1
|
Sullivan PA, Davis MK, Nair MN, Hess AM, Mooney DF, Edwards-Callaway LN. Preslaughter factors affecting mobility, blood parameters, bruising, and muscle pH of finished beef cattle in the United States. Transl Anim Sci 2024; 8:txae035. [PMID: 38562213 PMCID: PMC10983080 DOI: 10.1093/tas/txae035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2024] [Accepted: 03/12/2024] [Indexed: 04/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Decades of work have focused on reducing fear, stress, and discomfort in cattle during the preslaughter phase by improving and promoting animal handling, transportation, and management processes. Even still, there is limited information about the effects of preslaughter factors on animal welfare and meat quality outcomes in finished cattle in the United States. This study aimed to track individual animals through the slaughter process to identify preslaughter factors associated with key welfare and quality outcomes. A total of 454 cattle from one commercial slaughter facility were studied. Preslaughter factors assessed included distance traveled, truck waiting time, lairage density, lairage duration, and season. Animal characteristics, i.e., body weight, breed, and sex, were also recorded. One trained observer scored the mobility of all cattle using the North American Meat Institute's 1-4 scale (i.e., normal to extremely reluctant to move). Exsanguination blood was collected and analyzed for cortisol, creatine kinase, and lactate. Carcass bruising was scored using a modified version of the National Beef Quality Audit's bruise-scoring methodology (i.e., no bruise, one bruise ≤ the size of a deck of cards, one bruise > than the size of a deck of cards, and multiple bruises). Ultimate muscle pH was measured 32 to 36 h postmortem. Multi-predictor models were selected for each outcome variable using Akaike Information Criterion. Continuous outcome variables were analyzed using linear mixed-effect models and categorical outcome variables with mixed-effect logistic regression models. Longer truck waiting times were associated with increased cortisol (P = 0.04) and lactate (P = 0.02) concentrations. Similarly, increased lairage duration was associated with increased creatine kinase concentrations (P = 0.05) and the odds of cattle being bruised (P = 0.03). Less space allowance per animal in lairage was associated with increased odds of cattle having impaired mobility (P = 0.01). There was a seasonal effect for many of the measured outcomes; the summer season was associated with greater lactate concentrations (P < 0.0001), increased odds of impaired mobility (P < 0.0001), and increased odds of carcass bruising (P = 0.003). The findings of this study indicate that many of the preslaughter factors assessed influence critical welfare and meat quality outcomes of finished beef cattle, warranting future research and consideration.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Paxton A Sullivan
- Department of Animal Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Melissa K Davis
- Department of Animal Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Mahesh N Nair
- Department of Animal Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Ann M Hess
- Department of Statistics, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Daniel F Mooney
- Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | | |
Collapse
|
2
|
Davis M, Sullivan P, Bretón J, Dean L, Edwards-Callaway L. Investigating the impact of pre-slaughter management factors on indicators of fed beef cattle welfare – a scoping review. Front Anim Sci 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fanim.2022.1073849] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
IntroductionThe impact of pre-slaughter management practices on fed beef cattle welfare is a multifaceted and well researched subject matter. Factors such as transportation, handling, lairage time and several animal characteristics can directly impact the cattle’s behavior, mobility, blood lactate and cortisol levels, likelihood of injury and ultimately overall cattle welfare. Animal welfare continues to grow as a critical component of slaughter in the fed beef industry, yet a formal review of related research does not exist.MethodsA scoping review was performed in order to (1) catalog pre-slaughter management factors that impact fed beef cattle welfare at the time of slaughter, (2) identify indicators used to evaluate the impact of pre-slaughter management on fed beef cattle welfare at slaughter, and (3) gain further understanding of the relationship between pre-slaughter management factors and fed beef cattle welfare outcome indicators at slaughter. Three data bases were ultimately searched: PubMed, CAB Abstracts, and Web of Science. The concepts used in the database searches were the population of interest (i.e., fed beef cattle), the location in the supply chain, preslaughter management factors, and welfare outcomes.ResultsA total of 69 studies were included in final analysis for this review, including studies from six geographic regions around the globe. Studies involving alternative slaughter methods (e.g., religious stunning or mobile slaughter) were not included in the formal analysis of this review, but still merited an in-depth discussion within this paper. After reviewing the studies, a total of 37 pre-slaughter factors and 69 indicators of welfare were measured throughout. Pre-slaughter management factors were then categorized by: animal characteristics; environmental characteristics; handling; lairage; transportation; and water/feed. Outcomeindicators of welfare were categorized into: behaviors; health, injury and disease; physiological; and stunning and insensibility.DiscussionPre-slaughter factors relating to transportation and handling, and welfare outcomes measured by behaviors and physiology were of the most researched throughout the studies.The results of this review offer a catalogue of commonly researched factors and indicators of welfare measured during the pre-slaughter phase, as well ast he relationships between them. This review also offers further substantial evidence that a multitude of events in the pre-slaughter phase affect fed beef cattle welfare and a collection of highly applicable welfare indicators to expedite further research on the effects of pre-slaughter factors and the application of improved practices.
