A practical method of reducing aerosolized pathogens and environmental
contaminants during commercial transportation could prove beneficial to the health and
value of cattle. Having previously determined that there was very limited airflow within
moving livestock trailers, an experimental treatment that increased cross-ventilation
within commercial cattle trailers by installing aluminum scoops to punch-hole trailers
was evaluated. Environmental factors including temperature, ammonia and carbon
dioxide concentrations, and percent dry matter of excreted urine and fecal matter were
evaluated, along with physiological factors, including complete blood count, serum
electrolyte concentrations, percent weight loss, the presence of Salmonella, Escherichia
coli, or Mannheimia haemolytica, and 30 day health data. The experiment consisted of
two trials, each with two truckloads of 80 cattle each, for a total of 320 cattle.
Temperature was evaluated in the center compartments of each trailer at five minute
intervals throughout both trips. Ammonia concentrations were measured using passive
dosimeters. Jugular blood samples, fecal grab samples, swabs of the terminal rectum
and nasal swabs were obtained 8.5 to 10 hours post-transport from 20 cattle from each trailer. Increased ventilation resulted in lower temperatures and ammonia concentrations
on both trips. Percent dry matter of excreted urine and fecal matter were inconclusive.
There were no treatment effects for complete blood counts or electrolyte and basic
chemistry panels, possibly because the cattle had access to both hay and water between
transport and sampling, which allowed for recovery. Cattle in the ventilated trailer had
an average weight loss of 4.7%, compared with 5.75% for the cattle in the control
trailers. Sampling for E. coli O157:H7, Salmonella, and M. haemolytica showed very
few positives, likely due to the good condition of the cattle prior to transport. During the
30 days post-transport, no cattle from either treatment required veterinary attention
related to transport. The results indicate that increasing ventilation through the use of
external air scoops has the potential to improve the health and well-being of cattle during
transport.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:tamu.edu/oai:repository.tamu.edu:1969.1/ETD-TAMU-1720 |
| Date | 02 June 2009 |
| Creators | Giguere, Nicole Marie |
| Contributors | Friend, T.H. |
| Source Sets | Texas A and M University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Book, Thesis, Electronic Thesis, text |
| Format | electronic, application/pdf, born digital |
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