Need to Know
About livestock equipment
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Good quality and welldesigned livestock
equipment should be
efficient, cost-effective
and safe for both livestock
and handlers.
Modern technology is primarily designed to
improve animal health and increase production
values by reducing the labour required. This
technology ranges from handling and feeding
equipment to identification tags and automated or
computerized management and tracking systems.
Technology has also changed over time. For
example, fencing systems have evolved from wood
fencing, to barbed wire fences in the late 1800s,
to electric fencing. Electronic identification tags,
used instead of branding, now allow producers
to monitor livestock pedigree, birth, growth and
location. Software, connected to information on
the electronic tags, allows producers to read data
on computers or handheld devices.
Things you need
to know about
safe living spaces
for beef cattle &
sheep.
A handling system is a set of connecting working pens and the equipment needed to
move livestock through them.
KNOW ABOUT FEED & HANDLING EQUIPMENT
• Livestock production equipment is used for many production processes, including storage
of medication, feed processing, feeding, treating and loading.
• Treatment processes include giving medication to livestock by injection, through water and feed or by topical application.
• Feed processing equipment can include feed grinders, mixers and distribution equipment. Other equipment includes bins and feeders as well as watering facilities.
• Handling equipment includes pasture fencing, corrals, chutes, ramps and squeezes. Livestock handling equipment is used during the processing
of livestock for identification, vaccinations and other treatments.
• Gates and chutes provide safe options for working with livestock. A head gate is relatively inexpensive and, combined with a rear gate, can be used effectively in working chutes to
temporarily restrain an animal. When the animal is ready to release, a gate that opens in two directions allows the handler to safely return the animal to the holding area or load it for transport.
• Nose bars can help restrict head movement.
Need To Know: About livestock equipment
©Alberta SPCA 2014 albertaspca.org Permission granted to duplicate for classroom use
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• Squeeze gates control livestock during
examinations and allow safe access to the hindquarters of an animal. They help if a handler
has to work on an animal alone. A blocking gate
should be used behind a squeeze gate to stop the next animal from advancing. These gates should be firmly locked for the safety of the animal and handler.
• Gathering pens and crowding pens are used to receive and hold livestock. A crowding pen is used to direct animals into a chute. Crowding pens can be circular or rectangular in shape.
The sides should be solid, so that livestock will not be distracted, and will follow other animals into the chute.
DO YOU KNOW
enough about handling and restraining
livestock? If you think you need to find out more
about handling and restraint techniques and
facilities, go to How to handle & restrain beef
cattle or How to handle & restrain sheep in the
inquiry topic, Know safe practices for livstock
health at www.ctsanimals.ca/va2040/production.
html.
KNOW ABOUT SAFETY
• Livestock transport equipment includes trucks, trailers and any other equipment used to move livestock.
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Equipment should be
designed to prevent injury
to both livestock and
people.
• All equipment should be designed to safely Equipment should prevent contamination of
contain livestock and prevent injury to livestock livestock or livestock products, through either
and the people who use it.
direct or indirect contact.
• Equipment should also be designed to be easy to use and allow livestock handling with a minimum When livestock-handling equipment is used to
facilitate injections, ensure that the restraining
of stress to the animal.
equipment provides effective restraint. For
example, livestock squeezes should have side
openings to allow intra-muscular and other
injections to be given to the neck region without
injury to the operator or the animal. Properly
design equipment will not only facilitate injections
but it will also help reduce the possibility of broken
needles being left in tissue.
Equipment should be constructed of materials
that prevent breaking, rotting or corrosion. For
example, gates and chutes should be constructed
of materials that do not rot, rust or corrode after a
few years of use.
KNOW ABOUT CLEANING
All equipment should be installed to allow
thorough cleaning and sanitation of all parts on a
regular basis. Equipment should be easy to clean
and service, while avoiding cross-contamination.
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Need To Know: About livestock equipment
©Alberta SPCA 2014 albertaspca.org Permission granted to duplicate for classroom use