Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-xbtfd Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-16T07:25:54.117Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

A tool for the evaluation of slaughter horse welfare during unloading

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2023

S Messori ,
EK Visser ,
M Buonanno ,
P Ferrari ,
S Barnard ,
M Borciani  and
N Ferri
S Messori*
Affiliation:
Istituto Zooprofìlattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise ‘G.Caporale’, Campo Boario, 64100 Teramo, Italy
EK Visser
Affiliation:
Wageningen UR, Livestock Research, PO Box 338, 6700 AH Wageningen, The Netherlands
M Buonanno
Affiliation:
Istituto Zooprofìlattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise ‘G.Caporale’, Campo Boario, 64100 Teramo, Italy
P Ferrari
Affiliation:
Centro Ricerche Produzioni Animali, CRPA, 42121, Reggio Emilia, Italy
S Barnard
Affiliation:
Istituto Zooprofìlattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise ‘G.Caporale’, Campo Boario, 64100 Teramo, Italy
M Borciani
Affiliation:
Centro Ricerche Produzioni Animali, CRPA, 42121, Reggio Emilia, Italy
N Ferri
Affiliation:
Istituto Zooprofìlattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise ‘G.Caporale’, Campo Boario, 64100 Teramo, Italy
*
* Contact for correspondence and requests for reprints: [email protected]
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

This study aimed to develop a scientific and practical tool to be used to assess horse welfare after commercial transport over long journeys. A set of physical, behavioural and environmental measures was selected, covering welfare aspects of both transport and unloading procedures. The protocol was field-tested on 51 intra-EU commercial transports arriving at different sites in Italy. Univariate analysis was implemented to look for associations between the input variables (environmental hazards potentially affecting the animal well-being during long transports) and the outcome variables (direct evaluation of the animal condition). No severe welfare impairments were recorded (ie dead on arrival, severe injuries, non-ambulatory animals), while milder ones were more frequent at unloading (eg slipping; 36.7%, reluctance to move; 9.6%). Correlations emerged between ramp slope and falling; type of ramp floor and slipping; fast gait and the presence of gaps between the ramp and the floor. The horses’ behaviour was also related to the type of handling procedure used. The measures were repeatable and practical to apply and score during real-time unloading. This work provides a sound basis for a new and practical welfare assessment tool for horses travelling over long journeys. Careful and constant application of this protocol would provide stakeholders with the opportunity to track and monitor changes in the industry over time, as well as to identify high risk areas in transport routines.

Keywords

animal welfarelong journeyslaughter horsetransportwelfare assessmentwelfare indicators
Type
Research Article
Information
Animal Welfare , Volume 25 , Issue 1 , February 2016 , pp. 101 - 113
Copyright
© 2016 Universities Federation for Animal Welfare

