Development and Implementation of Baseline Welfare Assessment Protocol for Captive Breeding of Wild Ungulate—Punjab Urial (Ovis vignei punjabiensis, Lydekker 1913)

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Current issues concerning animal welfare are receiving remarkable consideration among scientific communities and wildlife conservation organizations. In addition to the ethical and legal grounds of animal welfare, it is important to produce healthy and viable populations in captivity by ensuring optimum welfare. Wild species are reared in captivity but, unlike domestic animals, there is a lack of welfare assessment protocols for these wild species. In the current study, we developed and applied the first baseline welfare assessment protocol for Punjab urial (Ovis vignei punjabiensis). While developing this protocol, we gathered all possible and existing information about the biology and ecology of this species in its natural habitat. Since no welfare assessment protocol and husbandry guidelines exist for this species, we used a welfare assessment protocol for domestic sheep as the base and reference in developing the current protocol for captive Punjab urial. Later, we applied this protocol to three different herds of Punjab urial at two different facilities. Based on the initial results obtained, some areas were found to have shortcomings and recommended for quick corrective measures and improvements. ABSTRACT: To ensure that captive breeding and other associated programs are more robust and sustainable, it is of utmost importance to ensure optimum welfare. Although it is well known that standard welfare is crucial for successful captive breeding, there is still a lack of welfare assessment protocols for wild species. The current study aimed to develop a leading baseline welfare assessment protocol for assessing welfare in captive Punjab urial. This protocol is based on the welfare protocol for domestic sheep from the Welfare Quality(®) project, coupled with all the information obtained from the published literature on the species’ biology and ecology. This protocol consists of 4 principles, 12 criteria, and 31 animal- and resource-based indicators. The protocol was tested and applied to three different herds of Punjab urial at two different facilities. Initial results showed that some areas need to be improved for better captive breeding and management.