Farm Animal Welfare

Cattle Dehorning Welfare and Polled Genetics

Dehorning causes significant acute pain and stress in cattle, and polled genetic alternatives offer a welfare-positive path forward for the industry.

Key Facts

Dehorning is performed on the majority of dairy and some beef cattle globally
Analgesia use remains low despite evidence that it reduces pain significantly
Disbudding of calves is less painful than dehorning adult cattle
Polled (hornless) genetics can eliminate the need for dehorning entirely
Introgression of polled genes into elite breeding lines is technically feasible

Welfare Considerations

Dehorning without pain relief causes unnecessary acute suffering in millions of cattle annually. Transitioning to polled genetics eliminates this welfare issue entirely, representing one of the clearest examples of technology-enabled welfare improvement.

What You Can Do

Advocate for mandatory analgesia during all dehorning and disbudding procedures
Support research programs developing polled genetics in dairy breeds
Choose dairy products from farms committed to polled genetics transition