Handling Livestock Safely

1
Handling Livestock Safely

• How?

2
Handling Livestock Safely
ACCIDENTS WILL HAPPEN
3
Handling Livestock Safely

• Basic concepts of livestock handling
• Flight zone
• Animals personal space
• Different space required per animal
• docile or aggressive
• size of enclosure

4
Handling Livestock Safely

• Basic concepts of livestock handling
• Flight zone

Outside of flight zone watch or
relaxed Inside the flight zone - livestock
may bolt possible injury to the animal or
handler Generally speaking, the more you handle
the animal, the flight zone will decrease. NOT
ALWAYS!!!! Sometimes opposite effect
5
Handling Livestock Safely

• Basic concepts of livestock handling
• Flight zone.
• The flight zone is the animal's personal space.
  It is where the animal feels comfortable. The
  size of an animal's flight zone depends upon
  its degree of tameness or wildness and how calm
  it is. It may also vary according to the size of
  the enclosure. When a person enters an animal's
  flight zone, the animal will move. When the
  handler is on the outside of the animal's flight
  zone, the animal will turn and face the handler
  and maintain a safe distance. Approaching the
  animal's head will cause the flight zone to
  increase. Handlers should not penetrate too
  deeply into an animal's flight zone because the
  animal may bolt. It may become unpredictable,
  risking injury to itself and the handler. It is
  best for a handler to work on the outside of the
  flight zone. The flight zone will diminish with
  frequent, gentle handling.

6
Handling Livestock Safely
Basic concepts of livestock handling

• Blind zone.
• Though livestock have excellent peripheral or
  wide angle vision (up to 300), they have a blind
  zone behind their shoulders. Animals do not like
  for you stand in their blind zone ie. working
  chutes. They like to know what or who is
  pressuring them. An animal will likely move
  forward when you stand in its blind zone.

7
Handling Livestock Safely

• Basic concepts of livestock handling
• Blind zone
• Livestock have excellent peripheral or wide
  angle vision
• Exception behind shoulders

8
Handling Livestock Safely
Basic concepts of livestock handling

• Point of balance.
• The point of the shoulder is the animal's point
  of balance. All species of livestock will move
  forward if the handler stands behind the point of
  balance. They will back up if the handler stands
  in front of the point of balance. Walking quickly
  past the point of balance at the animal's
  shoulder in the opposite direction as desired
  movement is an easy way to induce an animal to
  move forward.

9
Handling Livestock Safely
Basic concepts of livestock handling

• Point of balance - Shoulder
• Livestock will move forward if the handler
  stands behind the shoulder
• Livestock backup if the handler stands in front
  of the shoulder
• Working/moving cattle, avoid approaching
  directly
• work near Point of Balance
• Warning
• Round House Kick Area

10
Handling Livestock Safely

• Driving or herding
• Just like riding a bike that can kick
• Right side of animal, moves left
• Left side of animal, moves right
• Front or head of livestock, stop or turn
• Rear of livestock will move forward

11
Handling Livestock Safely
Basic concepts of livestock handling
Safety when working with livestock Care must be
taken when working with any type or class of
livestock. Animal-related incidents are the
leading cause (30) of non-machine farm injury.
Goats sheep are small in comparison to cattle,
injuries to handlers do still occur. Proper
attire is necessary when working with livestock.
Long sleeve shirts and long pants may help to
prevent injury. Steel toed shoes or boots are
also recommended when working with livestock.
Adequate lighting in the handling area is a must,
along with non-slip surfaces.
12
Handling Livestock Safely
Basic concepts of livestock handling
Safety when working with livestock Care must be
taken when working with livestock
Animal-related incidents do occur
frequently Goats sheep are small in
comparison to cattle however injuries to
handlers do occur
13
Handling Livestock Safely
Basic concepts of livestock handling
Safety when working with livestock

• Proper attire
• Leather gloves
• Long sleeve shirt pants
• Steel toed shoes or boots
• Recommendations
• Lighting in the handling area
• Non-slip surfaces

14
Handling Livestock Safely
Basic concepts of livestock handling

• KEY to handling any livestock
• Low-stress handling
• Calm and patient
• Speak softly and in a low tone
• Move slowly and deliberately
• Do not rush livestock
• Move back and forth in a straight line
• Livestock tend to move toward light

