HUMANE

HANDLING OF
ANIMALS PRIOR TO
SLAUGHTER
 Module 4

Topic 1

Proper Handling of Animals

Prior to Slaughter
 Module 4

What is Humane
Handling of Animals?

 Good animal welfare/ humane handling of

animals is recognized as freedom from
hunger and thirst, freedom from discomfort,
freedom from pain, injury or disease, freedom
to express normal behavior, and freedom
from fear and distress.
 Module 4

 The use of humane methods in the slaughter

and handling of livestock prevents needless
suffering, results in safer working conditions
for packing house workers, improves the
quality of meat products, and decreases a
significant financial loss to meat packers.
 Module 4

The Benefits of Humane Handling of Animals

1.In addition to being ethically appropriate, animals

that are handled calmly and humanely produce
higher quality meat.
2.Good animal handling enhances safety for workers
3.Calm animals are less likely to damage equipment.
4.Reduces stress in the animals
5.Prevents quality deficiencies in meat and by-
products
 Module 4

Disadvantages of Inhumane Handling of Animals

1. Animals that are stressed, experiencing pain or

discomfort, or inadequately fed or watered will not
produce to their full potential, thus, quality of meat is
reduced.

2. Animals that become agitated due to rough handling

can injure workers – and themselves.

3. A stressed or struggling animal might damage the

equipments
 Module 4

What is DA AO no. 18 series of 2008?

 DA AO no. 18 S 2008 refers to the “Rules and Regulations on Humane
Handling in the Slaughter of Animals for Food”

 This administrative order applies to all animal establishments such as

slaughterhouses, poultry dressing plants, stockyards and holding areas
which regularly handle animals for slaughter

 It also applies to all persons, companies or entities engaged in the

handling and slaughter of animals for food and regulatory officers
involved in the supervision and regulation of these activities
 Module 4

General Provision in the Handling of

Slaughter Animals (Section 4, AO 18)

The meat establishment operator is

responsible in ensuring the proper handling of
slaughter animals and the reporting of such,
within the premises of the establishment.
 Module 4

1. Slaughter animals must be loaded, unloaded and

moved easily with minimal risk of injury to both
animals and handler. The moving of animals must
be under the supervision of a competent animal
handler.

2. Meat establishment personnel handling livestock

shall be regularly monitored by a Food Animal
Welfare Officer to ensure that the handling of
livestock is done humanely.
 Module 4

3. Animals of different species as well as animals of

same species likely to cause injury to one another
shall be physically separated

4. The unloading and moving of slaughter animals shall

be achieved with minimum stress or excitement to
the animals

5. The natural following behavior of animals shall be

utilized to advantage as much as possible
 Module 4

6. The instruments allowed for moving animals are

as follows:
a) canvass, soft plastic or leather flappers
b) soft polyethylene pipes or rattles
c) plastic brushes
d) pig boards which shall be used for
blocking only
 Module 4

7. Slaughter animals within the meat establishment premises

shall not be subjected to the following inhumane acts:
a) unnecessary, irritating noises
b) kicking
c) and tail twisting; lifting
d) eye, genital and anal poking
e) hot water splashing
f) knife, razor or blade incision to mark skin
g) drenching or forced oral administration of water
 Module 4

8. Gates shall not be used as an implement for

forcing the animal along the chutes or into the
knocking box

9. Animals with extremely wide horns or those

that cannot move freely shall not be
introduced into the chute
 Module 4

Handling of Injured, Disabled

or Suspect Animals (Section 5, AO 18)

When a slaughter animal is injured, disabled or is a suspect

and is unable to walk from a transport vehicle, it shall be handled as
follows:

a. The animal shall be removed from the transport

vehicle as humanely as possible under the
supervision of a competent handler
 Module 4

b. An authorized officer of the competent meat inspection

authority shall inspect and declare judgment on the animal’s
eligibility for emergency slaughter. If eligible and the injury
or disability causes severe suffering to the animal, slaughter
shall be done without avoidable delay

c. Humane means of conveyance shall be made available to

transport the animal to the sticking area. However, upon the
directive of the inspector, sticking and bleeding of the
animal may be done immediately in the conveyance prior to
unloading if the animal is unable to walk and in severe pain
and proper transport to sticking area is not immediately
available.
 Module 4

Handling of Escaped Animals

(Section 6, AO 18)