References

Bartussek, H 1999 A review of the animal needs index (ANI) for the assessment of animals’ well being in the housing systems for Austrian proprietary products and legislation. Livestock Production Science 61(2-3): 179–192. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0301-6226(99)00067-6CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blokhuis, HJ, Veissier, I, Miele, M and Jones, RB 2010 The Welfare Quality project and beyond: safeguarding farm animal well-being. Acta Agriculturae Scandavica A, Animal Science 6: 129–140Google Scholar
Broom, DM 1996 Animal welfare defined in terms of attempts to cope with the environment. Acta Agriculturae Scandinavica Supplement 27: 22–28Google Scholar
Broom, DM 2008 The welfare of livestock during road transport. In: Appleby, MC, Cussen, V, Garcés, L, Lambert, L and Turner, J (eds) Long Distance Transport and Welfare of Farm Animals pp 157–181. CABI: Wallingford, UK. http://dx.doi.org/10.1079/9781845934033.0157CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Broom, DM and Fraser, AF 2007 Domestic Animal Behaviour and Welfare. CABI: Wallingford, UK. http://dx.doi.org/10.1079/9781845932879.0000CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Burn, CC, Pritchard, JC and Whay, HR 2009 Observer relia-bility for working equine welfare assessment: problems with high prevalences of certain results. Animal Welfare 18: 177–187Google Scholar
Butterworth, A 2009 Animal welfare indicators and their use in society. In: Smulders, JFM and Algers, B (eds) Welfare of Production Animals: Assessment and Management of Risks pp 371–390. Food Safety Assurance and Veterinary Public Health series No 5. Wageningen Academic Publishers: Wageningen, The Netherlands.Google Scholar
Cohen, J 1968 Weighted kappa: nominal scale agreement with provision for scaled disagreement or partial credit. Psychological Bulletin 70: 213–220. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/h0026256CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cole, FL, Hodgson, DR, Reid, SWJ and Mellor, DJ 2005 Owner-reported equine health disorders: Results of an Australia-wide postal survey Australian Veterinary Journal 83: 490–495. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-0813.2005.tb13301.xCrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Durfee, LJ 2009 Anti-horse slaughter legislation: Bad for horses, bad for society. Indiana Law Journal 84: 353–371Google Scholar
EFSA Panel on Animal Health and Welfare (AHAW) 2011 Scientific Opinion concerning the welfare of animals during transport. EFSA Journal 9(1): 1966CrossRefGoogle Scholar
EFSA Panel on Animal Health and Welfare (AHAW) 2012 Statement on the use of animal-based measures to assess the welfare of animals. EFSA Journal 10(6): 2767Google Scholar
European Council 2004 Council Regulation (EC) 1/2005 on the protection of animals during transport and related operations and amending and amending Directives 64/432/EEC and 93/119/EC and Regulation (EC) No 1255/97. EC: Brussels, BelgiumGoogle Scholar
Fleiss, JL 1971 Measuring nominal scale agreement among many raters. Psychological Bulletin 76: 378–382. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/h0031619CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fraser, D 1995 Science, values and animal welfare: exploring the ‘inextricable connection’. Animal Welfare 4: 103–117Google Scholar
Friend, TH 2000 Dehydration, stress, and water consumption of horses during long-distance commercial transport. Journal of Animal Science 78: 2568–2580CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Friend, TH 2001 A review of recent research on the transportation of horses. Journal of Animal Science 79 (E Suppl): E32-E40CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Friend, TH, Martin, MT, Householder, DD and Bushong, DM 1998 Stress responses of horses during a long period of transport on a commercial truck. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 212: 838–844Google ScholarPubMed
Garcés, L, Cussen, V and Wirth, H 2008 Viewpoint of animal welfare organisations on the long distance transportation of farm animals. Veterinaria Italiana 44(1): 59–69Google Scholar
Garcia, A and McGlone, LJ 2014 Loading and unloading finishing pigs: effects of bedding types, ramp angle, and bedding moisture. Animals 5(1): 13–26. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ani5010013CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gavinelli, A, Ferrara, M and Simonin, D 2008 Formulating policies for the welfare of animals during long distance transportation. Veterinaria Italiana 44(1): 71–86Google ScholarPubMed
Gebresenbet, G, Baltussen, W, de Roest, K, Neilson, K and Sterrenburg, P 2010 Evaluation of the Feasibility of a Certification Scheme for High Quality Control Posts. http://ec.europa.eu/food/animal/welfare/financing/docs/call_10753-2010__ feasability_report_cepost_en.pdfGoogle Scholar
Heird, JC, Whitaker, DD, Bell, RW, Ramsey, CB and Lokey, CE 1986 The effects of handling at different ages on the subse-quent learning ability of 2-year-old horses. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 15: 15–25. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0168-1591(86)90018-3CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Italian Ministry of Health 2013 Protezione degli animali durante il tra-sporto. Relazione annuale sui controlli effettuati in Italia – anno 2012. http://www.salute.gov.it/imgs/C_17_pubblicazioni_1970_allegato.pdf.[Title translation: Protection of animals during transport]Google Scholar
Keeling, L 2009 How did we design the welfare measures? In: Butterworth, A, Blokhuis, H, Jones, B and Veissier, I (eds) Delivering Animal Welfare and Quality: Transparency in the Food Production Chain pp 23–25. 8–9 October 2009, Uppsala, SwedenGoogle Scholar
Kristensen, E, Dueholm, L, Vink, D, Andersen, JE, Jakobsen, EB, Illum-Nielsen, S, Petersen, FA and Enevoldsen, C 2006 Within- and across-person uniformity of body condition scoring in Danish Holstein cattle. Journal of Dairy Science 89: 3721–3728. http://dx.doi.org/10.3168/jds.S0022-0302(06)72413-4CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Laister, S, Brörkens, N, Lolli, S, Zucca, D, Knierim, U, Minero, M, Canali, E and Winckler, C 2009 Reliability of meas-ures of agonistic behaviour in dairy and beef cattle. In: Forkman, B and Keeling, L (eds) Assessment of Animal Welfare Measures for Dairy Cattle, Beef Bulls and Veal Calves pp 95–112. Welfare Quality reports: Cardiff University, UKGoogle Scholar
