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Head-Only Stunning of Turkeys Part 2: Subjective and Objective Assessment of the Application of AC and DC Waveforms

SIMPLE SUMMARY: In this study, we investigated various types of application of head-only electrical stunning to turkeys, in order to improve the effectiveness of the stunning process. We used recordings of physical responses and of electroencephalograms (EEGs) to assess effectivity of stunning and v...

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Autores principales: Wotton, Steve, Grist, Andrew, O’Callaghan, Mike, van Klink, Ed
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: MDPI 2021
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7912398/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33498740
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ani11020286
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author Wotton, Steve
Grist, Andrew
O’Callaghan, Mike
van Klink, Ed
author_facet Wotton, Steve
Grist, Andrew
O’Callaghan, Mike
van Klink, Ed
author_sort Wotton, Steve
collection PubMed
description SIMPLE SUMMARY: In this study, we investigated various types of application of head-only electrical stunning to turkeys, in order to improve the effectiveness of the stunning process. We used recordings of physical responses and of electroencephalograms (EEGs) to assess effectivity of stunning and various waveforms: alternating current (AC) and pulsed direct currents (DC). Depending on the waveforms, voltages between 125 and 250 V produced an effective stun in turkeys in this study. ABSTRACT: Electrical stunning is likely to remain an important stunning method for turkeys at slaughter. The purpose of this study is to understand the application of various waveforms of alternating current (AC) and pulsed direct currents (DC), head-only, to turkeys and to improve the effectiveness of handheld stunning of turkeys. We evaluated the effectiveness of stunning by documenting physical responses and recording electroencephalograms (EEGs). For the assessment of physical responses, the stunning voltage was varied depending on the proportion of animals effectively stunned at a certain voltage level. If all turkeys in a group of 10 were stunned, the voltage was decreased, and the next group was stunned. This was repeated until not all turkeys showed signs of being effectively stunned. The experiment was then repeated at the voltage level just above the one that showed incomplete effective stunning. The effects of the stunning on the EEG recording was assessed in 16 turkeys to measure the occurrence of epileptiform EEGs, in 14 turkeys to assess epileptiform EEGs after neck-cut (bleeding), and in 14 turkeys to assess the effect of increased voltage and reduced frequency on epileptiform EEGs. Assessing EEGs in a laboratory setting contributes considerably to the understanding of electrical stunning procedures. Voltages between 125 and 250 V, depending on the waveform assessed, were effective in producing an effective stun in turkeys in this study.
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spelling pubmed-79123982021-02-28 Head-Only Stunning of Turkeys Part 2: Subjective and Objective Assessment of the Application of AC and DC Waveforms Wotton, Steve Grist, Andrew O’Callaghan, Mike van Klink, Ed Animals (Basel) Article SIMPLE SUMMARY: In this study, we investigated various types of application of head-only electrical stunning to turkeys, in order to improve the effectiveness of the stunning process. We used recordings of physical responses and of electroencephalograms (EEGs) to assess effectivity of stunning and various waveforms: alternating current (AC) and pulsed direct currents (DC). Depending on the waveforms, voltages between 125 and 250 V produced an effective stun in turkeys in this study. ABSTRACT: Electrical stunning is likely to remain an important stunning method for turkeys at slaughter. The purpose of this study is to understand the application of various waveforms of alternating current (AC) and pulsed direct currents (DC), head-only, to turkeys and to improve the effectiveness of handheld stunning of turkeys. We evaluated the effectiveness of stunning by documenting physical responses and recording electroencephalograms (EEGs). For the assessment of physical responses, the stunning voltage was varied depending on the proportion of animals effectively stunned at a certain voltage level. If all turkeys in a group of 10 were stunned, the voltage was decreased, and the next group was stunned. This was repeated until not all turkeys showed signs of being effectively stunned. The experiment was then repeated at the voltage level just above the one that showed incomplete effective stunning. The effects of the stunning on the EEG recording was assessed in 16 turkeys to measure the occurrence of epileptiform EEGs, in 14 turkeys to assess epileptiform EEGs after neck-cut (bleeding), and in 14 turkeys to assess the effect of increased voltage and reduced frequency on epileptiform EEGs. Assessing EEGs in a laboratory setting contributes considerably to the understanding of electrical stunning procedures. Voltages between 125 and 250 V, depending on the waveform assessed, were effective in producing an effective stun in turkeys in this study. MDPI 2021-01-23 /pmc/articles/PMC7912398/ /pubmed/33498740 http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ani11020286 Text en © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
spellingShingle Article
Wotton, Steve
Grist, Andrew
O’Callaghan, Mike
van Klink, Ed
Head-Only Stunning of Turkeys Part 2: Subjective and Objective Assessment of the Application of AC and DC Waveforms
title Head-Only Stunning of Turkeys Part 2: Subjective and Objective Assessment of the Application of AC and DC Waveforms
title_full Head-Only Stunning of Turkeys Part 2: Subjective and Objective Assessment of the Application of AC and DC Waveforms
title_fullStr Head-Only Stunning of Turkeys Part 2: Subjective and Objective Assessment of the Application of AC and DC Waveforms
title_full_unstemmed Head-Only Stunning of Turkeys Part 2: Subjective and Objective Assessment of the Application of AC and DC Waveforms
title_short Head-Only Stunning of Turkeys Part 2: Subjective and Objective Assessment of the Application of AC and DC Waveforms
title_sort head-only stunning of turkeys part 2: subjective and objective assessment of the application of ac and dc waveforms
topic Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7912398/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33498740
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ani11020286
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