Game meat public health hazards & inspection

What are examples of farmed game species?

• Deer (‘venison’)

• Boar

• Lagomorphs

• Other land animals except domestic livestock (e.g. ostrich)

• Game birds e.g. partridge, pheasant, red grouse, quail

  (produced by farming, killed and processed in slaughterhouses)

What is the meaning of wild game?

• Hunted for human consumption by trained person

• Mammals living in enclosed territory under conditions of freedom, cf. to wild game

What are the pre-requisites necessary for game meat production?

• Trained person’s declaration (wild game)

• Traceability requirements

• HACCP

• Surveillance systems at abattoirs

How is a Game Handling Establishment approved?

• Approved by FSA

Ov needs to verify:

• The hunter’s status as a trained person

• HACCP in place

• Approved protocols for handling ABP

What is required if the game is slaughtered on farm?

• Inspected at ante-mortem by an OV or Approved Veterinarian (AV) within 3 days of slaughter

• Carcasses accompanied by:

  • Veterinary health certificate,

  • FCI

  • Humane slaughter declaration -> FBO

• If >2 hrs transport: refrigerated

What does the ante-mortem inspection consist of with wild game?

• Hunters' declaration/documentation

• Pre-processing

• FBO should examine carcase prior to entry into processing area for death other than hunting or contamination

What enables traceability of deer within farmed game?

• Deer: Ear-tags (TB order) and passports:

  • Defra herd number, or British Deer Farmers Association (BDFA) herd registration number

  • animal’s own unique number

• Breeder - FCI with:

  • identity

  • veterinary products /treatments administered inc. dates and withdrawal periods

• Enforcement/reporting

Describe the traceability with wild game

• Much less traceability

• If you don't have the head and the viscera with the carcass may have to be discarded as ABP

How does post-mortem inspection differ between farmed and wild game?

(inspection requirements for wild game if shot for private consumption or family & friends on occasional basis)

How does post-mortem inspection differ between large and small game?

What could some reasons for rejection of carcasses be?

• Exposure to pests? E.g. Blowfly

• Unacceptable storage E.g high temp

• Decomposition

What health marks can be used for deer, wild boar and ratites?

• Halves

• Quarters

• Sixth (half carcase into 3 parts)

What are the temperature requirements for the transport of game?

• 4°C small wild game

• 7°C large wild game

What are abnormal behaviours of wild game?

• Non apprehensive towards humans

• Aggression

• Isolation from herd

• Locomotive difficulties

• Head tilt

• Abnormal gait

• Abnormal posture

• Slow @ escape

What contributes to environmental contamination of wild game?

• Pollution e.g. factories

• Heavy metals

• Phytosanitary treatments

What could be causing abnormal behaviour and locomotion in wild game?

• Parasites

• CWD

• Tumour

• Infection

  • Lyme disease

  • Louping ill

  • Pigeon paramyxovirus

• Toxaemia

After slaughter what needs to be done in wild game?

• Viscera removed asap and the following examined:

  • Odor

  • Colour

  • Gas

  • Perforation

  • Oedema/Transudate/Exsudate

  • Haemorrhages

  • Adherences and other ex. mass (tumour or abcess), parasites

• If abnormal: must accompany the carcase

• Identification of carcase & completion of reporting paperwork

What does the trained person need to examine about the body of wild game?

• Muscle bulk

• Highly active animals but no nutritional support

• Lean vs emaciated

• Adipose tissue

• Coat

• Mucosae

• Natural orifices

• Traumatic lesions

• Aging

• Systemic repercussions

What are the main hazards to public health during game meat inspection?

• Handlers during processing —> ringworm, ticks

• Machinery during processing —> bacterial cross-contam

• Storage —> inadequate temp

• Consumption

In what locations do you need to look out for TB lesions?

• Lungs

• LNs of head —> mandibular & submaxillary

• Thorax

• Liver

• Abdo

  

Why is it important to have the diaphragm accompany the carcass?

• Trichenella surveillance

• Freezing not an alternative to testing

What is a difference between large & small game slaughter?

Large = eviscerated, free bullet in head, neck or anterior chest perforations

Small = not eviscerated, multiple shot pellets

What are the pathogens that are considered a higher risk to wild game?

• Mycobacterium bovis

• E coli

• Campylobacter jejuni

• Chlamydophilia psittaci

What are the zoonotic diseases we are most worried about in game?

• Toxoplasma gondii (wild birds, deer and boars)

• Brucellosis (Europe: wild boar, brown hares)

• Direct contact —> ringworm, ticks - louping ill, lyme dx

• Rabies

What are the notifiable diseases in deer?

• Foot & mouth disease

• Bovine tuberculosis

• Bluetongue

• Epizootic haemorrhagic virus disease

  

• Chronic wasting disease, zoonotic?

How is chronic wasting disease transmitted?

body fluids like faeces, saliva, blood, or urine, direct contact or indirectly

What are the clinical signs of chronic wasting disease?

• poor body condition

• separation from herd,

• difficulty swallowing, drooling

• increased thirst & urination

• nervousness & excitement, lowering of head

• apathy, stumble, walk in repeated patterns, tremors, paralysis

What will be seen on PM with chronic wasting disease?

• Serous atrophy of adipose tissue

• Muscular atrophy

• Aspiration pneumonia

• Liquid or frothy ruminal contents

What are the notifiable diseases in swine?

• African Swine Fever

• Anthrax

• Aujeszky’s disease

• Classical Swine Fever

• FMD

• Rabies

• Swine Vesicular Disease

• Teschen

• Vesicular stomatitis

What are the notifiable diseases of poultry?

• Newcastle disease

• Avian Influenza

• Pigeon Paramyxovirus

What does Borrelia burgdorferi cause?

• Non-erosive inflammatory arthropathy

• Arthritis

• Renal failure: immune-mediated

• Handler most at risk

• Tick vectors

• (other dx potentially carrid = loupingg ill, tick-borne encephalitis, babesiosis

What else do you have to consider which could cause adverse wild game health?

• Trauma

• Environmental chemicals —> pollution/ heavy metals

• Parasites

• Nutritional imbalances/ toxins

• Gas-producing bacteria e.g. E.col & clostridia

• Necrosis of extremities (due to thermal diferences)

What legislation deals with protected species and what are examples of these species?

• The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 safeguards several mammal species.

• Include badgers, bats, wild cats, dolphins, dormice, hedgehogs, pine martens, otters, polecats, shrews, and red squirrels.

Who carries out residue surveillance and how does this take place?

• FSA does this

• Farmed and wild game

• Most by random selection

• Large - kidney, kidney fat, liver and muscle

• Small - entire carcass

Scenario:

• It is August and you are the OV @ an AGHE

• A deer carcass (pic) arrived for further processing

• The trained person declaration states the time of death to be 3hrs earlier

• What would your decision be?

August = warm month

Must be chilled within 2hrs —> not fit for human consumption

If you came across this as an OV what would you do?

• Contamination / decompostion —> green area

  • overgrowth of bacteria?

• Would not accept

If you came across this as an OV what would you do?

• Emaciated —> starvation

• Oedema of the heart (jelly-like grey area)

• Would not accept