The objective of this study was to test the reliability of the post-mortem evaluation of bruise c... more The objective of this study was to test the reliability of the post-mortem evaluation of bruise characteristics using a newly extended protocol. Intra-observer reliability of the observations was assessed with three meat graders, each of whom blindly examined 50 photos of bovine carcasses in two sessions, with 1 week in between. The agreement was "substantial" for number of bruises per carcass, and size and shape of the bruises; whereas it was "moderate" for colour and severity grade. Inter-observer reliability of the observations was assessed with four meat graders who each examined the same 46 carcasses at the slaughter-line. Interobserver agreement for number of bruises per carcass ranged between observer pairs from "fair" to "moderate." The agreement for number of bruises scored per anatomical site was "very low" for all observers. The most concordant bruise feature was size, followed by colour and shape. The bruise scoring protocol was associated with high level of intra-observer reliability and low inter-observer reliability. A further calibration of the observer judgments is needed to reach a more uniform scoring of the observers.
Chapter 1. General Introduction Chapter 2. Origin and assessment of bruises in beef cattle at sla... more Chapter 1. General Introduction Chapter 2. Origin and assessment of bruises in beef cattle at slaughter Chapter 3. Prevalence and risk factors for bruises in Chilean bovine carcasses Chapter 4. Intra-and inter-observer reliability of a protocol for post mortem evaluation of bruises in Chilean beef carcasses Chapter 5. Characteristics of bruises in carcasses of cows sourced from farms or from livestock markets Chapter 6. Bruises in culled cows: when, where and how are they inflicted? Chapter 7.
In order to explore the capacity of behavioural tests to predict the incidence of high pH meat (d... more In order to explore the capacity of behavioural tests to predict the incidence of high pH meat (dark cutting) in commercial setting, we assessed the relationship between behavioural reactivity, physiological parameters and meat quality in steers. Fourty-two steers were weighed individually in a scale (2.5x3x2.5m) to assess two behavioural parameters: crush test and exit velocity. Repeatability of the behavioural responses during 3 weighing events was calculated and a consistency scale was created to determine consistency of the parameters. Blood samples were collected from each steer after the second crush test and at bleeding, then analyzed for serum cortisol. Bruising and pH were registered after slaughter on the carcasses. Crush score was highly consistent (r = 0.81-0.87) and exit velocity moderately consistent (r = 0.44-0.60), however individual differences were detected in the "acclimation" and "sensitization" to the test through time. Higher crush score was associated with higher on farm cortisol concentration. Steers producing carcasses with multiple bruises (3-4) had a higher serum cortisol concentration at bleeding (P < 0.05) than steers with less carcass bruising. Behavioural parameters, carcass bruising and meat pH were not statistically associated. We conclude that it is important to evaluate behavioural reactivity using serial tests and we recommend further exploration on the capacity of reactivity tests to detect differences in reactivity that can be reflected in differences in meat quality parameters.
