Meat Science Commons^™

Problems With Kosher Slaughter, Temple Grandin

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

Ritual slaughter to produce kosher meat is rooted in the teachings and writings of the Talmud. However, the preslaughter handling features of modern systems, particularly the shackling and hoisting of large steers, contravene the basic message of humaneness included in the teachings. The throat-cutting of a live, conscious animal is relatively pain-free, provided that certain precautions are followed, but U.S. kosher plants need to install newly developed conveyor-restrainer systems to eliminate the abuses of shackling and hoisting. Conveyor-restrainer systems for large and small animals are discussed.

The Effect Of Stress On Livestock And Meat Quality Prior To And During Slaughter, Temple Grandin

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

The effects of stress on cattle, pigs and sheep prior to slaughter are reviewed. Long-term preslaughter stress, such as fighting, cold weather, fasting and transit, which occurs 12 to 48 hours prior to slaughter depletes muscle glycogen, resulting in meat which has a higher pH, darker color, and is drier. Short-term acute stress, such as excitement or fighting immediately prior to slaughter, produced lactic acid from the breakdown of glycogen. This results in meat which has a lower pH, lighter color, reduced water binding capacity, and is possibly tougher. Psychological stressors, such as excitement and fighting, will often have a …

Effects Of Supplementary Amino Acids In An All-Corn Diet On The Growth And Metabolic Performance Of Young Rats And Pigs, Dale Alan Grosbach

Open Access Master's Theses (through 2010)

While there is presently an agreement on the status of lysine and tryptophan being closely first and second, or co-limiting, little beyond this is known. Which amino acids are the next limiting, and if they would give an important performance boost is unknown.

The stage of the pig’s growth at which these factors are examined may also be important. Much of the work has been done with larger growing or finishing of pigs. It may be more advantageous to work with pigs that weigh from 10 to 35 kg compared to the 40 to 110 kg animal. It is at …

Bruises And Carcass Damage, Temple Grandin

International Journal for the Study of Animal Problems

Bruising and carcass damage is a major source of financial loss to slaughterhouses in the United States, approximately $46 million per annum. The absence of easily administered tests to determine where and/or when bruising occurs results in the slaughter plant absorbing carcass damage costs. Rough, abusive handling of livestock accounts for over half of all bruising. Injuries occur through overuse of persuaders, careless transport methods, and faulty equipment. Other elements relevant to carcass loss include branding cattle, abscesses, spreader and crippling injuries, sickness and death during extreme weather conditions, and carcass shrink. The 1979 regulations under the Humane Methods of …

1980 Beef Cattle Report, Leo E. Lucas

Nebraska Beef Cattle Reports

Weighing steers three consecutive days at the beginning and end of the trial reduced variation and increased the probability of detecting a difference in daily gain and gain/protein ratios between treatments when compared to a standard weighing method (once at the beginning and once at the end of the trial). Regressing 1 initial, 1 final and 11 weekly weights also decreased variation and increased the probability of detecting treatment differences compared to the standard method, but was more variable than using three weights at the beginning and end of the trial.

Young, growing steers and lambs supplemented with natural protein …

Heterosis And Breed Effects In Swine, R. K. Johnson

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

An objective of the NC-103 regional swine breeding project is to evaluate inter-population and intra-population performance of domestic and exotic strains of swine. Several cooperating stations have conducted experiments relative to this objective. Projects were not exact replicates, but sufficient overlap allowed combining the information to yield more precise estimates of heterosis and breed effects than was possible from the analyses of data from any single experiment. This publication summarizes data available from NC-103 cooperating stations on breed and heterosis effects in swine. An extensive crossbreeding experiment has been conducted and results published by Canadian researchers Fahmy and Bernard, 1971 …