15
Handling Livestock Safely
Basic concepts of livestock handling
The key to handling any livestock is to work in
harmony with their natural behavior, to practice
"low-stress" handling. You should be calm and
patient when working with animals. You should
speak softly and in a low tone. You should move
slowly and deliberately and not rush them. You
should move back and forth in a straight line and
not haphazardly when working with livestock.
16
Handling Livestock Safely

• Questions to consider?
• Size of livestock
• Head count or herd size
• Horned or polled
• Personality (docile or aggressive)
• How can stress be reduced

17
Handling Livestock Safely

• Match the fence to the livestock
• Single strand electric fence cattle
• Multi wire (5 to 8) electric fence - goats and
  sheep
• Energizers, insulators, electric fence post,
  wire, surge protector -warning sign stating
  fence is hot or will shock if touched
• Barbed Wire
• T-Post or wooden post, fence stays, wire 4 or 5
  strands, barbed wire is 2 or 4 wire strands
  twisted w/ 2 or 4 sharp barbs every 4 or 5 inches
• Board fencing nails, splinters, broken boards
• Woven wire
• Mesh wire
• Cable wire
• High Tensile

18
Handling Livestock Safely

• Size of pen or paddock
• How many
• What specie
• Environment
• Land quality
• Forage production ability

19
Handling Livestock Safely

• Housing
• Barn or shed
• Open style (4 poles roof)
• Lean-to (roof leaning off of a shed or barn)
• Confinement (stalled inside)
• Dog house
• (Goat, sheep, calves, kids, lambs)

20
Handling Livestock Safely

• Corrals
• Confinement areas should match the needs of the
  herd
• Weaning
• Management
• Veterinary
• Exercise
• Sale preparation
• Clean corrals and chute areas of nails, rocks,
  junk piles, scrap tin, hazard areas, post
  fencing material and trash, a white Styrofoam cup
  will cause cattle to balk

21
Handling Livestock Safely

• Cattle prods
• Electric prods should not be used
• Hot Shot
• Suggested items
• Plastic prod with streamers attached
• Plastic prod

22
Handling Livestock Safely

• How am I
• to take care of a sick animal?
• Shots, pills, de-worming etc
• to identify the animal?
• Branding, tagging, tattooing
• to kid, wean, castrate de-horn?

23
Handling Livestock Safely
Small livestock hoof trimmers Goats and Sheep
24
Handling Livestock Safely
25
Handling Livestock Safely
Goat or Sheep Blocking Stand
26
Handling Livestock Safely
Goat Sheep stand, shuttle and wench
27
Handling Livestock Safely
Small animal chute, minimum bending
28
Handling Livestock Safely
Working chutes Livestock sense being
pressured Move forward when the handler is in
the blind zone Follow the leader Single
file chutes approx. 20 ft in length (hold 4 to
6 head)
29
Handling Livestock Safely

• Building material for chutes corrals
• Anything that you can make work
• Used pipe
• Used lumber
• Trees or branches
• Tin or sheet metal
• Cross or Railroad ties
• Existing material
• MAKE THE FACILITY SAFE

30
Handling Livestock Safely
Head gates for cattle
31
Handling Livestock Safely
Cattle Chutes
32
Handling Livestock Safely
Cattle Chutes
33
Handling Livestock Safely
Holding area
Tip Chute
34
Handling Livestock Safely
Portable systems
35
Handling Livestock Safely
Corral tube
36
Handling Livestock Safely
Crowding tubs
37
Handling Livestock Safely
CONCLUSION

• Understand the behavioral principles of
  livestock and handling
• Reduce accidents
• Calm, quiet handling increases safety for
  handler and livestock
• Keep facilities well maintained
• Nonslip flooring
• Livestock Danger zone
• Accidents will happen

38
Handling Livestock Safely
CONCLUSION An understanding of the behavioral
principles of animal handling helps reduce
accidents. Calm, quiet handling also makes animal
handling safer. It is essential to keep
facilities well maintained and to have nonslip
flooring. There are certain inherent dangers when
handling large animals.
39
Handling Livestock Safely
ELIMINATE RISK !!!
40
Handling Livestock Safely
41
Handling Livestock Safely
QUESTIONS