Durante el posparto temprano las vacas lecheras con un balance energético negativo (BEN) pueden p... more Durante el posparto temprano las vacas lecheras con un balance energético negativo (BEN) pueden presentar deficiencias en la expresión del estro repercutiendo en el intervalo parto primer servicio o concepción. Objetivo: evaluar el comportamiento de celo de vacas de leche en pastura y relacionarla con su estatus metabólico y desarrollo folicular. Material y Métodos: El estudio se llevó a cabo en Valdivia, sur de Chile. Se utilizaron 27 vacas Holstein-Friesian de parición de primavera mantenidas a pastoreo. Se observó el comportamiento sexual a partir del día 10 post-parto tres veces al día durante 30 minutos siguiendo el protocolo descrito por van Eerdenburg. El muestreo fue focal con registro de conductas específicas a intervalos de tiempo definidos (08:00 h, 12:00 h y 17:30 h). Se registró la ocurrencia espontánea de los siguientes eventos: flehmen, cajoling, olfateo región ano-vaginal de otra hembra, apoya quijada en grupa de otro animal, monta por la cabeza, monta o intenta montar, es montada, acepta la monta. Las estructuras ováricas fueron monitoreadas mediante ultrasonografía transrectal cuando se detectaba celo visual o por equipo electrónico (Alpro, DeLaval). Se definieron 3 intensidades de celo: alta, con aceptación de monta; media con montas exceptuando la aceptación; y baja con presencia solo de signos secundarios. Todos los datos fueron centralizados al día 0 del estro correspondiente al momento del nivel más bajo de progesterona plasmática, estableciendo como-1 al día anterior y como +1 al día posterior a este valor. Resultados: considerando al celo como un valor de progesterona plasmática ≤1ng/ml, se encontraron 25 animales presentando celo (total 63 celos, 2.5 celos/animal) y 2 animales que no expresaron celo en todo el período de estudio. Del total de estos 63 celos, el signo más observado fue olfateo de región ano-genital (49.9%) seguido de apoyo de quijada (21.5%) y el menos observado fue mucus vaginal (0.1%). Todos los signos a excepción del mucus, se presentaron con mayor frecuencia el día-1 del periestro. El 100% de celos con intensidad alta (6 celos) ocurrieron el día-1. Al día-1, los animales con celos silentes (sin signos visuales, progesterona plasmática ≤1ng/ml) tuvieron folículos pre-ovulatorios de menor tamaño (P<0.05) que animales con celos de intensidad alta (12.8±4.4 vs 19.5±5.4 respectivamente). Sin embargo, no se encontraron diferencias estadísticamente significativas tanto para βHB, niveles de glucosa plasmática y urea plasmática entre los celos de distinta intensidad (P>0.06). Conclusión: Se encontraron diferencias en la dinámica folicular entre animales con celos de alta intensidad versus celos sin signos visuales. Bajo las condiciones de este estudio, no se halló suficiente evidencia para demostrar perturbaciones en la expresión del celo por BEN.
RESUMEN Durante muchos años se consideró que el signo de celo más característico en la hembra bov... more RESUMEN Durante muchos años se consideró que el signo de celo más característico en la hembra bovina es la aceptación de la monta que ocurre cuando el animal permanece " quieto al ser montado ". Sin embargo parecería que la expresión de esta conducta ha disminuido en los últimos años o no todos los animales lo manifiestan. A continuación se presentan los resultados de un estudio recientemente realizado en el sur de Chile donde se determinó la relación de los signos primarios (aceptación y pasividad a la monta) y secundarios (flehmen, cajoling, olfateo de vulva de otra hembra, apoya quijada en grupa de otro animal, monta por la cabeza, monta o intenta montar y es montada) de la expresión del celo con el nivel de progesterona plasmática y el estado ovárico del animal durante los primeros cincuenta días posparto en vacas primíparas mantenidas en un sistema a pastoreo. Los celos fueron confirmados como verdaderos cuando el nivel plasmático de progesterona era ≤1ng/ml. Los resultados de dicho estudio muestran que sólo el 22 % de los animales determinados como " en celo " presentaron el signo primario de " aceptación a la monta ". Se logró identificar por observación visual vacas primíparas en celo considerando sólo los signos secundarios, siendo olfateo de vulva (54%) y apoya quijada (21%) los signos más frecuentes expresados por estos animales. Se