Time to collapse following slaughter without stunning in cattle

Gregory, N.; Fielding, Helen R.; Wenzlawowicz, M. von; Holleben, K. von

doi:10.1016/j.meatsci.2009.12.005

Cited by 92 publications

(75 citation statements)

References 54 publications

(25 reference statements)

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“…The corneal-and eyelid reflex, however, were lost and regained in 9% and 16%, respectively, of the non-stunned calves (n = 32) during bleeding. Loss and return of the corneal reflex has been observed by Hoffman in an unspecified number of cattle (Hoffman, 1900 cited by Gregory et al 2010). Bourguet et al (2011) also observed a temporary return of the palpebral and corneal reflex in some of the non-stunned slaughtered cattle.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 82%

“…During our experiment, calves in an inverted or upright position lost consciousness, based on EEG recordings, 49 ± 25 and 109 ± 32 s, respectively (mean ± SD), after the neck cut. Previous studies in cattle indicated loss of consciousness ranging from 10 s up to over 3 min after the neck cut (Daly et al, 1988;Gregory et al, 2010;Bourguet et al 2011). Newhook andBlackmore (1982) suggested the possibility of an intermittent return to consciousness for up to 123 to 323 s after non-stunned slaughter in cattle.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…The prevalence of carotid arterial occlusion in 576 cattle slaughtered at abattoirs in the United Kingdom was found to be 16% and 25%, respectively, for adult cattle and bobby calves (Gregory et al, 2006). A study by Gregory et al (2010) showed that 71% of cattle taking longer than 75 s to collapse, had a false aneurysm in the cardiac end of the carotid that was at least 3 cm in diameter. There was no further investigation into the background of this obstruction, but it may provide an explanation for the large variation in time to loss of consciousness between calves.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Validation of indicators used to assess unconsciousness in veal calves at slaughter

Verhoeven

Gerritzen

Hellebrekers

et al. 2016

animal

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European legislation states that after stunning regular checks should be performed to guarantee animals are unconscious between the end of the stunning process and death. When animals are killed without prior stunning these checks should be performed before the animal is released from restraint. The validity of certain indicators used to assess unconsciousness under different stunning and slaughter conditions is under debate. The aim of this study was to validate the absence of threat-, withdrawal-, corneal-and eyelid reflex as indicators to assess unconsciousness in calves subjected to different stunning and slaughter methods. Calves (201 ± 22 kg) were randomly assigned to one of the following four treatments: (1) Captive bolt stunning followed by neck cut in an inverted position (n = 25); (2) Non-stunned slaughter in an upright position (n = 7); (3) Non-stunned slaughter in an inverted position (180°rotation) (n = 25); (4) Non-stunned slaughter in an upright position followed by captive bolt stunning 40 s after the neck cut (n = 25). Each calf was equipped with non-invasive electroencephalogram (EEG) electrodes before the slaughter procedure. All reflexes were verified once before the slaughter procedure. At the beginning of the procedure (T = 0 s) calves were stunned (treatment 1) or neck cut in an upright position (treatment 2, 4) or inverted position (treatment 3). Calves of treatment 4 were captive bolt stunned 34 ± 8 s after the neck cut. Reflexes were assessed every 20 s from T = 15 s for all treatments until all reflex tests resulted in a negative response three times in a row and a flat line EEG was observed. In addition, reflexes were assessed 5 s after captive bolt stunning in calves of treatments 1 and 4. Visual assessment of changes in the amplitude and frequency of EEG traces was used to determine loss of consciousness. Timing of loss of consciousness was related to timing of loss of reflexes. After captive bolt stunning, absence of threat-, withdrawal-, corneal-and eyelid reflex indicated unconsciousness as determined by EEG recordings. After non-stunned slaughter, both threat-and withdrawal reflex were on average lost before calves were unconscious based on EEG recordings. The eyelid-and corneal reflex were on average lost after calves had lost consciousness based on EEG recordings and appeared to be distinctly conservative indicators of unconsciousness in non-stunned slaughtered calves since they were observed until 76 ± 50 and 85 ± 45 s (mean ± SD), respectively, after EEG-based loss of consciousness.Keywords: electroencephalogram, calves, reflexes, slaughter, (un)consciousness ImplicationsMonitoring unconsciousness at slaughter is mandatory by European legislation and is often determined by the absence of behavioural indicators (i.e. loss of posture), physical signs (i.e. rhythmic breathing) and reflexes. Previous research in sheep has indicated that the absence of certain reflexes at slaughter is not a reliable indicator of unconsciousness. The present study showed that absence of the withdr...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 82%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Validation of indicators used to assess unconsciousness in veal calves at slaughter

