Susanne Siegmann

Project Title: Improving the welfare of unweaned dairy calves undergoing long-distance transport

Overview: The aim of Susanne’s PhD project is to investigate strategies that may improve the welfare of unweaned dairy calves during and following long-distance transport.

Livestock transport, especially of young animals, is a topic of growing public concern due to its many challenges to animal welfare. Ireland exports around 140,000 unweaned dairy calves to continental Europe for veal and beef production annually. These long-distance journeys via ferry and road include extended fasting periods and cause calves to experience stress, exhaustion, dehydration, and hunger, which also makes them vulnerable to infectious diseases. During her PhD, Susanne will assess how different pre- and post-transport feeding protocols and the age at which calves are transported affect calf welfare by monitoring various physiological, immunological, and health-based parameters on commercial shipments from Ireland to the Netherlands.

Susanne obtained a BSc in Biology from the University of Vienna and then went on to study Human-Animal Interaction at the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna. She has conducted research on the behaviour of various animal species in laboratory (pet dogs) and farm settings (pigs), zoos (naked mole-rats), and in the wild (Damaraland mole-rats). She also has expertise in genetic analyses (molecular sex identification, qPCR, DNA barcoding).

Programme Area: Animal & Bioscience

Supervisors: Muireann Conneely, Kees van Reenen and Eddie Bokkers

Location: Animal & Grassland Research and Innovation Centre, Moorepark, Fermoy

Funding Source: Teagasc