Environmental enrichment is a key aspect of animal welfare and productivity. Enrichment for livestock can be cost effective and used successfully on farm. The benefits generally outweigh any costs of providing enrichment and it should be taken into account when providing housing facilities for farm animals. It also reduces abnormal behaviours commonly seen in production animals, thus decreasing issues associated with poor animal health. The aim of this review is to summarise information and research that highlights the importance of understanding farm animal behaviour and indicates how enrichment will benefit the welfare and productivity of livestock.

Historically, farm animal cognition has not always been considered on commercial enterprises, but it has emerged as an important aspect of managing livestock to enhance welfare and increase productivity. The aim of this review is to summarise literature on the subject of cognition in livestock and discuss techniques to stimulate the minds of animals to enhance welfare practices on farm.

Cattle are social animals, and an understanding of social associations and interactions is an important consideration when managing herds. Knowledge of this can facilitate positive welfare and productivity and it can also help to reduce the spread of disease. Social network analysis (SNA) is a tool that can be used to assess specific social interactions within cattle groups and help determine appropriate management actions in livestock enterprises. The aim of this review is to summarise how SNA can be used to study the social behaviour patterns of dairy cattle and highlight applications for this approach on dairy farms.

The human–animal relationship is a key aspect of managing livestock. Poor stockmanship may lead to negative implications for the health, welfare and productivity of farm animals and could lead to poor job satisfaction for the stockperson. It can also make it potentially difficult for veterinarians and farmers to treat livestock because an animal may associate humans with negative experiences. This review summarises research based on human–animal interactions, discusses its implications for the health and welfare of livestock, and provides suggestions for improving relationships between humans and farm animals.

: An integrated farming system consists of a range of resource-saving practices that aim to achieve acceptable profits, high sustained levels of production and preserving the environment, while minimizing the negative effects of intensive farming. This paper presents insights into integrated farming systems of crops with allied enterprises, implemented in a 0.4 ha upland holding in Vettikavala block, Kollam district, Kerala state. The structural composition, recycling of organic nutrients, nutrient accretions and farm income are quantified demonstrating the technical feasibility and economic viability of the system. Besides facilitating cash income, integrated farming system generates additional employment and minimizes the risk associated with conventional cropping systems. The emphasis has been on optimising resource utilization rather than maximization of individual elements in the system.