Managing Human Risk in
Livestock Handling
Steve Isaacs, Laura Powers, G.T. Lineberry
University of Kentucky
Ted Scharf
National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health
Work Crew Performance Model
• Background
– Mining
– Construction
– Agriculture
• WCPM designed to
ID critical actionsafety factors in a
task
Procedures
•
•
•
•
•
•
Task: Livestock handling
Focus Group I
Focus Group II
Expert Opinion
Validation
Delivery
Procedures
• Focus Group I
– Harrison Co, KY
– Experienced livestock handlers
– ID and categorize tasks/activities
Procedure
• Focus Group II
– Montgomery Co, KY
– Experienced livestock handlers
– Q-sort procedure to ID critical tasks
Procedure
• Expert Opinion
– Ag Engineer
– Animal Scientist
– Animal Behaviorist
Procedure
• Validation
– Ag Agent Survey
– Binary sort
– Rank top group
Procedure
• Delivery
– Master Cattleman workshops
– Laminated check list
– Extension publications
Results
• Focus Group I
– Four groups of safety-action factors
– 32 total sub-tasks
Four Categories
•
•
•
•
Environmental conditions (4 sub-tasks)
Animal behavior (7)
Handling facilities and equipment (8)
Safe handling techniques (13)
I. Environmental conditions
Evaluate today’s weather
Evaluate today’s surface conditions
Wear properly fitted clothing and protective
footwear
Avoid handling animals during extreme hot or
cold
II. Animal behavior
Understand gender and breed behavioral differences
Take advantage of your knowledge of the animal’s
historical behaviors
Assess the degree of animal’s agitation and anxiety
Operate within the animal’s natural daily patterns
Increase caution around mothers with offspring
Understand and utilize the animal’s flight zone
Take advantage of the animal’s herding instinct
III. Handling facilities and equipment
Lay out facilities to take advantage of animals’ natural responses
Design for appropriate capacity and expansion
Construct sturdy and durable handling facilities
Provide escape gates and barriers
Match cost and complexity to herd composition, size and
location(s)
Judiciously use proper handling aids (prods, sticks, shocks)
Use proper and adequate restraining devices (chutes, ropes,
halters
Organize and have available appropriate tools, medications and
equipment
IV. Safe handling techniques
Match age, experience and skill of the handler(s) to the
task
Be especially cautious around animals that are handled less
frequently
Minimize unwanted noise during animal handling
Use extra caution when loading, transporting and unloading
animals
Plan an escape route
Dedicate appropriate number of workers to task (too many
or too few)
Use a calm voice, deliberate actions and confident
approach
IV. Safe handling techniques (cont.)
Don’t’ trust or take animals for granted or
become complacent with routine jobs
Use proper lifting techniques
Know when to seek assistance (veterinarian,
additional worker)
Alternate tasks to avoid repetitive stress/motion
injuries
Take special precautions to avoid cuts and
needle pricks
Minimize exposure in the “kicking zone”
