On-farm dispatch methods of goats in the UK - their prevalence and perceived efficacy by stock people 

Year: 2024 

Charlotte Butcher 
Royal Veterinary College, London, UK 

Supervisor: Troy Gibson (Royal Veterinary College, London, United Kingdom) 

HSA Student/Trainee Scholarship 2024 

There are estimated to be around 109,140 goats in the UK, ranging in purposes from meat production to land management. It is estimated that 10% of cull does and up to 50% of kids from the dairy sector are dispatched on-farm; therefore, it is important to establish how humane current practises are to ensure that the welfare of these animals is protected. This study aims to understand where the industry currently stands on the management of cull stock and excess kids, and how this stressor impacts stock people’s mental health. The questionnaire was disseminated by goat societies, vet practises, and via Facebook – ultimately receiving 38 useable responses from UK goat farmers. This study found the most common method to be the use of a firearm or captive bolt gun, predominantly on welfare grounds. The most common reason for on-farm dispatch was the culling of older or unproductive animals. The results showed stock people largely didn’t feel on-farm dispatch negatively impacted their mental health, as it was often seen to be a necessary responsibility to protect animal welfare. It was concluded that there is an opportunity for goat societies and veterinarians to provide more support for on-farm dispatch, such as making efforts to provide further training and improve accessibility to humane methods such as captive bolt guns. Alongside this, large scale production needs to be further explored to understand how management differs from smaller producers.