Abstract
Native goat breeds in Serbia has been recognized as an important element of regional agrobiodiversity and play an important role in the safeguarding of cultural and traditional heritage. The aim of this study was to identify the main welfare issues likely to be encountered in extensive goat farming systems with an emphasis on parasitological infections. The study was conducted during the winter season on four small farms of native Balkan and Serbian white goats. For welfare assessment, animal-based indicators from AWIN protocol for goats were used. All fecal samples for parasites were qualitatively and quantitatively examined. The main welfare issues identified were poor hair coat condition (62.79%), dirty and light soiling hindquarters (31.40%), thin body condition score (26.74%), abscesses (19.78%), and udder asymmetry (18.60%). In addition, an important and prevalent welfare problem identified across all farms was parasite infection and weak significant (p < 0.001) correlation between certain parasites (Strongylidae, Moniezia spp., Buxtonella sulcate, and Protostrongylidae) and welfare indicators such as poor hair coat condition and nasal discharge. The results of this study provided the first overview and valuable insight into the impact of extensive systems on the welfare of native goats in the Balcan region.
Highlights
In Serbia, at present, there is very little information as to the welfare of goats
This paper aims to present the first outcomes of data collected in a sample of extensively reared native Balkan and Serbian white goat according to the AWIN protocol, and parasite data, as well as to identify the welfare problems that affect these animals
In the examined feces of goats from four farms, nine endoparasites were identified in the form of coinfections— protozoa (Coccidia and Buxtonella sulcata), nematodes (Strongylidae, Trichuris ovis, Capillaria spp., Dictyocaulus filaria, and Protostrongylidae), cestodes (Moniezia spp.), and trematodes Dicrocoelium lanceolatum with a total prevalence of 100% (86/86) (Table 4)
Summary
In Serbia, at present, there is very little information as to the welfare of goats. Before the Second World War, in the Republic of Serbia, goat breeding had a significant place and was mostly represented as an extensive production, in the hilly, mountainous area [1]. With the adoption of the Law on the Prohibition of Goat Breeding in 1954 [2], goat farming has become forbidden, which negatively influenced the overall size of the goat population in Serbia, as well as the presence of native goat breeds [1]. The goat farming sector in Serbia has been rapidly developing during the last decades. In Serbia, there are 180,000 breeding goats [3]. According to the Institute for Animal Husbandry’s annual report, only 13 smallholder farms with a total of 429 native goat breeds are registered in Serbia today
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