Dr Adalinda Hernandez Yanez

Biography

I am a Lecturer in Animal Welfare in the Department of Social Sciences and the Animal Welfare Research Group. 

I am a veterinarian and researcher specialising in animal welfare and behaviour, with a strong focus on the intersection of welfare science, sustainable food systems, and animal ethics. My work is driven by a deep commitment to understanding how animals experience the world and how this knowledge can be applied to enhance their well-being across diverse contexts.

I hold a degree in Veterinary Medicine from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) and completed my PhD in Veterinary Medicine (Animal Welfare) at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), where I focused on applied animal welfare and behaviour in tropical cattle systems. Over the past decade, I have worked across Latin America and Europe in research, education, and applied animal welfare.

I teach modules on animal behaviour, welfare assessment, research methods, and sustainability and conservation. I integrate my research into teaching to promote interdisciplinary learning and a critical understanding of welfare as both a scientific and ethical concern.

My research explores how animals express emotional states, experience agency, and respond to painful or stressful situations—particularly within agricultural settings. I am especially interested in using behavioural and physiological indicators to improve welfare outcomes and inform sustainable, ethical human–animal relationships.

As a veterinarian, academic, and field researcher, I bring a practice-informed, global perspective to animal welfare and sustainability. I am passionate about translating science into real-world impact, supporting evidence-based policy, and fostering inclusive, culturally grounded approaches to animal care.

I am a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.

Areas of expertise

• Animal welfare and behaviour (livestock, cattle)
• Emotional states and agency in animals
• Behavioural and physiological indicators of welfare
• Pain and stress mitigation in agricultural systems
• Sustainable and regenerative farming practices
• Human–animal relationships and conflict
• Welfare assessment protocols for extensive systems
• Ethics and cultural context in animal welfare

Publications

Academic journal articles

Hernandez, A., Trindade, P.H.E., Paranhos Da Costa, M.J.R., Jung, J., Berg, C. (2022). Limited effects of pain control treatments on behaviour and weight gain of pure and crossbred Nellore heifer calves when subjected to hot-iron branding. Animals, 12(22), 3143. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12223143

Hernandez, A., Galina, C.S., Geffroy, M., Jung, J., Westin, R., Berg, C. (2022). Cattle welfare aspects of production systems in the tropics. Animal Production Science, 62, 1203–1218. https://doi.org/10.1071/AN21230
López-Damián, E. P., Jiménez-Medina, J. A., Alarcón, M. A., Lammoglia, M. A., Hernández, A., Galina, C. S., & Fiordelisio, T. (2020). Cryopreservation induces higher oxidative stress levels in Bos indicus embryos compared with Bos taurus. Theriogenology, 143, 74–81. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.theriogenology.2019.12.001

Hernandez, A., Berg, C., Westin, R., & Galina, C. (2018). Seasonal differences in animal welfare assessment of family farming dual-purpose cattle raised under tropical conditions. Animals, 8(7), 125. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani8070125

Hernandez, A., Estrada König, S., Romero Zuñiga, J.J., Galina, C.S., Berg, C., DiGiacinto Villalobos, A. (2017). Implementation of the Welfare Quality® protocol in dairy farms raised on extensive, semi-intensive and intensive systems in Costa Rica. Journal of Animal Behaviour and Biometeorology, 5, 132–138. http://dx.doi.org/10.31893/2318-1265jabb.v5n4p132-138

Hernandez, A., Berg, C., Eriksson, S., Edstam, L., Orihuela, A., Leon, H., Galina, C.S. (2017). The Welfare Quality® assessment protocol—How can it be adapted to family farming dual-purpose cattle raised under extensive systems in tropical conditions? Animal Welfare, 26, 177–184. https://doi.org/10.7120/09627286.26.2.177

Pérez, L., Orihuela, A., Galina, C., Rubio, I., Corro, M., Cohen, A., Hernández, A. (2017). Effect of different periods of maternal deprivation on behavioral and cortisol responses at weaning and subsequent growth rate in zebu (Bos indicus) type cattle. Livestock Science, 197, 17–21. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.livsci.2016.12.006

Hernández, A., Galina, C.S., Diaz, R., Rubio, I., Corro, M., Romero, J.J. (2015). Comparison of two insemination programs in synchronized early postpartum zebu cows under tropical conditions. An economic appraisal. Open Journal of Veterinary Medicine, 5, 234–242. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojvm.2015.512032

Conference presentations and posters

Poster (Co-author) – Paranhos da Costa, M. (Presenter), Parra Cerezo, M., Brusin, V., Esteves Trindade, P.H., Hernández, A., Jung, J., Berg, L. (2023, Aug 1–5). Tactile stimulation reduces the heart rate of newborn Nellore calves subjected to handling procedures. 56th Congress of the International Society for Applied Ethology (ISAE), Tallinn, Estonia.

Poster (Co-author) – Parra Cerezo, M. (Presenter), Bezerra, V., Trindade, P., Jung, J., Berg, C., Hernandez, A., Paranhos da Costa, M. (2021). Individual differences in the reactions of newborn Nellore calves to first handling procedures. 54th International Congress of the International Society for Applied Ethology (ISAE). Online.

Speaker – Hernandez, A., Berg, C., Westin, R., & Galina, C. (2018). Seasonal Differences in Animal Welfare Assessment of Family Farming Dual-Purpose Cattle Raised under Tropical Conditions. IFAW Animal Welfare Across Borders Conference, Hong Kong.

Poster (Lead Author) – Hernandez, A., Berg, C., Eriksson, S., Edstam, L., Orihuela, A., Galina, C.S. (2017). The Welfare Quality® assessment protocol—Adaptations to extensive systems in the tropics. XVIII ISAH Congress, Mazatlán, Mexico.

Speaker – Hernandez, A., Berg, C., Eriksson, S., Edstam, L., Orihuela, A., Galina, C.S. (2016). The Welfare Quality® assessment protocol—How can it be adapted to family farming dual purpose cattle raised under extensive systems in tropical conditions? Welfare Quality Network Seminar, Helsinki, Finland.