CATTLE RAISERS COMMUNITY
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Time to Beef Up Farm Safety Tips and tools to integrate safety into your cattle operation
E
VEN THE GENTLEST OF COWS MAY UNINTENTIONALLY CAUSE INJURY to a handler. The National Agricultural Safety Da-
tabase statistics show that 1 in 3 farm worker-injuries involve handling animals. Many of these injuries include broken bones and crushed limbs, leading to missed days of work and unnecessary medical expenses due to a lack of safety awareness. That is why an understanding of animal behavior is essential to preventing accidents. “Handlers must be aware of how animals react in
different situations,” says Dr. Roger Winter, technical services veterinarian, AgriLabs. “Cattle are extremely sensitive to loud noises, shadows or too much pressure, and this kicks in their ‘fi ght or fl ight’ reaction. In turn, this could lead to a potentially dangerous predicament for the handler.”
Understanding the fl ight zone The fl ight zone is one of the most important principles
regarding cattle behavior and safe handling. It can be thought of as a circle around an animal, or in essence, the animal’s personal space. The radius of this circle is the distance at which an animal will move away from a perceived “predator” that comes too close. The fl ight zone varies with each animal, depending
on its life experiences or perhaps in just not recognizing the shape or movement of the “predator.” Cattle that have never seen a human may have a very large fl ight zone, while cattle more familiar with people may be more com- fortable and have a very small fl ight zone, depending on how they are approached or whether the approach is on foot, ATV, truck or horse. Both extremes, whether it is a large or small fl ight zone, can lead to dangerous situa- tions when it comes to trying to move cattle. “In fact, when producers are working cattle, their
own lack of patience can lead to pushing cattle too hard or too fast,” says Winter. “Animals will then experience a feeling of slight
anxiety (which is actually the goal) and then react with fear. At this point, their ‘fl ight’ reaction kicks in, caus- ing them to run and crash into fences, gates or vehicles. Cattle can then sustain bruises, broken legs, foot injuries, or lacerations. When this occurs and humans are in the
34 The Cattleman December 2014 wrong location, they can be injured as well.”
Ways to enhance safety Remember that animals don’t think the way we do.
Learning a few basic tips can help to reduce the chance of injuries to people and livestock, and will help improve handling skills. Some safety tips include: • Know your animals — learn how cattle think. Cattle are prey animals and are constantly on the lookout for predators, whether that be wolves or people.
• Get acclimated — injuries to cattle and people can be minimized by taking the time to let them get used to their surroundings and the movements of those working around them.
• Appropriate application of pressure — if producers will spend a little time slowly walking at a distance from their animals without causing them too much anxiety, their livestock will eventually realize they are not a threat. In time, the producer can move in a little closer. When the fl ight zone is approached the animals will begin to move away. This concept, when used properly, will allow the producer to apply and release pressure at appropriate times and positions to gently move animals with limited excitement.
Effective horn fl y control; less disruption for cattle Building upon the aspects of safety and low-stress,
AgriLabs has developed an innovative approach called the VetGun™, used to control horn fl ies and lice on cattle with no confi nement or handling. The VetGun is a precision-engineered remote delivery
device powered with CO2, to project a precise dosage of an insecticide-fi lled gel capsule known as AiM-L™ Vet- Caps™. Upon impact, the VetCap bursts on the animal, releasing its contents to treat that animal. The entire process is completed quickly and with far
less disruption or stress than any conventional process that requires cattle to be gathered, yarded or run through a chute. It essentially improves the overall welfare of the operation by making the process safer for both cattle and ranchers.
thecattlemanmagazine.com
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