Humane Cattle Pens, Custom Designs and Behavior Consulting
The Meadowbrook Farm at Eastern Kentucky University is home to this cattle research and teaching facility. The system sports two hydraulic squeeze chutes, so two sets of students can learn to operate the squeeze chutes while practicing husbandry procedures. Getting good overhead pictures of the layout is difficult inside the building, so I included a […]
Curved handling systems built from wood are a cost-effective alternative to steel. Wood is ideal for small and medium-sized ranches. The post layout is the same, but the curves are in 4-foot (1219) straight sections. Treated posts or railroad ties make good fence posts, and 2-inch (50) x 6 inches (152) treated boards make good […]
When designing a cattle handling facility, it’s necessary to consider not only the efficiency of the facility but also the welfare of the animals and the safety of workers. Incorporating design features that promote animal welfare, reduce stress levels, and improve worker safety can lead to a more productive and efficient facility while promoting ethical […]
Animal welfare has become an increasingly crucial consideration in the agricultural industry, including the handling and management of cattle. The cattle handling facilities’ design can have an impact on the well-being of the animals, as well as the safety and efficiency of the facility. Cattle handling facilities are vital in managing and moving cattle safely and efficiently. […]
Many of you have heard of hair whorls or cowlicks before and may have formed opinions that either agree with or discount the validity of claims. In the past, people like Linda Tellington-Jones put forth untested theories about a link to personality. More recently, Noche Miller expounds on the same theme in her popular Facebook […]
Nervous system reactivity, whether high or low, is subject to some change if done during the first year after birth. Hypothetically, if you look at the bell-shaped distribution and your horse is on the reactive end, with gentle handling, it may move slightly closer to the mean (middle) but not much. On the other hand, […]
I devote part three of the series to a research study by Séverine Henry, an academic researcher from the University of Rennes, France, entitled Long-Term Effects of Early Intensive Handling of Foals (2009). I wrote this summary for our book, “Genetics and the Behavior of Domestic Animals,” 2nd Edition (2014), Chapter 7, “Genetics and Horse […]
Over twenty years, I developed and practiced a non-intrusive neonatal handling procedure on my foals with positive results. This summary is reprinted from Chapter 7, “Genetics and Horse Behavior (Equus caballus)” in “Genetics and the Behavior of Domestic Animals” (2014) Editors Temple Grandin and Mark J. Deesing. A non-intrusive neonatal handling procedure Immediately following birth […]
Horses are one-sided and prefer to use one eye over another under certain circumstances. Science attributes sensory laterality to processing different information types in one or other of the two brain hemispheres. Generally, horses prefer using the left eye to observe novel objects and humans, and the preference is more marked in emotional situations and […]
When I met Temple Grandin in 1993, she was trying to figure me out and what I learned from studying hair whorls and the behavior associated with the different hair whorl patterns. The language I used was not scientific because I was not a scientist yet. She was patient in her attempts to disseminate the […]
