Animal Welfare Laboratory

This laboratory provides scientific-technical support in the research on the factors that influence animal welfare and its relationship with the quality of the final product.

Following an approach aimed at the knowledge, assessment and optimization of animal welfare in relation to housing, handling and transport conditions, this laboratory provides the necessary tools for the analysis and evaluation of stress factors that may affect production animals.

For this purpose, equipment is available for the non-invasive monitoring of animal behavior through visual analysis, image capture and processing, applicable to activities such as testing and design of ethological livestock facilities with enriched environment, as well as "anti-stress" products and manipulable material. It also allows various evaluations such as the potential risk of loss of animal welfare in the production environment, the stress levels of livestock during their productive cycle, and the potential risk factors on animal welfare.

The working equipment is as follows:

• Mobile system of 12 digital day/night recording cameras.
• System for visualization of animal behavior videos in the laboratory.

There are also systems for studying cognitive bias in animals for for the study of cognitive variables: "T" Maze and Open Field Test.

For in vivo tests we have experimental livestock facilities belonging to the Animal Experimentation Support Service of the University of Zaragoza.