Welfare assessment of entire males and females on pig farms

Raising entire males is considered as one of the alternatives to the surgical castration without anaesthesia. Slaughter weights are usually lower in countries that already produce such animals (Spain , UK) and there is a lack of information regarding animal welfare for entire malesthat may be slaughtered later (115 kg live weight). Therefore, the welfare of entire males and females was assessed on farms from two countries that differ by their type of production: Spain and France