RT Journal Article
T1 Welfare of horses at slaughter
A1 Nielsen, Søren Saxmose
A1 Álvarez Sánchez, Julio
A1 Boklund, Anette
A1 Dippel, Sabine
A1 Dorea, Fernanda
A1 Figuerola, Jordi
A1 Herskin, Mette
A1 Miranda Chueca, Miguel Angel
A1 Nannoni, Eleonora
A1 Nonno, Romolo
A1 Riber, Anja
A1 Stahl, Karl
A1 Stegeman, Jan Arend
A1 Thulke, Hans-Hermann
A1 Tuyttens, Frank
A1 Winckler, Christoph
A1 Raj, Mohan
A1 Velarde, Antonio
A1 Candiani, Denise
A1 Van der Stede, Yves
A1 Miche, Virginie
AB The objective of this Scientific Opinion is to assess the hazards and welfare conse-quences associated with the slaughter of horses for human consumption. The en-tire slaughter procedure, from arrival at the slaughterhouse until death, is dividedinto three phases: Phase 1 – pre-stunning, Phase 2 – stunning and Phase 3 – bleed-ing. Phase 1 includes the following processes (in chronological order): (a) arrival,(b) unloading of the animals from the vehicle, (c) lairage, (d) handling and movingto the stunning area and (e) restraint before application of the stunning method.Phase 2 encompasses the stunning methods, while Phase 3 involves the bleed-ing process (i.e. exsanguination following stunning). Stunning methods for horsesinclude penetrative captive bolt and firearms. Welfare consequences that horsesmay experience (such as handling stress, restriction of movement and injuries) andpotential hazards were identified for all the phases along with preventive and cor-rective measures. For arrival and unloading during phase 1, this Opinion refers toa previous EFSA assessment on the transport of Equidae. Animal-based measures(ABMs) to assess all identified welfare consequences are proposed. A flowchart ofABMs to assess the state of consciousness is provided to allow monitoring dur-ing the stunning and bleeding phase at three key stages ((1) between the end ofstunning and shackling, (2) during neck cutting or sticking, (3) during bleeding).Additionally, specific practices deemed unacceptable on welfare grounds arelisted
PB Wiley
SN 1831-4732
YR 2025
FD 2025
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/118300
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/118300
LA eng
NO Nielsen, S. S., Alvarez, J., Boklund, A., Dippel, S., Dorea, F., Figuerola, J., Herskin, M., Miranda Chueca, M. A., Nannoni, E., Nonno, R., Riber, A., Stahl, K., Stegeman, J. A., Thulke, H.-H., Tuyttens, F., Winckler, C., Raj, M., Velarde, A., … Michel, V. (2025). Welfare of horses at slaughter. EFSA Journal, 23(1), e9178. https://doi.org/10.2903/j.efsa.2025.9178
NO European Commission
DS Docta Complutense
RD 10 abr 2025