1. Cattle Handling for Beef Quality Assurance
W. Dee Whittier, John F. Currin
Extension Veterinarians
VA-MD Regional College of Veterinary Medicine

2. Cattle Psychology Want to move past handlers
Opposite movement encourages cattle movement
Parallel movement slows cattle
Flight distances can and need to be altered in order to effectively handle cattle

3. Cattle Care: Handling and Facilities
Positively impacting cattle health, welfare, and productivity
Cattle Care: Handling and Facilities

4. BQA Handling Techniques
What is it?
Handling practices that impact cattle health, welfare, and productivity
Why is it important?
Ensures the welfare for both animals and producers while improving beef quality and producer profitability
BQA Handling Techniques
Where should it be applied?
Pastures, working facilities, feedlots, and livestock markets
Who should be responsible?
Any and all individuals who work with livestock
When do you do it?
Whenever cattle are gathered for husbandry procedures (i.e. health care, weighting, sorting, weaning, transportation)

5. Understanding Cattle Behavior: Ways to Reduce Stress
Amount of pressure
What’s a stick for?
Genetics
Atmosphere for cattle working
When there’s an “incident” (someone or something gets hurt, broken), whose fault was it?

6. Vision Wide angle vision field in excess of 300 degrees
Solid walls on loading ramps and handling chutes prevents animal from seeing distractions
Eliminate shadows and have animals move from dark to light to encourage easier handling

7. Hearing
Loud noises should be avoided near working facilities. However, small amounts of noise are appropriate to move cattle.

8. Curved Chutes and Solid Fences
There are two important aspects of using these facilities:
Prevents animals from seeing the end of the chute
Takes advantage of cattle’s natural tendency to circle around a handler

9. Patience is a virtue when handling cattle!
Remember:
Patience is a virtue when handling cattle!
Avoid injury to animals (and people!) by handling cattle in a quiet, calm manner.

10. Understanding the Flight Zone
Forward
Backward
Important things to remember:
Size of flight zone depends on the animal
The best place for a handler to work is on the edge of the flight zone
To move an animal forward, the handler must be behind the point of balance. To move backward, the handler must be in front.

11. Things to Consider When Constructing a Handling Facility
How accessible are pasture and other facilities to the area?
What is the breed, size, and number of cattle?
Is the area
level and will
it be able to
drain easily?
Is the loading
area suitable
for all
weather?

12. Components of a Good Handling Facility
Loading Chute
Working Chute
Crowding Pen
Squeeze Chute
Holding Pen
Headgate
*Scales
(Not Pictured in Diagram)

13. Component 1: Headgate Most important part of facility
Needs to be sturdy, safe, and easy to operate
Should work smoothly and quietly
Recommended types: Self Catching and Full-Opening with a Straight Bar

14. Headgate Selection
Manual
Automatic

15. Manual Headgate Advantages Animals enter much better
Can have the next animal coming up while the the first animal is exiting
Hole opens much wider
Hold Animals from birth to adulthood without adjustment
Disadvantages
Easier to let animals escape
Difficult to work animals alone
Physically harder?

16. Automatic Headgate Advantages Easier to work alone
More difficult to let animals escape
Disadvantages
Automatic is a big lie
Animals much less likely to stick head in easily
Cannot have animal moving into chute while one is exiting
Increased likelyhood of choking if animal goes down

17. Headgate versus Headchute

18. Headchute More expensive Better access to the animal
Neck to give vaccinations
Acces to feet, legs, and rest of the animal
Better animal restraint

21. Component 2: Squeeze Chute
Located and secured directly behind headgate
Should adjust to size of animal, but not any wider than 26 inches
V-Shaped sides support cattle from going down or choking in the chute
2 foot service gate at the back of the chute is desired for such procedure as castrating, pregnancy testing, etc.

22. If you own 2 cows and no headgate you should sell 1 cow and buy a headgate

23. Headgate only Much cheaper option
May fit into an existing situation better

25. Component 3: Alley or Working Chute
Leads cattle from crowding pen to squeeze chute
Creates a single file line
Solid walls prevent cattle from being distracted or spooked
Narrow path prevents turning around or balking

26. 18” to 20” wide… up to 24” for Bull

27. Backstop may slow cattle movement but prevents backups

28. Component 4: Crowding Pen
Located at the back of the working chute
Should be 150 square feet (holds 6-10 head of cattle)
Circular with solid sides is recommended
Solid crowding gate is used to push cattle into the working chute

30. Working facility
Gate
Fence
Headchute

31. Component 5: Holding Pen (s)
Should be located to fit conveniently into the rest of the facility
Should provide approximately 20 square feet per animal

32. Component 6: Loading Chute
Located directly off of crowding pen to allow easier movement of cattle
A curved approach prevents animals from seeing truck
Maximum incline of chute ramp: 30%
Chute should be at least 12 feet long, inches wide
Cleats

33. Additional Component: Scales
Used for performance testing, determining sale weights, and administer medicine per pound
Single animal scales are beneficial for determining rate of gain
Should be located where animals can be easily moved on and off (either in working chute or squeeze chute)

34. *Carefully Review Page 32 of Producer Certification Manual*
Safety First
PERSONAL SAFETY
Use experienced people
Construct catwalk
Service gates
Watching for kicks
Stay alert
Sort cows from calves
CATTLE SAFETY
Treat cattle with respect
Remove sharp objects
Safety Passes
Use products carefully
Properly restrain
cattle
*Carefully Review Page 32 of Producer Certification Manual*

35. Consider how to OUT-THINK cattle,
not OUT-WRESTLE them.
Don’t let this be you!

36. Common Design Flaws Chute to wide Pens to Large
Inadequate number of pens for sorting
Poor placement of gates
Not enough gates
Confusing animal flow

37. Facilities design/remodeling Why
People safety
Animal safety and welfare
Remove excuses for not doing necessary herd health practices

38. Cutes and alleys Cattle balk at shadows Floor surfaces and movement:
Debris, unusual objects
Any change in surface (drains, grates)
Prefer uphill
Chute walls:
The magic of curves
Solid sides (a crack below cattle eye level allows monitoring cattle movement)

39. Flight Zone

40. Human - Animal Interaction
Flight zone
Up to 90 feet in range cattle
5’ to non-existent in dairy cattle
Affected by:
Level of “tameness”
Past experience
Level of excitement/ fear
Can/should be altered

41. Moving Cattle

42. Flight zone Moving cattle through chutes Move past from front to back
Scale of effectiveness in stimulating movement:
Vet student love tap – 1
Slap – 5
Poke – 20
Stick hit – 15 to 50
Tail U – 10
Rub from front to back
Tail twist (circle and pull down) – 20 to 80
Electric prod – 100!!!

44. Flight zone Sorting cattle at gates Keeping cows from running over you
Moving animals: calm and under control

45. Moving Cattle

46. Putting pressure on: Movement inside the flight zone.

47. Wise Producer:
“The key to cattle handling is knowing when and how much pressure to put on and when to release it.”

48. Believe it or not, Susie, an inch makes a difference!
Whittier

49. Cattle chase…they don’t call (99.9% of the time) ”
If you are in front of them and are making noise…you’re chasing them!!!

50. In closing….
The rule to be observed in this stable at all times, toward the cattle, young and old, is that of patience and kindness. A man’s usefulness in a herd ceases at once when he loses his temper and bestows rough usage. Men must be patient. Remember that this is the home of Mothers. Treat each cow as a Mother should be treated. The giving of milk is a function of Motherhood; rough treatment lessens the flow. That injures me as well as the cow. Always keep these ideas in mind in dealing with my cattle…” W. D. Hoard