Association between the Prevalence of Indigestible Foreign Objects in the Gastrointestinal Tract of Slaughtered Cattle and Body Condition Score
It is estimated that South Africa’s population will be above 65 million in 2050. Thus, food production needs to triple to alleviate poverty and food insecurity. However, infectious and non-infectious diseases affect livestock productivity, thereby hampering food supply. Non-infectious disease/condit...
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MDPI AG
2017-10-01
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| Series: | Animals |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/7/11/80 |
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| author | Vikhaya Vincent Nongcula Leocadia Zhou Kenneth Nhundu Ishmael Festus Jaja |
| author_facet | Vikhaya Vincent Nongcula Leocadia Zhou Kenneth Nhundu Ishmael Festus Jaja |
| author_sort | Vikhaya Vincent Nongcula |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | It is estimated that South Africa’s population will be above 65 million in 2050. Thus, food production needs to triple to alleviate poverty and food insecurity. However, infectious and non-infectious diseases affect livestock productivity, thereby hampering food supply. Non-infectious disease/conditions caused by the consumption of solid waste material are rarely reported. Hence, this study investigates the occurrence and type of indigestible foreign objects (IFOs) in the stomach of slaughtered cattle in two high-throughput abattoirs (n = 4424) in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The study revealed that metallic and non-metallic indigestible objects had an overall prevalence of 63% in cattle slaughtered in Queenstown abattoir (QTA, (n = 1906)) and 64.8% at the East London abattoir (ELA, (n = 2518)). Most of the IFOs were found in the rumen (64.2% and 70.8%) and reticulum (28.5% and 20.6%) at QTA and ELA respectively. The leading IFOs in the stomach of cattle at QTA were plastics (27.7%), poly bezoars (10.7%) and ropes (10.7%), while poly bezoars (19.8%), ropes (17.6%) and stones (10.7%) were the main IFOs seen in cattle at ELA. The study showed a statistical significance (p < 0.05) between body condition score and the prevalence of indigestible objects in cattle. The study concluded that litter and waste containing IFOs could pose a threat to livestock health and productivity. The practice of good animal husbandry and efficient solid waste management will mitigate the problem of animals consuming IFOs. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T01:06:54Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-997410798c60492487efd9fd61940d5e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2615 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T01:06:54Z |
| publishDate | 2017-10-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Animals |
| spelling | doaj.art-997410798c60492487efd9fd61940d5e2022-12-22T03:09:18ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152017-10-017118010.3390/ani7110080ani7110080Association between the Prevalence of Indigestible Foreign Objects in the Gastrointestinal Tract of Slaughtered Cattle and Body Condition ScoreVikhaya Vincent Nongcula0Leocadia Zhou1Kenneth Nhundu2Ishmael Festus Jaja3Department of Livestock and Pasture Science, University of Fort Hare, Alice 5700, South AfricaRisk and Vulnerability Science Centre, University of Fort Hare, Alice 5700, South AfricaRisk and Vulnerability Science Centre, University of Fort Hare, Alice 5700, South AfricaDepartment of Livestock and Pasture Science, University of Fort Hare, Alice 5700, South AfricaIt is estimated that South Africa’s population will be above 65 million in 2050. Thus, food production needs to triple to alleviate poverty and food insecurity. However, infectious and non-infectious diseases affect livestock productivity, thereby hampering food supply. Non-infectious disease/conditions caused by the consumption of solid waste material are rarely reported. Hence, this study investigates the occurrence and type of indigestible foreign objects (IFOs) in the stomach of slaughtered cattle in two high-throughput abattoirs (n = 4424) in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The study revealed that metallic and non-metallic indigestible objects had an overall prevalence of 63% in cattle slaughtered in Queenstown abattoir (QTA, (n = 1906)) and 64.8% at the East London abattoir (ELA, (n = 2518)). Most of the IFOs were found in the rumen (64.2% and 70.8%) and reticulum (28.5% and 20.6%) at QTA and ELA respectively. The leading IFOs in the stomach of cattle at QTA were plastics (27.7%), poly bezoars (10.7%) and ropes (10.7%), while poly bezoars (19.8%), ropes (17.6%) and stones (10.7%) were the main IFOs seen in cattle at ELA. The study showed a statistical significance (p < 0.05) between body condition score and the prevalence of indigestible objects in cattle. The study concluded that litter and waste containing IFOs could pose a threat to livestock health and productivity. The practice of good animal husbandry and efficient solid waste management will mitigate the problem of animals consuming IFOs.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/7/11/80environmentabattoircattleindigestible foreign objectswasteSouth Africa |
| spellingShingle | Vikhaya Vincent Nongcula Leocadia Zhou Kenneth Nhundu Ishmael Festus Jaja Association between the Prevalence of Indigestible Foreign Objects in the Gastrointestinal Tract of Slaughtered Cattle and Body Condition Score Animals environment abattoir cattle indigestible foreign objects waste South Africa |
| title | Association between the Prevalence of Indigestible Foreign Objects in the Gastrointestinal Tract of Slaughtered Cattle and Body Condition Score |
| title_full | Association between the Prevalence of Indigestible Foreign Objects in the Gastrointestinal Tract of Slaughtered Cattle and Body Condition Score |
| title_fullStr | Association between the Prevalence of Indigestible Foreign Objects in the Gastrointestinal Tract of Slaughtered Cattle and Body Condition Score |
| title_full_unstemmed | Association between the Prevalence of Indigestible Foreign Objects in the Gastrointestinal Tract of Slaughtered Cattle and Body Condition Score |
| title_short | Association between the Prevalence of Indigestible Foreign Objects in the Gastrointestinal Tract of Slaughtered Cattle and Body Condition Score |
| title_sort | association between the prevalence of indigestible foreign objects in the gastrointestinal tract of slaughtered cattle and body condition score |
| topic | environment abattoir cattle indigestible foreign objects waste South Africa |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/7/11/80 |
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