Energy loss and impact of various stunning devices used for the slaughtering of water buffaloes.

Glardon, Matthieu; Schwenk, Barbara K; Riva, Fabiano; von Holzen, Adrian; Ross, Steffen G; Kneubuehl, Beat P; Stoffel, Michael H (2018). Energy loss and impact of various stunning devices used for the slaughtering of water buffaloes. Meat Science, 135, pp. 159-165. Elsevier 10.1016/j.meatsci.2017.09.014

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Stock management of the Swiss water buffalo livestock results in the slaughtering of about 350 animals per year. As the stunning of water buffaloes still is an unresolved issue, we investigated the terminal ballistics of currently used perforating stunning devices. Cartridge fired captive bolt devices, handguns and a bullet casing gun were tested in a shooting steep by firing on bisected heads, forehead plates and soap blocks. Energy loss of captive bolts confirmed their inadequacy when used for heavy water buffaloes, notably adult males. As for the free projectiles, ballistics revealed that beyond the impact energy, bullet deformation has a strong impact on the outcome. Light 9mm Luger or .38 Spl bullets as well as large deformable .44 Rem. Magnum bullets should be avoided in favor of heavier .357 Magnum deformation ammunition. These data have been translated into the development of a new stunning device for water buffaloes meeting both animal welfare and occupational safety requirements.

Item Type:

Journal Article (Original Article)

Division/Institute:

04 Faculty of Medicine > Service Sector > Institute of Legal Medicine
04 Faculty of Medicine > Service Sector > Institute of Legal Medicine > Forensic Physics (Ballistics)

UniBE Contributor:

Glardon, Matthieu, Riva, Fabiano

ISSN:

0309-1740

Publisher:

Elsevier

Language:

English

Submitter:

Antoinette Angehrn

Date Deposited:

17 Nov 2017 16:04

Last Modified:

05 Dec 2022 15:07

Publisher DOI:

10.1016/j.meatsci.2017.09.014

PubMed ID:

29035813

BORIS DOI:

10.7892/boris.106454

URI:

https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/106454

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