Domestic Animal Behavior and Well-Being

Dear Colleagues,

Domestic animals play an enormous role in modern society—they are a critical source of food, fiber and labor, they are our companions, protectors, and our source of comfort. Our relationship with domestic species stretches back millennia and, while it has undoubtedly influenced the biological success of the species involved, this relationship does not always benefit the welfare of these animals. Whether pets, livestock, or workers, domestic animals face significant welfare challenges through our impact on their biological function, affective state, and ability to live natural lives. Increasingly over recent decades, it has been recognized that the well-being of domestic species is an ethical imperative and this social concern is driving major advances in the ways we select, manage, and perceive these animals.

We invite original research that identifies welfare issues facing domestic species, that generate new and robust methods for assessing these issues, and which allows us to address them in practice. These topics can include welfare-relevant aspects of selection, animal health, animal management, and welfare assessment within the human-domestic species relationship, as well as methods for measuring the animal’s welfare experience. Additional topics may include the use of behavioral/ethological methods for measuring welfare or interactions between behavior and other aspects of the domestic animal care. This Special Issue will focus particularly on those species that have been shaped by the process of domestication, and will include work focused specifically on companion, working, and farmed animals.

Dr. Matthew Jorgensen
Dr. Jesse Andrew Robbins
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.