WELFARE OF ANIMALS DURING TRANSPORTATIONThe need to transport food animals occurs essentially in commercial animal

production and to a lesser extent in the rural or subsistence sector. These animals need to be moved for a number of reasons including marketing, slaughter, re-stocking, from drought areas to better grazing and change of ownership. Typically, methods used to move animals are on hoof, by road motor vehicle, by rail, on ship and by air.

Generally the majority of livestock in developing countries are moved by trekking on the hoof, by road and rail. Historically, livestock has been moved on foot, but with increasing urbanisation of the population and commercialization of animal production, livestock transport by road and rail vehicles has surpassed this. Transport of livestock is undoubtedly the most stressful and injurious stage in the chain of operations between farm and slaughterhouse and contributes significantly to poor animal welfare and loss of production.

Animal welfare codes are to be followed in handling of animals undertaking a journey by road, rail, air or sea. This Code is intended as a guideline for the people who are involved in transport of animals. This Code takes account of following principles:a) That there is a critical relationship between animal health and animal welfare.

b) That the use of animals carries with it an ethical responsibility to ensure the welfare of such animals to the greatest extent practicable.

c) That the internationally recognized ‘five freedoms’ (freedom from hunger, thirst ; freedom from fear and distress; freedom from discomfort; freedom from pain, injury and disease; and freedom to express normal behavior) are followed in true spirit.

Animals being transported are subjected to a number of stressors which may include:a) gathering and handling;b) deprivation of, or changes in quantity or the quality of food and water;c) extremes of temperature or change in climatic conditions;d) the grouping of animals strange to each other both within and between species;e) separation from others of the animals’ own kind;f) unfamiliar surroundings, noises and sensations;g) overcrowding or isolation;h) fatigue; andj) exposure to disease.

Effects of faulty transportPoor transportation can have serious deleterious effects on the welfare of livestock and can lead to significant loss of quality and production.Effects of transport and movement include:

a. Stress- leading to DFD [Dark, Firm and Dry (DFD) meat ]beef and PSE[Pale, Soft, Exudative(PSE) meat,] pork ;

b. Bruising - perhaps the most insidious and significant production waste in the meat industry ;

c. Trampling - this occurs when animals go down due to slippery floors or overcrowding ;

d. Suffocation - this usually follows on trampling;

e. Heart failure - occurs mostly in pigs when overfed prior to loading and transportation;

f. Heat stroke - pigs are susceptible to high environment temperatures and humidity;

g. Sun burn - exposure to sun affects pigs seriously;

h. Bloat - restraining ruminants or tying their feet without turning them will cause this;

i. Poisoning - animals can die from plant poisoning during trekking on hoof;

j. Predation - unguarded animals moving on the hoof may be attacked;

k. Dehydration- animals subject to long distance travel without proper watering will suffer weight loss and may die;

l. Exhaustion - may occur for many reasons including heavily pregnant animals or weaklings;

m. Injuries - broken legs, horns ;

n. Fighting

- this occurs mostly when a vehicle loaded with pig stops, or amongst horned and polled cattle.

All animal transport creates some degree of stress;Therefore unnecessary transport should be avoided. Any transport that is necessary shall be carried out in a way that minimizes stress, pain and suffering. In particular the following conditions shall be complied with:a) All necessary arrangements must be made in advance to minimize the length of the journey and meet the animal’s needs during the journey;b) Means of transport as well as the loading and unloading facilities must be designed, constructed, maintained and operated so as to avoid injury and suffering and ensure the safety of the animals;c) People that handle animals must be trained and competent as appropriate for this purposeand must carry out their tasks without using violence or any method likely to cause unnecessary fear, injury or suffering;d) Transport must be carried out without delay to the place of destination and the welfare conditions of the animals must be regularly checked and appropriately maintained;e) Sufficient floor area, height and other spacing requirements must be provided for the animals, appropriate to their size and the intended journey;f) Animals must be fit for the intended journey;g) Water, feed and rest must be offered to the animals at suitable intervals and should be appropriate in quality and quantity to their species, size and age

TRANSPORT OF ANIMALS, RULES, 1978 & TRANSPORT OF ANIMALS AMMENDMENT RULES,2001 & 2009

In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (h) of sub-section (2) of section 38 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 (59 of 1960); the Central Government hereby makes the above rules,Q1. What are the general conditions for transport of animals?A) The Transport of Animals Rules, 1978 & its amendment provides the general conditions for transport of animals.1) Animals to be transported shall be healthy and in good condition. They should be examined by a veterinary doctor for freedom from infectious diseases and their fitness to undertake the journey, provided that the nature and duration of the proposed journey shall be taken into account while deciding upon the degree of fitness.2) An animal which is unfit for transport shall not be transported and the animals that are newborn, diseased, blind, emaciated, lame, fatigued or having given birth during the preceding seventy-two hours or likely to give birth during transport shall not be transported.3) Pregnant and very young animals shall not be mixed with other animals during transport.4) Different classes of animals shall be kept separately during the transport 5) Diseased animals, whenever transported for treatment, shall not be mixed with other animals.Q2. What should be noted and observed when animals are being transported?A) As mentioned above, the general conditions laid down in The Transport of Animals Rules, 1978 & its amendment should be strictly adhered to. And apart from that, there are different rules for transporting different categories of animal, provided under The Transport of Animals Rules, 1978. Overloading of animals amounts to treating of animals cruelly under Section 11 of The Prevention Of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960.

