Original Scientific Article
Fin damage of farmed rainbow trout in the Republic of Macedonia
Cvetkovikj Aleksandar * ,
Radeski Miroslav ,
Blazhekovikj-Dimovska Dijana ,
Kostov Vasil ,
Stevanovski Vangjel

Mac Vet Rev 2013; 36 (2): 73 - 83

639.3.09.597.552.512(497.7)

Received: 06 June 2013

Received in revised form: 23 July 2013

Accepted: 20 August 2013

Available Online First: 15 October 2013

Published on: 15 October 2013

Correspondence: Cvetkovikj Aleksandar, acvetkovic@fvm.ukim.edu.mk
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Abstract

The aims of this study were to determine the prevalence of fin damage in farmed rainbow trout and to see whether the level of damage differed between different fish categories and farms. The study was field based and included the fin damage analysis and clinical description of the damaged fins. Fins were analyzed in two categories of fish (weight below 30g (min. 5g) and over 100g (max. 250g)). Thirty fish per category were randomly selected, netted and each rayed fin was assessed and photographed (total of 5880 fins were analyzed in 840 fish from seven rainbow trout farms). The prevalence of fin damage was 100% and there was a large range in the level of damage which was mainly characterized by surface abrasions. Worst affected fins in both fish categories were dorsal and pectoral fins. Fin damage was present to a lesser degree in the smaller categories, but there was fin damage in the smallest fish examined. Pattern of damage was Dorsal > Pectoral > Abdominal > Anal > Tail fin. Differences in fin damage in all surveyed farms indicate that some factor or group of factors specific to each farm influence the extent of damage. Fin damage is operational welfare indicator and future research should identify and explore the impact of the factors affecting fin damage and propose management practices that can minimize the level of fin damage. Additional knowledge is needed to identify whether fin damage is etiologically connected to different production system, handling procedures or another background.

Keywords: rainbow trout, fin damage, fish welfare, welfare indicator


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Copyright

©2013 Cvetkovikj A. This is an open-access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors declared that they have no potential conflict of interest with respect to the authorship and/or publication of this article.

Citation Information

Macedonian Veterinary Review. Volume 36, Issue 2, Pages 73-83, p-ISSN 1409-7621, e-ISSN 1857-7415, 2013