handling and restraint
equine field of vision
360 degrees
herd behavior; bovid
bovid/sheep/alpacas typically retreat when strangers approach, goats and llamas are typically more curious, llamas are often used as guard animals for herds of sheep/goats/alpacas, rams and bucks can be very aggressive during breeding season, watch intact males of all species
cattle restraint; moving or herding
calmly and quietly, point of balance, use of electric prods in reserved for encouraging animals to move when other methods have failed
large animals
large/farm animals are herd animals by instinct, hierarchy in the herd, fight to establish and hold position, most prey animals are typically not aggressive only become dangerous when threatened, large animals are prey, do not like to be singled out.
physical - casting
laterally recumbent in the large animal, can be intentionally with a series of ropes, sedatives or anesthetics can be used, animal can do accidentally typically in a small space such as a stall
diversionary - foot elevation (equine)
lift a foot to keep another on the ground, for wrapping/hosing/x-rays, etc...
cria rentrant
like a lamb
cervids
deer
horses have very limited vision in 3 areas
directly behind them, directly in front of nose, between eyes on the forehead
individual restraint sheep
do not grab by the wool, care when using horns, setting up, shepherds crook, halter
chemical restraint
dogs used to achieve appropriate level of restraint
cattle restraint; first
drive a group to a smaller working area
goat restraint
gregarious, inquisitive, respond to human touch and affection, aggression, independent, social hierarchy, lack herding behavior, by the beard, horns can be held near the base, do not restrain by eats, lateral recumbency, collars
diversionary - petting (equine)
firm patting or petting, talk soothingly
handling a foal
first you must catch and control the mare, leading the mare means leading the foal, naturally follow dam, controlling the mare is important for personnel safety, mare could be protective she must always be restrained while handling the foal
horse restraint; tail restraint
foals, small ponies, not adults, used to move/lift/support the hindquarters
striking
font leg kicking (horse)
goat restraint pt 2
front legs lift at fetlock, hand at the knees, rear legs lift at fetlock, extend caudally; small kids are usually held in lap for procedures such as dehorning
facilities
good facilities make a difference in the ease of handling, also if animals are trained to handle the process, ruminants and camelids do well with system that funnels them into a single file or narrow row but they have a good memory of both people and herd mates, they remember and associate negative experiences, dairy cattle are easier to handle than beef cattle
ear grab (equine)
grab ear and twist, unethical, makes a horse head shy
diversionary - shoulder roll (equine)
grasp a fold of skin, roll and wiggle it
diversionary - ear roll (equine)
grasp ear at base, touch and squeeze the ear, for short distraction, ear twitch
restraint techniques for camelids
more restraint may be needed than for goats, apply eat pressure keep firm grip, use miniature pony halter
watch for signs; equine
most expressive feature is ears, watch movement, pricked forward-alert, flicking constantly-nervous,
cattle restraint; third
move them up an alleyway to the chute
herding sheep
much like cattle, s strong flocking instinct, point of balance, flight zone
equine behavior
observe the horses behavior before approaching, horses re individuals with idiosyncrasies and personalities, be calm and confident, some breeds are naturally more nervous or high strung
heard behaviors; sheep
sheep have the strongest flock instinct and will clump can cause injury or breakout of the enclosure, sheep can make heroic attempts to rejoin the group, goats will scatter when frightened and tend to spread out more when grazing, livestock dogs will sometimes be kept with sheep but typically not alpacas and llamas because of the stress
stocks
some may need to be tranquilized, two gates, temporary out of hay bales
diversionary restraint
techniques to distract
if handler is in front of the point of balance
the animal moves backward
horse restraint; chemical restraint
the use of specific drugs to achieve the appropriate level of restraint for the protection of handlers and animal
handling and restraint of cervids
two main methods of restraining deer, chemical immobilization, sure system restraint
physical - hobbles
tying rear legs for breeding, can tie front legs and one rear and one front
equine read your posture
they know if you're fearful, speak calm and even toned, approach where the horse can see you but on his left if possible, offer bribes such as grain or treat (do not feed from hand, teaches to nibble/bite)
horse restraint
tie with a quick release knot on a short tie, cross ties with a quick release clips are safe, never wrap lead rope around hand/arm/neck, loop the lead rope over the neck before putting on a halter.
