Abstract
Simple SummaryIn the western world, the number of slaughtered horses is decreasing, but still about 5 million horses are slaughtered worldwide each year. The conditions in which horses are transported to the slaughterhouses are a topic of discussion. This study intended to investigate the circumstances of commercial slaughter horse transport and to detect possible risk factors for horse welfare. Therefore, 23 commercial horse transports to three South American slaughterhouses were monitored. During transport, a camera was mounted in each loading space so that horse behaviour could be analysed after transport. Fighting behaviour could not be explained by stocking density, environmental parameters, trailer characteristics, duration and distance of the journey. The temperature and relative humidity were recorded every five minutes in all loading spaces. Average temperatures exceeded the thermoneutral zone in six transports, but it is not clear if and to what extent horse welfare was impaired. Overall, loading and transporting of the horses went well, but the infrastructure of the loading area did not always promote smooth loading and can therefore be improved. At later visits, we noted that this issue was addressed.Between November 2016 and October 2017, 23 horse transports from 18 collection points to two slaughterhouses in Argentina and one in Uruguay were monitored. The goal of this study was to characterize the current practices in commercial horse transports and to detect potential threats to horse welfare. A total of 596 horses were transported over an average distance of 295 ± 250 km. Average transport duration was 294 ± 153 min. The infrastructure did not always promote smooth loading, but the amount of horses that refused to enter the trailers was limited. In each loading space, a camera was mounted to observe horse behaviour during the journey. Ambient temperature and relative humidity (RH) were recorded every five minutes in each loading space. In 14 of the 23 transports, the maximum temperature rose above 25 °C and the average temperature was over 25 °C during six transports. The average temperature humidity index (THI) exceeded 72 during six transports. The average stocking density was 1.40 ± 0.33 m2 per horse, or 308 ± 53 kg/m2. The degree of aggression differed between the front and rear loading space. Stocking density, environmental parameters, trailer characteristics, and transport duration and distance did not influence aggressiveness.
Highlights
In the USA, Australia and Europe, the number of slaughtered horses is decreasing
In 17 of the 18 collection points, a loading dock was present to facilitate the loading of the horses
Only one loading dock was used for two transports
Summary
In the USA, Australia and Europe, the number of slaughtered horses is decreasing. In Belgium for example, the number of slaughtered horses decreased from 21,390 slaughtered horses in 2001 to only 5895 horses in 2018 [1]. About 5 million horses are slaughtered worldwide [2]. In 2018, China was the country that slaughtered the most horses worldwide—about 1.59 million [2]. 389,153 horses were slaughtered in South America [2]. To this day, the circumstances in which horses are transported give rise to discussion [3]
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