a different and apparently calmer mental state than those reared in very extensive conditions.
To the project EcoLamb (Holistic production to reduce the ecological
footprint of meat), funded by ERA-Net SusAn (project ID 48) through the
Spanish Agencia Estatal de Investigaci´on (PCIN-2017-074); to the
Slovenian Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food for financial support
(Decision n◦ 631–10/2015/7),