sheep behavior
timid, do not like to be pet, easily frightened, seldom aggressive, aggression
objectives; large animal
understand potential risks that exist with the practice of large animal veterinary medicine, be able to tie multiple types of knots to ensure an effective set of tools for large animal restraint, understand the basic natural instincts of each large animal species, understand the importance of protecting themselves, veterinary personnel, and clients, be familiar with common methods of large animal restraint and able to apply them safely
walking equine
walk on the left of the horse when leading, close to the shoulder, hold lead rope with right hand, about 1-1 1/2 feet away
cria
young llama
the tail indicates attitude (equine)
wringing or circling - nervousness, straight down - pain or sleep, clamped tight - fear
mare
mature female horse
stallion
mature male horse
equine binocular vision
60-70 degrees, both eyes are used to synchronously produce a single image
lamb restraint
One hand under the body, while the other hand supports the neck, Castration and tail docking restraint
camelid behavior
aggressive or spit, eats and tail can be used to estimate mood, males do not tend to be more aggressive, orphan or bottle raised male camelids can be extremely dangerous
herd behavior
all herd animals will be calmer with a companion, small ruminants and camelids are especially in need of companionship, even keeping a buddy adjacent if not in the same pen will typically help, goats can form string friendship bonds
herd behavior; others
all herd animals will be calmer with a companion, small ruminants and camelids are especially in need of companionship, even keeping a buddy adjacent if not in the same pen will typically help, goats can form strong friendship bonds
flight zone definition
amount of space the animal will allow between itself and the threat before it moves
cattle restraint; second
crowd the animals in a tub
handling a foal pt 2
approach foal gently and purposefully, typically do not enjoy much human contact, one arm around foal shoulders or base of neck, control hind end by placing your arm around the hindquarters or using a tail hold, do not throw foals to the ground unless sedate
halter and lead rope (most common restraint)
approach horses on the left, stand on the same side as the person performing the procedure, approach from the left side, never coil or drag the lead rope, lead from the poll, use the buddy system
if the handler is in back of the point of balance
are used to handle and move large animal species
gelding
castrated male horse
individual restraint of goats
corner animal with hand on its jaw, straddle with rump to wall and squeeze with your knees, more athletic than sheep so tipping onto rump is difficult, use the horns of mature goats for additional restraint, never grab the hair or wool
bovine capture and restraint pt 2
corral or other enclosure, halter, head-gate or head-catch, squeeze chute, head-lock, tail restraint and tail jack, foot control and restraint, casting cows
covering the eyes (equine)
cover on same side as the procedure, do not cover the eye, blindfold should be removed easily, one or both eyes can be covered, can tuck into a halter, some animals will be resistant
bovine
cows
ruminants
cows, sheep, goats
equine
horses
horse safety
horses can be unpredictable depending on their history and training, horses can kick with front or back legs, some horses will rear up and strike with both front feet
double/single barrel kick
horses can kick straight back with hind legs (one or both).
cow kick
horses can kick to the side and as far forward with a back leg as their ears
equine behavior (pt 2)
horses typically prefer to live in hearts, pasture buddy is good even if its not another horse, highly developed social behavior, ranking of position within the herd just as other large animals, horses form bonds/friendships with other members of the herd, mutual grooming and scratching each other with their teeth
blind spots
horses will move head quickly to compensate for blind spots
watch for warning of impending kicks
horses will typically stomp a food/paw/or lift a leg as a warning
low stress handling
inherent fear of humans, 0-25 feet depending on the tameness of the animal, dairy cattle will have 5-10 ft flight zones, beef cattle will have 15-25ft flight zones, when humans in zone cattle bunch together and move away, pushing too hard results in stress and fear and cattle will flee, they may jump fences or push through gates or handlers
camelid
llama, alpaca, guanaco, vicuna
camelids
llamas and alpacas
Diversionary - chain shank
long leather strap with chain at end, used as distraction, correct usage (over the bridge, under the jaw, under the lip-severe use).
