Genetic selection for production traits has inadvertently created welfare problems in modern livestock breeds, requiring proactive welfare-conscious breeding strategies.
Decades of selection exclusively for production traits have created breeds with biological characteristics that make welfare difficult to achieve. High-yielding dairy cows are in chronic energy deficit during peak lactation, causing metabolic disease. Fast-growing broilers cannot support their own weight comfortably. These are not management problems but genetic ones requiring breeding solutions. Incorporating validated welfare indicators including longevity, health and behaviour into breeding indices is the most fundamental long-term intervention available.