Hauling to slaughter?

[hayray]

What are thoughts on timeing of hauling cattle to slaughter facility to minimize stress and endorphine release - meaning hauling the day prior to, or the day of slaughter? Thought I knew the answer but heard something different from a large feeder today.

Ray

 

[Beef11]

I would Think, that hauling as close to the kill time as possible being ideal. I would guess the animals stress level to be pretty constant sitting around a new place with strange people and smells. A group is going to be different than a single animal for sure. 1 critter will be under alot more stress than being with his colleagues.

What did your packer friend say?

 

[msscamp]

I don't think I'd haul them any sooner than necessary. Stress is a really good way to lose a lot of pounds, very quickly.

 

[auctionboy]

When they loose those pounds is it water lose and diarrhea? If so and you don't get anylass meat then who cares? Unless your selling by the pound on the side. What is really lost, water? As for endorhine release I have no idea.

 

[hayray]

I would Think, that hauling as close to the kill time as possible being ideal. I would guess the animals stress level to be pretty constant sitting around a new place with strange people and smells. A group is going to be different than a single animal for sure. 1 critter will be under alot more stress than being with his colleagues.

What did your packer friend say?

Well my processor says haul them in the day ahead of time, I thought this was that the stress levels from trailering would be the main problem, such as hormones released in the meat that would cause it to taste bad and be tough. I know people that had to shoot cattle that got loose and they were tough and bad tasting, so I figured hauling the day ahead of time made sense. A local feed lot operator said haul them the as close to slaughter as possible, but I wonder if that was based more on shrink.

 

[bigbull338]

i think what your talking about is a dark cutter.meaning highstrung or wild cattle being butchered.a dark cutter is blood red meat.you can look at the meat an tell a wild steer from a calm 1.being a dark cutter does affect the taste of the meat.

 

[mitchwi]

I was also told, that having them at the butcher about a day ahead of time, helps alleviate chances for e-coli. I know there is a whole scientific reasoning with the ruminant bugs and such and it made sense to me when I was explained it... but this is as much as I am able to explain it.

When selling at the auctions for fat, the buyers also want the animals in the day before the auction....and it is reflected in the price you get.

Also, one other thing, the animals under stress will lose the majority within less than like 20 miles of hauling.

Michele

 

[msscamp]

When they loose those pounds is it water lose and diarrhea? If so and you don't get anylass meat then who cares? Unless your selling by the pound on the side. What is really lost, water? As for endorhine release I have no idea.

When they lose lbs it's meat, generally speaking. You've apparently never bought an animal from the salebarn and watched him/her lose pounds from being in strange surroundings, and interacting with strange people. It generally happens for anywhere from a few days to a week or more, depending on the individual animals temperament and background.

 

[somn]

When they loose those pounds is it water lose and diarrhea? If so and you don't get anylass meat then who cares? Unless your selling by the pound on the side. What is really lost, water? As for endorhine release I have no idea.

When they lose lbs it's meat, generally speaking. You've apparently never bought an animal from the salebarn and watched him/her lose pounds from being in strange surroundings, and interacting with strange people. It generally happens for anywhere from a few days to a week or more, depending on the individual animals temperament and background.

Oh so it is meat they lose not water huh? That must be why the packers are willing to pay more per live pound for overnight cattle compared to cattle killed on the day of arrival. That is the most BS I've ever heard. Overnight cattle yield higher because of water loss thru dehydration and their intestines are empty, Neither of which are meat.

But hey you claim it is meat lost and you must know more about how to run a packing plant than they do. Maybe you could let someone from the packing plant know how ignorant they are.

 

[Susie David]

We slaughter our freezer beef on the farm. No stress at all and only had one that spooked when the others went down.
We haul our USDA beef the day before and haven't noticed any difference in the meat.
DMc

 

[auctionboy]

When they loose those pounds is it water lose and diarrhea? If so and you don't get anylass meat then who cares? Unless your selling by the pound on the side. What is really lost, water? As for endorhine release I have no idea.

When they lose lbs it's meat, generally speaking. You've apparently never bought an animal from the salebarn and watched him/her lose pounds from being in strange surroundings, and interacting with strange people. It generally happens for anywhere from a few days to a week or more, depending on the individual animals temperament and background.

Oh so it is meat they lose not water huh? That must be why the packers are willing to pay more per live pound for overnight cattle compared to cattle killed on the day of arrival. That is the most BS I've ever heard. Overnight cattle yield higher because of water loss thru dehydration and their intestines are empty, Neither of which are meat.

But hey you claim it is meat lost and you must know more about how to run a packing plant than they do. Maybe you could let someone from the packing plant know how ignorant they are.

That is what I thought Somn. I have seen shrink but don't see why muscles disappear? Diarrhia and scaring the piss out of animals, literaly, was the reason for weight loss I thought?

 

[Bullbuyer]

Haul the night before - always have, always will. No choice in the matter.

 

[eric]

Haul the night before - always have, always will. No choice in the matter.

Same here, but mainly because the sale barn I use has a Monday sale, so I haul them in on Sunday afternoon, and go to my real job on Monday. Check is usually in my mailbox on Tuesday.

 

[Bobg]

I have someone come out and slaughter, he then hauls the carcass to his place and processes there. Before I started using him I hauled to a local guy, but would only bring it in a few minutes before slaughter.

Bobg