Results
• Focus Group II
– Q-sort of safety-action factor
– Sorted into five categories based on
perception of “consequences” of failure to
perform task
– Sort for routine herd health practices
– Sort for emergency treatments
Original
Deck
Critical
Medium
Level
Critical
Very
Critical
Important
Critical
Medium
Level
Important
Very
Important
Important
I. Environmental conditions
Routine Emergency
Evaluate today’s weather
2.64
1.80
Evaluate today’s surface conditions
2.43
1.40
Wear properly fitted clothing and
protective footwear
2.79
2.20
Avoid handling animals during
extreme hot or cold
2.64
1.60
II. Animal behavior
Routine
Emerg
Understand gender and breed behavioral
differences
2.50
3.07
Take advantage of your knowledge of the animal’s
historical behaviors
3.14
3.00
Assess the degree of animal’s agitation and
anxiety
3.14
3.13
Operate within the animal’s natural daily patterns
2.43
1.80
Increase caution around mothers with offspring
4.14
3.73
Understand and utilize the animal’s flight zone
3.29
2.87
Take advantage of the animal’s herding instinct
2.86
1.93
III. Handling facilities and equipment
Routine
Emerg
3.29
2.07
2.86
1.93
Construct sturdy and durable handling
3.71
3.47
Provide escape gates and barriers
3.43
3.27
Lay out facilities to take advantage of
animals’ natural responses
Design for appropriate capacity and
expansion
III. Handling facilities and equipment (cont.)
Match cost and complexity to herd
composition, size and location(s)
Judiciously use proper handling aids
(prods, sticks, shocks)
Use proper and adequate restraining
devices (chutes, ropes, halters
Organize and have available
appropriate tools, medications and
equipment
Routine
Emerg
1.86
1.67
3.00
2.53
4.07
4.07
3.50
3.60
IV. Safe handling techniques
Routine
Emerg
Match age, experience and skill of the
handler(s) to the task
2.79
2.73
Be especially cautious around animals that are
handled less frequently
3.07
2.73
Minimize unwanted noise during animal
handling
2.85
3.27
Use extra caution when loading, transporting
and unloading animals
3.29
2.33
Plan an escape route
3.71
3.67
Dedicate appropriate number of workers to task
(too many or too few)
2.36
2.20
Use a calm voice, deliberate actions and
confident approach
3.14
3.53
IV. Safe handling techniques
Routine Emerg
Don’t’ trust or take animals for granted or
become complacent with routine jobs
Use proper lifting techniques
3.50
3.73
2.00
1.87
Know when to seek assistance
(veterinarian, additional worker)
Alternate tasks to avoid repetitive
stress/motion injuries
Take special precautions to avoid cuts and
needle pricks
Minimize exposure in the “kicking zone”
3.57
3.73
2.29
2.07
2.14
2.53
3.50
3.07
• Expert Opinion
– Avoid Lone animal
– Never tie lead rope to self
– Maintenance of latches on squeeze chute
– Rear within social groups
– Increase caution around bulls
– Make sure there are no sharp edges that
may cause injury
•. Expert Opinion (con’t)
– Do not use, or make minimal use of
electric prods and sticks
– Do not hit an animal of they do not have a
place to go
– Minimize unwanted noise and visitors
– Be cautious around animals that are
agitated
– Try to handle cattle in groups rather than
individually
• Validation
– County Extension Ag agents
– Binary sort
– Ordinal sort of binary results
Most critical safety-action factors
Environmental conditions
1. Avoid handling animals during extreme hot and
humid or cold weather
2. Wear properly fitting clothing and protective
footwear
Animal behavior
1. Increase caution around mothers with offspring,
and bulls
2. Understand and utilize the animal’s flight zone
Avoid lone animals
Caution around mothers w/
offspring
Use animal’s flight zone
Most critical safety-action factors (cont.)
Handling facilities and equipment
1. Construct sturdy and durable handling
facilities
2. Lay out facilities to take advantage of
animals’ natural responses (and behavior)
3. Use proper and adequate restraining
devices (chutes, ropes, head gates)
Sturdy, well-designed facilities
Most critical safety-action factors (cont.)
Safe handling techniques
1. Be especially cautious around animals
that are handled less frequently or are
agitated
2. Don’t trust or take animals for granted or
become complacent with routine jobs
3. Match age, experience and skill of the
handler(s) to the task
Farmer vs Agent Responses
I. Environmental conditions
– Similar responses
II. Animal behavior
– Similar except for understanding and using
animals’ flight zone. Becomes less critical
in the emergency situation for farmers
Farmer vs Agent Responses (cont.)
III. Handling facilities and equipment
–
–
Agents consider layout of facilities given
animals’ natural responses more critical
Having available appropriate tools,
meds, equipment more critical in
emergency situation for farmers
Farmer vs Agent Responses (cont.)
IV. Safe handling techniques
–
–
–
–
Match age, experience of handler(s) to the
task more critical to agents than to farmers
Being cautious around animals handled less
frequently: ranked #1 for agents, #7 for
farmers
Know when to seek assistance more critical to
farmers than agents
Similar: Don’t trust or take animals for
granted
Extension delivery
• Master Cattleman workshops
– Fifteen, 10-session workshops
• Laminated “working chute” checklist
• Extension publications videos
Extension delivery
• To consider the consequences of unsafe
livestock handling actions
Managing Human Risk in
Livestock Handling
The researchers in this project gratefully acknowledge
the financial and technical support of the National
Institute of Occupational Safety and Health and the
farm families of Harrison and Montgomery counties for
their observations, insight, and experiences