encontró una asociación estadísticamente significativa (P <0,05) entre la intensidad del celo con el nivel de P4 plasmática, la totalidad de vacas que presentaron el signo primario de aceptación de monta tenían niveles por debajo de 1 ng/ml de progesterona en sangre, confirmando que se trataba de celos verdaderos. Se presentan evidencias de que es posible identificar vacas en celo considerando sólo los signos secundarios, sin embargo el número de falsos positivos es elevado y el registro de estos signos debe ser empleado como método complementario. INTRODUCCIÓN Tradicionalmente la identificación de vacas lecheras en celo mantenidas en pastoreo se basa en la observación visual de la aceptación de monta. Esta conducta se manifiesta cuando una hembra bovina permite ser montada por un macho u otra hembra del rebaño y permanece quieta por unos segundos. Sin embargo, en los últimos años la ocurrencia de la aceptación de monta parecería haber declinado o su duración se ha acortado
This article appeared in a journal published by Elsevier. The attached copy is furnished to the a... more This article appeared in a journal published by Elsevier. The attached copy is furnished to the author for internal non-commercial research and education use, including for instruction at the authors institution and sharing with colleagues. Other uses, including reproduction and distribution, or selling or licensing copies, or posting to personal, institutional or third party websites are prohibited. In most cases authors are permitted to post their version of the article (e.g. in Word or Tex form) to their personal website or institutional repository. Authors requiring further information regarding Elsevier's archiving and manuscript policies are encouraged to visit: http://www.elsevier.com/copyright a b s t r a c t Records of cattle slaughtered at two Chilean slaughterhouses (SLH1 and SLH2) were used to determine prevalence and risk factors for carcasses with bruises. Bruise prevalence amounted to 12.3% but differed between slaughterhouses (20.8% for SLH1 and 8.6% for SLH2 respectively). Bruise severity grade 1 (mild) was most frequently recorded. The type of the animal, source of animal, the level of fat cover and lairage time were associated with the presence of bruises. Older categories of animals and animals that pass through a market before being moved to the slaughterhouse are more prone to show bruises. The results also indicate that under the reported Chilean circumstances animals that have longer lairage times (over 12 h) have a significantly reduced risk for bruises, except for oxen. Presence of bruises is also significantly associated with increased carcass pH values.
ABSTRACT El objetivo del estudio fue identificar problemas de bienestar animal durante el proceso... more ABSTRACT El objetivo del estudio fue identificar problemas de bienestar animal durante el proceso de insensibilización en una planta de sacrificio de bovinos. Se evaluaron indicadores de bienestar animal, como conductas de los bovinos y manejos por parte del personal en el cajón de noqueo, en 1.025 bovinos de las tres principales categorías sacrificadas (vacas, vaquillas y novillos) durante cinco días de faena comercial; los animales fueron insensibilizados con pistola de proyectil retenido sin penetración. Se describieron frecuencias de los indicadores y se usó una prueba de Chi cuadrado para determinar asociación entre algunos de ellos. Las conductas más frecuentes fueron forcejeo (38,3%), vocalización (17,2%) y caída (9,5%). Un 75,1% de los bovinos fue golpeado por la puerta tipo guillotina al entrar al cajón y el 49,2% fue picaneado. El picaneo se asoció significativamente a la vocalización (P &lt; 0,001), caída (P = 0,02) e intentos de fuga (P &lt; 0,001). El 92,3% de los animales fue sujeto al primer intento; sin embargo en un 6,1% la sujeción efectiva fue incorrecta, lo que se asoció significativamente con vocalizaciones (P &lt; 0,001) y caídas (P = 0,01). Estos resultados, y el hecho de que sólo en un 86,7% de los bovinos se logró la pérdida de la postura de pie tras el primer disparo indican que existen problemas de bienestar animal durante el proceso de insensibilización en la planta. Se concluye que algunos cambios de infraestructura del cajón de noqueo, así como capacitación del noqueador y mayor vigilancia del proceso, permitirían superar los problemas encontrados.
