Influence of storage conditions and shotshell wounding on the hygienic condition of hunted, uneviscerated pheasant (Phasianus colchicus).

The effects of shot wounds on the hygienic conditions of pheasants (particularly those in the body cavity) were studied. Slaughtered (n = 33) and hunted pheasants (31 specimens with, and 33 specimens without shots in the body cavity) were stored uneviscerated at 0 and 4 degrees C. Specimens were taken at d 0, 3, 7, and 14. Hunted pheasants differed from slaughtered pheasants with respect to muscular hemorrhages and blood and fecal matter in the body cavity but also with regard to the presence of Escherichia coli in breast and thigh muscles. In addition, a higher thigh muscle pH (P < 0.05) was noted in hunted pheasants, with no significant (P > 0.05) increase observed during storage. Concentrations of biogenic amines in muscle tissue remained below the determination limit of 1 mg/kg for 90% of samples analyzed, with the maximum concentration for the remaining 10% of samples reaching 5.7 mg/kg, indicating a low incidence of contaminant bacteria. The observed changes in pH values and levels of biogenic amines failed to correlate with the presence or absence of shot lesions in the body cavity or abdominal region. Total aerobic counts increased significantly during storage, but the absolute numbers were consistently below 10(6) log(10) cfu/g. Although E. coli were <1 log(10) cfu/g in muscles of hunted pheasants on d 3 at 4 degrees C, counts of up to 3.7 log(10) cfu/g on d 7 at 4 degrees C indicated a loss of hygienic quality. Therefore, it is recommended that hunted, uneviscerated pheasants be stored 3 d at 4 degrees C, but not longer than 7 d after the hunt.