Ante-mortem inspection is defined as which of the following?

• A. Post-slaughter carcass examination
• B. Physical examination of animals before slaughter
• C. In-plant facility inspection
• D. Documentation review

Answer: (B)

Ante-mortem inspection is a physical examination of the animal before slaughter to assess health and fitness for slaughter. It focuses on how the animal appears and behaves, looking for signs of illness, injury, or welfare concerns that would make it unfit for human consumption or require treatment, segregation, or condemnation. This is done before slaughter to catch problems early and ensure only suitable animals proceed.

This differs from post-mortem carcass inspection, which checks tissues after slaughter for disease; from in-plant facility inspection, which assesses the processing environment and sanitation; and from documentation review, which looks at records and traceability.