Advancing cattle welfare requires measuring positive welfare states including play behaviour, curiosity, and social bonding alongside traditional health-based metrics.
Traditional cattle welfare assessment focuses primarily on health metrics and absence of negative states. Positive welfare science has identified behavioural indicators of good welfare including play, curiosity, positive social interactions, and approach behaviour toward familiar humans. Herds with genuinely good welfare show more play in young stock, more positive social interactions, and greater human approach willingness. These positive indicators add welfare information beyond health metrics. Welfare certification schemes increasingly incorporate positive welfare assessment alongside disease and injury metrics.