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Physiological response of weaned piglets to two transport durations observed in a Canadian commercial setting.

Physiological response of weaned piglets to two transport durations observed in a Canadian commercial setting.

Authors :
Golightly HR
Brown J
Bergeron R
Poljak Z
Roy RC
Seddon YM
O'Sullivan TL
Source :
Journal of animal science [J Anim Sci] 2021 Dec 01; Vol. 99 (12).
Publication Year :
2021

Abstract

Observational studies describing the impact of transport duration on weaned piglet welfare are limited. Current Canadian transport regulations are heavily informed by studies involving market hogs. Due to physiological differences between weaned piglets and market hogs, additional data on their response to transport are needed for age-specific evidence-based recommendations. A cohort study was conducted to describe and compare mortality, injury, weight change, hematological or biochemical changes in hydration, muscle injury and stress response observed in weaned piglets undergoing short duration (SD, <3 h), or long duration (LD, >30 h) commercial summertime transport events. Data collection on 440 of 11,434 transported piglets occurred the morning of the day before transport (T0), at arrival (T1) and approximately 3 to 4 d (78 to 93 h) after arrival at the nursery barn (T2). Low mortality occurred over all transport events (0.06%) with no association observed between transport duration and odds of death during transport (P = 0.62). The incidence of lameness between T0 and T1 was low (1.84% of the 435 focal piglets scored) with all lameness cases identified as mild in severity. Lesions on ears and skin were more prevalent than other injury types after transport (T1) and may have been related to mixing aggression associated with weaning rather than transport alone. LD piglets weighed 0.39 kg less than SD piglets at T1 (P < 0.01), but no difference in group weight was observed at T2 (P = 0.17). Hematological and biochemical differences were present between groups at T1. LD piglets had increased hematocrit levels compared with SD piglets (P = 0.01), suggesting increased body water losses. SD piglets showed greater levels of muscle injury compared with LD piglets including elevated aspartate aminotransferase (P < 0.01) and creatine kinase (P < 0.01). However, these parameters were within normal reference ranges for piglets of this age group. Indicators of physiological stress response including cortisol and neutrophil to lymphocyte ratios were elevated in SD piglets compared with LD piglets (P = 0.02 and P < 0.01, respectively). The results of this study demonstrate that both short and long transport durations can result in detectable physiological changes in weaned piglets. The overall impact of these durations on piglet welfare should be further explored by analyzing behavioral time budgets during and after transport.<br /> (© The Author(s) 2021. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Society of Animal Science. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
1525-3163
Volume :
99
Issue :
12
Database :
MEDLINE
Journal :
Journal of animal science
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
34695200
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1093/jas/skab311