The behavioural and physiological reactions of farmed red deer to transport: effects of road type and journey time

Abstract

Four groups of six female yearling red deer were transported for either 2 or 6 h on either winding or straight roads. One group was tested each day, and each group was subjected to each road type×journey time combination in a random order. The deer lost live weight during transportation ( P<0.05), although the rate of loss decreased with time. Compared with pre-transport observations, deer spent more time standing ( P<0.001) and alert ( P<0.001), and less time lying ( P<0.001) and idling ( P<0.001) during the first hour of transport. Time spent standing, moving and alert all decreased during the second hour of transport ( P<0.05). Deer spent more time eating following 6-h journeys than after 2-h journeys ( P<0.05). More losses of balance occurred on winding roads than on straight roads ( P<0.001). The most commonly adopted orientations were either parallel to or perpendicular to the direction of travel. Diagonal orientations were less common ( P<0.001). Packed cell volume was higher following 6-h journeys than after 2-h journeys ( P<0.05), although other physiological measures of dehydration were not significantly affected by transport. A greater increase (compared with pre-transport values) in plasma creatine kinase activity ( P<0.01) suggests that transport on winding roads may have been more physically demanding than on straight roads. Compared with pre-transport values, there were significant increases in the plasma concentrations of both cortisol ( P<0.001) and non-esterified fatty acids ( P<0.001), suggesting that transport was a stressful experience for deer. There was a significant increase in heart rate (compared with baseline values) during the initial stages of transport ( P<0.001), followed by a subsequent reduction as journeys progressed. It is concluded that, although deer displayed at least partial adaptation to transportation as journey time increased and most of the variables measured returned to pre-transport levels shortly after unloading, transport was both physically and psychologically stressful for deer. Furthermore, deer may face a greater risk of injury if transported on winding roads.