Evaluation of dairy goat welfare in different production systems in Tuscany

There is very little published information on goat farming in Tuscany and even less on animal welfare on these farms. Specific evaluation systems on animal welfare for sheep and goats are needed. For this purpose, many research groups have utilised and modified the Animal Needs Index (ANI) 35 L method. In this paper, our research group proposes a new and easy evaluation questionnaire, specifically designed for goat farms, and considers 17 different aspects: seven are related to the goat housing, seven consider the condition of the structure and equipment, and the remaining three are related to animal health. The data was analysed by a one-way general linear model considering, as factors, the production system (organic, biodynamic, conventional), the province where the farms were located and the goat breed. In conclusion, we found important differences pertaining to the goat housing, condition of the structure and equipment and animal health between provinces and reared breeds. Very few differences were found between production systems. Regarding the provinces, the geographical position appears to greatly influence the conditions in which the animals are reared, primarily attributable to cultural and economic reasons. The Alpine breed was shown to be in better condition and the Garfagnina the worst. The questionnaire utilised was able to provide a general and concise idea on the animal welfare level of goat farms in Tuscany.