Effectiveness of two methods for stunning pigs: electrical stunning head-heart and CO2 stunning

• Autores: Acevedo-Giraldo, Juan David, Romero, Marlyn, Sánchez, Jorge A.
• Formato: artículo
• Fecha de Publicación: 2017
• Institución: Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos
• Repositorio: Revista UNMSM - Revista de Investigaciones Veterinarias del Perú
• Lenguaje: español
• OAI Identifier: oai:ojs.csi.unmsm:article/12579
• Enlace del recurso: https://revistasinvestigacion.unmsm.edu.pe/index.php/veterinaria/article/view/12579
• Nivel de acceso: acceso abierto
• Materia: pig; animal welfare; effectiveness; electrical stunning; CO2 stunning; cerdos; bienestar animal; efectividad; eléctrocusión; narcosis con CO2

The aims of this study were to evaluate and compare the effectiveness of the electrical stunning head-heart (MA1) and CO2 stunning (MA2), and to assess the infrastructure and management of pigs in two commercial slaughterhouses in Colombia. A crosssectional study that evaluated 520 pigs (MA1=185 and MA2=335) was performed. Behavioral indicators in the stunning box and consciousness indicators before and after bleeding were evaluated. Eye movements (39%) and spontaneous eye blinking (36.7%) were common in MA1, while rhythmic breathing (24.1%) was evident in MA2. The effectiveness of stunning was low in the two slaughterhouses before (48.7%, 50.5%) and after bleeding (79.5%, 37.3%). It is recommended to establish indicators to routinely assess the effectiveness of stunning, and a programme of preventive maintenance of equipment and continuous training of staff.