Summary The COVID-19 pandemic is associated with a high case fatality rate in some countries even thought the majority of cases are asymptomatic. Scientific studies on this novel virus is limited and there is uncertainty regarding the best practices for death investigations both in terms of detection of the disease as well as autopsy safety. An online survey was conducted to identify how different institutions responded to the screening and management of dead bodies during the early phase of the pandemic from January to May. A questionnaire was developed using Google Forms and data was collected from 14 different forensic and pathological institutions in 9 countries. None of the institutions had performed any screening prior to March. Four institutions stated that screening was done routinely. In total, 322 cases had been screened using RT-PCR, out of which 40 positive cases were detected among four institutions. The commonest types of samples obtained were nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal swabs which also had the highest rates of positivity followed by tracheal swab. Blood, swabs from cut surfaces of lung and lung tissue also gave positive results in some cases. Majority of the positive cases were > 65 years with a history suggestive of respiratory infection and were clinically suspected to have COVID-19 before death. Except for one institution which performed limited dissections, standard autopsies were conducted on all positive cases. Disposal of bodies involved the use of sealed body bags and labelling as COVID positive. Funeral rites were restricted and none of the institutions advocated cremation. There were no reports of disease transmission to those who handled COVID positive bodies.

Public concern on welfare of dairy calves remains low in Sri Lanka. Therefore, a survey was conducted to assess the welfare issues of dairy calf management practices in120 small scale dairy farms (herd size 7.85 ± 3.25: Mean ± SD) in Ratnapura district, Sri Lanka. Farmers were selected by using multistage random sampling technique and data collection was performed by the interview with the farmer using a questionnaire. Analysis was based on descriptive statistics. In 84% of farms, separate calving pen was absent. Cows were not provided bedding materials during calving in 22% of farms. In 16% of farms, disinfection of the new born's navel was not practiced. All the farmers did not concern on colostrum quality, quantity and quickness of feeding. In 53% of farms, calf sheds were in poor condition (slippery floors-13%, floor with obstacles-53%, no side walls-63%, poor condition of roof-20%, no drainage facilities-47%). However, 5% of farmers did not provide shelters for calves. Use of sick pen and provision of exercise yard were not in practiced in all the surveyed farms. In addition, in 44% of farms, calves were not provided grazing or any other exercises. Results indicated that 11% of the farmers did not treat calves for wounds or cuts. Furthermore, 9% of the farmers did not practice deworming and 92% of the farmers did not treat for external parasites. All the farmers did not concern about the quantity and quality of the feeding materials. Disbudding was practiced in 11% of farms without pain relief techniques. In overall, results reveal that there are issues in management practices that need intervention strategies to improve the welfare of dairy calves in the area.

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