RMS FOR DAIRY CATTLE
Below are the Responsible Minimum Standards for dairy cattle.
Mitigation standards
1.1 | ​Tethering is not permitted. |
1.2 | Tie stall systems must not be used. |
1.3 | ​Cubicles must be long enough to prevent cows lying or standing with their back legs in the passageway and wide enough for cows to rise and lie down without colliding with the cubicle. |
1.4 | ​Five percent more usable cubicles than cows must be provided. |
1.5 | ​Calves must not be kept in crates or individual stalls. |
1.6 | Calves may be housed in pairs until 8 weeks of age, but then must be housed in groups. |
Mitigation standards
2.1 | ​Dairy cows must be kept outdoors on suitable pasture during the grass-growing season except when weather conditions make this detrimental for welfare. |
2.2 | ​Indoors, dairy cows and calves must be provided with a comfortable lying surface such as straw or sand. |
2.3 | ​Floors must be neither rough nor too smooth; they must be non-slip. |
Mitigation standards
3.1 | ​Dairy cow feed must not include more than 40% grain. |
3.2 | ​At least 4.5 litres (or 10% of body weight, whichever is greater) of good quality colostrum (50mg/ml of immunoglobulins) must be provided for calves within the first 6 hours after birth, including for those destined for transport, euthanasia or slaughter. |
3.3 | ​All non-suckled calves must receive liquid food daily at least for the first 8 weeks of life. Fibrous food must be provided for each calf over 2 weeks old, and they must receive sufficient dietary iron to maintain a blood hemoglobin level of at least 9g/decilitre. |
Mitigation standards
4.1 | Tail docking is not permitted. |
4.2 | ​The selection of polled cattle (cattle without horns) is greatly preferable to disbudding. |
4.3 | Dehorning is not permitted. |
4.4 | ​Anesthesia and prolonged analgesia must always be used when disbudding, which must be carried out at an early age (by three weeks of age). |
4.5 | ​Udder flaming, a practice that involves passing a flame beneath dairy cows to burn off the hair from their udders, is not permitted. |
Mitigation standards
5.1 | ​Dairy cows should not be bred for excessive milk yield and should be well adapted to the local climatic, nutritional and disease conditions. |
Mitigation standards
6.1 | ​Effective management programs must be in place to minimize mastitis and lameness. |
6.2 | ​Lameness prevalence should be kept below 10%. |
6.3 | Mastitis incidence should be kept below 25 cases per 100 cows per year. |
Mitigation standards
7.1 | ​Land transport time must be limited to a maximum of 8 hours. |
7.2 | ​Dairy cows and calves transported by sea must be accompanied by a veterinarian and must reach their destination within 24 hours. |
7.3 | ​Cull dairy cows are generally vulnerable animals and must be fit for the journey and handled with extra care. |
7.4 | ​Non-ambulatory dairy cows and calves must never be transported, unless to a veterinarian for treatment. |
7.5 | ​Non-ambulatory dairy cows and calves must not be dragged by their limbs, head or tail, and must only be moved if pulled on a purpose-built conveyance such as a cow sled. |
7.6 | ​Low stress handling methods must be used, with no electric prods permitted. |
Mitigation standards
8.1 | Facilities for handling and restraining dairy cows and calves must take into account the size and age of the animals and be designed, constructed and maintained to minimize stress and risk of injury. |
8.2 | ​Dairy cows and calves must be stunned before slaughter using a non-aversive method that causes instantaneous unconsciousness lasting until death. |
8.3 | ​Electroimmobilisation, casting or rotation of dairy cows or calves must not be used. |
Mitigation standards
9.1 | ​Demonstrate compliance with the above standards via annual third-party auditing and annual public reporting on progress towards this commitment. |