Pre slaughter handling of animals prior to slaughter: cattle, pig, and lamb

1. PRE-SLAUGHTER HANDLING
OF ANIMALS PRIOR TO
SLAUGHTER: Cattle, Pig, Lamb.

2. •
•
Animal handling
Animal transportation
Animal resting
Fasting
Antemortem inspection
Antemortem- Antemortem injuries occur before death
whereas post-mortem occur after death.
Antemortem refers to event accruing prior to death.

3. PRE-SLAUGTER HANDLING AND CARE
Pre-slaughter care and handling can markedly influence
the quality and quantity of meat.
Excited, stressed, fatigued, suffocated bruished and
injured animals are not expected to yield whole some meat.
Excessive holding in lairages may increase the numbers of
certain organisms in animals.

4. TRANSPORTAION OF MEAT ANIMALS
Before loading and Unloading the livestock that the facility will not
cause animal injury.
If the facility remove any disturbance from loading and unloading
facilities that may cause animals to stop, crush or return.
If the facility is likely to cause injury, the damage should be
repaired immediately or the animals unloaded elsewhere.
Check the livestock trucks for any signs of damage and wear thar
can hurt animals and report damage to truck drivers and supervisors.
Sufficient cages and livestock should be available before starting
the demolition.
Check that the ramp/road slopes does not exceed about 30
degrees and the surface/road should not slippery.
Lightning should be provided for loading and unloading t night.

5. Make sure that there is enough lightning ton encourage
animals to move in or out the truck, but make sure that light is not
directed to their eyes.
Load animals onto truck
Load animals onto truck
Allow animals to move on trucks at their own pace
especially if the truck is not made of anti-skid material.
Loading should be done by skilled personnel
Move the animals in small groups that are easily handled
from the demolition cage/ramp to the truck.
Handling animals which includes more detailed handling
procedures.
Do not stand in front of the animals or in front of their view
directly as this stop them from moving to the truck.
Standing on one side will encourage the movement of
animals.
Observe each animals when walking against signs of
lameness and injury.
Check that all animals are healthy to transport. Livestock
sick and injured should not be loaded.

6. Resting in lairage
Rest before slaughter is essential to produce meat with
good keeping quality.
A period of 12-24 hours with a maximum of 36 hours
detention and rest in lairage is essential for such animals
before slaughter.
Watering
Watering
Animals should receive ample drinking water during
their detention in the lairage which lower the bacterial load
in the intestine.
Facilitate easy removal of the hide or pelt during
dressing
prevent shrinkage losses in the body.
improve the efficiency of stunning by electrical means.

7. FASTING
-It is a duty of inspector to ensure that they are not presentive the
animals for slaughter with full stomachs because:
1. Full stomach causes attentive contamination of carcass and offal’s
if accidentally cuts.
2. wet hide and fleeces encourage the transfer of fecal materials
particularly to area such as the shanks, briskets and hacks.
ANTEMORTEM INSPECTION
Antemortem- the term ante- mortem means “before death
”.
- antemortem inspection is the inspection of
live animals and birds prior to being slaughtered.

8. -All livestock presented for slaughter must receive ante-mortem inspection
-This inspection is performed by a veterinarian or by a meat Inspector under
veterinary supervision.
-Ante-mortem inspection should be done with in 24 hours of slaughter and
repeated if slaughter has been delayed by over a day.

9. Some of the major objectives of antemortem inspection are as
follows:
-To screen all animals destined to slaughter.
-To ensure that animals are properly rested and that proper clinical
information, which will assist in the disease diagnosis and judgement, is
obtained.
-To reduce contamination on the killing floor by separating the dirty
animals and condemning the diseased animals if required by regulation.
-To ensure that injured animals or those with pain and suffering receive
emergency slaughter and that animals are treated humanely.
-To identify reportable animal diseases to prevent killing floor
contamination.
-To identify sick animals and those treated with antibiotics,
chemotherapeutic agents, insecticides and pesticides.
-To require and ensure the cleaning and disinfection of trucks used to
transport livestock.

10. - Both sides of an animal should be examined at rest and in motion.
Antemortem examination should be done within 24 hours of slaughter
and repeated if slaughter has been delayed over a day.
-Spread hogs and animals affected with extensive bruising or
fractures require emergency slaughter. Animals showing clinical signs
of disease should be held for veterinary examination and judgement.
-They are treated as “suspects” and should be segregated from
the healthy animals. The disease and management history should be
recorded and reported on an A/M inspection card.

11. Ante-mortem Inspection Card
1.Owner's name
2. The number of animals in the lot and arrival time
3. Species and sex of the animal
4. The time and date of antemortem inspection
5. Clinical signs and body temperature if relevant
6. Reason why the animal was held
7. Signature of inspector
Ante-mortem inspection should be carried out in adequate lighting
where the animals can be observed both collectively and individually
at rest and motion. The general behavior of animals should be
observed, as well as their nutritional status, cleanliness, signs of
diseases and abnormalities.

