Blood glucose was measured from tail vein samples using a handheld glucometer (OneTouch Ultra, LifeScan) at the times indicated in the figures over a 90-min period.
Glucose levels were determined using a handheld glucometer, and the plasma samples then stored at −80 °C prior to the assessment of hormone concentrations.
Specific gravity was measured in the urine samples using a handheld refractometer and was used to control for urinary dilution (Atago PAL 10-S; Bellevue, WA) (Hauser et al. 2004).
Global color variation: (2) Δ E = (L 0 ∗ − L t ∗ ) 2 + (a 0 ∗ − a t ∗ ) 2 + (b 0 ∗ − b t ∗ ) 2. Oxygen and carbon dioxide percentage inside the bags was measured in the headspace of each sample replicate using a handheld gas analyser (CheckPoint, Dansensor A/S, Denmark) during the storage time.
The organ samples were homogenized using a handheld motorized homogeniser (IKA® T10 Basic Ultra-Turrax®, Germany).
Specific gravity of the urine samples was measured using a handheld refractometer (National Instrument Company, Inc., Baltimore, MD, USA).
The specific gravity (SG) of each urine sample was measured using a handheld refractometer (Reichert TX 400 #13740000; Reichert Inc., Depew, NY).
After measuring specific gravity (SG) using a handheld refractometer (National Instrument Co. Inc., Baltimore, MD), each urine sample was divided in aliquots and frozen at −80°C.
Total dissolved solids in the sample were measured by using a handheld probe (TDS-3; HM Digital, Seoul, Korea).
The sampling location of each bore-well was recorded using a handheld Garmin GPS receiver.
