Transportation of livestock is a stressful event for the
animals. Just ask Brianna the cow, a recent New Jersey escapee who either fell
or jumped from a transport truck heading to the slaughterhouse. While events
such as this aren’t common, the safety and well-being of cattle being
transported – no matter the end destination – is an important concern for the
livestock industry.
Before, during and after transportation, cows are exposed to
a variety of stressors. Stress is additive, and transport conditions such as
temperature, density, location on truck, duration of transport and body
condition prior to being transported all play a role in determining the level
of stress. If the stress is too intense, the animal arrives at its destination
in a compromised or unfit – lame, non-ambulatory or dead – condition.
What are these stressors and can they be mitigated for
better cow outcomes? Why do some cows survive transport with little lasting
effects, while others arrive at their destinations unfit?
Dr. Karen Schwartzkopf-Genswein, senior research scientist
at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, focuses on animal welfare issues. She
shared research data and protocols for decreasing animal stress and preventing
poor outcomes when transporting beef cattle in a recent webinar.
“Transport safety is really linked to animal research,” said
Schwartzkopf-Genswein, who has been involved in the study of transport welfare
for the past decade or more.
Transport is stressful for even the healthiest cows. Cows
have to be handled, may be put with unfamiliar cows, are in an unfamiliar
environment, aren’t able to eat or drink and have to expend energy to maintain
balance in a moving vehicle.
“It is a feat to maintain balance, even for short periods of
time,” she said.
Researchers have examined many of these variables to
determine the best management practices for cattle transport.
Stressed animal outcome
According to a Fact Sheet by the National Cattlemen’s Beef
Association, “the stress level of the animal upon arrival at a harvesting
facility drastically affects the quality of the meat obtained from the animal.
Meat from highly stressed cattle tends to be dark and tough, whereas cattle
that are less stressed produce a much more desirable and tender product.”
Schwartzkopf-Genswein shared research that examined the
final outcome of cattle that were being transported to auctions or
slaughterhouses. The study assessed the number of cattle arriving in unfit or
compromised condition, examined why these animals were so severely stressed and
noted their ultimate fate.
Researchers visually examined animals as they arrived at
their destinations in order to classify their condition. They also looked at
age, sex, body condition and mobility score as well as other criteria when
assessing the animals.
For those animals going to auction, 87 percent of the cows
assessed as unfit went to regular slaughter, while only 40 percent of those
deemed unfit upon arrival at Federal Canadian slaughterhouse were harvested for
meat, she said. When arriving at a provincial slaughterhouse, more than 80
percent of the animals deemed to be unfit by researchers went to regular
slaughter.
The study cited risk factors affecting the market pricing
the prior week – higher pricing meaning more cull animals being sold, the
density of the animals in the truck, the truck type, the weather and the
distance as factors impacting the overall stress levels and final cow outcomes.
In this study, between 69 and 98 percent of the total cows transported arrived
in fit condition.
Animal characteristics
When producers are shipping cull cows, the odds are highest
that they will arrive at their destination in a compromised condition,
Schwartzkopf-Genswein said. The pre-transport condition of the animal leads to
its inability to withstand further demands placed upon it by transportation.
Cows in heavy lactation, older cows, calves and those with low body
conditioning scores, lameness, injury or respiratory distress are at high risk
for excessive stress during transport.
Other animals that are not able to withstand transport
stress include those emaciated or dehydrated, those in shock, ones with
suspected nervous systems disorders, those less than two days old and those who
can’t stand independently.
“The most vulnerable types of animals are the culls and the
calves,” she said, while feeders and fats were better able to withstand
transport stress and arrive uncompromised. “Transport that animal before she
just can’t handle the transport. It has to be in adequate condition to make the
journey under the conditions of that transport.”
As for Brianna the cow, she was pregnant and gave birth 48
hours after her fall and subsequent rescue. Brianna and her calf are doing well
and destined to live their lives at the Skylands Animal Sanctuary & Rescue
in Wantage, NJ. While it is often difficult to tell if a cow is about to give
birth, Schwartzkopf-Genswein acknowledged, animals should not be transported if
they are likely to give birth.
Transport conditions
Physiological indications of stress include high cortisol
levels and several immune, pain and inflammation markers which researchers can
measure. Behaviors of stressed cows are observable. They stop ruminating.
Drool, increased respiration rates, falling, slipping or unwillingness to walk
and other behaviors which are a “change from normal” are signs of stress.
Using both biological and physiological indicators,
researchers have attempted to quantify transport conditions leading to stress.
They found that being on the truck for more than 30 hours was when the cows’
shrinkage, or loss of body weight, peaked. This is significant because “all of
that fluid has been lost. Now you’re getting into tissue loss,” she said.
The temperature on the truck also impacts shrinkage.
Temperatures above 59 degrees Fahrenheit or below five degrees Fahrenheit cause
shrink to rapidly increase. The probability of being compromised upon arrival
increases rapidly after 28 hours on the truck. Driver experience can have some
positive effect on shrink but does not offset poor loading decisions or
transport conditions.
“Distance and time on the truck really can affect welfare
outcomes or increase the poor welfare outcomes” of the cows,
Schwartzkopf-Genswein emphasized.
The location of the animal in the trailer impacts their
condition. The upper level, both the doghouse in the rear and the deck in the
front, cause animals to suffer the most bruising. The next highest risk of
bruising is in the back on the lower level. Positions in the back of the truck
on either level undergo more severe movements than the deck, belly or nose.
Brianna was somewhere on the upper level, so her ride would have been a bumpier
one.
The density of the animals in the trailer can also impact
the amount of injury from transport. Too little or too many cows can cause an
increase in injury and stress. Researchers found that trailer loading densities
greater than 1.5 meters squared, or less than .05 meters squared, resulted in
cows more likely to become non-ambulatory or lame or to die.
While the exact conditions under which Brianna was
transported are unknown, having a cow fall from the transport truck during
transit is thankfully not a common occurrence. But it is a reminder that animal
welfare during transport is an important part of any livestock business.
“Marketing always means we have to transport cows,”
Schwartzkopf-Genswein stated. Overall, “poor cow condition at loading is the
biggest risk factor in determining condition at off-loading.”