The establishment operator shall

ensure that animals that escape during
unloading or from holding pens shall be
handled humanely
 Module 4

a. Escaped animals shall be retrieved by

the use of humane handling methods

b. Escaped animals shall be treated as

emergency slaughter case if retrieval
may pose danger to human beings. In
such cases, free bullet or firearm may be
used to restrain animal
 Module 4

c. The escaped animal, if injured during the retrieval,

shall be slaughtered humanely. The use of a
mechanical stunner such as captive bolt is
recommended to render it insensible to further pain
brought about by the injury as well as prior to the
sticking and bleeding

d. Escaped animals that are retrieved without being

injured shall be returned to the holding pen and shall
be slaughtered with the rest
 Module 4

Stunning

 Animals must be stunned before slaughter by an appropriate and

acceptable stunning method (refer to AO 18 Series of 2008)

 Stunning also makes sticking (throat-slitting) less hazardous

for the operator

 Exceptions are made for religions which require that

ritual slaughter without prior stunning is practiced,
provided the slaughter method is humane
 Module 4

Methods of Stunning
1. Direct blow to skull using a club or poleaxe
 The blow must be dealt with
precision and force, so that the
skull is immediately smashed,
causing instantaneous
unconsciousness

2. Slaughtering mask

 A bolt held in the correct position by the mask is driven into the
animal's brain by a hammer blow

 The device is usually fitted with a spring which returns the bolt to its
original position
 Module 4

3. Captive-bolt Pistols
 Effective on cattle and sheep but not pigs whose skulls are
thicker
 The bolt may or may not be designed to penetrate the skull
 With penetrating types the brain becomes contaminated with
hair, dirt and bone fragments
 If brains are to be saved as edible tissue then the non-penetrating
type with a mushroom-shaped head should be used
 Optional for LRMEs
 Hand-held barrel captive
bolt gun

Wrong position of
captive bolt pistol
 Module 4

4. Electrical stunning
 An electric current of high frequency but, in the case of manually operated equipment,
of relatively low voltage (60–80 V) is passed through the brain of an animal for a few
seconds to produce unconsciousness

 If applied correctly a deep state of unconsciousness is invariably achieved

 Strict safety rules must be observed. Head tongs are suitable for pigs and sheep but not
for cattle Places where the skull is thick must be avoided. Electrical contact is impeded
by hair and caked mud

 Water or brine will improve contact but the head must not be completely wet
otherwise the current will have a short-circuit path avoiding the brain

 The electrodes must be applied with strong pressure

 This method is applicable for hogs

 Module 4

5. Carbon dioxide stunning

 Used only in large pig abattoirs

 Pigs are induced into a chamber and exposed to a concentration of

85 percent CO2 for about 45 seconds

 Although effective for anaesthetizing sheep, it is impractical

because of large amounts of CO2 collecting in the wool and
affecting operators on the killing line

 Not applicable in the Philippines

 Module 4

Topic 2

Transport of Animals and

Lairage
 Module 4

 Animals should be handled in such a way that they are subjected

to minimum stress prior to transportation and are thus fit to
travel with minimum risk of injuries

 Transport of livestock is undoubtedly the most stressful and

injurious stage in the chain of operations between farm and
slaughterhouse and contributes significantly to poor animal
welfare and loss of production

 Under very poor conditions, animals may die

 Module 4

Methods of Transport

CATTLE

 The most appropriate methods of moving cattle are on hoof, by road

motor vehicle or by rail wagon

 Moving cattle on the hoof (trekking) is

suitable only where road and rail
infrastructure does not exist, or when
distances from farm to destination are short.
This method is slow and fraught with risks to
the welfare and value of the animals
 Module 4

 Rail transport is useful for short-haul journeys where loading

ramps are available at railheads and communication is direct
to destination

 Road motor transport is by far the most versatile, the method

of first choice and the most user friendly
 Module 4

SHEEP/ GOAT

 Of the food animals these are the easiest to

transport and generally travel well on hoof,
rail or road. Double-deck trucks are also
suitable

PIGS
 Pigs are difficult animals to transport,
and the only satisfactory method is by
road, although rail can be used under
careful circumstances
 Module 4

POULTRY
 Broilers and other poultry such as turkeys or
ducks are best transported by road

 Flocks of birds should be subdivided in small

numbers in crates

 Recommended are plastic crates, which can be

stacked on top of each other on a vehicle and
which can easily be washed after use

