Legal framework (laws, regulations, guidelines and recommendations)
With regard to weather protection, there are various requirements, some of which are legally binding, whilst others are to be regarded as recommendations.
National level
In Germany, the Animal Welfare Act (TierSchG, 2020) and the Animal Welfare and Livestock Husbandry Ordinance (TierSchNutztV, 2021) form the legal basis:
- Animal Welfare (Livestock) Ordinance §3(2)(3): “Housing facilities must be equipped in such a way that the animals are afforded sufficient protection from adverse weather conditions, insofar as this is necessary to maintain their health, and that the animals are protected from predators as far as possible; in the case of outdoor access, it is sufficient if the livestock are provided with shelter.”
- Animal Welfare Act §2 No. 1 “Anyone who keeps, cares for or is responsible for the care of an animal (1) must feed, care for and house the animal in a manner appropriate to its species and needs.”
- Animal Welfare Act §1 “No one may cause pain, suffering or harm to an animal without reasonable cause.”
The Animal Welfare (Livestock) Ordinance (2021) and the Animal Welfare Act (2020) are legally binding. The Animal Welfare (Livestock) Ordinance applies only to the keeping of livestock for commercial purposes, whereas the Animal Welfare Act applies to all animals – including those kept for non-commercial purposes (hobby farming) and those kept for landscape conservation and nature development projects.
Guidance is provided at national level, albeit without being legally binding, by the guidelines on year-round outdoor husbandry (TVT Leaflet 85, 2006):
- Year-round grazing for cattle requires protection from the weather.
- Protection against hypothermia is easier to provide than removing excess heat from the body
- The average lying time is assumed to be approximately 10 hours, with cattle being most active during the day.
International level
There is a recommendation at European level:
The Council of Europe Recommendation (EUROPEAN CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF ANIMALS KEEPED FOR FARMING PURPOSES – RECOMMENDATION ON THE KEEPING OF CATTLE, adopted by the Standing Committee at its 17th meeting on 21 November 1988) applies, amongst other things, to all cattle in agricultural livestock farming. In
Article 16 of the Recommendation refers to protection from the weather as follows:
“1. Where cattle are kept outdoors on pastures without natural shelter or shade, artificial shelter from the weather should be provided.
2. Pastures should be selected and managed in such a way as to ensure that grazing animals are not exposed to physical, chemical or other health hazards that the keeper can prevent.”
In addition, there is:
As an example from abroad, an extract from an administrative court ruling in Switzerland may also be cited (Federal Veterinary Office, Switzerland, 2004):
‘…states in its opinion of 5 August 2003 that, at a relative humidity of 70%, as is typical on a hot and dry summer’s day, heat stress for dairy cows begins at an air temperature of approximately 24 °C in the shade. At 29 °C in the shade, a clearly stressful condition is already reached. From 35.5 °C, there is very severe heat stress with an acute risk to life. For cows and calves in suckler cow systems, these temperature figures are applicable with slight upward adjustments.”
Space required for weather protection
There are no legally binding requirements regarding the space required for weather protection for cattle; instead, there are only recommendations, some of which vary considerably.
To obtain guidelines for space requirements for lying in the shade, there are numerous different figures in the literature, some of which focus on the lying area and others on the floor area. Some of these figures go well beyond the requirements stipulated, for example, in organic cattle housing. Taking into account animal welfare, the practicality of implementation and sustainability, the following recommendations have been derived:
Recommendation on space requirements for protection against heat for suckler cows
- At the time of day when heat stress is at its peak (usually in the afternoon), all animals must have access to a shaded area.
- The recommended minimum area per cow in the shade is ideally 4 m², which can be adjusted upwards or downwards depending on herd size, body mass, social behaviour, horn status, etc. For calves, the LAVES (2000) recommendation of 1 m² per animal should be followed.
The following sources were compiled and evaluated to aid decision-making: