Physical conditions in a cattle vehicle during spring and autumn conditions in Japan, and reactions of steers to long distance transport

ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to investigate transportation conditions and behavioral and physiological responses of beef steers to long distance commercial transport in Japan. In spring (May) and autumn (September), eight (16 in total) Japanese Black × Holstein steers (7.8 ± 0.6 month of...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Animal science journal 2008-10, Vol.79 (5), p.620-627
Main Authors: ISHIWATA, Toshie, UETAKE, Katsuji, EGUCHI, Yusuke, TANAKA, Toshio
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal sciences
beef cattle
behavior
Cattle
Humidity
stress
Temperature
transport
Trucks
welfare
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Summary:ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to investigate transportation conditions and behavioral and physiological responses of beef steers to long distance commercial transport in Japan. In spring (May) and autumn (September), eight (16 in total) Japanese Black × Holstein steers (7.8 ± 0.6 month of age; 310.3 ± 13.9 kg) were transported by truck. The transport distance was 1013.1 km (25 h including lairage periods) comprising 627.6 km (6.4 h) on expressways, 143.5 km (3.5 h) on arterial roads and 242.0 km (10.5 h) by ferry. The loading space of the truck gave a space allowance of about 1.62 m2/head. Internal temperature (±SD) and humidity (±SD) of the truck were 14.7 ± 4.7°C and 72.7 ± 22.4% in spring, 24.4 ± 2.8°C and 70.8 ± 14.4% in autumn. Vibration acceleration (±SD) of the truck in the longitudinal direction was greater in spring (−0.19 ± 0.43 m/s2) than in autumn (−0.15 ± 0.20 m/s2) (P 
ISSN:1344-3941
1740-0929
DOI:10.1111/j.1740-0929.2008.00572.x