If the above general conditions with regard to the transportation of animals are not met, the animals should be immediately unloaded and sent to the nearest animal shelter. Some further conditions that must be observed are:In the case of trucks whose wheelbase is over 142 inches shall not carry more than six cattle without calves or five with calves.The Vehicle transporting them should be large enough to carry animals comfortably and the animals should not be packed and jammed inside. The animals should also be protected from the weather.Animals are not allowed to be transported by tempo.Within the vehicle, partitions, must be provided at every two or three metres across the width to prevent the crowding and trapping of animals.Sufficient food and water shall be carried to last during the journey and watering facility should be provided at regular intervals.First aid equipment should be available in the vehicle.Suitable ramps should be provided for loading and unloading the animals.Materials for padding such as straw, shall be placed on the floor to avoid injury and this shall be not less than 5 cm thick.Apart from this, there are specific rules for transporting different categories of animals provided under The Transport of Animals Rules, 1978 & Amendment Rule,2009 which specifies the maximum number of animals that can be carried by different types of vehicles.Overloading of animals amounts to treating of animals cruelly under Section 11 of The Prevention of Cruelty To Animals Act, 1960. Q 3. What are the Rules of transportation for Cattle provided under The Transport of Animals Rules, 1978 & its amendment?A) When cattle are to be transported by rail an ordinary goods wagon shall carry not more than ten adult cattle or fifteen calves on broad gauge, not more than six adult cattle or ten calves on meter gauge, and not more than four adult cattle or six calves on narrow gauge.

When cattle is to be transported by rail.(a) An ordinary goods wagon shall carry not more than ten adult cattle or fifteen calves on broad gauge, not more than six adult cattle or ten calves on metre gauge, or not more than

four cattle or six calves on narrow gauge.(b) Every wagon carrying cattle shall have at least one attendant.(c) Cattle shall be loaded parallel to the rails, facing each other.(d) Padding material such as straw, shall be placed on the floor to avoid injury if a cattle lies down and this shall not be less than 6 cms thick.(e) Rations for the journey shall be carried in the middle of the wagon.(f) To provide adequate ventilation, upper door of one side of the wagon shall be kept open properly fixed and the upper door of the wagon shall have wire gauge closely welded mesh

arrangements to prevent burning cinders from the engines entering the wagon and leading to fire outbreak.(g) Cattle wagon should be attached in the middle of the train.(h) Cooking shall not be allowed in the wagons nor hurricane lamps without chimneys.(i) Two breast bars shall be provided on each side of the wagon, one at height of 60 to 80 cm and the other at 100 to 110 cm.(J) Cattle-in-milk shall be milked at least twice a day and the calves shall be given sufficient quantity of milk to drink.(k) As far as possible, cattle may be moved during the nights only.(l) During day time, if possible, they should be unloaded, fed , given water and rested and if in milk, milking shall be carried out.While transporting cattle by goods vehicle, only six cattle can be loaded per truck.The permissible loading in a truck is only 4 buffaloes, and truck having wheelbase below 142 inches, shall not carry more than five cattle without calves or four with calves.

Q4. What are the Rules for transportation of Equines provided under The Transportation of Animals Rules, 1978 & its amendment?A) For the transport of equines by rail, an ordinary goods wagon shall not carry more than

eight to ten horses or ten mules or ten donkeys on broad gauge and not more than six horses or eight donkeys on meter- gauge.If equines are to be transported by a goods vehicle, each vehicle may not carry more than four to six equines.With regard to the transport of equines by sea, horses may normally be accommodated in single stalls and mules in pens, each pen holding a maximum of four to five

mules. Q5. What is the Rule for transportation of sheep and goats provided under “The Transportation of Animals Rules, 1978 7 its amendment?”

Following is the chart of transport of sheep and goats through railway wagon, for different gauge.Goods vehicle of capacity of 5 or 4.5 tons, which are generally used for transporting animals, shall not carry more than forty sheep or goats.

Q6. What are the rules provided for the transportation of poultry by rail, road andair?A) Containers are used for transporting poultry by rail, road and air. The crates used for transporting poultry must be sterilized and may not

be piled one above the other. There are specific numbers of poultry that may be accommodated in such containers.

