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Stress at slaughter in cattle: role of reactivity profile and environmental factors
- EMC Terlouw, C Bourguet, V Deiss
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- Journal:
- Animal Welfare / Volume 21 / Issue S2 / June 2012
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 01 January 2023, pp. 43-49
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During slaughter, cattle may be exposed to many potentially stress-inducing factors, of emotional and physical nature. A series of studies aimed to identify factors that may contribute to slaughter stress. During reactivity tests testing emotional stressors, Blond d’Aquitaine bulls were more reactive than Angus and Limousin bulls. However, no breed differences were found for stress indicators at slaughter. Indicators of post mortem (PM) muscle metabolism were correlated with stress reactions at slaughter, and with behavioural reactions and heart rates during the reactivity tests, including a sudden event and handling. Similarly, in Normand cull cows, stronger behavioural and physiological reactions during the slaughter procedure were associated with faster PM muscle metabolism. Reactions during the reactivity tests were also correlated with stress indicators at slaughter. A Principal Component Analysis indicated that the first and second axes were correlated with reactions to non-familiarity and to social isolation, respectively. Both axes were correlated with stress indicators at slaughter, suggesting that these two aspects contribute significantly to the emotional stress at slaughter. These experiments indicate that stress reactivity at slaughter may be predicted from behavioural and emotional stress reactions during reactivity tests. A third experiment found that compared with normally fed cows, 30-h food-deprived cows showed stronger startle and fear responses in response to a sudden event. Within a group subjected to a physical-effort treatment, compared to normally fed heifers, food-deprived heifers were more reactive to human exposure. This shows that the reactions to a given stressor may increase due to the presence of other stressors. Thus, in cattle, novelty, social disturbances and sudden events may contribute to slaughter stress and the simultaneous presence of several stressors during the slaughter period may exacerbate stress reactions.
Effects of a chronic stress treatment on vaccinal response in lambs
- A. Destrez, A. Boissy, L. Guilloteau, S. Andanson, A. Souriau, K. Laroucau, E. Chaillou, V. Deiss
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Farming systems can expose animals to chronic mild stress which is known to induce negative affective state. Affective state in animals, as in humans, can be assessed through behavioral cues. This study aimed to describe the effect of a chronic mild stress, known to induce a negative affective state, on sheep health through their response to vaccination. The study used 15 lambs subjected to a model of chronic mild stress for 15 weeks and 15 lambs reared under conventional farming as a control group. After 7 weeks of stressful treatment, the lambs were individually exposed to a judgment bias test to assess a putative stress-induced ‘pessimism.’ After 15 weeks of stressful treatment, antibody immune response was measured after an injection of a live vaccine challenge (Chlamydia abortus attenuated vaccine strain 1B). Stressed lambs displayed a pessimistic-like perception in the judgment bias test, revealing a negative affective state. Stressed and control animals showed different immunological reactions to vaccine challenge: stressed sheep had lower hemoglobin concentrations and higher platelet, granulocyte and acute-phase protein concentrations. Antibody response induced by the vaccine strain was not different between stressed and control sheep. Our results suggest that negative affective state induced by chronic stress treatment may induce a stronger inflammatory response to vaccine challenge in sheep. Improvement of animal health may be achieved through consideration of stressors that may affect the emotional and immunological state of sheep.
Long-term exposure to unpredictable and uncontrollable aversive events alters fearfulness in sheep
- A. Destrez, V. Deiss, C. Leterrier, X. Boivin, A. Boissy
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Numerous studies have investigated the emotional effects of various acute, potentially alarming events in animals, but little is known about how an accumulation of emotional experiences affects fearfulness. Fearfulness is a temperament trait that characterizes the propensity of an individual to be frightened by a variety of alarming events. The aim of this study was to investigate a putative alteration of fearfulness in sheep repeatedly exposed to various aversive events. Forty-eight 5-month-old female lambs were used. Over a period of 6 weeks, 24 of them (treated group) were exposed daily to various unpredictable and uncontrollable aversive events related to predatory cues, social context and negative handling that can occur under farming conditions. The other 24 lambs (control group) were housed in standard farming conditions (predictable food distribution and group handling). Fearfulness (behavioural and physiological responses) was assessed before and after the treatment period by subjecting the lambs to three standardized tests: individual exposure to suddenness and then to novelty in a test arena, and group exposure to a motionless human in the home pen. As biomarkers of stress, leukocyte counts, heart rate and cortisol concentrations were measured in the lambs in their home pens. Before the treatment, the emotional responses of the groups did not differ. After the treatment, treated lambs approached the human less often, had less contact with the novel object and vocalized more than controls in individual tests, suggesting that long-term exposure to unpredictable and uncontrollable aversive events increases subsequent fearfulness in sheep. In addition, treated lambs had lower leukocyte counts, heart rate and cortisol levels, pointing to a chronic stress state. These findings suggest that increased fearfulness may be used as a sign of chronic stress in farm animals.