Verhoeven

Gerritzen

Hellebrekers

et al. 2016

animal

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“…Thus, the increase in the brain electrical activity in U animals could be attributed to conscious pain even at 30-s postslaughter. It was postulated that a longer duration between completing the cut and the onset of unconsciousness greatly increases the risk of pain and distress in cattle (Gregory et al 2010). The HPNP, LPNP and P groups demonstrated the immediate prominence of slow-frequency delta and theta waves post-stunning, although this was not reflected in the RMS values.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Changes in blood parameters and electroencephalogram of cattle as affected by different stunning and slaughter methods in cattle

et al. 2014

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Abstract. The present study aimed to provide a comparative analysis of the effects of penetrative stunning, non-penetrative stunning and post-slaughter stunning on biochemical parameters and electroencephalogram (EEG) associated with stress in heifers and steers. Ten animals were assigned to each of the following four treatment groups: (1) animals were subjected to conventional halal slaughter (a clean incision through the structures on the ventral neck at the approximate level of vertebrae C2-C3 -the trachea, oesophagus, carotid arteries and jugular veins) and post-cut penetrating mechanical stun within 10-20 s of the halal cut (U); (2) high-power non-penetrating mechanical stunning using a mushroom-headed humane killer, followed by conventional halal slaughter (HPNP); (3) low-power non-penetrating mechanical percussive stunning using a mushroom-headed humane killer, followed by conventional halal slaughter (LPNP); and (4) penetrative stunning using a captive-bolt pistol humane killer, followed by conventional halal slaughter (P). For each animal, blood samples and electroencephalogram recordings were taken before stunning, post-stunning (if applicable) and post-slaughter, and plasma concentrations of cortisol, adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH), adrenaline, noradrenaline and b-endorphin were determined. Irrespective of the stunning method, except for percentage change in plasma concentrations of noradrenaline, the values of blood parameters attained before and after stunning were not significantly different. The plasma noradrenaline concentration of the HPNP animals was significantly elevated following stunning. Following slaughter, the percentage change of plasma ACTH concentration in the P animals was significantly elevated. Neither stunning method nor sampling time had a significant effect on plasma b-endorphin concentration. On the basis of the EEG results, penetrative stunning seemed to be better in maximising the possibility of post-stunning insensibility, whereas U animals appeared to demonstrate an evident increase in EEG activity which is consistent with the presence of post-slaughter noxious stimuli associated with tissue cut and injury. The U animals had consistently higher, if not the highest, RMS values than did other stunned animals. This indicates a degree of EEG changes associated with stress and pain. On the basis of EEG data, our results suggested that penetrative stunning would be the most reliable method of ensuring insensibility and minimising pain. However, at slaughter, the P animals showed a dramatic elevation in the percentage change of circulating ACTH, suggesting physiological stress response. On a cautionary note, the results are not unequivocal, and it may be that the range of analyses available to researchers at this point of time are not sufficiently specific to allow definitive conclusions to be drawn.

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“…Indeed, some experiments proved that the time between blood artery sectioning and complete loss of consciousness (collapse) was 20 s on average in cattle slaughtered with the Halal technique (Gregory et al, 2010). Conversely, a good mechanical stun causes the animal to collapse instantaneously, with a complete disappearance of the corneal reflex (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, 2004).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of bacterial superficial contamination in classical or ritually slaughtered cattle using metagenetics and microbiological analysis

Korsak

Taminiau

Hupperts

et al. 2017

International Journal of Food Microbiology

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The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of the slaughter technique (Halal vs Classical slaughter) on the superficial contamination of cattle carcasses, by using traditional microbiological procedures and 16S rDNA metagenetics. The purpose was also to investigate the neck area to identify bacteria originating from the digestive or the respiratory tract. Twenty bovine carcasses (10 from each group) were swabbed at the slaughterhouse, where both slaughtering methods are practiced. Two swabbing areas were chosen: one "legal" zone of 1600 cm 2 (composed of zones from rump, flank, brisket and forelimb) and locally on the neck area (200 cm 2 ). Samples were submitted to classical microbiology for aerobic Total Viable Counts (TVC) at 30°C and Enterobacteriaceae counts, while metagenetic analysis was performed on the same samples. The classical microbiological results revealed no significant differences between both slaughtering practices; with values between 3.95 and 4.87 log CFU/100 cm 2 and 0.49 and 1.94 log CFU/100 cm 2 , for TVC and Enterobacteriaceae respectively. Analysis of pyrosequencing data showed that differences in the bacterial population abundance between slaughtering methods were mainly observed in the "legal" swabbing zone compared to the neck area. Bacterial genera belonging to the Actinobacteria phylum were more abundant in the "legal" swabbing zone in "Halal" samples, while Brevibacterium and Corynebacterium were encountered more in "Halal" samples, in all swabbing areas. This was also the case for Firmicutes bacterial populations (families of Aerococcaceae, Planococcaceae). Except for Planococcoceae, the analysis of Operational Taxonomic Unit (OTU) abundances of bacteria from the digestive or respiratory tract revealed no differences between groups. In conclusion, the slaughtering method does not influence the superficial microbiological pattern in terms of specific microbiological markers of the digestive or respiratory tract. However, precise analysis of taxonomy at the genus level taxonomy highlights differences between swabbing areas. Although not clearly proven in this study, differences in hygiene practices used during both slaughtering protocols could explain the differences in contamination between carcasses from both slaughtering groups.

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Time to collapse following slaughter without stunning in cattle

Cited by 92 publications

References 54 publications

Validation of indicators used to assess unconsciousness in veal calves at slaughter

Validation of indicators used to assess unconsciousness in veal calves at slaughter

Changes in blood parameters and electroencephalogram of cattle as affected by different stunning and slaughter methods in cattle

Assessment of bacterial superficial contamination in classical or ritually slaughtered cattle using metagenetics and microbiological analysis

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