Bruises in cattle develop after the application of force, and they provide evidence for sub-optim... more Bruises in cattle develop after the application of force, and they provide evidence for sub-optimal animal welfare. The aim of this study was to describe the gross characteristics of bruises in cows arriving at the slaughterhouse directly from farms or through the livestock market. The number of bruises and their distribution on the carcass as well as their severity, shape, size and colour were assessed post mortem in a slaughterhouse in Chile. A total of 258 cow carcasses were evaluated, and a total of 846 bruises were found on 243 of the carcasses. Cows that had passed through a livestock market (M-carcasses) had in total 563 bruises (mean 3.8 bruises/carcass, s.d. 2.0), whereas cows transported directly from farms (F-carcasses) had in total 283 bruises (mean 2.5 bruises/ carcass, s.d. 1.8). The backs of F-carcasses had twice as many bruises as M-carcasses (32.9% and 16.2%, respectively), whereas bruises in the rib area were more frequently observed in M-carcasses (13.1%) than in F-carcasses (8.1%). Superficial bruises (grade 1) were the most frequently observed (66.2% of all bruises). Regarding the size of the bruises, 64 (7.6%) were classified as large, 271 (32.0%) as medium and 511 (60.4%) as small. Irregularly shaped bruises were the most frequent (91.1%, n 5 771), followed by linear (3.8%, n 5 32), circular (3.1%, n 5 26) and tramline-shaped bruises (1.9%, n 5 16). The latter were noticed only in M-carcasses, which may indicate that these animals were beaten more frequently with sticks or other rod-shaped objects. Fresh, bright red-coloured bruises were found more frequently on all the animals (69.5% from farms and 70.5% from market) compared with bluish (29.7% and 29.3%, respectively) and yellow bruises (0.4% and 0.2%, respectively). The method of selling was significantly associated with the number of bruises on the carcass (P , 0.001) and the anatomical site (P , 0.05), but not with the severity, shape and colour of the bruises. Increased fat coverage reduced the severity of bruises (P , 0.001). This study shows that, in Chile, market animals have more bruises than those sourced directly from farms, and their distribution is different. More information about the causes of infliction may help reduce bruises and it may also improve their welfare. Further studies are required to elucidate whether the causes of the high bruising in the case of animals passing through markets are related only to extra handling (repeated loading, unloading, transportation, eventual mixing) or to the way of handling by personnel and inadequate design.
In Chile, cow carcasses present the highest bruise prevalence compared with other cattle categori... more In Chile, cow carcasses present the highest bruise prevalence compared with other cattle categories; however, the causes of the bruises are frequently unknown. In this study, 52 cull cows were transported to the slaughterhouse in three batches under identical transport conditions. A combination of direct observation and video analyses was used to determine moment, pre-slaughter stage and cause of potential bruising events during the period from loading on the farm until stunning at the slaughterhouse. After slaughter, number of bruises, location on the carcass and characteristics of the bruises were assessed. Seventy-eight bruises were observed on 37 carcasses. Fifty-two bruises were linked back to their causal event. Results showed that 46% of these bruises were a result of interactions between animal and facility, and most of them were inflicted in the stunning box, 27% of the bruises originated from animal-animal interactions and were mostly inflicted during lairage, another 27% was a result of human-animal interactions and were mostly inflicted during loading and unloading of animals. The percentages of potential bruising events resulting in a bruise were 43%, 9% and less than 1% for animal-facility, human-animal and animal-animal interactions, respectively. Most bruises on the back site were inflicted when the animal was in the stunning box (91.2%), whereas bruises on the pin site were mostly (75%) inflicted during loading at the farm. One may conclude that in relative short journeys (≤4 h) directly from farm to the slaughterhouse and long lairage times (&gt;12 h), most bruises are the result of circumstances at the slaughterhouse. A substantial amount of these bruises could be avoided by proper animal handling and adequate stunning facilities.
Studies of bruises, as detected on carcasses at the slaughterhouse, may provide useful informatio... more Studies of bruises, as detected on carcasses at the slaughterhouse, may provide useful information about the traumatic situations the animals endure during the pre-slaughter period. In this paper, we review scientific data on the prevalence, risk factors and estimation of the age of bruises in beef cattle. Risk factors such as animal characteristics, transport conditions, stocking density, livestock auction and handling of the animals are discussed. Investigation of the age of bruises could provide information on when in the meat chain bruises occur and, could help to pinpoint where preventive measures should be taken, from the stage of collecting the animals on the farm until slaughter. We review the methods available to assess the age of the bruises; data on human forensic research are also included. The feasibility to identify traumatic episodes during the pre-slaughter period, in order to improve animal welfare is discussed.
