Abstract

ACEVEDO-GIRALDO, Juan David; ROMERO, Marlyn H  and  SANCHEZ, Jorge A. Effectiveness of two methods for stunning pigs: Electrical stunning head-heart and co stuninng. Rev. investig. vet. Perú [online]. 2016, vol.27, n.4, pp.668-679. ISSN 1609-9117.  http://dx.doi.org/10.15381/rivep.v27i3.12001.

The aims of this study were to evaluate and compare the effectiveness of the electrical stunning head-heart ( MA1) and CO stunning ( MA2) , and to assess the infrastructure and management of pigs in two commercial slaughterhouses in Colombia. A crosssectional study that evaluated 520 pigs ( MA1=185 and MA2=335) was performed. Behavioral indicators in the stunning box and consciousness indicators before and after bleeding were evaluated. Eye movements ( 39%) and spontaneous eye blinking ( 36.7%) were common in MA1, while rhythmic breathing ( 24.1%) was evident in MA2. The effectiveness of stunning was low in the two slaughterhouses before ( 48.7%, 50.5%) and after bleeding ( 79.5%, 37.3%) . It is recommended to establish indicators to routinely assess the effectiveness of stunning, and a programme of preventive maintenance of equipment and continuous training of staff

Keywords : pig; animal welfare; effectiveness; electrical stunning; CO stunning.

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