[Review of nutritional conditions of horses and cattle as a tool in veterinary services animal welfare procedures].

Given the importance of animal welfare, this research explores the use and value of evaluating the nutritional status of farm animals, specifically horses and cattle, to ensure their well-being. The study particularly focuses on undernutrition, its impacts on important functions such as the immune system, and the effectiveness of using body fat measurements in assessing nutritional status.

Understanding Undernutrition in Farm Animals

• Undernutrition in farm animals such as cows and horses is a critical concern for veterinarians given its extensive impacts on the overall well-being of these animals. This includes the mobilisation of body fat and protein to compensate for a lack of nutrient and energy supply.
• Protein depletion significantly affects several essential functions in animals, including their immune system and respiratory functions. As such, a prolonged state of undernutrition can have severe health implications.
• While undernutrition is often categorized as a form of stress, standard parameters for stress-related reactions do not provide sufficient information to effectively evaluate undernutrition in farm animals.

Assessing Nutritional Status through Body Fat Measurements

• The research suggests that the measurement of body fat is a suitable tool for assessing the nutritional status of animals. This is because processes related to reproduction in animals are extremely sensitive to a decrease in body fat. This vulnerability remains, despite reproduction being comparatively less energy costly than other processes like exercise or milk production.
• Body fat measurements can help quantify the degree of undernutrition in an animal. They also help determine if an animal’s condition aligns with the standards of animal welfare.
• However, using sonographic methods to measure body fat requires specialized equipment and expertise, which may not always be readily available to the veterinarians responsible for overseeing animal husbandry.

Alternative Body Condition Scoring System

• In the absence of sonographic tools, veterinarians can use visual and manual procedures to assess body fat. These procedures involve scrutinizing specific areas of the animal’s body associated with back fat thickness, a method commonly referred to as the body condition scoring system.
• This system, defined for cows, sheep, and horses, has been tested for accuracy and reproducibility, and is found to be a precise method for evaluating the body fat, and consequently, the nutritional status of an animal.
• The practicality and effectiveness of this method facilitate its use among veterinarians responsible for animal welfare control in various husbandry settings.