Livestock Handling and Animal Health Treatment Procedure

Purpose. This procedure describes how workers muster, yard, handle and treat sheep and cattle safely and humanely, and how animal health treatments are recorded for traceability.

1.Scope

This procedure applies to all sheep and cattle work on the home farm and leased country, including mustering, yarding, drenching, vaccinating, marking, shearing preparation, loading and unloading. Only workers who have completed livestock handling induction will work in the yards unsupervised.

2.Animal welfare principles

Livestock must be handled calmly using flight zone and point of balance techniques, with dogs under control and no use of electric prodders on sheep. Animals must have access to water and shade in the yards and must not be held longer than the task requires. Any animal that is injured, unwell or in distress must be separated and reported to the Farm Manager.

• Low stress handling: move slowly, work the flight zone
• Water and shade available in holding yards
• Sick or injured animals separated and treated or euthanased humanely
• Welfare requirements under the Livestock Management Act 2010 (Victoria) followed

3.Mustering and yarding

Plan the muster with the Farm Manager, confirm the mob, paddock and yards, and check the yards, gates and race before stock arrive. Use vehicles and dogs only where the paddock allows. Fill pens to no more than the number the race can handle in one draft. Keep people out of pens with cattle unless there is an escape route.

4.Treatments

Before treating, check the Livestock and Animal Health Register for the mob's previous treatments, the product label for dose by weight, and the withholding and export slaughter intervals. Calibrate drench guns and check vaccinator needles. Use the correct site and route for each product. Sharps must go straight into the sharps container.

5.Identification and traceability

All sheep and cattle must carry the approved national identification device before they leave the property. Movements on and off the property must be recorded in the Livestock and Animal Health Register and in the national traceability database within the required time. Vendor declarations must be completed for every consignment.

6.Loading and transport

Stock must be fit to load under the national fit to load guide. Loading ramps and crates must be checked before use. Stock must not be loaded in extreme heat without approval from the Farm Manager.

7.Records

Every treatment, movement, birth, death and sale must be entered in the Livestock and Animal Health Register on the day it occurs, with the withholding period end date calculated and recorded.