Effects of abattoir and slaughter handling systems on stress indicators in pig blood

Abstract

Pigs from four farms were slaughtered at two abattoirs, each with two slaughter handling systems. Pigs at abattoir X were electrically stunned, either in a floor pen holding five pigs or in a race-restrainer. At abattoir Y pigs were stunned either in a floor pen holding five pigs or in a dip-lift carbon dioxide stunner. At exsanguination, 96 blood samples (24/farm) were collected from pigs slaughtered through each slaughter handling system (384 samples in total). Serum samples were analysed for cortisol, creatine phosphokinase (CPK) lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and LDH-isoenzymes. There were no significant differences between the systems at abattoir X. At abattoir Y, pigs slaughtered through the floor pen system had higher levels of LDH-5 (39.84 +/- 1.39 per cent of total LDH vs 34.76 +/- 1.21 per cent, P < 0.05) indicating greater skeletal muscle damage in the floor pen. Pigs at abattoir Y had higher mean serum levels of CPK than pigs at abattoir X (3.63 log10 U/litre vs 3.41 log10 U/litre, 0.03 sed, P < 0.001), higher total LDH activities (1269.5 U/litre vs 922.8 U/litre, P < 0.001) and higher cortisol concentrations (1.70 log10 ng/ml vs 1.51 log10 ng/ml, P < 0.001). These differences suggested that the levels of physical and psychological stress were higher at abattoir Y.

Effects of lairage time on welfare indicators, energy metabolism and meat quality of pigs in Beijing

“…Normally, CK is present in muscle cells; however, it can be released into the blood from muscle cells under stress, and CK levels reached a maximum after 3-4 h. This consideration probably explained why CK levels were at the highest value after 3 h lairage. Pigs with 8 h or 24 h lairage also showed higher CK levels, so lairage did not alleviate tissue damage and fatigue, as other authors had already described (Pérez et al, 2002;Weeding, Hunter, Guise, & Penny, 1993).…”

Influence of lairage time on some welfare and meat quality parameters in pigs

“…This might be associated to changes in muscle membrane permeability as a consequence of stress [25]. Other authors [3,31] have also observed CK and LDH activity increases after transport and lairage. On the contrary, Warriss et al [30] found lower CK and lactate levels in pigs having rested overnight than in pigs having rested for 1 or 3 h. In our study, lairage time did not have a significant effect on lactate concentration.…”

Simulated preslaughter holding and isolation effects on stress responses and live weight shrinkage in meat goats1

“…Constant visual contact with the animal in front will facilitate smooth movement of animals through single-file races and may reduce stress during the time immediately prior to slaughter. The benefits of careful livestock-hauling procedures will be lost if animals are exposed to stressors minutes before slaughter (Weeding et al, 1993;Grigor et al, 1999).…”