A well-designed livestock handling system puts animals first

Devising a livestock handling system isn’t just about planning a physical structure to gather and contain animals to undertake essential stock tasks.

In fact it is pointless to start thinking about the actual design of any handling system before giving due consideration to the natural behaviour of the animals to be handled.

How they think and how they react when being driven into a situation about which they are both wary and fearful of is fundamental to any livestock handling system if safety and efficiency are to be achieved.

According to Miriam Parker – an expert in this field whose knowledge is in demand worldwide through her company Livestockwise – anyone designing a livestock handling system to provide an efficient, safe and stress-free approach to dealing with numbers of cattle or sheep must look at what they are trying to achieve from the point of view of the animals to be handled.

“The basic approach to handling livestock on many units is to first design the actual system – with no thought for the way the stock may react to it – and then to use fear tactics to capitalise on the animals’ reaction to panic as a means of moving them into a situation of containment.

“All this is done on the assumption that when animals are afraid they can be moved faster, and when in a state of confusion they can easily be outwitted.

Curved races which make animals feel as though they are moving back towards where they came from ease stress and aid flow.

“But all of that is completely wrong and is the main reason why so many handling systems don’t work properly, and why those operating them become frustrated. Even more importantly it’s the reason animals themselves become stressed and less manageable,” says Ms Parker.

Ms Parker recommends three topics should be considered – the animals, the facilities and the people – when planning a new handling system.

Animals

Understanding how the stock to be handled actually sees the world is essential. Animals have binocular vision – they only see in front – and so naturally move away from danger. But animals do have an ability to learn and remember, so when moving stock into a handling system always involves pain or discomfort they will always be difficult to handle and naturally circumspect.

It’s worth running stock through a handling system as a routine measure to avoid this suspicion developing. Being aware of the way animals behave and working with them in a positive way – and not simply applying aggression to induce fear – is the key to successful livestock handling.

Facilities

Think about how animals see the world and try and put yourself in their situation. When you are trying to adapt an existing system or considering building a new system, look closely at what you have already or at the new space you have to work with. Look at its relation to adjacent buildings from which you may want to move stock and to nearby yards or fields from which stock may have to be driven.

It’s worth identifying problem hot-spots in your current system and consider how they can be overcome. The aim is to achieve a system which animals flow through easily. Animals are easily distracted when moving through a confined space, so consider the advantages of solid sides to keep them focused.

People

Animals don’t behave awkwardly on purpose – they are reacting to something. It’s a good idea to look at crowd handling systems used for humans. At airports people are kept moving and that ensures the system works efficiently.

Don’t work on the basis that going on the attack and applying scare tactics such as noise and flag-waving will create the frenzy of fear so many assume is the foundation of moving animals.

Safety first

Safety and efficiency should be the two most important considerations when adapting an existing cattle handling system or constructing a new one, according to Simon Turner of SAC.

Dr Turner, an animal behaviourist, says it’s fundamental to the creation of safe and efficient livestock handling systems to fully consider the natural, behavioural tendencies of the animals being handled.

“Look at how animals behave and make use of it when planning or adapting a handling system. These systems don’t have to be expensive and using the way animals behave in those situations means you’ll save money and make the operation work more efficiently and more safely.”

Whether adapting a system or building from new it’s essential to spend plenty of time planning before work begins. “Planned and constructed properly these systems could be in place for 20 years or more, so make sure you get it right at the planning stage,” says Dr Turner.

Curved races and systems which give animals the notion they are circling back to where they came from, are typical of the features which can make use of how animals behave in these situations.

“Rubber stops on gates to reduce noise are the sort of adaptations farmers need to consider. Even something as seemingly insignificant as avoiding shadows being cast onto the race floor can avoid cattle becoming spooked.”