52. The aim of good stockmanship is to provide an environment in which farmed fish can survive and grow and in which they can be free from disease, disorders, injury and distress. This may be achieved by employing suitably trained and experienced staff, following good working practices and maintaining equipment. Distress to the fish should be minimised by closely monitoring the fish and their environment, to ensure that any problems or early signs of poor health or welfare are identified and acted upon swiftly.
53. It follows that farmed fish should be managed by an adequate number of trained and experienced staff who should be able to recognize signs of disease or disorder and maintain the environment in such a way as to provide for good health and normal behaviour. Aquaculture training should deal specifically with the welfare of farmed fish and all staff should be made aware of the importance of welfare as an integral part of the production process. Where possible, training should be validated by encouraging trainees to enter schemes such as the National or Scottish Vocational Qualification.
54. Fish, particularly young fish in hatcheries, may easily be unsettled, especially by the sudden movements of farm staff. To minimise fear responses, fish should be given appropriate experience of the proximity of staff. This can be achieved during feeding by exposure to people who should behave calmly so as not to frighten the fish. It may also be worthwhile to provide tank-side screening in hatcheries. This will offer shelter and limit disturbance when staff walk past tanks. It is less easy to condition salmon in large sea cages but exposure to the stockmen at feeding time and during inspection helps.
55. Fish in holding units must be closely inspected at least once a day, unless this is impossible due to adverse weather conditions. The inspection should focus on signs of good health such as correct orientation and swimming, the absence of visible signs of parasites, fungal or bacterial infections and any injuries. A sample of individual fish should be examined where a general inspection indicates that this is necessary, e.g. where poor body, skin, eye or fin condition is detected or where abnormal behaviour is displayed. Examination of individuals should ideally be undertaken in water to reduce handling and stress. Where handling and removal of the fish from the water are necessary the time period must be kept to a minimum. If fish are apparently not in good health, or are showing abnormal behaviour, the person responsible for their care must act promptly to establish the cause and take remedial action, if necessary with the assistance of a veterinarian or other expert. Any dead or dying fish must be removed promptly without adversely affecting the welfare of those remaining. Daily removal of dead and moribund fish should occur except when this might involve danger to personnel who work on sea cages.
56. Water quality should be assessed; with sufficient frequency to avoid poor welfare in fish, visually and with oxygen meters and chemical testing, particularly in shore-based facilities. An alarm should alert farm staff to unacceptable conditions. Where there are signs of poor water quality, such as faeces on the surface or in suspension and foamy or discoloured water, the problem must be remedied quickly. Poor water quality can also be detected from the disposition of the fish in the water and their behaviour e.g. grouping near to aeration equipment would indicate low oxygen levels.
57. FAWC attaches considerable importance to the maintenance of accurate records to aid the stockman and those enforcing animal welfare legislation. The responsibility for keeping on-farm records must lie with the person in charge of the fish. It is a legal requirement for fish farmers to keep records of live fish movements onto and away from a farm (Disease of Fish Acts (1937, 1983)). There is also a legal obligation to keep records of mortalities (Registration of Fish Farming and Shellfish Farming Business Order 1985 (as amended)) and of medicines used. In the interests of good management, records regarding feeding, numbers and weight of fish, stocking densities, growth, stock origins and water quality measures, where these are limiting, should be kept.