 The lid of the crates is for loading and the

opening at the side for removal of the birds
 Module 4

Inhumane Methods
of Transport
 Module 4

Effects of Transport

1. Stress - leading to dark firm and dry (DFD) beef and

pale soft and exudative (PSE) pork

Pale, Soft and Normal Meat Dark, Firm and

Exudative (PSE) Pork Dry (DFD) Meat
 Module 4

2. Bruising - perhaps the most insidious and

significant production waste in the meat industry

3. Trampling - this occurs when animals go down

due to slippery floors or overcrowding

4. Suffocation - this usually follows on trampling

5. Heart failure - occurs mostly in pigs when

overfed prior to loading and
transportation
 Module 4

6. Heat stroke - pigs are susceptible to high

environment temperatures and humidity

7. Sun burn - exposure to sun affects pigs seriously

8. Bloat - restraining ruminants or tying their feet without

turning them will cause this

9. Poisoning - animals can die from plant poisoning

during trekking on hoof
 Module 4

10. Predation - unguarded animals moving on the hoof

may be attacked

11. Dehydration - animals subject to long distance

travel without proper watering will suffer weight
loss and may die

12. Exhaustion - may occur for many reasons including

heavily pregnant animals or weaklings
 Module 4

13. Injuries - broken legs, horns

14. Fighting - this occurs mostly when a

vehicle loaded with pig stops, or amongst
horned and polled cattle
 Module 4

 During the transport of slaughter animals the

following provisions consistent with the Animal
Welfare Act should be observed:
 Module 4

 Minimize the soiling and cross-contamination with

faecal material

 Maintain animal identification and records as to the

place of origin

 Avoid undue stress and/or risk from injury during

loading, unloading and transport
 Module 4

 Physically separate animals whenever necessary to avoid

injury during transport

 Use floor gratings, crates or similar devices to limit the

soiling and cross contamination with fecal material

 Where the transport vehicle or carrier has more than one

deck, animals are to be protected from cross-contamination
as appropriate
 Module 4

 Ventilation is adequate and cleaning and sanitizing

is readily achieved

 Transport vehicles and crates used should be

cleaned and if necessary sanitized as soon as
practicable after animals have been unloaded at the
establishment
 Module 4

Slaughterhouse Facilities for

the Humane Handling of Food
Animals for Slaughter (Sec. 3 of
AO 18)
 Module 4

 All meat establishments handling food animals for

slaughter shall have the required facilities for humane
handling:

1. Holding pens are necessary facilities in the establishment of

slaughterhouses. The animal pens shall be near the
slaughter hall but should not be located within. It shall be a
separate building on account of problems of manure
disposal, congestion and hygiene
 Module 4

2. The required space for holding large animal is 2.23 m2 /head

and for small animal like hogs, it is 0.6 m2 /head. However,
for culled sows and boars, the space requirement is 1.0 m 2
/head

3. Holding pens should be roofed, properly drained and with non-slip

floors

4. Separation of different classes and types of slaughter animals as

appropriate is required to avoid injury to one another. Range
animals, especially if horned, may require further segregation
 Module 4

5. Provision for adequate ventilation is necessary. In case of limited

space where free flow of air is not possible, industrial fans and
blowers shall be utilized.

6. Clean and adequate drinking water must be provided freely to

slaughter animals during the holding period.

7. To insure smooth traffic flow and to lessen stress and excitement

during the moving of animals, a one-way system is followed
where animals enter at one end and leave at the opposite end.
 Module 4

8. Other facilities such as ramps, artificial light, weighing scale

and showers must be so installed so that animals do not get
excited with their use.

9. Feeding troughs or boxes must be available and feeds must be

provided to animals which are not slaughtered within 12 hours
after arrival in the slaughterhouse.

10. Adequate water for cleaning must also be provided to ensure

that cleanliness of the pens is maintained.
 Module 4

11. Lighting should be strategically located as to encourage

animals to move forward.

12. The chutes and other animal passageways shall be so designed

to promote the natural following behavior of animals. The
walls of a single file chute shall be solid to avoid visual
distraction from the outside.

13. All slaughterhouses shall be equipped with hog restrainers

and large animal knocking box for appropriate restraint of
animals during stunning.
 Module 4

Some Hazards on Holding Pens/ Fencing

Bent fencing sufficient to allow injury

to an animal’s foot

Poor designed fencing

 Module 4

A weathered and splintered tree trunk

sitting inside a livestock holding pen,
exposing sharp protruding edges,
points and holes that may trap and
injure the feet, legs and heads of
animals kept in the pen

A hole, located in a holding pen floor with

a metal staple and ring attached to the
base of the hole that may cause an animal
to fall or result in injury to feet
 Module 4

THANK YOU..

.... End of Module 4