The objective of this study was to test the reliability of the post-mortem evaluation of bruise c... more The objective of this study was to test the reliability of the post-mortem evaluation of bruise characteristics using a newly extended protocol. Intra-observer reliability of the observations was assessed with three meat graders, each of whom blindly examined 50 photos of bovine carcasses in two sessions, with 1 week in between. The agreement was "substantial" for number of bruises per carcass, and size and shape of the bruises; whereas it was "moderate" for colour and severity grade. Inter-observer reliability of the observations was assessed with four meat graders who each examined the same 46 carcasses at the slaughter-line. Interobserver agreement for number of bruises per carcass ranged between observer pairs from "fair" to "moderate." The agreement for number of bruises scored per anatomical site was "very low" for all observers. The most concordant bruise feature was size, followed by colour and shape. The bruise scoring protocol was associated with high level of intra-observer reliability and low inter-observer reliability. A further calibration of the observer judgments is needed to reach a more uniform scoring of the observers.
Chapter 1. General Introduction Chapter 2. Origin and assessment of bruises in beef cattle at sla... more Chapter 1. General Introduction Chapter 2. Origin and assessment of bruises in beef cattle at slaughter Chapter 3. Prevalence and risk factors for bruises in Chilean bovine carcasses Chapter 4. Intra-and inter-observer reliability of a protocol for post mortem evaluation of bruises in Chilean beef carcasses Chapter 5. Characteristics of bruises in carcasses of cows sourced from farms or from livestock markets Chapter 6. Bruises in culled cows: when, where and how are they inflicted? Chapter 7.
In order to explore the capacity of behavioural tests to predict the incidence of high pH meat (d... more In order to explore the capacity of behavioural tests to predict the incidence of high pH meat (dark cutting) in commercial setting, we assessed the relationship between behavioural reactivity, physiological parameters and meat quality in steers. Fourty-two steers were weighed individually in a scale (2.5x3x2.5m) to assess two behavioural parameters: crush test and exit velocity. Repeatability of the behavioural responses during 3 weighing events was calculated and a consistency scale was created to determine consistency of the parameters. Blood samples were collected from each steer after the second crush test and at bleeding, then analyzed for serum cortisol. Bruising and pH were registered after slaughter on the carcasses. Crush score was highly consistent (r = 0.81-0.87) and exit velocity moderately consistent (r = 0.44-0.60), however individual differences were detected in the "acclimation" and "sensitization" to the test through time. Higher crush score was associated with higher on farm cortisol concentration. Steers producing carcasses with multiple bruises (3-4) had a higher serum cortisol concentration at bleeding (P < 0.05) than steers with less carcass bruising. Behavioural parameters, carcass bruising and meat pH were not statistically associated. We conclude that it is important to evaluate behavioural reactivity using serial tests and we recommend further exploration on the capacity of reactivity tests to detect differences in reactivity that can be reflected in differences in meat quality parameters.
