Put a stop to liveweight loss on the road

Reducing liveweight loss during livestock transport starts well before animals step onto the truck – and there are two critical points when producers can take action.

New research supported by MLA has identified the key factors that determine how much weight cattle lose during transport are:

• the animal’s starting body weight
• the total time it is off feed and water.

Researchers reviewed international studies on cattle transport and liveweight change across a wide range of conditions, breeds and journey lengths.

Their analysis found that, despite many potential influences, time off feed and water and starting body weight were the only variables that consistently predicted weight loss during transport.

According to researcher Dr Elizabeth Parker, starting body weight is important because it reflects an animal’s maturity and body composition.

“Larger, more mature cattle have a greater gastrointestinal fill and more body reserves,” she said.

“Younger or lighter animals are less resilient to feed and water deprivation because they simply don’t have as much digesta capacity [food undergoing digestion] or body reserves.”

Feed and water are critical

For producers, the most practical takeaway is simple: minimise the time animals spend without feed and water across the entire supply chain.

“This means keeping cattle grazing on dry feed for as long as possible before loading or providing good quality hay and clean water in the yards for at least 24 hours,” Elizabeth said.

Evidence shows that even small changes can make a significant difference. A US study found that allowing cattle to graze for just three extra hours before mustering reduced weight loss during a 16-hour feed and water withholding period by almost 50% compared with cattle that were removed from grazing earlier.

Providing good-quality hay before transport can also help. Research indicates that cattle fed hay retain more gut fill and water than animals fed high-grain diets, which can translate to heavier liveweights on arrival.

Importantly, this weight loss is largely related to gut contents rather than carcass tissue.

“Most of the weight loss during feed and water deprivation is simply gut fill,” Elizabeth said.

“Studies show that even after extended periods without feed and water, carcase weight itself often doesn’t change.”

Transport time isn’t the main driver

Interestingly, the research also found that transport itself was not the main cause of liveweight loss. When animals deprived of feed and water were compared with animals transported for the same period, there was no significant difference in weight change.

This reinforces earlier research showing that the key factor is the total time animals spend without feed and water – from mustering through to unloading or processing.

Practical steps for producers

Producers can take several practical steps to minimise liveweight loss:

• Keep cattle on dry feed (grass roughage and/or hay) for as long as possible before transport, ideally allowing them to graze during their natural feeding periods.
• Provide good quality hay and clean water in holding yards, ensuring adequate trough space so all animals can access feed and water.
• Reduce delays across the supply chain, including unnecessary time in yards (unless there is access to good quality hay) or lairage where animals are off feed and water.

These practices can deliver multiple benefits, including heavier sale weights, improved animal welfare and more resilient livestock during travel.

MLA resources such as the Is the animal fit to load? guide and the Livestock Transport Hub provide additional information on preparing cattle and sheep for transport.

Researchers are also exploring the development of a simple calculator that could help producers estimate expected weight loss based on starting body weight and time off feed and water.

Ultimately, the message from the research is clear: good preparation before transport pays dividends for both productivity and animal welfare.