MASTERFi LE COPY Do ~Jot Remove- WINTER 1979 news Vol. 24 No.1 The Humane Society News is published quarterly by The Humane Society of the United States, with headquarters at 2100 L Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20037. Tele­ phone: (202) 452-1100 Humane Livestock Handling OFFICERS Chairman of the Board ...... Coleman Burke Vice Chairman .......... .Robert F. Welborn by Temple Grandin President .................... John A. Hoyt Vice President/ Administration ............. Patrick B. Parkes Vice President/Treasurer ..... Paul G. Irwin The livestock indus try loses a major cause of cattle becoming Vice President/General Counsel ............ $46,000,000 every year due to bruised because they get riled up, ................. AfurdaughStuarthfadden bruises on the animals, according ram fences, and get trampled on. In this poorly designed chute, open This dipping vat leadup chute designed by Grandin has high, solid sides and Vice President/Program ..... Patricia Forkan to the Livestock Conservation In­ The human factor in this cannot be bar sides allow the cattle to see out­ flowing curves. The handlers work along the inside radius of the curves. The Secretary ............ Dr. Amy Freeman Lee stitute. This is one indication of the overlooked, but better equipment side distractions. Also, some cattle cattle will move easily through the curved chutes because it is the animal's may refuse to walk on the grid pat­ natural instinct to circle around the handler. Note also the long, narrow DIRECTORS amount of injuries suffered by cat­ which encourages the animals to tle, sheep, and pigs in stockyards move along instead of causing them tern shadow cast on the ground by holding pens at the top of the picture, designed to give more fenceline space Rosemary Benning ...... Pebble Beach, Calif. the sidebars. for the animals. Amanda Blake ............... Phoenix, Ariz. and meat packing plants, and dur­ to balk will reduce the need to use Samuel A. Bowman ......... New York, N.Y. ing transportation to the plants. prods. Coleman Burke ............ Short Hills, N.J. Aside from injuries, the animals Well designed equipment will DonaldS. Dawson ........... Bethesda, Md. can also suffer an enormous amount help reduce stress on the animals Dr. John Doyle .............. Louisville, Ky. of stress from overcrowding and because they will move more easily through the facility with a mini­ Irene Evans .............. Washington, D.C. abusive handling. Cow Psychology Anna Fesmire ............. Greensboro, N.C. Poorly designed facilities and mum of excitement. When the ani­ The effect is so strong that the high­ Experience has shown that curved Harold H. Gardiner .... Salt Lake City, Utah stockyards which do not take into mals move easily without balking, Cattle, sheep, and hogs have wide way departments in Colorado and chutes are more efficient than Robert W. Gilmore .......... New York, N.Y. account the physical and psycholog­ they are less likely to be abused by angle vision. Cattle and sheep have Oregon merely paint the lines straight chutes. Cattle will follow a Dodie Hawn .......... Corpus Christi, Texas ical characteristics of the animals impatient handlers. Knowledge of a 360° visual field. Cattle and other across the highway instead ofbuild­ curved path more readily than a Dr. Amy Freeman Lee ... San Antonio, Texas can cause stress and injuries. When livestock behavior is essential in grazing animals such as deer are ing real cattle guards. Livestock straight one. The curved chute en­ Virginia Lynch ........ San Francisco, Calif. animals balk at moving through order to design equipment which equipped with wide angle vision so handling facilities should be de­ ables the animal to circle the han­ Brooks AfcCormick, Jr . ......Warrenville, Ill. the chutes or up the ramps leading will reduce stress. Natural live­ they can see a predator coming signed to eliminate areas of sharp dler in a natural manner. In a Dr. RobertR. Afarshak .....Philadelphia, Pa. to slaughter, handlers may use elec­ stock behaviors can be utilized to while they have their heads down contrasts in light. The lighting curved chute with high, solid sides, John W. Afettler,III ... : . .... New York, N.Y. tric prods to force them to move. The facilitate the flow of animals grazing. In fact, a cow can see be­ should be even and diffuse, and an­ the animal will only be able to see 0. J. Ramsey ............ Sacramento, Calif. overzealous use of electric prods is through a chute or alley. hind herself without turning her imal areas should be painted one the animal in front of it disappear­ Jacques V. Sichel ............... Union, N.J. head. solid, uniform color. ing around the bend. The elimina­ Everett Smith, Jr . ......... Greenwich, Conn. This is why a cow can be easily Most livestock have a strong fol­ tion of distractions and the animal's Robert F. Welborn ............. Denver, Colo. spooked by a moving object. Live­ lowing instinct. In order to take ad­ follow-the-leader instinct will help K. William Wiseman ... Greens Farms, Conn. stock handling facilities such as the vantage ofthis, the animals should move it through the lane without single file chute, which leads to the always be able to see other animals harassment from the handlers. EDITORIAL STAFF stunning pen, should have high, in front of them. If several single Studies have also shown that the Carol Afoulton .......................Editor solid sides. Solid fences prevent the file chutes are placed side by side, shape of a livestock holding pen at Lisa Zurlo ............ Publications Assistant Temple Grandin, of Grandin Live­ stock Handling Systems in Tempe, animals from seeing people, cars, the fences in between the chutes a slaughter plimt may be just as Arizona, is a consultant and de­ and other moving objects outside should be constructed from bars. important as the number of square Charles F. Herrman III .................... signer of livestock facilities. She is the chute, which may frighten them This enables the animals in one feet allotted per animal. A long nar­ ............... Director of Communications currently preparing an in-depth re­ and cause them to balk. chute to see other animals in an ad­ row pen has more perimeter fence The Humane Society of the United States is a port on humane livestock handling With wide angle vision, cattle jacent chute. When an animal in relation to floor area than a non-profit charitable organization, supported for HSUS. She is also working with have very little ability to judge dis­ moves forward, the animals in the square pen. This provides each an­ HSUS and the Council for Livestock tances. This lack of depth percep­ entirely by contributions from individuals. All Protection to implement her design adjacent chute will follow. The two imal with more fenceline space. Ob­ contributions are tax-deductible. for a humane kosher slaughter re­ tion is one of the reasons a cow is outside chute fences should be solid servations indicate that livestock likely to refuse to cross a shadow. to block outside distractions such as The Humane Society of the United States straining system. prefer to lie along the fenceline be­ The cow's reluctance to cross areas shiny truck bumpers or blowing pa­ meets the standards of The National Informa­ cause it gives them a feeling of more of bright and dark contrast is one per, which might spook the ani­ space. The long narrow holding pen tion Bureau. of the reasons a cattle guard works. mals. may help reduce stress. Copyright 1979, The Humane Society of the United States, 2100 L St. N.W., Washington, D.C.20037. The Humane Society News • Winter 1979 1 and working the animals across the trainer system, where the animals servations indicated that a few very Equipment Improvements scale in the stockyards. The truck are conveyed in a continuous line, rough people inflict a high percent­ scale paid for itself in bruise reduc­ greatly reduced bruises and practi­ Kosher Chu.te There are certain instances where age of all the bruises. The worst Air Cylinder tion in six months. Bruised meat cally eliminated injuries to the em­ Push•.s Down. an improvement in equipment will cruelties are inflicted by people, and cannot be used for human consump­ ployees. The conveyor restrainer Ne'k Loc.k drastically reduce bruises and in­ it is impossible to build equipment tion. The scale also reduced labor system is one of the most humane juries. A trucking company was which will prevent a cruel person requirements. systems for restraining cattle or able to reduce bruises by modifying from being cruel. I have witnessed Changing and modifying chutes hogs for stunning. The conveyor the doors on the trucks used to haul people doing some really terrible which are used to restrain animals restrainer was completely paid for the cattle to the plant. When the things to animals, such as ramming for stunning can often greatly im­ within two years from the savings cattle exited from the trucks they a stick down a cow's throat. In these prove the humaneness of the oper­ of reduced bruises. would hit their hips on the door instances, the individual person ation and reduce bruises. This is es­ frame. This would result in a large should be severely punished, not pecially true in plants which use a bruise on the loin. The slaughter the company the person works for. plant owner had the trucker modify stunning pen where two cattle are Rough Handling placed in a single compartment. Fining a slaughter plant $2,000 is the doors so that they were wide at like giving you a $2.00 parking When one animal is stunned, the The number one cause of bruises the top and narrow at the bottom. ticket. A stiff fine to the individual This forced the cattle to walk other live animal will often step on is rough handling.