Animal最新文献

{"title":"Towards an industry-wide, multilevel evaluation framework for pig meat inspection: potential applications and implementation challenges","authors":"A.I. Zisis ,&nbsp;C. Kagerer ,&nbsp;P. Schmidt ,&nbsp;E. Rauch","doi":"10.1016/j.animal.2025.101577","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.animal.2025.101577","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Meat inspection (<strong>MI</strong>) data can be useful as a monitoring tool of animal health and welfare on farm, thereby enhancing the sustainability and productivity of livestock. There is also concern about certain limitations of these data, primarily related to the quality and harmonisation of inspections across various slaughterhouses. In our study, we investigated the development of a cross-slaughterhouse ranking system for farmers using MI data. The integration of new digital tools in Germany, such as the web-based database Qualifood®, offers new opportunities for collecting and utilising MI data across different slaughterhouses, enabling at the same time digital feedback of these information to livestock farmers. To accomplish our research goal, MI data over a period of 5 years (2020–2024) was exported from Qualifood®. Our analysis was conducted using MI data from both cattle and pig farms. However, this manuscript focuses on presenting the statistical analysis model using pig data and the category “respiratory health” as a representative case study. We presented an annual overview of reference values -the so-called basic risk- for respiratory health findings using generalised linear mixed models. The basic risk of respiratory health findings for pigs showed a gradual decline from 14.4% in 2020 to approximately 12.0% in 2024. The calculated basic risks establish a reference for normal finding rates and provide a baseline assessment of respiratory health in southern Germany based on MI data. Furthermore, we estimated the variability of key random effects derived. Across all years, SDs for farm and delivery levels remain relatively stable between the selected and full datasets, indicating consistent variability at these levels. However, the slaughterhouse-level SDs are substantially higher in the full dataset compared to the selected slaughterhouses suggesting notable heterogeneity in reporting or detection practices across facilities. This underlines the importance of slaughterhouse selection when conducting cross-facility analyses and benchmarking. Towards a cross-slaughterhouse evaluation, we compare the farmer-specific risks and the basic risk using the concept of relative risk, also known as risk ratio. Our model demonstrates how recent advancements in digitalisation enable the evaluation of MI data across multiple slaughterhouses, underscoring the importance of region-wide, digital, and standardised MI data collection as a foundation for consistent and reliable cross-slaughterhouse assessments. By addressing inconsistencies in recording quality, our model can support a data-driven decision-making for farmers, industry stakeholders, and veterinary authorities, ultimately reinforcing the entire agricultural value chain and animal health and welfare management.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":"19 7","pages":"Article 101577"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144535657","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Associations between endometrial macrophages and persistence of endometritis in postpartum dairy cows","authors":"C. Anastácio ,&nbsp;G. Pereira ,&nbsp;E. Silva ,&nbsp;R. Bexiga ,&nbsp;L. Capela ,&nbsp;J. Dupont ,&nbsp;P. Humblot ,&nbsp;L. Lopes-da-Costa","doi":"10.1016/j.animal.2025.101581","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.animal.2025.101581","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Cows can spontaneously recover from postpartum endometritis. An early predictive diagnosis could avoid unnecessary treatment of recovery cows thus limiting the emergence of antimicrobial resistance, and provide timed treatment to persistent cases. This study first characterised the presence, proportion and phenotype of endometrial macrophages (<strong>Mφ</strong>) in postpartum dairy cows (n = 173) with distinct endometrial health status. Neutrophils (<strong>PMN</strong>) and Mφ counts were evaluated in Diff-Quickstained uterine cytology slides at 21 and 42 days postpartum (<strong>DPP</strong>). At 21 DPP, the Mφ proportion was higher in cows later recovering than in cows with persistent endometritis until 42 DPP, and the PMN:Mφ ratio was higher in persistent than in recovery cows. Immuno-labelling showed that at 21 DPP, recovery cows had higher M2 (CD163+) counts and lower M1:M2 ratio than cows with persistent endometritis, whereas M1 (CD86+) counts were not different. Immuno-labelling of tissue sections from biopsy samples collected at 42 DPP showed that total Mφ and M2 counts were higher in cows with persistent endometritis than in recovery cows. In conclusion, results evidence that the persistence of endometritis is associated with a retarded/failure of Mφ-driven, namely M2-driven, pro-resolving mechanisms. This suggests that endometrial Mφ content at 21 DPP shows the potential to assist in predicting the recovery or persistence of postpartum endometritis in dairy cows, and prompts for comprehensive validation studies.