Animal Welfare Research Group

The primary objective is to provide scientifically based recommendations for increasing sustainability in future Norwegian sheep production - by investigating relationships between simple housing designs, management and stockmanship, and sheep health, welfare, production and economy. Secondary objectives will be addressed in four Work Packages: WP1 will document the impact of simple housing systems and access to outdoor runs on health, welfare and production, and investigate the influence of different housing and management systems and farmers’ work satisfaction on the quality of stockmanship. WP2 will investigate effects of feeding space for pregnant ewes on feed intake, feeding behavior and lamb weight, feed wastage at different feeder designs, the effect of frozen silage at low temperatures, and the effect of space allowance. WP3 will provide more information about indoor lambing systems and effects on lamb survival, growth and labour input. WP4 will evaluate labour requirements and economic returns of simple housing systems and management routines for sheep. 

Project description in Norwegian

Funding

The project is funded by 

• Småfeprogrammet for fjellregionen (the Research and Development Program for Sheepfarming in Mountain Areas, County Governor of Hedmark)
• Animalia (the Norwegian Sheep Health Service at the Norwegian Meat and Poultry Research Center)
• Fondet for forskningsavgift på landbruksprodukter (the Foundation for Research Levy on Agricultural Products )
• Forskningsmidler over jordbruksavtalen ( and the Agricultural Agreement Research Fund)

Local researchers:

Randi Oppermann Moe (Coordinator and PI)

Karianne Muri 

Ane Nødtvedt 

Erik Georg Granquist 

Collaboration: 

Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Knut Bøe

Norwegian Veterinary Institute, Solveig Marie Stubsjøen, Cecilie Mejdell and Annette H. Kampen    

Norwegian Agricultural Economics Research Institute, Ola Flaten

Research and Development Program for Sheepfarming in Mountain Areas, County Governor of Hedmark (Småfeprogrammet for fjellregionen), Jorunn Stubsjøen  

Norwegian Sheep Health Service at the Norwegian Meat and Poultry Research Center (Animalia),  Lisbeth Hektoen  

Bristol University, Clare Phythian

Monash University, Australia, Grahame Coleman 

Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences, Center for the Study of Profession, Per Arne Tufte. 

Articles in English

Simensen et al. Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica 2014, 56:26 Housing and managment effects on reproductive performance

Bøe KE Dønnem I 2015 The effect of frozen grass silage on the feed intake and feeding behavior of pregnant ewes. J. Anim. Sci. 3:4819–4825 doi:10.2527/jas2015-8955

Congress presentations in English

Holmøy, I.H, Muri, K. 2014. Identifying the obstacles for achieving improvements in lamb mortality rates. 65th Annual Meeting of the EAAP. Copenhagen 25.-29. August. Session 03. Challenge programme: Overall assessment of perinatal lamb mortality and strategies to improve lamb survival

Vik, S.G., Homme, T.G., Bøe, K.E., 2014. Electronic feeding stations for ewes. ISAE2014 - 48th Congress of the International Society for Applied Ethology.

Articles and popular scientific dissemination in Norwegian 

Norsk Landbruk 4/2013

Arbeidets Rett Fredag 12. april 2013

Pressemelding februar 2013 

Sau og geit 5/2013

Sau og geit, 1/2014

Bondebladet 2015  Jakter gode og billige sauefjøs

Bøe KE. 2015. Hus og innredninger for sau. Forelesning ved Høgskolen i Nord-Trøndelag. 

Master theses 

Blakstad C. 2015. Preferanse for drikkekar eller drikkenipler hos drektige søyer og vannforbruk hos lakterende søyer. Masteroppgave ved NMBU, IHA. 41 sider.

Øyrehagen O. 2015. Effekt av areal og golvtype på aktivitet og sosial åtferd hjå drektige søyer. Masteroppgave ved NMBU, IHA. 38 sider.