Pre-slaughter conditions, animal stress and welfare: current status and possible future research
- E. M. C. Terlouw, C. Arnould, B. Auperin, C. Berri, E. Le Bihan-Duval, V. Deiss, F. Lefèvre, B. J. Lensink, L. Mounier
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The present paper describes the main procedures used to slaughter fowl, pigs, calves and adult cattle, sheep, and farmed fish, starting on the farm and ending with the death of the animal at the abattoir. It reviews the currently known causes of stress, indicated by behavioural and physiological measurements on the animal level, and by post-mortem muscle metabolism. During the pre-slaughter period, psychological stress is due to changes of environment, social disturbances and handling, and physical stress is due to food deprivation, climatic conditions, fatigue, and sometimes pain. The exact causes of stress depend, however, on the characteristics of each species, including the rearing system. For fowl, bird catching and crating, duration and climatic conditions of transport and of lairage and shackling are the main known pre-slaughter stress factors. For pigs, stress is caused by fighting during mixing of pens, loading and unloading conditions, and introduction in the restrainer. Handling and novelty of the situation contribute to the stress reactions. For veal calves and adult cattle, disruption of the social group, handling, loading and sometimes unloading conditions, fatigue, novelty of the situation and for calves mixing with unfamiliar animals are known stress factors. Gathering and yarding of extensively reared lambs and sheep causes stress, particularly when shepherd dogs are used. Subsequent transport may induce fatigue, especially if sheep are commercialised through auctions or markets. In farmed fish, stress is predominantly related to environmental aspects such as temperature, oxygen, cleanliness of the water and, to a certain extent, stocking density and removal of the fish from the water. If transport and lairage conditions are good and their durations not too long, they may allow pigs, calves and adult cattle, sheep, and fish to rest. For certain species, it was shown that genetic origin and earlier experience influence reactions to the slaughter procedure. Stunning techniques used depend on the species. Pigs and fowl are mostly electrically or gas-stunned, while most adult cattle are stunned with a captive bolt pistol. Calves and sheep may be electrically stunned or with a captive bolt pistol. Various stunning methods exist for the different farmed fish species. Potential causes of stress associated with the different stunning procedures are discussed. The paper addresses further consequences for meat quality and possible itineraries for future research. For all species, and most urgently for fish, more knowledge is needed on stunning and killing techniques, including gas-stunning techniques, to protect welfare.
Emotions generated by meat and other food products in women
- S. Rousset, V. Deiss, E. Juillard, P. Schlich, S. Droit-Volet
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- Journal:
- British Journal of Nutrition / Volume 94 / Issue 4 / October 2005
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 08 March 2007, pp. 609-619
- Print publication:
- October 2005
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Eating behaviour depends partly on food preference, which is itself determined by different types of emotions. Among the emotions generated by food, disgust with red meat is common in women and can lead to reduced meat consumption. We tested the hypothesis that low meat intake is related to different negative emotions towards meat but does not affect the emotions expressed towards other food categories. Food intake of sixty women was followed throughout each day for 1 week and allowed us to assign women to two groups (low v. high meat-eating women). They were then invited to assess the intensity of twenty-six emotions described by words and induced by thirty food pictures. We determined the number of necessary dimensions to describe the space created by the twenty-six words. The results showed differences in emotions between the low and high meat-eating women. As expected, there were overall differences in the emotions generated by the thirty food pictures. Six clusters of emotions were necessary and sufficient to summarise the emotional space. These dimensions were described by ‘disappointment’, ‘satisfaction’, ‘guilt’, ‘doubt’, ‘amused’ and ‘indifference’. As expected, the low meat-eating women felt more ‘disappointment’, ‘indifference’ and less ‘satisfaction’ towards meat than did the high meat-eating women. However, the low meat-eating women also stated other negative emotions such as ‘doubt’ towards some starchy foods. The only foods that they liked more than high meat-eating women were pears and French beans. In conclusion, low meat consumption was associated with specific negative emotions regarding meat and other foods.