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":"19 7","pages":"Article 101581"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144549608","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Breeding for sustainability: Development of an index to reduce greenhouse gas in dairy cattle","authors":"C. Richardson ,&nbsp;P. Amer ,&nbsp;M. Post ,&nbsp;T. Oliveria ,&nbsp;K. Grant ,&nbsp;J. Crowley ,&nbsp;C. Quinton ,&nbsp;F. Miglior ,&nbsp;A. Fleming ,&nbsp;C.F. Baes ,&nbsp;F. Malchiodi","doi":"10.1016/j.animal.2025.101491","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.animal.2025.101491","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Several genetic selection strategies can be incorporated into dairy cattle breeding programmes to target a reduction in greenhouse gas (<strong>GHG</strong>) emissions and provide a mitigation strategy with only modest additional cost, or labour expense, to the dairy producer. This can be achieved by targeting genetic progress in a specific trait (i.e. methane) or by building selection indexes that balance economic gain and environmental impact for more conventional traits, or both. Various countries have initiated efforts to incorporate emission-related traits into their national selection indexes. The strategies for reducing emissions vary due to system-specific objectives and limitations, ranging from specific methane breeding values to broader sustainability indexes. While methane breeding values may not be commercially available in most cases, Canada has taken the lead as the first country to release a methane breeding value, developed using mid-IR spectral data from milk samples and GreenFeed phenotyped Holstein cows, and develop a GHG index which includes a direct methane trait. The GHG index proposed for commercialisation is expected to reduce emissions per cow per year by 168 kg CO₂e per SD of index, and is composed of Herd Life, Feed Efficiency, Methane Efficiency, and Body Maintenance Requirement traits. The reduction in emissions is largely driven by a genetic gain in Methane Efficiency and Body Maintenance Requirements, with results indicating that omission of a direct methane trait from the index would lead to an unfavourable response in individual cow’s own genetic potential to reduce enteric methane output. Other countries are also progressing on this front; Spain has developed a methane estimated breeding value (<strong>EBV</strong>) and the Netherlands and Denmark are set to publish methane EBV in 2025. Motivation for the use of GHG indexes is strengthening in high−income countries. This motivation could be greatly accelerated if auditable, transparent and scientifically robust ways of recognising emissions changes due to genetic selection were developed. Ideally, these methods would support both national policy setting and supply agreements with milk processors.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":"19 ","pages":"Article 101491"},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144037853","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Review: Genomic selection in the era of phenotyping based on digital images","authors":"M. Billah ,&nbsp;M. Bermann ,&nbsp;M.K. Hollifield ,&nbsp;S. Tsuruta ,&nbsp;C.Y. Chen ,&nbsp;E. Psota ,&nbsp;J. Holl ,&nbsp;I. Misztal ,&nbsp;D. Lourenco","doi":"10.1016/j.animal.2025.101486","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.animal.2025.101486","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Promoting sustainable breeding programs requires several measures, including genomic selection and continuous data recording. Digital phenotyping uses images, videos, and sensor data to continuously monitor animal activity and behaviors, such as feeding, walking, and distress, while also measuring production traits like average daily gain, loin depth, and backfat thickness. Coupled with machine learning techniques, any feature of interest can be extracted and used as phenotypes in genomic prediction models. It can also help define novel phenotypes that are hard or expensive for humans to measure. For the already recorded traits, it may add extra precision or lower phenotyping costs. One example is lameness in pigs, where digital phenotyping has allowed moving from a categorical scoring system to a continuous phenotypic scale, resulting in increased heritability and greater selection potential. Additionally, digital phenotyping offers an effective approach for generating large datasets on difficult-to-measure behavioral traits at any given time, enabling the quantification and understanding of their relationships with production traits, which may be recorded at a less