Cattle performance and carcass traits as affected by feedlot pen space allowances were investigated. Bulls (N = 1350) of 30 ± 6 months of age and a weight of 392 ± 46 kg were assigned to one of three pen space allowances: 6 (T6), 12 (T12), and 24 (T24) m2 animal-1. Individual average daily gain (ADG), hot carcass weight (HCW), fat cover (scored from 1 to 5), carcass bruise occurrences, and meat pH24 were assessed. Treatment T24 showed higher (P 0.05). Superficial bruises were more frequent in T24 than in T6 and T12 carcasses (P < 0.05). Muscular bruises were higher in T6 than in T12 and T24 (P < 0.05). Based on the results, reduced space in feedlot pens lessens beef cattle performance and downgrades carcass quality.
Macitelli et al. (Sun,) studied this question.