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Animal Science and Veterinary

D-Index
36
Citations
4352
World Ranking
1640
National Ranking
135

Overview

Niamh O'Connell is affiliated with Queen's University Belfast in the United Kingdom. Their research focuses primarily on Agricultural and Biological Sciences and Veterinary fields, with substantial work in related subfields such as Animal Science and Zoology, Small Animals, Agronomy and Crop Science, Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health, and General Health Professions.

The main topics covered in their work include Animal Behavior and Welfare Studies, Animal Nutrition and Physiology, Obesity, Physical Activity, and Diet, School Health and Nursing Education, Livestock and Poultry Management, Meat and Animal Product Quality, and Effects of Environmental Stressors on Livestock.

Frequent publication venues for O'Connell's research include Proceedings of The Nutrition Society, Applied Animal Behaviour Science, Animals, PLoS ONE, and the Irish Journal of Agricultural and Food Research.

Notable recent papers authored by O'Connell or in collaboration include:

  • Food environment intervention improves food knowledge, wellbeing and dietary habits in primary school children: Project Daire, a randomised-controlled, factorial design cluster trial (2021), International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity
  • A comparison of fast growing broiler chickens with a slower-growing breed type reared on Higher Welfare commercial farms (2021), PLoS ONE
  • Automated detection and quantification of contact behaviour in pigs using deep learning (2022), Biosystems Engineering
  • A computer vision approach to monitor activity in commercial broiler chickens using trajectory-based clustering analysis (2024), Computers and Electronics in Agriculture
  • Investigating optimal levels of platform perch provision for windowed broiler housing (2020), Applied Animal Behaviour Science

O'Connell frequently collaborates with researchers including Sarah Brennan, Fiona Lavelle, Sarah E. Moore, Michelle C. McKinley, and Patrick McCole.

Best Publications

  • Influence of environmental enrichment on the behaviour, performance and meat quality of domestic pigs

    V.E. Beattie;Niamh O'Connell;Bruce Moss

  • Review: welfare of dairy cows in continuously housed and pasture-based production systems

    Ga. Arnott;C. P. Ferris;N. E. O'Connell

  • Responses of calves to acute stress: individual consistency and relations between behavioral and physiological measures.

    Cornelis G. Van Reenen;Niamh E. O'Connell;Jozef T.N. Van der Werf;S. Mechiel Korte

  • Influence of environmental enrichment on welfare-related behavioural and physiological parameters in growing pigs

    V.E. Beattie;Niamh O'Connell;D.J. Kilpatrick;B.W. Moss

  • Heritability of clinical tail-biting and its relation to performance traits.

    K. Breuer;K. Breuer;M.E.M. Sutcliffe;J.T. Mercer;K.A. Rance;K.A. Rance

  • Intestinal microbiota profiles associated with low and high residual feed intake in chickens across two geographical locations.

    Sina-Catherine Siegerstetter;Stephan Schmitz-Esser;Elizabeth Magowan;Stefanie Urimare Wetzels

  • Does housing nulliparous dairy cows with multiparous animals prior to calving influence welfare- and production-related parameters after calving?

    Alastair R. Boyle;Conrad P. Ferris;Niamh E. O’Connell

  • Influence of the provision of natural light and straw bales on activity levels and leg health in commercial broiler chickens.

    C. L. Bailie;M. E. E. Ball;N. E. O'Connell

  • Evaluating the prevalence of tail biting and carcase condemnations in slaughter pigs in the Republic and Northern Ireland, and the potential of abattoir meat inspection as a welfare surveillance tool

    Sarah Harley;Simon More;Niamh O'Connell;Alison Hanlon

  • Factors identifying pigs predisposed to tail biting

    V. E. Beattie;K. Breuer;N. E. O'Connell;I. A. Sneddon

  • Docking the value of pigmeat? Prevalence and financial implications of welfare lesions in Irish slaughter pigs.

    S. Harley;L.A. Boyle;N. E. O'Connell;S. J. More

  • Influence of environmental enrichment on aggressive behaviour and dominance relationships in growing pigs

    Niamh O'Connell

  • Do pigs form preferential associations

    J.L. Durrell;I.A. Sneddon;N.E. O’Connell;H. Whitehead

  • Influence of social status on the welfare of sows in static and dynamic groups

    Niamh O'Connell;V.E. Beattie;B.W. Moss

  • Fecal Microbiota Transplant From Highly Feed Efficient Donors Affects Cecal Physiology and Microbiota in Low- and High-Feed Efficient Chickens.

