Cattle breeders perception on their knowledge about animal welfare in the South of Brazil

Brazil is the largest beef exporter and 3rd largest producer of milk in the world, and Rio Grande do Sul (RS) state contributes to this result. Thus, farm animal welfare (FAW) is an important issue. The aim of this study was accessing the RS cattle breeders’ perception of their knowledge about FAW and factors that explain it. A questionnaire structured in three sections - owners and farms; herd handling and ambience; animal welfare perception and knowledge – was used. Univariate analysis was performed to select variables to be used in multivariate logistic regression, having as dependent variable the knowledge about FAW – little or a lot. There were 267 valid questionnaires. Knowledge about five freedoms (“Yes, I know”, P = 0.026; coefficient = 1.361), opinion on profitability due to FAW (“Almost always” P = 0.037, coefficient = 1.886; “Always” P = 0.027, coefficient = 1.869) and herd size (“601 – 1000 animals” P = 0.003, coefficient = 2.144; “1001 – 2000 animals” P = 0.008, coefficient = 2.072) were the variables that explain the dependent variable. This result reflects the awareness of RS cattle breeders about FAW, even though to meet the demands of the market.