frequent basis. One example is the strong, negative genetic correlation between distance traveled and average daily gain in pigs. Conversely, despite improvements in computer vision, phenotype accuracy may not be maximized for some production or carcass traits. In this review, we discuss various image processing techniques to prepare the data for the genomic evaluation models, followed by a brief description of object detection and segmentation methodology, including model selection and objective-specific modifications to the state-of-the-art models. Then, we present real-life applications of digital phenotyping for various species, and finally, we provide further challenges. Overall, digital phenotyping is a promising tool to increase the rates of genetic gain, promote sustainable genomic selection, and lower phenotyping costs. We foresee a massive inclusion of digital phenotypes into breeding programs, making it the primary phenotyping tool.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":"19 ","pages":"Article 101486"},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144052373","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A practical approach to assess the resilience attributes of livestock farms","authors":"A. Prat-Benhamou ,&nbsp;M.P.M. Meuwissen ,&nbsp;T. Slijper ,&nbsp;A. Bernués ,&nbsp;P. Gaspar-García ,&nbsp;J. Lizarralde ,&nbsp;J.M. Mancilla-Leytón ,&nbsp;N. Mandaluniz ,&nbsp;Y. Mena ,&nbsp;B. Soriano ,&nbsp;D. Martín-Collado","doi":"10.1016/j.animal.2025.101566","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.animal.2025.101566","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>There is a growing interest in studying farm resilience. Typically, resilience assessments focus on crisis outcomes, with less attention paid to assess the system characteristics that contribute to building resilience, i.e. resilience attributes. This is partly due to a lack of practical approaches to assess these attributes. The objective of this paper is to develop a practical approach to assess and compare the status of livestock farms’ resilience attributes in different farming systems. We identified 21 resilience attributes that generally contribute to farm resilience based on a literature review. We operationalised resilience attributes into 85 indicators quantifiable through primary farm data, such percentage of feed produced on the farm. We assessed three small ruminant case studies in Spain: (i) meat sheep farms in Aragón; (ii) dairy sheep farms in the Basque Country and Navarre; (iii) dairy goat farms in Andalusia. We conducted farmer surveys (n = 144) to measure the indicators, and organised three workshops with farmers and other local stakeholders (n = 20) to assess the importance of the resilience attributes in the three case studies. We aggregated indicators into resilience attribute scores using a minimum–maximum normalisation procedure. Using stakeholders’ assessments, we calculated attribute weights by a budget allocation process. Attribute scores and weights were then used to calculate an overall resilience score (ranging from 0 to 100). The comparison of attribute scores revealed strengths and weaknesses for resilience in each case study. In the meat sheep system, honours legacy was a major strength, while work and quality of life was a weakness. In the dairy sheep system, sector organisation was a major strength, while the redundance of productive alternatives was a weakness. For dairy goat farms, the infrastructure of the areas where farmers live was a major strength, but feed autonomy and the attributes related to the access and use of natural resources were weaknesses. The perceived importance of attributes (weights) differed across cases. Particularly, human capital emerged as one of the most relevant ones across case studies. Farms’ overall resilience scores were significantly lower in the dairy goat system. Our approach allows to find what attributes build resilience in farms and to highlight areas of improvement to strengthen their resilience. Our findings are of importance to farmers, technicians and policymakers who are interested in assessing resilience as we provide a practical approach to quantify and compare resilience of farms.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":"19 7","pages":"Article 101566"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144517362","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Short Communication: True Cost Accounting (TCA) as a transformative approach for livestock agri-food systems","authors":"W. Baltussen ,&nbsp;C. Bonnet ,&nbsp;F. Bunte ,&nbsp;M. van Galen ,&nbsp;C.L. Giagnocavo ,&nbsp;D.A. Kenny ,&nbsp;A. Oosterwijk ,&nbsp;L. Smith ,&nbsp;J. Snoek ,&nbsp;I. Verweij-Novikova ,&nbsp;L. Vissers ,&nbsp;C.P.A. van Wagenberg","doi":"10.1016/j.animal.2025.101591","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.animal.2025.101591","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Today, there is extensive debate about the sustainability of the