A reduced pressure pneumatic animal stunner with a low-complexity valve and venting system, and method of use thereof, is disclosed. The stunner includes a hollow housing, a stunning rod chamber, a head contact movable within an outer housing nose, a stunning rod, and a catch system employing at least one arcuate catch, a catch retainer, and a catch piston slideable within an opening of a catch cylinder. The catch piston has passageways disposed therein to allow for flow of a pressurized fluid therethrough. One passageway allows fluid to flow to a rearward end of the stunning rod chamber, and another allows fluid to flow to a forward end of the stunning rod chamber. Pressurized fluid may flow from a source through an internal passageway to the front of the stunning rod chamber alongside at least one resilient cushion designed to cushion stop the forward movement of the stunning rod.

Disclosed is an electrical stunning method that is delivered to the head of a slaughter animal. A direct and/or alternating current electric pulse or an electric pulse sequence including two or more direct and/or alternating current pulses is used in the method. Also disclosed is a slaughter method using the stunning method and a design for a device that can be used in the stunning method.

A gas stunning apparatus and system includes a first environment and a second environment. An animal is passed through the first environment until the carbon dioxide concentration within the first environment is about 40%, rendering the animal unconscious. The animal is then passed through the second environment until the carbon dioxide concentration within the second environment is about 100%, rendering the animal irrevocably unconscious.

Slaughter installation including a conveyor line with carriers for suspending poultry by the legs and conveying the poultry in a conveying track. Head positioning means arranged for forcing the bill of the poultry in a direction opposite to the transport direction of the suspended poultry. Killing device having at least a first rotary knife positioned alongside of the conveying track for cutting into the neck of the suspended poultry while avoiding to cut a certain parts. A first guide wheel upstream and proximate to the first rotary knife, which first guide wheel is positioned alongside the conveying track. A passageway between the first rotary knife and the first guide wheel through which the poultry neck is able to pass.

Disclosed herein is a system including a portable device for euthanizing sick or infirm poultry. The device includes a chamber with a lid and a canister of compressed carbon dioxide that communicates with the interior of the chamber, and controls that include opening and closing the chamber's lid with a pneumatic cylinder, driven by the same source of compressed carbon dioxide used to euthanize the poultry. A sick or infirm bird in place in the chamber and with the chamber on its shelf on the frame of the present system and the start button on the controls is pressed. The lid is automatically closed by pressing the start button, whereupon the interior of the chamber fills with carbon dioxide and a timer is started so that, after approximately one minute, the lid opens so the dead bird may be removed from the flock.

A portable system for stunning an animal is provided that includes a hood into which the animal's head is inserted and then is filled with a gas, such as carbon dioxide. The hood includes a gasket or covering with a slit on one end, which allows the hood to be placed over the head of the animal by a user while containing much of the carbon dioxide gas. The hood includes a handle and may have a trigger or other mechanism to control the flow of carbon dioxide gas, which is contained in a tank strapped to a user and connected to the hood via a hose or tubing. In this way, the system allows animals to be humanely stunned or euthanized individually with carbon dioxide gas using a portable system that is carried and controlled by an individual user.

A method of performing a procedure on an animal involving i) gas-based stunning, and/or ii) gas-based killing, using a foam. The foam contains a gas having a gas composition suitable for performing the procedure, such as pure nitrogen. The procedure is performed using a container (100) and the method comprises the steps of introducing the foam in the container (100) and performing the procedure. To reduce any problem caused by the susceptibility of foam to break up, the animal is introduced in the container (100) and subsequently the foam is used to expel at least 90% of the air in the container (100) from the container (100).

Method and apparatus for a device used to euthanize poultry. The device restrains the animal via a head restraint which is placed to pull the head down while the legs are held upwardly in leg shackles. The head restraint is offset in order to contact the head at an angle that is not in line with the bird's spine which is important for proper cervical dislocation. The head restraint bar floats or moves on guide rods on either side to keep it from twisting. A ramrod runs vertically all the way to the top of the machine and past the legs of a chicken and an impact/stop is welded onto the rod with an approximate five pound slide hammer on top of the stop. With a chicken properly restrained in the device, the slide hammer is used to slam on the impact/stop which then causes complete and perfect cervical dislocation so that the animal is brain dead without any blood.

In accordance with example embodiments, a system may include a supply unit, a first transfer unit, a second transfer unit, and a gas chamber. In example embodiments, the supply unit may include a plurality of compartments and each compartment may have a moving device configured to move contents of the compartment from a first end of the compartment to a second end of the compartment. In example embodiments the first transfer unit may include a second moving device. In example embodiments, the second transfer unit may include a third moving device. In example embodiments the first transfer unit may be configured to receive contents from each compartment of the supply unit and move the contents to the second transfer unit, and the third moving device may be configured to move the contents to the gas chamber.

When stunning animals e.g. by CO.sub.2-stunning aversive reactions may be seen among the animals as a reaction to the high concentration of CO.sub.2. To avoid the aversive reactions animals can be pre-stunned before being final-stunned and perhaps killed or slaughtered when stunned. Pre-stunning of animals may be performed with a combination of gas for pre-stunning comprising at least air and/or O.sub.2 together with CO.sub.2 e.g. in a concentration below 40%, at least air and/or O2 together with N2O, or at least air and/or O.sub.2 together with N.sub.2O and CO.sub.2, where CO.sub.2 may bi in a concentration below 40%. For larger animals such as pigs pre-stunning is performed for less than 60 seconds. A stunning system may comprise means for pre-stunning of animals before performing a final-stunning and may include gas storage for re-use of the pre-stunning gas.