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Institute of Animal Welfare and Animal Husbandry (ITT)

Research related to tail biting

Department of animal husbandry and behavior / Working group pigs

German Pig-Scoring Key (DSBS)

German researchers developed a joint scoring key for tail and ear lesions in order to make their results more comparable. The key has a tree structure to allow different levels of detailedness depending on the aim of the study. The different levels can be combined for meta-analyses. The document contains the key summary, descriptions of scores and example pictures.

Inventory of tail biting risk assessment systems and practical pig observation information

Many risk assessment systems for tail biting have been developed across Europe but they are hard to find. The same applies to practical instructions for what to look for in your pigs during daily observations. At the same time many people are looking for such information.

The Excel file is an inventory based on information sent to Dr. Sabine Dippel. It is a working document to be updated as needed.