Q7. What are the Rules provided for the transportation of pigs by rail or road?A)In transport of pigs by road, goods vehicles, which are generally used for transporting of animals, shall not carry more than twenty pigs.While transporting pigs by rail, no railway wagon shall accommodate more than the number of pigs as provided in the following table: -

Q8. Are there any regulations regarding transporting animals by foot? Yes. The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Transport of Animals on Foot) Rules 2001 applies wherever the distance involved is 5 Km or more.Each animal must be certified healthy by a Vet. Doctor in the prescribed form.The owner must provide first aid equipment to accompany the animals as well as make proper watering and fodder arrangements en route. Animals must be rested for 20 minutes after watering and one hour after feeding.No whip or stick may be used to hurry up the animals.No animals shall be tied by the nose or leg, only around the neck. Only two animals and only of the same size may tied adjacent to one another using a single rope. The space between then shall be a minimum of two feet.No animals shall be transported on foot before sunrise or after sunset or during heavy rain or extremely dry conditions.Heavily pregnant, new born, blind, emaciated, diseased and lame animals may not be taken on foot.Animals who are not shod eg. goats, elephants etc cannot be transported on foot on hard cement or metal tarred roads or rocky terrain.Q9.What should veterinarian check before giving Fitness certificate?

Pre-loading precautionsThere are a number of simple procedures that can be implemented prior to the loading of livestock, which will considerably reduce the risk of injury and stress.1. Pre-mixing of cattle or pigs leads to greater familiarity and these animals travel better than animals that are strangers. Cattle should be mixed in a pen 24 hours before loading. Fighting amongst pigs that are strangers is common, resulting in skin damage, wounds and stress. Mix pigs from different pens together before loading, smearing pigs with litter or excreta from the same pen so that they smell similar.2. Most animals can be fed and watered before transporting. This has a settling effect. However pigs should not be fed before transport as the feed ferments and the gas causes pressure on the heart in the thoracic cavity, leading to heart failure and death.3. Do not mix horned and hornless animals in the vehicles as this causes bruising and injury. Different species should also not be mixed - sheep, goats and calves under 6 months can be mixed and individual animals can be transported in a loose sack tied at the animal’s neck. Feet should not be tied, and animals should be turned every 30 minutes or so. Pigs should not travel with other species unless separated by a partition. Bulls should not be carried together with other stock unless separated by a strong partition.

4. Animals that are diseased, injured, emaciated or heavily pregnant should not be transported, and unfit, heavy, pen fed animals should not travel far as they cannot stand up to the stress of transport.5. Vehicles should be fitted with a portable ramp to facilitate emergency offloading in case of prolonged breakdowns.6,Poultry shall not be transported when the temperature exceeds 25 degree Celsius or when the temperature falls below 15 degree Celsius. Day old chicks shall arrive at destination within the shortest possible time after being taken out of the incubator. Seventy two hours shall normally be regarded as the maximum period to be taken from incubator to brooder in winter and 48 hours in summer;

Transport operations

A number of factors must be taken into account during the journey in order that the animals do not suffer, become injured or die.

1. Trekking-Only cattle, sheep and goats can be successfully moved on hoof, and here certain risks are involved. The journey should be planned, paying attention to the distance to be travelled, opportunities for grazing, watering and overnight rest. Animals should be walked during the cooler times of the day and, if moving some distance to a railhead, they should arrive with sufficient time to be rested and watered before loading. The maximum distances that these animals should be trekked depend on various factors such as weather, body condition, age etc., but the distance given in Table 1 should not be exceeded when trekked. Table 1. Maximum distances for trekking (FAO)

Species One day journey More than one dayFirst day Subsequent days

Cattle 30 km 24 km 22 kmSheep/goats 24 km 24 km 16 km

2. Time of the day-High environment temperatures will increase the risk of heat stress and mortality during transportation. It is important to transport animals in vehicles during the cooler mornings and evenings or even at night. This is particularly important for pigs. A combination of high humidity and high environment temperatures is especially deadly to pigs. Heat can rapidly build up to lethal levels in a stationary vehicle. Wetting pigs with water will help keep them cool.3. Duration of journey-Where possible, journeys should be short and direct, without any stoppages. If the vehicle stops, pigs will tend to fight. Cattle and sheep/goats should not travel for more than 36 hours and should be offloaded after 24h for feed and water, if the journey is to take longer than that. Pigs should have access to frequent drinks of water during long journeys, particularly in hot and humid conditions. There are recent moves seeking to limit the duration of livestock transports to 8 hours or less.4. Driving-Vehicles should be driven smoothly, without jerks or sudden stops. Corners should be taken slowly and gently. The second person should be in attendance to spot downer animals so that the vehicle can be stopped and the animal lifted. Train drivers should avoid “fly shunting” of trucks with livestock.5. Wind chill-Wind blowing on wet animals being transported in cold weather causes a wind chill factor, where the body temperature is considerably reduced, resulting in severe stress or deaths.

NOTE:A valid certificate by a qualified veterinary surgeon to the effect that the animals are in a fit condition to travel by rail or road and are not suffering from any infectious or contagious or parasitic diseases and that they have been vaccinated against rinderpest and any other infectious or contagious or parasitic diseases, shall accompany each consignment.

Any police officer above the rank of constable or any other person authorized by Central or State Govt or AWBI can require any owner who is violating these rules to take the animals to the nearest police station. Vets should be aware of any changes to the rules all the time.