Bone and Brain Lesions in Horses Following Euthanasia with Fire Gun

Abstract

Fire gun euthanasia is a widely used method on Equine Infectious Anemia positive horses in Brazil. Death occurs by massive destruction of brain tissue and the degree of damage depends on the gun, projectile, and shooting precision. Cranial bone lesions of eight horses euthanized and brain lesions on two of those animals were evaluated. This study aimed to verify the applicability and efficiency of the method and to check the lesions features, with emphasis on fatal ones, found mainly in frontal, sphenoid and occipital bones, and on cerebral hemispheres, thalamus, hypothalamus, and brain stem. Difficulties in applying the method for grouped animals were identified. Injuries that caused immediate stunning were related to only one shot and the gun and ammunition used were effective for the purpose.