Collapse
|
3
|
Farschtschi S, Riedmaier-Sprenzel I, Phomvisith O, Gotoh T, Pfaffl MW. The successful use of -omic technologies to achieve the 'One Health' concept in meat producing animals. Meat Sci 2022; 193:108949. [PMID: 36029570 DOI: 10.1016/j.meatsci.2022.108949] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2022] [Revised: 08/09/2022] [Accepted: 08/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Human health and wellbeing are closely linked to healthy domestic animals, a vital wildlife, and an intact ecosystem. This holistic concept is referred to as 'One Health'. In this review, we provide an overview of the potential and the challenges for the use of modern -omics technologies, especially transcriptomics and proteomics, to implement the 'One Health' idea for food-producing animals. These high-throughput studies offer opportunities to find new potential molecular biomarkers to monitor animal health, detect pharmacological interventions and evaluate the wellbeing of farm animals in modern intensive livestock systems.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sabine Farschtschi
- Division of Animal Physiology and Immunology, TUM School of Life Sciences, Technical University of Munich, Freising, Germany
| | - Irmgard Riedmaier-Sprenzel
- Division of Animal Physiology and Immunology, TUM School of Life Sciences, Technical University of Munich, Freising, Germany; Eurofins Medigenomix Forensik GmbH, Anzinger Straße 7a, 85560 Ebersberg, Germany
| | - Ouanh Phomvisith
- Department of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Kagoshima University, Korimoto 1-21-24, Kagoshima 890-8580, Japan
| | - Takafumi Gotoh
- Department of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Kagoshima University, Korimoto 1-21-24, Kagoshima 890-8580, Japan
| | - Michael W Pfaffl
- Division of Animal Physiology and Immunology, TUM School of Life Sciences, Technical University of Munich, Freising, Germany.
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Saito C, Ido-Matsumoto H, Kumazaki H, Kubo T, Kanazawa T, Takahashi T. Development of enzyme immunoassay for chromogranin A (CgA) and profiling of plasma CgA concentrations in the cow. Anim Sci J 2021; 92:e13542. [PMID: 33723871 DOI: 10.1111/asj.13542] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2020] [Revised: 01/08/2021] [Accepted: 02/21/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
The objectives of this study were to establish and characterize a homologous immunoassay for bovine chromogranin A (bCgA) and to profile plasma bCgA concentrations during early pregnancies. We synthesized oligopeptide corresponding to the amino acid sequence 341-355 of bCgA for immunizing rabbits and peptide corresponding to the amino acid sequence 336-365 of bCgA for both a biotinylated tracer and reference standards. Recombinant bCgA protein was also generated in Escherichia coli lysate. Dose-dependent displacement curves were obtained from 1 to 1,000 nM of the reference standards. The displacement curves showed a good relationship between the reference standards of the synthetic peptide and the serially diluted plasma sample or recombinant bCgA protein generated in the present study. The assay sensitivity defined as the value of two standard deviations below the zero standard was calculated as 0.46 nM. The intraassay and interassay coefficients of variation were 6.48% and 13.4%, respectively. Changes in the plasma bCgA concentrations in early pregnancies undulated in nonpregnant animals. The results of the present study suggest that assaying plasma bCgA concentrations could be utilized as measures to evaluate the physiological status of cattle.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Chihiro Saito
- Cooperative Department of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Agriculture, Iwate University, Morioka City, Iwate, Japan
| | - Haruka Ido-Matsumoto
- Cooperative Department of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Agriculture, Iwate University, Morioka City, Iwate, Japan
| | - Hiromasa Kumazaki
- Cooperative Department of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Agriculture, Iwate University, Morioka City, Iwate, Japan
| | - Tomoaki Kubo
- Cooperative Department of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Agriculture, Iwate University, Morioka City, Iwate, Japan
| | - Tomomi Kanazawa
- Cooperative Department of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Agriculture, Iwate University, Morioka City, Iwate, Japan
| | - Toru Takahashi
- Cooperative Department of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Agriculture, Iwate University, Morioka City, Iwate, Japan
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Barreiro-Vázquez JD, Barreiro-Lois A, Miranda M. Ultrasonography of Normal Adrenal Glands in Adult Holstein-Friesian Cows: A Pilot Study. Animals (Basel) 2020; 10:ani10071171. [PMID: 32664212 PMCID: PMC7401516 DOI: 10.3390/ani10071171] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2020] [Revised: 07/06/2020] [Accepted: 07/07/2020] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Ultrasonographic reference values for the adrenal glands of cattle have not been reported to date. Adrenal glands can be affected by different pathologies, such as hyperplasia, neoplasia and atrophy (either primary or secondary). The present findings indicate that the right adrenal gland can be easily characterized by transabdominal ultrasound in adult Holstein-Friesian cows, with no apparent influence of age or weight. The right adrenal gland (mean length 3.86 ± 1.39 cm; and mean thickness 1.39 ± 0.26 cm) was consistently and mainly located in the 12th intercostal space. The left adrenal gland was more difficult to locate due to its more medial position, and to the presence of gas in the gastrointestinal tract, so it could not be visualized in most animals (18/25). Its mean length was 3.72 ± 0.95 cm, and mean thickness was 1.36 ± 0.33 cm, in the sagittal section. This is the first report of the ultrasonographic appearance of the adrenal glands of cows and of the corresponding reference preliminary values.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- J. Daniel Barreiro-Vázquez
- Department of Anatomy, Animal Production and Clinical Veterinary Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, 27002 Lugo, Spain; (J.D.B.-V.); (A.B.-L.)
- Veterinary Teaching Hospital “Rof-Codina”, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, 27002 Lugo, Spain
| | - Andrés Barreiro-Lois
- Department of Anatomy, Animal Production and Clinical Veterinary Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, 27002 Lugo, Spain; (J.D.B.-V.); (A.B.-L.)
- Veterinary Teaching Hospital “Rof-Codina”, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, 27002 Lugo, Spain
| | - Marta Miranda
- Department of Anatomy, Animal Production and Clinical Veterinary Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, 27002 Lugo, Spain; (J.D.B.-V.); (A.B.-L.)
- Veterinary Teaching Hospital “Rof-Codina”, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, 27002 Lugo, Spain
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +34-98-2822-615
| |
Collapse
|