Our Services

Schedule a consultation to redefine livestock welfare impact. Embrace our approach to change, prioritising innovative solutions and impact over research papers and outcomes.

Towards safeguarding our livestock and the people that support it.

How to Work with Us

Researchers

If you are keen on applied research in animal and/or human welfare then please arrange a call and we can explore how your capability aligns to our research strategy.

Commercial and Industry

If you have a problem to be solved or need an expert to support then please contact us.

Our Key Solutions

Individuals

If you want to join our technical support network then please contact us to grow the impact.

Our current focus is livestock transport and slaughter and so our current solutions are focused on monitoring risks (with AI) and driving change (Training). If you have a solution in this space then we are keen to increase our capabilities.

Argus: Abattoir monitoring using AI with CCTV and Sensors

Commercially ready AI system ready to be implemented into your business to support identification and tracking of animal welfare risks.

Various pricing models are available and detections can be customs designed based off business priorities and risks.

Training - Slaughter and Euthanasia

Should your staff or researchers be performing training on euthansia and slaughter?

Do you need Emergency Animal Disease (EAD) response training?

Or euthansia training for your staff or students to make sure they are using the right tools in the right way?

Business Support

We work with businesses to provide support for facility design, flow, and operating procedures to ensure that are optimised and compliant.

We ideally like to work with businesses over an extended period as we know how long change takes to embed. But we are also open to short projects and business risk assessments.

Our Actual Work

  • We have deployed commercial AI systems into two abattoirs in Australia. One cattle abattoir and one mixed small stock (sheep, goat, calf) abattoir.

    Impact: One abattoir implemented significant structural changes to the facliity including changes to drafting and restraint setups.

    Future Impact: The incident management database within the system should improve record keeping and demonstration of change.

    The system has the capability of also being implemented in pig abattoirs, especially to monitor handling from staff and where interventions would be most valuable.

  • Cedar Meats in Victoria were impacted heavily by reports by activists and hidden cameras from The Transparency Project.

    We meet on a weekly basis to discuss issues in the facility, provide guidence on procedures and to support behaviour change.

    Impact: Our work with them has resulted in improvements to infrastructure, addressing issues at unloading, and entry to the V-restraint.

    We have introduced electrical and mechanical stunning training models. The electrical stunning model is used at the start of each day as a way to calebrate the staff and to test the stunner is working.

    There has been a significant shift in practices at the facility from staff needing to react to audits, to good husbandry attitudes and procedures being standard.

  • We have been working with WOAH (formerly the OIE) to develop a self-assessment and monitoring tool that enables member countries to evaluate their implementation of WOAH standards for animal transport.

    Our team has been leading efforts to review the methodological approach, refine the assessment questionnaire, and design a data analysis framework that supports evidence-based insights, gap identification, and progress tracking for veterinary authorities across Europe.

  • We are working with Livecorp on their open innovation pipeline.

    This involves and Agile process to understand key problems in the supply chain and bring commercial solutions through the journey to viable solutions.

    The work has just begun so watch this space for impact.

  • Impetus Animal Welfare is proud to have supplied several 3D printed model cattle heads to Murdoch University’s veterinary school, providing vital hands-on training for 3rd-year students in the use of captive bolt devices. This initiative offers a unique and essential exposure to captive bolt application—an experience many production animal veterinarians wish they had before entering practice.

    The training has already yielded valuable insights, and we look forward to enhancing their skills further with the integration of a innovative new sensor version of the device.

    This program not only benefits veterinary students but also creates a crucial training opportunity for abattoirs, government agencies, researchers, and farms—allowing them to maintain proficiency in this important procedure, even if required only periodically, ensuring it’s always performed with precision and care.

Research Opportunities

  • Our Research Strategy focuses on Farm Animals and is designed to be Impact measured and applied.

    Our focus areas are currently in the abattoir and during transport for all species.

    In abattoirs we are interested in AI monitoring, alternative stunning technologies or improved application of existing technology to improve re-stun rates, improve stunning options for halal slaughter and for non-gas stunning of pigs.

    Transport is a key element of the supply chain and is a neglected intermediary that can improve outcomes for fit-for-journey (load) and performance of livestock in general. With an impact lens (what can we change and for how much) we invest in research that can improve performance before, during, and after the journey.

    See our Research Strategy here.

  • This research project aims to investigate cattle lameness associated with sea transport, encompassing the preparation phase, the journey itself, and the post-arrival period. By examining the causes of lameness, evaluating existing treatments, and recommending preventative measures and treatment options the study seeks to identify effective interventions. The project will clearly define the return on investment (ROI) for both treatment and prevention strategies, providing actionable insights to improve animal welfare and operational efficiency during sea transport.

  • The prevalent practice of using CO2 gas for stunning pigs prior to slaughter has raised significant animal welfare concerns and posed safety challenges for workers. This research project aims to identify and evaluate alternative stunning methods that can reduce animal distress and enhance welfare standards without compromising efficiency or safety.

    In addition to exploring traditional alternative stunning methods, this project will pioneer the investigation of remote stunning technologies that utilize advanced facial landmark recognition to identify key anatomical points on pigs. These technologies will enable precise, non-contact, and remotely administered stunning, significantly improving animal welfare by minimizing handling stress and reducing the risk of improper stunning.

    Complementing these efforts, the project will also investigate handling techniques critical to the stunning process, seeking to optimize comfort and minimize stress for pigs. Through a comprehensive assessment of innovative technologies—including remote facial landmark-based stunning—and refined handling protocols, this initiative aspires to pave the way toward more humane and practical solutions for the pig industry.

  • The extension of existing monitoring technologies through the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) presents a significant research opportunity in the domain of risk identification and assessment within businesses. By leveraging AI’s ability to analyse vast quantities of data in real time, businesses can enhance their monitoring systems beyond traditional capabilities, enabling proactive detection of emerging threats and vulnerabilities. This integration has the potential to transform static surveillance into dynamic, predictive frameworks that not only identify risks but also evaluate their potential impact with unprecedented accuracy.

    Investigating the development and optimisation of such AI-augmented monitoring solutions can pave the way for more resilient, adaptive business environments, ultimately improving decision-making processes and safeguarding organisational assets.

  • The relationship between human health and welfare and high-impact industries such as abattoirs is complex and multifaceted. Workers in these sectors often face unique occupational hazards that can lead to both acute and chronic physical and psychological trauma.

    Understanding this interrelationship is critical for developing effective support mechanisms that enhance wellbeing, reduce harm, and promote sustainable industry practices.

  • The project utilises advanced training tools equipped with precision sensors to measure stun position accuracy during training. This can then be correlated to accuracy in live operational use.

    By collecting real-time data on the placement of stuns, these devices enable targeted feedback and tailored training for operators. Early results in demonstrate a significant improvement in stun efficiency, reducing animal distress and enhancing welfare outcomes. The integration of these measurement tools supports ongoing competency development and promotes best practice standards across the industry.

    The research will demonstrate the ROI for use of the tools and impact to the animal welfare metric -restun rate.

  • The exploration of novel waveforms for electrical stunning in goats presents a valuable opportunity to enhance halal compliance by reliably demonstrating rapid return to consciousness post-stunning, ensuring the process aligns with religious requirements. This research also aims to minimise stress and improve overall meat quality by optimising stunning parameters, reducing physical damage to muscle tissue.

    Advancing electrical stunning technology through innovative waveform design holds significant potential to balance animal welfare, halal criteria, and product excellence, setting new standards for ethical and sustainable goat meat production.

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