A resource for developing careful and confident livestock handlers in meat plants.
February 2026
Cattle Vision Augmented Reality
When your job is handling livestock, it helps to imagine how animals see the world around them. We are now incorporating augmented reality goggles in our workshops. For example, trainees will see how cattle have:
A wide field of vision with a blind spot directly behind them;
Dichromatic vision (color blindness with certain colors);
Different pupil dilation for light and dark transitions; and
The Humane Handling Institute’s Karly Anderson, Ph.D., recently discussed security stuns in a Meat + Poultry article. Here are some of the key points:
All animals in slaughter establishments must be rendered immediately unconscious with a single stun to comply with the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act.
A “security stun”, or “safety stun”, can be applied without penalty to ensure a lasting loss of consciousness; however, language matters! A “double stun” occurs after a failed stun where the animal is not rendered unconscious or the animal returns to consciousness.
To build trust with FSIS personnel, invite them to confirm a loss of consciousness between the initial stun and security stun.
Security stuns should not be applied at the exact same location as the initial stun. The resulting holes from the initial and security stun should make a ‘Figure 8’ to prevent brain tissue from ‘blowing back’ out of the initial stun wound.
