How cattle are handled, stunned, and slaughtered has direct welfare implications; regulations and audit programs aim to ensure cattle are effectively stunned before death.
The final hours of a cattle's life involve transportation stress, unfamiliar environments, and slaughterhouse handling that can cause fear and distress even before stunning. Ensuring calm, low-stress handling using behavioral science principles, and verifying effective stunning through rigorous audits, reduces the welfare burden of the slaughter process.