| Approved activities | Category |
|---|---|
|
1. Body weight
|
2 |
2. Body condition
|
2 2 2 |
| 3. Growth | 2 |
| 4. Body proportions | 2 |
| 5. Pulse or bloodflow | 2 |
| 6. Respiration | 2 |
| 7. Skin by temperature | 2 |
| 8. Age by dentition | 2 |
| 9. Scrotum and testicles (palpation) | 2 |
Cattle should be restrained while carrying out any of the above measurements. In general restraint is best in a crush, but well handled show animals may be restrained by tying up with halter and lead.
In order to weigh cattle they will need to be walked through the race and into the crush. Routine weighing is generally done to:
- Monitor growth rates
- Match nutrition required with nutrition supplied
- Provide data for analysis and planning.
The Weighing cattle in the crush video (1:25) below demonstrates this activity.
Narrator: Boyd Holden – livestock handler
(bright upbeat music)
When moving the cattle from the race to the crush it’s an opportunity to weigh the cattle. We can do this for several reasons. Some of these might be checking their joining weight. Making sure that we have the right weight for marketing. Or we may just want to make sure that we have the right nutritional requirements to match their growth rates.
Before operating the crush make sure that you familiarise yourself with all the working parts because not all crushes are the same. You may need to even lubricate some of the working parts. If an animal doesn’t want to enter the crush, open your head gate so it will move forward.
(bright upbeat music)
[End of transcript]