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Microbiological counts for 10 different sampling sites of 28 reindeer carcasses were studied in 3 reindeer slaughterhouses in Finland. On each carcass the hindshank, round, abdomen, flank, brisket, foreleg, shoulder, neck, foreback and back were sampled immediately after slaughter, using a nondestructive swabbing method. The overall mean bacterial count for 10 sampling sites of reindeer carcasses was 1.51 ± 0.51 log(10) cfu/cm(2). Statistically significant differences were detected between sampling sites. The back part of the reindeer carcass, i.e. hindshank, round, back and foreback, seemed to be relatively clean. The most contaminated parts were the foreleg, brisket and abdomen (2.05–2.95 log(10) cfu/cm(2)); these could be used for monitoring the hygiene of the reindeer carcass after slaughter. Differences between the 3 slaughterhouses were detected for some sampling sites, which may be due to differences in slaughter techniques and hygiene.

The kidney cortex of 32 Finnish horses was analysed chemically for cadmium (Cd) and selenium (Se) content and by light microscopy for histopathological changes of the tissues. Cd concentrations in kidney cortex ranged from 6.9 to 91.6 mg/kg wet weight with an average of 31.9 mg/kg. Se concentrations ranged from 0.5 to 1.5 mg/kg with an average of 1.0 mg/kg. The age of the horses varied from 1.5 to 32 years; mean age was 16 years. Cd levels in kidney cortex seemed to increase linearly up to an age of about 16 years. In old (over 16 years) horses no such correlation could be found. Se concentrations were found to decrease in relation to age. The horses with higher than 1 mg/kg Se in kidney cortex had less PAS-positive casts than horses with low Se content. Among the total population of the horses no correlation could be demonstrated between Cd and Se concentrations in kidney cortex. However, the horses with more than 40 mg/kg Cd in their kidney cortex had a slightly positive correlation between Cd and Se concentrations.