cattle restraint; stress
loss of production results in lower profits, increased feed requirements result in increased cost, decreased immunity results in increased illness, death results in lower profits, increased respiration, high mortality, teeth grinding, poor product quality, nervousness, poor growth rate, poor reproduction, increased flight zone
elevating a leg (equine)
mild form of restraint, intended to discourage a horse from moving around or kicking, required fir several other procedures
physical stocks
narrow chute type system, keeps the horse from kicking
diversionary - twitches (equine)
natural twitches are applied with the hands, mechanical twitches: chain - flat chain loop attached to handle, rope - cord or rope attached to handle, humane - metal clamp, works for a short procedure that is not terribly painful 10-15 minute
cattle should never be underestimated
never turn your back on a bull, dairy bulls in particular, cows with calves are often aggressive
individual restraint of sheep
once in small one first step is to control the head, never grab the wool can cause painful damage to fiber and meat, flex sheeps head to force sitting posture, grasp forelimbs and rest weight of the sheep against your legs, never grab the wool
chain shanks or lead shanks
over the nose, through the mouth, under the chin
halter/lead rope
physical restraint - use halter and lead rope
signs of aggression; equine
pinning ears, stamping front legs, swishing or wringing tail
subtle social signs; equine
pinning ears, vocal signs
haltering a horse
place the nose band on first, pass the crown strap behind the ears, unload the lead rope.
Allogrooming
practice of grooming other members of the same social groups
diversionary - eye press (equine)
press on upper eyelid, not easy if horse is head shy
physical-cross-tying
prevents from rearing up, helps keep front shoulder area stable, can still strike, lead rope on each side of halter, attached top table hook on each side.
Flight zone
prey animals move from the threat, no specific distance is available, flight zone varies by species/presence of offspring/confinement size/individual animal/threat level/previous interactions, to keep animals calm stay on edge of flight zone and move in slowly
herd behavior; bovid/sheep/alpaca
retreat when strangers approach, goats and llamas are typically more curious, llamas often used as guard animals for herds of sheep/goats/alpacas, rams and bucks can be very aggressive during breeding season, watch intact males of all species
bovine capture and restraint
risk for human/animal injury, approach: observe from a distance and use low stress handling, moving cattle: pressure and release system and point of balance
capture and restraint of small ruminants
risks for human injury, risks for animal injury, bunch herd tightly then move as group, work in groups of three to four animals, similar predator-prey interactions as cattle, observe from a distance to identify animals in need of medical attention
herd behaviors; ruminants
ruminants will typically follow the he'd, ruminants can refuse to move when they see people/shadows/sharp corners/darkness/dead end, sheep/goats/camelids have strong flock instincts, typically move better as a group, lag behind animals can indicate a health issue
horses
similar to other large animal species, prey animals, can be fearful and therefore dangerous when trying to escape what they perceive as a threat, judging distance directly in front is difficult without head movement
point of balance
situated at level of animals shoulder
leading a horse
stand 12-18 inches away, hold 6-12 inches down on the lead rope, lead from the poll, turn the horse away from you, never try to outmuscle them, always fold the lead in an accordion style.
cattle restraint; recumbent animals
stand along the spine, use a blunt object to encourage them to stand, should avoid use of cattle prods
cattle restraint; tailing
the middle of the tail is grasped and twisted forward to one side or the other/over the back and off of midline, too much pressure can break the tail, do not stand directly behind them
tying
use 2 feet of rope, use a safety release knot, tie horses away from strange horses, always untie a horse before taking of the halter
handling cattle
use flight Zone and point of balance knowledge, move them gently, invade flight zone a few feet then allow animals to reestablish, calm and quiet deliberate movements, quick/sudden/loud movements can cause animals to panic and attempt to flee, good handling can decrease flight zone
tail tie
use rope or gauze, keeps tail from moving during vaginal or rectal procedure
restraint
use the least amount to keep everyone safe and accomplish goals, choosing restraint depends on animals/humans/facilities/tasks