12. Some of the abnormalities which are checked on
antemortem examination include:
1. Abnormalities in respiration
2. Abnormalities in behavior
3. Abnormalities in gait4. Abnormalities in posture
5. Abnormalities in structure and conformation
6. Abnormal discharges or protrusions from body openings
7. Abnormal color
8. Abnormal odor
9. High temperature

13. Abnormalities in behavior are manifested by one or more
of the following signs:
The animal may be:
a. walking in circles or show an abnormal gait or posture.
b. pushing its head against a wall.
c. charging at various objects and acting aggressively.
d. showing a dull and anxious expression in the eyes.

14. PREPARING LIVESTOCKS FOR SLAUGHTER
At the time of slaughter, animals should be healthy and
physiologically normal.
Slaughter should be adequately rested.
They should be rested, preferably overnight,
particularly if they have traveled for sometimes over long
distance.
However, pigs and poultry are usually slaughtered on
arrival as time and distance traveled are relatively short and
holding in pens is stressful for them.
Animals should be watered during holding and can be
fed, if required.
Holding period allows for injured and victimized animals
to be identified and for sick animals to be quarantined.

15. When ready for slaughter, animals should be driven to
the stunning area in a quiet and orderly manner without
undue fuss and noise.
Droving can be facilitated using canvass straps, rolled
plastics or paper, and in the case of stubborn animals,
prodders can be used occasionally.
Animals should never be beaten nor have their tails
twisted.

16. •
CAUSES OF STRESS PRIOR TO SLAUGHTER
Cattle
Stress leads to “dark cutting beef’ or dark, firm and dry (DFD),
which should be avoided. Poorly designed handling and loading
facilities can lead to damaged carcasses. Important things to note to
limit stress, particularity when considering cattle:
HUMANE ACT TO AVOID STRESS FOR CATTLE
Avoid mixing cattle from different groups
Use vehicles that avoid overcrowding. Have partitions to restrict
movement and offer support during transportation
Cattle do not like reflective or shiny surfaces in their path
Cattle handling areas should have smooth walls, no pools of water,
a non-slip floor and gradual ramps
Take special care with bulls as they are more susceptible to stress
Avoid the use of sticks and goads
Lairages should be clean with dry bedding and drinking water

17. • Pigs
Stress prior to slaughter can have a visible impact on pork quality
showing up as DFD and/or PSE (pale, soft, exudative), as well as
bruises and blood splash. Alongside the aforementioned, it can also be
helpful to:
HUMANE ACT TO AVOID STRESS FOR PIG
Minimize human interaction
Use cooling water sprinklers to reduce temperatures on warmer
days
Keep pigs in known groups until the point of slaughter

18. • Sheep
Lamb can also be categorized as DFD. As well as
considering the above, it is also important to note that sheep
can bruise easily, especially young lambs, so never:
Handle/move sheep by grabbing the wool
Allow sheep to trample over each other in races
Allow sheep to be trampled during transport

19. Areas to reduce stress
Novel experiences can be stressful to animals on an individual basis, so
it is important to be mindful of their welfare. This is also true when
considering the lead up to slaughter as a lower standard of welfare may
also result in lower meat quality.
*Mixing
When sorting animals for transportation or at markets, it is
important to minimize the mixing of unknown groups
If mixing is necessary for transportation, make sure animals are
not kept in these groups for extended periods of time, i.e. 1–2 days
prior to slaughter
Transportation and vehicles
Always use the correct vehicles for the species you are moving
Ensure that ramps on and off the vehicles are suitable and meet
regulations
Follow regulations around stocking densities and journey times

20. *Lairage
The time spent in the lairage is crucial, particularly when
considering bulls (which should be moved directly from
transport to slaughter)
Be aware that sheep often feel less stressed when they
can see other sheep around them. However, cattle can
become more distressed. Think about how the lairage pens
are designed for the species
Keep pigs in known groups until the point of slaughter
Make sure that there are no pools of light or dark areas
which will prevent the animals from moving easily through the
raceways
Ensure that temperatures and ventilation are optimal to
reduce stress to pigs (cattle and sheep are less susceptible to
heat stress)

21. *Handling
Use the animals’ natural behaviors to move them on
and off transport as well as through the lairage
Try to avoid contact with the animal as this can cause
increased stress levels. Instead, use flags as an extension
of your arm to encourage movement

22. SUMMARY
All animals must be rested before slaughter and shall be subjected to
antemortem examination and inspection well in advance before slaughter.
No animal which has been received into a slaughter hall shall be
removed before being slaughtered, except with the written consent of
the qualified veterinarian.
An animal which, on antemortem inspection, is found to be unfit for
slaughter shall be marked as “suspect” and kept separately.
An animal showing signs of any disease, or in febrile condition, at the
time of antemortem inspection shall be marked as “condemned” and
rejected.
No suspect animal shall be slaughtered until all other animals
intended for slaughter on the same day have been slaughtered.
All animals which, on antemortem inspection show symptoms of
railroad sickness, parturient paresis, rabies, tetanus, or any other
communicable diseases shall be marked as “condemned” and
disposed of as per procedure.