    Barbara U. Metzler-Zebeli;Sina-Catherine Siegerstetter;Elizabeth Magowan;Peadar G. Lawlor

  • Effectiveness of different footbath solutions in the treatment of digital dermatitis in dairy cows

    M.H.M. Speijers;L.G. Baird;G.A. Finney;J. McBride

  • Relationship between rooting behaviour and foraging in growing pigs

    V.E. Beattie;Niamh O'Connell

  • Play behaviour, fear responses and activity levels in commercial broiler chickens provided with preferred environmental enrichments

    Mary Baxter;Carley L. Bailie;Niamh O'Connell

  • Digital Dermatitis in Dairy Cows: A Review of Risk Factors and Potential Sources of Between-Animal Variation in Susceptibility

    Maeve A. Palmer;Niamh E. O'Connell

  • Fecal Microbiota Transplant from Highly Feed-Efficient Donors Shows Little Effect on Age-Related Changes in Feed-Efficiency-Associated Fecal Microbiota from Chickens.

    Sina-Catherine Siegerstetter;Renée M. Petri;Elizabeth Magowan;Peadar G. Lawlor

  • Study on the Association between Tail Lesion Score, Cold Carcass Weight, and Viscera Condemnations in Slaughter Pigs

    Dayane Lemos Teixeira;Dayane Lemos Teixeira;Sarah Harley;Alison Hanlon;Niamh Elizabeth O’Connell

  • Evaluation of a dustbathing substrate and straw bales as environmental enrichments in commercial broiler housing

    Mary Baxter;Carley L. Bailie;Niamh E. O’Connell

  • A comparison of fast growing broiler chickens with a slower-growing breed type reared on Higher Welfare commercial farms.

    Mary Baxter;Anne Richmond;Ursula Lavery;Niamh E. O’Connell

  • Aerial perches and free-range laying hens: The effect of access to aerial perches and of individual bird parameters on keel bone injuries in commercial free-range laying hens

    C.J. Donaldson;M.E.E. Ball;Niamh O'Connell

  • Influence of access to straw provided in racks on the welfare of sows in large dynamic groups

    Charlotte Lauren Stewart;Niamh Elizabeth O’Connell;Laura Boyle

  • Influence of regrouping strategy on performance, behaviour and carcass parameters in pigs

    N.E. O'Connell;V.E. Beattie;D. Watt

Frequent Co-Authors

Alison Hanlon
Alison Hanlon University College Dublin
Peadar G. Lawlor
Peadar G. Lawlor Teagasc - The Irish Agriculture and Food Development Authority
Barbara U. Metzler-Zebeli
Barbara U. Metzler-Zebeli University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna
Qendrim Zebeli
Qendrim Zebeli University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna
Christopher T. Elliott
Christopher T. Elliott Queen's University Belfast
Moira Dean
Moira Dean Queen's University Belfast
Lisa M. Collins
Lisa M. Collins University of Surrey
Gareth Arnott
Gareth Arnott Queen's University Belfast
Simon J. More
Simon J. More University College Dublin
Sandra A. Edwards
Sandra A. Edwards Newcastle University

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Related Online Degrees & Career Pathways

Exploring careers connected to Animal Science and Veterinary studies often leads students toward diverse fields requiring specialized knowledge. For those interested in physical health and rehabilitation, pursuing an online sports science degree can provide valuable skills in anatomy, physiology, and biomechanics, all essential for working with animals and humans alike.

Behavioral analysis is another growing area, especially for professionals working with animal training or therapeutic services. Programs like the bcba programs offer focused training in applied behavior analysis, which can be beneficial for careers enhancing animal welfare and managing behavioral issues.

For those interested in psychological support roles connected to educational or developmental contexts, pursuing school psychology programs online accredited by nasp equips candidates with essential skills to support mental health and learning behaviors, a foundation that parallels some aspects of veterinary behavioral science.

Additionally, advanced degrees such as psyd online programs apa accredited open pathways for those seeking a clinical psychology focus with flexible online access, complementing animal science fields that intersect with psychological research and therapy.

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