The potential benefits of keeping Zebu cattle in silvopastoral systems are well described in tropical regions. In order to obtain information on European breeds of beef cattle (Bos taurus taurus) in temperate climate zones, individual records of body weight and welfare indicators were obtained from 130 beef cattle. These belonged to four herds and were randomly allocated to two contiguous plots: Silvopastoral Systems (SPS) and Open Pastures Systems (OPS). The SPS in this study were areas with exotic trees of Eucalyptus globulus globulus for paper pulp production planted in a 2 × 2 design (two meters between each tree) over diverse, native grasses. The OPS were large open areas with a great diversity of native grasses, herbs, and small plots of trees where the animals could rest and shelter from extreme weather conditions. Over the course of one year, individual body weights and a number of specific animal welfare indicators were measured every 45 days. After a descriptive analysis, a generalized linear mixed model (GLMM) with a Gaussian distribution, with time and system (OPS or SPS) fitted as fixed effects and individuals nested by herd as random intercepts, was used. The results showed that weight gain did not differ between the two systems. None of the animals showed any sign of impaired welfare in either system over the study period. Silvopastoral systems offer animals a sustainable and richer environment that will improves their welfare. The additional income provided by the wood production allows the farmers to maintain their traditional cattle farming lifestyle.

Training and dissemination of good handling practices are key points in reducing animal abuse. Three aspects are considered in the development of education in animal welfare (AW): (1) introduction of AW in curricular education, nevertheless it has not been applied in the Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de la República de Uruguay, up to now; (2) promotion of permanent education for graduates; (3) development of plans for dissemination, follow up, assessment and continuous improvement on AW affairs. Aiming to obtain information about the knowledge of veterinarians on AW during the practice of their professional duties, in September 2016, an on-line questionnaire was sent to the veterinarians who were in the Educación Continua database. The questionnaire had four sections: a general gathering information and three additional sections, one for each veterinarian professional field (large animal's health and production, small animal's health and food industry). From 1,804 questionnaires sent, 388 answers were obtained. There were 69% attended at least one AW course, and 89.9% were willing to attend another AW course. And 63.5% considered the information received to be very useful for their daily activities, 95% considered that AW should be included in the veterinary studies curriculum, while 53.3% declared not having knowledge about the regional animal welfare strategy (RAWS). The majority of the veterinarians considered the acquired knowledge very useful and are eager to obtain more information. It is necessary to keep working to include AW in the veterinary studies curriculum as well as continuing with the diffusion of good practices and AW principles, based on the national and international norms.

Mastitis frequency could be affected by animal and environmental conditions such as dairy cow genetics and feeding strategies. Thus, the objective of this study was to analyze the probability of clinical mastitis and somatic cell count (SCC) for New Zealand (NZ) and North American (NA) Holstein-Friesian cows maintained on two different feeding strategies (pasture or mixed). A total of 120 cows from the experimental dairy farm of the National Agricultural and Livestock Research Institute (INIA, by its Spanish acronym) (Colonia, Uruguay) were grouped into four groups derived from the combination of two feeding strategies: Grass Maximum or Grass Fixed, and two Holstein strains: NZ or NA (n=30). Clinical mastitis and SCC were evaluated monthly during a whole lactation period. There was an interaction between the Holstein strains and parity for clinical mastitis (P=0.04). The NA primiparous cows were the least likely to suffer clinical mastitis (OR: 0.003), while NA multiparous cows were the most likely to show clinical mastitis (OR: 0.12). The NZ cows reported intermediate values of OR (primiparous: 0.082, multiparous: 0.066). Feeding strategies did not affect clinical mastitis or SCC. Similar SCC was found for NZ and NA strains. In conclusion, regardless of the feeding strategy, the probability of clinical mastitis differed by the genetic origin of the Holstein cows. However, this difference was influenced by parity. The SCC was not influenced by the Holstein strain or the feeding strategy.