Durante el posparto temprano las vacas lecheras con un balance energético negativo (BEN) pueden p... more Durante el posparto temprano las vacas lecheras con un balance energético negativo (BEN) pueden presentar deficiencias en la expresión del estro repercutiendo en el intervalo parto primer servicio o concepción. Objetivo: evaluar el comportamiento de celo de vacas de leche en pastura y relacionarla con su estatus metabólico y desarrollo folicular. Material y Métodos: El estudio se llevó a cabo en Valdivia, sur de Chile. Se utilizaron 27 vacas Holstein-Friesian de parición de primavera mantenidas a pastoreo. Se observó el comportamiento sexual a partir del día 10 post-parto tres veces al día durante 30 minutos siguiendo el protocolo descrito por van Eerdenburg. El muestreo fue focal con registro de conductas específicas a intervalos de tiempo definidos (08:00 h, 12:00 h y 17:30 h). Se registró la ocurrencia espontánea de los siguientes eventos: flehmen, cajoling, olfateo región ano-vaginal de otra hembra, apoya quijada en grupa de otro animal, monta por la cabeza, monta o intenta montar, es montada, acepta la monta. Las estructuras ováricas fueron monitoreadas mediante ultrasonografía transrectal cuando se detectaba celo visual o por equipo electrónico (Alpro, DeLaval). Se definieron 3 intensidades de celo: alta, con aceptación de monta; media con montas exceptuando la aceptación; y baja con presencia solo de signos secundarios. Todos los datos fueron centralizados al día 0 del estro correspondiente al momento del nivel más bajo de progesterona plasmática, estableciendo como-1 al día anterior y como +1 al día posterior a este valor. Resultados: considerando al celo como un valor de progesterona plasmática ≤1ng/ml, se encontraron 25 animales presentando celo (total 63 celos, 2.5 celos/animal) y 2 animales que no expresaron celo en todo el período de estudio. Del total de estos 63 celos, el signo más observado fue olfateo de región ano-genital (49.9%) seguido de apoyo de quijada (21.5%) y el menos observado fue mucus vaginal (0.1%). Todos los signos a excepción del mucus, se presentaron con mayor frecuencia el día-1 del periestro. El 100% de celos con intensidad alta (6 celos) ocurrieron el día-1. Al día-1, los animales con celos silentes (sin signos visuales, progesterona plasmática ≤1ng/ml) tuvieron folículos pre-ovulatorios de menor tamaño (P<0.05) que animales con celos de intensidad alta (12.8±4.4 vs 19.5±5.4 respectivamente). Sin embargo, no se encontraron diferencias estadísticamente significativas tanto para βHB, niveles de glucosa plasmática y urea plasmática entre los celos de distinta intensidad (P>0.06). Conclusión: Se encontraron diferencias en la dinámica folicular entre animales con celos de alta intensidad versus celos sin signos visuales. Bajo las condiciones de este estudio, no se halló suficiente evidencia para demostrar perturbaciones en la expresión del celo por BEN.
RESUMEN Durante muchos años se consideró que el signo de celo más característico en la hembra bov... more RESUMEN Durante muchos años se consideró que el signo de celo más característico en la hembra bovina es la aceptación de la monta que ocurre cuando el animal permanece " quieto al ser montado ". Sin embargo parecería que la expresión de esta conducta ha disminuido en los últimos años o no todos los animales lo manifiestan. A continuación se presentan los resultados de un estudio recientemente realizado en el sur de Chile donde se determinó la relación de los signos primarios (aceptación y pasividad a la monta) y secundarios (flehmen, cajoling, olfateo de vulva de otra hembra, apoya quijada en grupa de otro animal, monta por la cabeza, monta o intenta montar y es montada) de la expresión del celo con el nivel de progesterona plasmática y el estado ovárico del animal durante los primeros cincuenta días posparto en vacas primíparas mantenidas en un sistema a pastoreo. Los celos fueron confirmados como verdaderos cuando el nivel plasmático de progesterona era ≤1ng/ml. Los resultados de dicho estudio muestran que sólo el 22 % de los animales determinados como " en celo " presentaron el signo primario de " aceptación a la monta ". Se logró identificar por observación visual vacas primíparas en celo considerando sólo los signos secundarios, siendo olfateo de vulva (54%) y apoya quijada (21%) los signos más frecuentes expresados por estos animales. Se