food system. Numerous research and policy initiatives focus on transforming the food system to make it more sustainable. The method of True Cost Accounting (<strong>TCA</strong>) can reveal positive and negative externalities for natural, social, human, and economic capital in food production and consumption. Insight into and internalisation of these externalities in decision−making can contribute to making food systems more sustainable. This paper illustrates the use of TCA and presents a research agenda for TCA in livestock agri-food systems. TCA is based on environmental and social life-cycle assessments and, as a result, inherits some of their shortcomings. Monetising the impact of externalities is a methodological challenge, further complicated by the practical challenges of data availability. We recommend working towards a harmonised TCA approach with an interdisciplinary team of researchers to assess the true value of livestock agri-food systems.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":"19 8","pages":"Article 101591"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144654699","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Review: Establishing precision, bias, and reproducibility standards for dairy cattle behavior sensors","authors":"A. Lee ,&nbsp;M. Brause ,&nbsp;D. Foy ,&nbsp;M.C. Cantor","doi":"10.1016/j.animal.2025.101613","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.animal.2025.101613","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This scoping review addressed the disparity in statistical approaches for validating wearable sensors in dairy cattle behavior research. The objective of this scoping review was to (1) synthesize 101 original research articles that validated wearable sensors to observe dairy cattle behavior (activity and feeding behavior) from the past 11 years to build a reference point for researchers, (2) make recommendations for statistical reporting (precision, bias, and minimum reporting standards) for future validation research that uses wearable sensors to record dairy cattle behavior, focusing on calculating precision, and bias, and reporting reproducibility criteria, and (3) evaluate which validated wearables met our criteria for validity; ≥ 85% precision, reported repeatability criteria, and no bias was observed. A systematic search across PubMed and Web of Science yielded 2 955 articles, which were reduced to 101 after duplicate removal. Data extraction, performed with Power BI, classified accuracy, precision, bias, sensitivity, specificity, reproducibility, sensor type, gold standard, and observed behaviors. Precision was defined as a calculated precision value or the use of Lin’s Concordance Correlation Coefficient (<strong>CCC</strong>), Pearson correlations, or linear regressions. A study was considered precise if it demonstrated &gt; 85% precision or high correlations/explained variability (≥ CCC or R² = 0.85). Bias was identified through Bland-Altman plots, deviations from the mean, best-fit lines, bias correction factors, or location scale shifts. Reproducibility required defining sensor type, sample size, commercial name, and behaviors in an ethogram table. Validity criteria mandated that a study be precise, reproducible, and exhibit no bias.</div><div>Activity behavior was the most frequently studied (61/101), followed by consumption (59/101), resting (55/101), and digestive behaviors (49/101). A high proportion, 93% (94/101), met reproducibility criteria. However, only 40% (40/101) calculated precision or used a proxy. Of those reporting precision, 90% (36/40) were precise, and 95% (38/40) were reproducible, but only 35% (14/40) reported bias. Overall, only 14% (14/101) of the reviewed studies met all validity criteria. Validated behaviors included activity, feeding, and consumption. Sensors meeting validity criteria were IceCube, Nedap Smart Tag, RumiWatch, Smartbow GmbH, MooMonitor+, Hobo Pendant G, and CowManager. Future validation studies should prioritize calculating precision, reporting sample size and sensor details, and statistically assessing bias to ensure reliable data for dairy farmers.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":"19 ","pages":"Article 101613"},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144920350","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Review: Mammary gland physiology and modulation during colostrogenesis in dairy goats","authors":"M. González-Cabrera,&nbsp;A. Morales-delaNuez,&nbsp;A. Argüello,&nbsp;N. Castro,&nbsp;L.E. Hernández-Castellano","doi":"10.1016/j.animal.2025.101487","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.animal.2025.101487","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Newborn ruminants are highly dependent on the intake of high-quality colostrum immediately after birth to obtain energy and achieve an appropriate immunisation. Previous research indicates that poor management practices in the last months of gestation can lead to increased neonatal mortality rates by