There is a great international need for reliable systems for assessing the animal welfare of husbandry systems at the operational level. However, there is currently no consensus among experts working in this field in Europe as to which parameters are most suitable for assessing animal welfare.

The assessment can be carried out using parameters related to the husbandry environment (stable construction details, stable climate, management and care), using animal-related parameters (behavior, health) or a combination of both. The decisive factors for selecting criteria are their reliability, validity and feasibility.

The animal welfare index TGI 35 L, developed in Austria, has proven to be a practical and accurate instrument for assessing animal welfare at a company level. Initial research results are also already available on validity. However, there is a need to further validate these results on a broader database and to examine individual aspects in more detail.

The aim of this project is therefore to compare the evaluation results of the animal welfare index TGI 35 L on the animal welfare of husbandry systems with ethological and animal health parameters. From this it can be deduced whether the TGI 35 L allows a clear statement to be made about the animal welfare of a husbandry system, which forms the basis for the well-being of the animals living there.