encontró una asociación estadísticamente significativa (P <0,05) entre la intensidad del celo con el nivel de P4 plasmática, la totalidad de vacas que presentaron el signo primario de aceptación de monta tenían niveles por debajo de 1 ng/ml de progesterona en sangre, confirmando que se trataba de celos verdaderos. Se presentan evidencias de que es posible identificar vacas en celo considerando sólo los signos secundarios, sin embargo el número de falsos positivos es elevado y el registro de estos signos debe ser empleado como método complementario. INTRODUCCIÓN Tradicionalmente la identificación de vacas lecheras en celo mantenidas en pastoreo se basa en la observación visual de la aceptación de monta. Esta conducta se manifiesta cuando una hembra bovina permite ser montada por un macho u otra hembra del rebaño y permanece quieta por unos segundos. Sin embargo, en los últimos años la ocurrencia de la aceptación de monta parecería haber declinado o su duración se ha acortado
This article appeared in a journal published by Elsevier. The attached copy is furnished to the a... more This article appeared in a journal published by Elsevier. The attached copy is furnished to the author for internal non-commercial research and education use, including for instruction at the authors institution and sharing with colleagues. Other uses, including reproduction and distribution, or selling or licensing copies, or posting to personal, institutional or third party websites are prohibited. In most cases authors are permitted to post their version of the article (e.g. in Word or Tex form) to their personal website or institutional repository. Authors requiring further information regarding Elsevier's archiving and manuscript policies are encouraged to visit: http://www.elsevier.com/copyright a b s t r a c t Records of cattle slaughtered at two Chilean slaughterhouses (SLH1 and SLH2) were used to determine prevalence and risk factors for carcasses with bruises. Bruise prevalence amounted to 12.3% but differed between slaughterhouses (20.8% for SLH1 and 8.6% for SLH2 respectively). Bruise severity grade 1 (mild) was most frequently recorded. The type of the animal, source of animal, the level of fat cover and lairage time were associated with the presence of bruises. Older categories of animals and animals that pass through a market before being moved to the slaughterhouse are more prone to show bruises. The results also indicate that under the reported Chilean circumstances animals that have longer lairage times (over 12 h) have a significantly reduced risk for bruises, except for oxen. Presence of bruises is also significantly associated with increased carcass pH values.
ABSTRACT El objetivo del estudio fue identificar problemas de bienestar animal durante el proceso... more ABSTRACT El objetivo del estudio fue identificar problemas de bienestar animal durante el proceso de insensibilización en una planta de sacrificio de bovinos. Se evaluaron indicadores de bienestar animal, como conductas de los bovinos y manejos por parte del personal en el cajón de noqueo, en 1.025 bovinos de las tres principales categorías sacrificadas (vacas, vaquillas y novillos) durante cinco días de faena comercial; los animales fueron insensibilizados con pistola de proyectil retenido sin penetración. Se describieron frecuencias de los indicadores y se usó una prueba de Chi cuadrado para determinar asociación entre algunos de ellos. Las conductas más frecuentes fueron forcejeo (38,3%), vocalización (17,2%) y caída (9,5%). Un 75,1% de los bovinos fue golpeado por la puerta tipo guillotina al entrar al cajón y el 49,2% fue picaneado. El picaneo se asoció significativamente a la vocalización (P &lt; 0,001), caída (P = 0,02) e intentos de fuga (P &lt; 0,001). El 92,3% de los animales fue sujeto al primer intento; sin embargo en un 6,1% la sujeción efectiva fue incorrecta, lo que se asoció significativamente con vocalizaciones (P &lt; 0,001) y caídas (P = 0,01). Estos resultados, y el hecho de que sólo en un 86,7% de los bovinos se logró la pérdida de la postura de pie tras el primer disparo indican que existen problemas de bienestar animal durante el proceso de insensibilización en la planta. Se concluye que algunos cambios de infraestructura del cajón de noqueo, así como capacitación del noqueador y mayor vigilancia del proceso, permitirían superar los problemas encontrados.
