Carnovale Francesca, Xiao Jin, Shi Binlin, Kaart Tanel, Arney David, Phillips Clive J C
College of Animal Science, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, 306 Zhaowuda Road, Inner Mongolia, Hohhot 010018, China.
Institute of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Sciences, Estonian University of Life Sciences, Kreutzwaldi 46, 51006 Tartu, Estonia.
Animals (Basel). 2021 Jun 2;11(6):1659. doi: 10.3390/ani11061659.
Low temperatures can provide a risk to the welfare of sheep during transport because of increased ventilation chilling the sheep, and we examined the importance of three factors-covering the vehicle, duration of transport, and feeding prior to transport-on the welfare of sixty transported 4-month-old Dorper × Mongolian female sheep in a cold climate. Sheep in a covered vehicle had greater increases in head and ear temperatures than those in an open vehicle. Sheep transported for 2 h increased their leg temperatures, whereas those transported for 1 h had reduced leg temperatures. Increases in non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) in the blood samples during the long transport suggested that sheep had more muscular and metabolic activity, compromising their well-being. Feeding prior to transport did not affect body temperatures, but those not fed prior to transport had reduced alanine transferase, HSP and cortisol in their blood, whereas those that were fed had reduced NEFAs, LDH and creatine kinase. Prior feeding had no effect on the sheep temperature indices over a two-hour transport period. Thus, the sheep most at risk of the adverse effects of cold temperatures were those transported in open vehicles, those transported for a longer time, and those not fed before transport.
低温会在运输过程中对绵羊的健康造成风险，因为通风增加会使绵羊受冻，我们研究了三个因素——遮盖运输车辆、运输时长以及运输前喂食——对60只4月龄多珀×蒙古杂交母羊在寒冷气候下运输时健康状况的影响。与乘坐敞篷车的绵羊相比，乘坐有遮盖车辆的绵羊头部和耳朵温度升高幅度更大。运输2小时的绵羊腿部温度上升，而运输1小时的绵羊腿部温度下降。长时间运输过程中血液样本中游离脂肪酸（NEFA）和乳酸脱氢酶（LDH）增加，表明绵羊肌肉和代谢活动增强，影响了它们的健康。运输前喂食对体温没有影响，但运输前未喂食的绵羊血液中谷丙转氨酶、热休克蛋白和皮质醇含量降低，而喂食的绵羊游离脂肪酸、乳酸脱氢酶和肌酸激酶含量降低。在两小时的运输过程中，运输前喂食对绵羊体温指标没有影响。因此，最容易受到低温不利影响的绵羊是乘坐敞篷车运输的、运输时间较长的以及运输前未喂食的绵羊。