reducing colostrum quality among other factors. In ruminants, colostrum synthesis is a well-preserved mechanism which has been speculated to be regulated by the neuroendocrine system. However, this review aims to explore different approaches such as alternative dry-off management practices, the inclusion of different nutrients on prepartum diets, and the stimulation of the mammary gland immune response to modulate colostrogenesis and consequently, to enhance colostrum quality. Ensuring correct dry-off practices combined with controlled dietary supplementation can support mammary gland reorganisation and potentially modulate colostrogenesis. Despite positive effects on colostrum yield, the bioactive composition of colostrum seems to be irresponsive to prepartum energy, protein, and fat supplementation in dairy goats. On the other hand, mastitis has obvious negative effects on animal health; however, an experimentally induced local inflammation seems to trigger helpful modifications on the blood-milk barrier, enhancing the concentration of some immune components (i.e., immunoglobulin G and M) in goat colostrum. Yet, most research has focused on dairy cattle, leaving a significant knowledge gap on colostrogenesis in small ruminants. Therefore, future studies should focus on developing novel dry-off and dietary strategies to not only promote a healthy lactation but also to guarantee a successful colostrum synthesis.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":"19 ","pages":"Article 101487"},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143812855","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Pigs exposed to nitrogen, argon or carbon dioxide filled high-expansion foam: behavioural responses, stun process and blood lactate concentration","authors":"C. Lindahl ,&nbsp;E. Sindhøj ,&nbsp;M.A. Gerritzen ,&nbsp;H.G.M. Reimert ,&nbsp;C. Berg ,&nbsp;M. Blad ,&nbsp;A. Wallenbeck","doi":"10.1016/j.animal.2025.101573","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.animal.2025.101573","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>According to the EU legislation, all animals farmed for food production must be stunned before being exsanguinated (exempt slaughter prescribed by religious rites). Stunning methods must be reliable, effective, and free from avoidable pain, distress, and suffering, warranting continuous improvement. New methods must be thoroughly evaluated from an animal welfare perspective before approval. One technology developed for on-farm euthanasia and large-scale depopulation for disease control in pigs uses high-expansion foam to create an anoxic atmosphere in a closed container. The method has previously been suggested as a potential method for stunning pigs at slaughter. This study compared the behavioural responses and stun process (e.g., loss of posture and convulsions) of pigs exposed to three different gases (N₂, Ar, and CO₂) delivered in high-expansion foam. Thirty-six pigs, approximately 12 weeks old, were placed one at a time in a container and exposed to either N₂, Ar, or CO₂ gas-filled foam for 5 min from foam start. Behavioural observations were conducted from video recordings, assessing time to loss of balance, loss of posture, last strong convulsion and last muscle contraction. Results showed that pigs in the CO₂ treatment performed escape attempts significantly earlier than in N₂ and Ar, and there were more pigs that performed this behaviour in CO₂, indicating that high concentrations of CO₂ are more aversive than Ar and N₂. Pigs exposed to CO₂ foam also avoided the foam earlier compared to the other two gases. Loss of posture occurred earlier in the CO₂ treatment, consistent with the anaesthetic effect of CO₂. A faster foam filling time for CO₂ foam may be a contributing factor to the differences found; however, filling time was adjusted for in the statistical analyses to reduce bias in the comparisons between gases. All pigs across treatments were adequately stunned after 5 min, with no corneal reflex, rhythmic breathing, gagging, or muscle contractions upon removal from the container. No indications of regained consciousness during sticking and bleeding were found. In conclusion, the gas foam method was effective in stunning the pigs regardless of the gas type used. The less aversive responses to Ar and N₂ foam are positive from an animal welfare perspective, but the longer time to loss of consciousness compared to CO₂ is a disadvantage.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":"19 7","pages":"Article 101573"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144549066","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Aims and Scope","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/S1751-7311(25)00208-3","DOIUrl":"10.1016/S1751-7311(25)00208-3","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":"19 ","pages":"Article 101625"},"PeriodicalIF":4.2,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144920230","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}