Bruises in cattle develop after the application of force, and they provide evidence for sub-optim... more Bruises in cattle develop after the application of force, and they provide evidence for sub-optimal animal welfare. The aim of this study was to describe the gross characteristics of bruises in cows arriving at the slaughterhouse directly from farms or through the livestock market. The number of bruises and their distribution on the carcass as well as their severity, shape, size and colour were assessed post mortem in a slaughterhouse in Chile. A total of 258 cow carcasses were evaluated, and a total of 846 bruises were found on 243 of the carcasses. Cows that had passed through a livestock market (M-carcasses) had in total 563 bruises (mean 3.8 bruises/carcass, s.d. 2.0), whereas cows transported directly from farms (F-carcasses) had in total 283 bruises (mean 2.5 bruises/ carcass, s.d. 1.8). The backs of F-carcasses had twice as many bruises as M-carcasses (32.9% and 16.2%, respectively), whereas bruises in the rib area were more frequently observed in M-carcasses (13.1%) than in F-carcasses (8.1%). Superficial bruises (grade 1) were the most frequently observed (66.2% of all bruises). Regarding the size of the bruises, 64 (7.6%) were classified as large, 271 (32.0%) as medium and 511 (60.4%) as small. Irregularly shaped bruises were the most frequent (91.1%, n 5 771), followed by linear (3.8%, n 5 32), circular (3.1%, n 5 26) and tramline-shaped bruises (1.9%, n 5 16). The latter were noticed only in M-carcasses, which may indicate that these animals were beaten more frequently with sticks or other rod-shaped objects. Fresh, bright red-coloured bruises were found more frequently on all the animals (69.5% from farms and 70.5% from market) compared with bluish (29.7% and 29.3%, respectively) and yellow bruises (0.4% and 0.2%, respectively). The method of selling was significantly associated with the number of bruises on the carcass (P , 0.001) and the anatomical site (P , 0.05), but not with the severity, shape and colour of the bruises. Increased fat coverage reduced the severity of bruises (P , 0.001). This study shows that, in Chile, market animals have more bruises than those sourced directly from farms, and their distribution is different. More information about the causes of infliction may help reduce bruises and it may also improve their welfare. Further studies are required to elucidate whether the causes of the high bruising in the case of animals passing through markets are related only to extra handling (repeated loading, unloading, transportation, eventual mixing) or to the way of handling by personnel and inadequate design.
In Chile, cow carcasses present the highest bruise prevalence compared with other cattle categori... more In Chile, cow carcasses present the highest bruise prevalence compared with other cattle categories; however, the causes of the bruises are frequently unknown. In this study, 52 cull cows were transported to the slaughterhouse in three batches under identical transport conditions. A combination of direct observation and video analyses was used to determine moment, pre-slaughter stage and cause of potential bruising events during the period from loading on the farm until stunning at the slaughterhouse. After slaughter, number of bruises, location on the carcass and characteristics of the bruises were assessed. Seventy-eight bruises were observed on 37 carcasses. Fifty-two bruises were linked back to their causal event. Results showed that 46% of these bruises were a result of interactions between animal and facility, and most of them were inflicted in the stunning box, 27% of the bruises originated from animal-animal interactions and were mostly inflicted during lairage, another 27% was a result of human-animal interactions and were mostly inflicted during loading and unloading of animals. The percentages of potential bruising events resulting in a bruise were 43%, 9% and less than 1% for animal-facility, human-animal and animal-animal interactions, respectively. Most bruises on the back site were inflicted when the animal was in the stunning box (91.2%), whereas bruises on the pin site were mostly (75%) inflicted during loading at the farm. One may conclude that in relative short journeys (≤4 h) directly from farm to the slaughterhouse and long lairage times (&gt;12 h), most bruises are the result of circumstances at the slaughterhouse. A substantial amount of these bruises could be avoided by proper animal handling and adequate stunning facilities.
Studies of bruises, as detected on carcasses at the slaughterhouse, may provide useful informatio... more Studies of bruises, as detected on carcasses at the slaughterhouse, may provide useful information about the traumatic situations the animals endure during the pre-slaughter period. In this paper, we review scientific data on the prevalence, risk factors and estimation of the age of bruises in beef cattle. Risk factors such as animal characteristics, transport conditions, stocking density, livestock auction and handling of the animals are discussed. Investigation of the age of bruises could provide information on when in the meat chain bruises occur and, could help to pinpoint where preventive measures should be taken, from the stage of collecting the animals on the farm until slaughter. We review the methods available to assess the age of the bruises; data on human forensic research are also included. The feasibility to identify traumatic episodes during the pre-slaughter period, in order to improve animal welfare is discussed.
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Papers by A. Strappini