Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices of Zimbabwean large scale dairy stockpeople towards animal welfare

Abstract Stockpeople involved in day to day handling of animals in Zimbabwe are rarely assessed for their animal welfare knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP). However, given the growing demand for milk and dairy products in Zimbabwe and the increasing global demand for animal products that are produced in an animal welfare friendly environment there is potential benefit of studying the KAP of stockpeople towards the welfare of dairy animals. This cross sectional study was carried out among 75 stockpeople from 31 large-scale dairy farms in Midlands Province, Zimbabwe. Results of this study revealed that, animal welfare KAP among stockpeople from Zimbabwe large-scale dairy farms are low. The KAP study showed low levels of knowledge, negative attitudes and practices that support poor animal welfare. These findings were attributed to the low levels of education among stockpeople and limited training received by stockpeople on animal welfare from agriculture extension service providers in Zimbabwe. It is recommended that further studies be done to find out better and more effective ways of teaching animal welfare concepts and practices. These approaches of teaching animal welfare to stockpeople should take into account the stockpeople’s cultural and education backgrounds.