September 2011 - Iowa Pork Producers Association
September 2011 - Iowa Pork Producers Association
September 2011 - Iowa Pork Producers Association
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Journey time also affected the<br />
pig’s ability to handle the stress of<br />
loading and unloading, Ellis said.<br />
“There’s not much research<br />
on this topic as it pertains to<br />
transportation loss,” he added.<br />
“But we have evidence that<br />
suggests short journey times<br />
could actually lead to higher<br />
incidences of losses because the<br />
pigs need a minimum amount of<br />
time to recover from the stress of<br />
loading at the farm. Normally, a<br />
pig will recover if given enough<br />
time. On short journeys, you<br />
may superimpose the stress of<br />
unloading onto animals who<br />
haven’t yet recovered from the<br />
stress of loading.”<br />
Although previous recommendations<br />
from Ellis and his team of<br />
researchers regarding floor<br />
allocation space have resulted in<br />
lower transportation losses (less<br />
than half of a percent of pigs in<br />
most well-managed systems), it<br />
remains a concern because the<br />
producer has invested a great<br />
amount of money to get pigs to<br />
that stage.<br />
Co-author Bradley Wolter, chief<br />
operating officer of The Maschhoffs<br />
in Carlyle, Ill., said working with<br />
the Ellis lab has allowed their<br />
company to lower pig losses within<br />
the supply chain between The<br />
Maschhoffs and its customers by<br />
more than one percentage unit.<br />
Because the industry has made<br />
such great strides to improve<br />
transportation and animal handling,<br />
this study did not show the trends<br />
and differences Ellis expected to see.<br />
“We did visual assessments of how<br />
stressed the pigs were upon arrival<br />
at the plant,” he said. “They were<br />
definitely more stressed after being<br />
unloaded from shorter journeys.<br />
But, anytime the losses are low to<br />
start with, you won’t find many<br />
factors that will lower them further.<br />
As losses are reduced, it’s more<br />
difficult to show how these factors<br />
are involved.”<br />
This is a good problem — and a win<br />
for everyone involved, Ellis said.<br />
SEPTEMBER <strong>2011</strong><br />
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