Submission and humane transport of live animals for postmortem

Andrew Brooks, Tim Pasma, Hein Snyman

Animal Health Laboratory, University of Guelph, Guelph ON

AHL Newsletter 2023(4):5.

The AHL encourages submission of live animals for immediate euthanasia and postmortem to promote a high rate of diagnostic accuracy in poultry submissions, and in outbreaks of diarrhea in young pigs, ruminants and agricultural rabbits.

Please note that only livestock weighing less than 50 kg can be euthanized at AHL-Guelph. Livestock weighing greater than 50 kg will be transferred to the OVC-Large Animal Hospital to be euthanized by a large animal clinician and extra fees will apply.  At AHL-Kemptville, euthanasia of animals weighing above 50 kg is not available, and all submissions of live animals must be coordinated in advance with the Kemptville pathologists.

We encourage all submitters to please contact the AHL in advance to confirm the arrival time, and to facilitate preparations for receiving live animals.  Note that AHL euthanasia fees apply, and additional fees may be charged depending on the species, number of animals, and the size. 

We remind submitters that live animals must be transported humanely.  The Provincial Animal Welfare (PAW) Act requires that veterinarians report all suspected cases of animal abuse and AHL veterinarians will confer with PAWS inspectors to determine if an investigation is warranted in suspected cases of inhumane transport.

Examples of inappropriate restraint and transportation methods include:

• hog-tying calves, adult sheep or goats;
• baby pigs or chickens placed in sealed plastic tubs or styrofoam containers;
• pigs or chickens submitted in tied feed sacks;
• compromised animals in open air (back of a truck) in any type of weather.

Examples of acceptable transport containers include:

• dog or cat kennels for small pigs;
• cardboard boxes of appropriate size with ventilation holes for baby pigs or chickens;
• poultry crates;
• large dog kennels or enclosed bedded truck cabs for larger pigs, calves, small ruminants.

The transport containers should be of sufficient size to avoid crowding or smothering, and animals should be protected from extreme temperatures.  Animals that exceed the weight limits or that cannot be transported humanely must be euthanized on the farm, and the practitioner is encouraged to collect appropriate samples from a field postmortem for diagnostic testing.  For guidance with field postmortems, please refer to AHL LabNote 42: Field and clinic postmortems and AHL LabNote 2: Tips for practitioners for field postmortems (AHL LabNotes | Animal Health Laboratory (uoguelph.ca)). 

Please contact the AHL to consult with a pathologist if assistance is required with sample and test selection when performing on-farm postmortems.   AHL