**3. Summing up**

Stress hormone changes correlate significantly with their also changing effects like lactate, blood gases, buffer capacities and electrolyte concentrations. About twelve of those

About 15 years ago we investigated the catecholamine state of immobilized rats and of pigs in abattoirs. Immobilisation of animals led to dramatic increase in catecholamines and to vastly diminished stress compatibility (22, 23) Catecholamine levels of pigs before slaughtering in abattoirs have been found to be an incredible hundred thousand fold higher than normal. Both, immobilisation and the pre- slaughtering situation are widely common in the treatment of pigs, since mother sows are often kept practically immobilized in very small cages. Objectivation of the effects of the demonstrated catecholamine increase upon the metabolic parameters provided by simple and scarcely molesting CSA testing could reveal at least electrolyte changes in blood, most probably vastly increased electrolyte input into muscle tissue. Low quality, watery meat could well be the outcome. In immobilized mother sows the metabolic effects of catecholamine elevation may also have a whole bunch of negative effects, easily imaginable (24). At the very least CSA metabolic investigation may provide prove, that

Concerning the application of CSA tests in the training of e.g. racing animals like horses, dogs or camels, it seems easy to adapt our methods and results from our investigations in humans. It is obviously an asset for both animals and trainers to be able to adjudge the pre contest condition, thereby the contest chances and the metabolic changes during a given contest of a specific animal. The familiarity of a good trainer with animals in his care, by which up to now subjective judgement has been delivered, could be supplemented by objective testing. Hitherto surprising reactions during the contest may thus be more successfully avoided, momentary fitness state of the animal more correctly adjudicated, latent illnesses better

By providing therapists, trainers or commanders of first responder units with a multi – parameter pattern of stress hormone effects and their statistics within minutes, an objective support of decisions which range from selection of specific treatments, adaptation of training efforts or educated guesses about success chances of teams to detection of team

Still, the decision making responsibility of the physician, the trainer or the commander remains untouched. On the one hand, the intricate pattern of the interwoven parameters provides a rather sensitive metabolic picture, which can be broadened by additional correlations with sociological and psychological scores (for which free spaces in our correlation tables are already provided). But the same multi parametric intricacy prohibits – at least at the moment – a mathematical overall calculation including all changing parameters according to their momentary importance. It turned out, that pure multiple regressions of the bulk of all data are not stable enough, so that factor analyses have to be applied in advance. Some smaller problems could be already solved in this way, but generally the best way to use our tool at the moment is a one days course in interpretation with lots of practical applications and some theoretical background, which in nearly all

Stress hormone changes correlate significantly with their also changing effects like lactate, blood gases, buffer capacities and electrolyte concentrations. About twelve of those

cruelty to animals does not pay, in fact actually decreases profits of husbandry.

anticipated as benefits for animal, trainer and owner.

cases enables the user to proceed successfully on her or his own.

**2. General outlook** 

*outliers* is provided.

**3. Summing up** 

**ad 4: CSA application in animals (outlook)** 

parameters can be determined simultaneously by easily transportable ICU equipment from 100 microliter of capillary blood within three minutes and the data be transferred on line by CSA (Clinical Stress Assessment) software into data banks. Individual statistics or group statistics are automatically calculated, so hat a kind of data net is spread over the proband or a whole group of probands. Changing of sensitive parameters like pCO2 or Ca are indicative of acute effects, while changing of less sensitive values like HO3 or blood glucose point towards more chronic developments.

Application of CSA has been found fruitful i.a. to detect and quantify:

