Chapter 1: Quantifying animal welfare preslaughter using behavioural, physiological and carcass and meat quality measures

Abstract

Animal welfare and stress refer to the subjective experience of the animal, which depends on its emotional and cognitive capacities to evaluate the situation it is in, to know its body state in terms of needs, and the higher-order, conscious, processing of the information. The origin of stress-inducing factors may be psychological, such as fear, or physical, such as food deprivation. In both cases, they influence the emotional status of the animal. Due to its subjective, therefore unmeasurable, character, the assessment of animal welfare is indirect. During the preslaughter period, this assessment relies on the physiological and behavioural stress reactions and environmental context. Physiological reactions are not specific to stress; they allow any adaptive response potentially requiring increased physical activity and vigilance. Combining physiological measurements and behavioural observations in relation to the environmental context allow interpreting these different types of information in terms of stress. Physiological and behavioural reactions further influence meat quality traits, such as post-mortem temperature and pH decline, which influence other traits, such as colour and tenderness, and carcass quality characteristics, such as bruising. Individuals show a degree of consistency in their responses to stress factors. The determination of the animal's stress reactivity using standardised tests before slaughter facilitates the interpretation of the physiological and behavioural observations made in the slaughter setting. Stress reactivity determined before slaughter may predict stress reactions at slaughter, and future meat quality. Summarising, the assessment of animal welfare and stress involves the interpretation of a range of measurements on the physiology and behaviour of the animal, the environmental context, post-mortem meat and carcass quality traits, and the characteristics of the animal itself, in terms of stress reactivity and rearing and genetic background.

Welfare of pigs during transport

“…hypoglycaemia and reduced liver and muscle glycogen concentration) and the accumulation of metabolites, e.g. blood and muscle lactate concentration (Frese et al, 2016) in response to prolonged and anaerobic exercise, might be associated with fatigue (Terlouw and Bourguet, 2022). Yu et al (2009) reported increased blood plasma CK and LDH levels after transport of finishers for 1, 2 or 4 h, respectively.…”

“…Definition : Glucose is a monosaccharide, which can be stored as a multi‐branched polysaccharide, called glycogen, in skeletal muscle and the liver (Terlouw and Bourguet, 2022). In monogastric animals, like pigs, blood glucose levels reflect the nutritional status of the animal (Shaw and Tume, 1992).…”

“…Plasma free fatty acids (FFA) Definition: Free fatty acids (FFA) are elongated hydrocarbon chains with a terminal carboxylate group and are stored in body fat. Jointly with glucose, FFA are degraded via specific pathways to yield energy (Terlouw and Bourguet, 2022).…”

Assessment of the effect of pre-slaughter fasting period of young bulls on the qualitative characteristics of meat

“…Уровень стрессовой нагрузки на животное зависит от характера, интенсивности и продолжительности негативных раздражителей в сочетании с восприимчивостью самих животных [7,8]. В конечном итоге это приводит к снижению качественных характеристик мяса: нежности, цветности, pH и других [9,10,11].…”

Effect of Stress in Some Blood Parameters and Heat Shock Protein 70 of Awassi Syrian Lambs

“…It is a traumatic experience with long-term implications for animal welfare and meat quality. High ambient temperature causes physiological stress reactions in animals while transporting them from the farm to the abattoir (Terlouw and Bourguet, 2022). When animals are put through stressful situations, their sympathetic nervous system sets in.…”