Landis, JR and Kock, GG 1977 The measurement of observer agreement for categorical data. Biometrics 33: 159–174. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/2529310CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Leadon, DP 2012 Unwanted and slaughter horses: A European and Irish perspective. Animal Frontiers 2(3): 72–75. http://dx.doi.org/10.2527/af.2012-0053CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mal, ME and McCall, CA 1996 The influence of handling during different ages on a halter training test in foals. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 50: 115–120. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0168-1591(96)01083-0CrossRefGoogle Scholar
March, S, Brinkmann, C and Winckler, C 2007 Effect of training on the interobserver reliability of lameness scoring in the dairy cattle. Animal Welfare 16: 131–134Google Scholar
Marlin, D, Kettlewell, P, Parkin, T, Kennedy, M, Broom, D and Wood, J 2011 Welfare and health of horses transported for slaughter within the European Union Part 1: Methodology and descriptive data. Equine Veterinary Journal 43(1): 78–87. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.2042-3306.2010.00124.xCrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McGreevy, P 2004 Equine behavior. Journal of Equine Veterinary Science 24(9): 397–398. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jevs.2004.08.003CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mughini Gras, L, Usai, F and Stancampiano, L 2011 Strongylosis in horses slaughtered in Italy for meat production: Epidemiology, influence of the horse origin and evidence of para-site self-regulation. Veterinary Parasitology 179(1–3): 167–174. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.vetpar.2011.02.024CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nielsen, BL, Dybkjaer, L and Herskin, MS 2011 Road transport of farm animals: effects of journey duration on animal welfare. Animal 5(3): 415–427. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S1751731110001989CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pritchard, JC, Lindberg, AC, Main, DCJ and Whay, HR 2005 Assessment of the welfare of working horses, mules and donkeys, using health and behaviour parameters. Preventive Veterinary Medicine 69: 265–283. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.prevet-med.2005.02.002CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Raidal, SL, Love, DN and Bailey, GD 1995 Inflammation and increased numbers of bacteria in the lower respiratory tract of horses within 6-12 hours of confinement with the head elevated. Australian Veterinary Journal 72: 45–50. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-0813.1995.tb15328.xCrossRefGoogle Scholar
Robinson, NE, Karmaus, W, Holcombe, SJ, Carr, EA and Derksen, FJ 2006 Airway inflammation in Michigan pleasure horses: Prevalence and risk factors. Equine Veterinary Journal 38:293–299. http://dx.doi.org/10.2746/042516406777749281CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Rousing, T, Bonde, M and Sørensen, JT 2001 Aggregating wel-fare indicators into an operational welfare assessment system: a bottom-up approach. Acta Agriculturae Scandinavica, Section A-Animal Science 51(S30): 53–57CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schmidt, A, Biau, S, Möstl, E, Becker-Birck, M, Morillon, B, Aurich, J, Faure, JM and Aurich, C 2010 Changes in cortisol release and heart rate variability in sport horses during long-distance road transport. Domestic Animals Endocrinology 38: 179–189. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.domaniend.2009.10.002CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Smith, BL, Jones, JH, Hornof, WJ, Miles, JA and Willits, NH 1996 Effects of road transport on indices of stress in horses. Equine Veterinary Journal 28: 446–454. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.2042-3306.1996.tb01616.xCrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Stull, CL 1999 Responses of horses to trailer design, duration, and floor area during commercial transport to slaughter. Journal of Animal Science 77: 2925–2933CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Stull, CL and Rodiek, AV 2002 Effects of cross-tying horses during 24 h of road transport. Equine Veterinary Journal 34(6): 550–555. http://dx.doi.org/10.2746/042516402776180214CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Tasker, WJ 1990 Transport problems. Equine Behaviour 25: 19–20Google Scholar
Visser, EK, Neijenhuis, F, de Graaf-Roelfsema, E, Wesselink, HGM, de Boer, J, van Wijhe-Kiezebrink, MC, Engel, B and van Reenen, CG 2014 Risk factors associated with health disorders in sport and leisure horses in the Netherlands. Journal of Animal Science 92: 844–855. http://dx.doi.org/10.2527/jas.2013-6692CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Waran, NK and Cuddeford, D 1995 Effects of loading and transport on the heart rate and behaviour of horses. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 43: 71–81. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0168-1591(95)00555-7CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Weeks, CA, McGreevy, P and Waran, NK 2012 Welfare issues related to transport and handling of both trained and unhandled horses and ponies. Equine Veterinary Education 24(8): 423–430. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.2042-3292.2011.00293.xCrossRefGoogle Scholar
Whay, HR 2007 The journey to animal welfare improvement. Animal Welfare 16: 117–122Google Scholar
Whay, HR, Main, DCJ, Green, LE and Webster, AJF 2003 Animal-based measures for the assessment of welfare state of dairy cattle, pigs and laying hens: consensus of expert opinion. Animal Welfare 12: 205–217Google Scholar
Wood, JD, Holder, JS and Main, DCJ 1998 Quality assurance schemes. Meat Science49(S1): S191-S203. http://dx.doi.org/10.1 016/S0309-1740(98)90048-1CrossRefGoogle Scholar