RED DEER — Western Canada’s hog industry continues to work toward reducing the number of animals that are hurt or die in transport.
A death rate of .17 to .2 percent during shipping may seem fairly low, said Lee Whittington, president of the Prairie Swine Centre, at the 2011 Swine Technology Workshop held last week in Red Deer.
However, in Alberta alone — where almost 2.5 million pigs are shipped each year — that represents about 25 liner loads of hogs, said Whittington.
Hogs that are hurt or die in transit represent a significant economic impact on producers and processors and raise animal welfare concerns, he said.
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Addressing transport stress starts on the farm, said animal behaviour scientist Jennifer Brown of the Prairie Swine Centre and Indiana-based veterinarian Matt Ritter, swine adviser for Elanco Animal Health.
“Producers put a lot of time and energy into producing a good market pig,” said Brown.
“But I think, sometimes, as soon as that truck backs up to the loading dock, the adrenalin level rises in the barn and I think we start throwing away good money if we don’t pay attention to what we’re doing.”
A Prairie Swine Centre study looked at 10 farms in Saskatchewan last summer to identify design and handling factors that contribute to stress levels hogs experience in shipping.
Lighting, distractions, the layout of loading facilities and the skill and attitude of handlers all played a role in how well the pigs were able to cope with loading and hauling, said Brown.
Animals stressed while loading will suffer more injuries and fatigue and are more likely to die in shipping than those handled more appropriately, starting with diet and handling while they are being fattened for slaughter, said Ritter.
“Transport losses are a multi-factorial problem and (can) be impacted by growers, loading crews, truck drivers and handlers at the packing plant. In order to reduce these dead and non-ambulatory pigs, we need to have teamwork and communication among all these parties involved in the process,” he said.
Factors include diet, the level of exercise the animals get on the farm, how they are handled at all stages, the intensity of handling, genetics, distance of travel, temperature and humidity.
Pigs handled aggressively in loading are much more likely to be injured or fatigued in transport, said both Brown and Ritter.
Producers marketing to the Olymel plant in Red Deer can see detailed data on the pigs they ship and identify where they could make improvements, said veterinarian Matt Schoonderwoerd, head of the company’s quality assurance department.
Data on each carcass are kept from each stage of the line, starting from the animal’s arrival at the plant, with various factors affecting the level of return each farm will see from that animal.
Schoonderwoerd stressed the costs of injuries and fatigue, stating that it is crucial to withdraw feed for 12 to 18 hours before the animals are loaded.
Normal stresses of shipping will paralyze the intestinal tract, said Schoonderwoerd. If there is food in the gut, that pig can bloat and may die, he said.
He noted a marked variation in health scores among producers who ship to the Red Deer plant.
He recommended that all hog producers analyze their plant data and find out where they could make changes that would increase the return they realize for their pigs.
