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- Title
Effects of floor space during transport and journey time on indicators of stress and transport losses of market-weight pigs.
- Authors
Pilcher, C. M.; Ellis, M.; Rojo-Gómez, A.; Curtis, S. E.; Wolter, B. F.; Peterson, C. M.; Peterson, B. A.; Ritter, M. J.; Brinkmann, J.
- Abstract
The effects of floor space on the trailer and journey time during transport from the farm to the packing plant on indicators of stress (open-mouth breathing, muscle tremors, and skin discoloration) and on the incidence of transport losses (dead on arrival, non-ambulatory, non-injured, and non-ambulatory, injured) were evaluated in a study involving 160 loads of market-weight pigs (BW 124.7 ± 4.38 kg) using a split-plot design with a 2 × 6 factorial arrangement of treatments: (1) journey time (main plot; short [<1 h] and long [3 h]) and (2) floor space (subplot; 0.396, 0.415, 0.437, 0.462, 0.489 and 0.520 m2/pig, which is equivalent to 0.317, 0.332, 0.350, 0.370, 0.391, and 0.416 m2/100 kg BW, respectively). Two consecutively loaded trailers were randomly allotted to journey time treatment. Floor space treatments were compared in the front 3 compartments on the top and bottom decks of the trailer and were created by varying the number of pigs per compartment which confounds the effect of floor space with group size. Of the 17,652 pigs transported in 954 test compartments, 0.24% died or became non-ambulatory. Neither journey time nor floor space had an effect (P > 0.05) on the incidence of dead and non-ambulatory, injured pigs, or on total transport losses. There were interactions (P < 0.05) between journey time and floor space treatments for the incidences of non-ambulatory, non-injured pigs and open-mouth breathing. For 2 of the lowest floor spaces (0.415 and 0.437 m2/pig), the incidence of non-ambulatory, non-injured pigs was greater on short than on long journeys; for the other 4 floor spaces there was no effect (P > 0.05) of journey time. The incidence of open-mouth breathing for the 3 lowest floor spaces was greater (P < 0.05) for short than long journeys, whereas there was no effect (P > 0.05) of journey time for the 3 greatest floor spaces. The frequency of skin discoloration was greater (P < 0.001) for pigs transported at the 2 lowest floor spaces compared with the other 4 floor spaces. In summary, short journey time increased the frequency of indicators of stress after unloading at the plant for pigs transported at low floor spaces and, also, increased the incidence of non-ambulatory, non-injured pigs at 2 of the 3 lowest floor spaces. However, neither transport floor space nor journey time had an effect on total losses.
- Subjects
TRANSPORTATION of swine; PHYSIOLOGICAL stress; LIVESTOCK losses; TRAILERS; TRAVEL -- Physiological aspects; SAFETY
- Publication
Journal of Animal Science, 2011, Vol 89, Issue 11, p3809
- ISSN
0021-8812
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.2527/jas.2010-3143