How to Give Cattle Injections
Find the cattle that are in need of being treated or vaccinated; , Restrain the animal in a squeeze chute., Read the label., Find the injection site., Select the syringe or dosing gun., Give different injections in different places.
Step-by-Step Guide
-
Step 1: Find the cattle that are in need of being treated or vaccinated;
Make sure their heads are restrained in a head-gate.
It is much easier to give injections to cattle that are restrained by a head gate or squeeze chute (also called a crush), or by a medina-gate that pins the animal to the fence or side of the barn, than if you were trying to inject them without any of this equipment available.
A squeeze chute or cattle crush is a narrow stall with adjustable sides that is just wide enough for one adult cow to be held.
Here the side panels compress or squeeze the sides of the the animal so that she cannot move from side to side and is supposed to induce a calming effect on the animal.
A gate at the rear keeps the animal from backing up and out of the chute, and a head-gate on the front has an opening wide enough for its neck, but not its head or shoulders.
This makes its head accessible for oral medications, dehorning, and the neck easily accessible for injections.
An alleyway or working chute leads up to the squeeze and can hold multiple cows at a time.
Restraint of the animal keeps both you and the bovine safe, and significantly reduces injury to yourself, your co-workers and the animal being handled.
However, some farms or ranches are not equipped with squeeze chutes, and you may have to rely on some people with lariats and good cow horses to keep an animal down so you can give it the needed injection. , Always read and follow the directions on the label of the medication or vaccination for required dosage and require routes of administration.
The drug manufacturer is obliged by law to print instructions on the injection bottle and provide such information, as well as warnings, targeted micro-organisms, and other information.
If there is an option to choose between an intramuscular (IM) and subcutaneous (SQ) injection route, always go for the SQ as it is less invasive, which means it is less likely to damage valuable carcass meat.However, some drugs do need to be given by IM injection in order to be properly absorbed (see Method 4 for information on which drugs should be given through IM). , The required site for injection, particularly in beef cattle, is a site called the "injection triangle".
However, for dairy cows, often injections are given in the skin between the tail-head and the hip bones (the pins of the pelvis on the bovine).
This triangular area is located on either side of the the neck and contains few vital structures (like blood vessels and nerves).
The injection triangle is broadest at the shoulder and tapers towards the ear.
The retail value of meat from this site is lower than the rump, so you are less likely to lose money if you are planning on selling the meat.The landmarks for finding the triangle are:
The upper boundary, located below the spinal column (below the nuchal ligament) following the line of the neck crest or top-line; The lower or angular boundary, drawn along and above the line of the jugular furrow, located in the middle of the neck.
The posterior boundary (the one closest to the rear of the animal) follows the line above the point of the shoulder, which angles up towards the top-line or top of the shoulder. , Injections are be given by either syringe or with a dosing gun.
The difference between the two is that with a syringe, you manually control how much of the drug gets injected into the cow, while the dosing gun dispenses pre-set volumes of medicine for administering more than one animal.
A syringe is made up of three parts: the body (that contains the drug), the plunger (that fits snugly inside the barrel), and the needle.
Syringes are plastic and often used no more than once or twice before they are thrown away.
Plastic syringes come in 1, 2, 3, 5, 12, 20, 35, and 60 cc (1 cc = 1 mL) sizes.
Use the size of syringe needed according to the dose requirements for a single animal, and one dose in a syringe should only be used for one animal.
A dosing gun or pistol syringe similarly has a glass barrel (typically loaded with multiple doses) with a plunger that has a thick rubber washer at the end to form a vacuum, a needle and a handle-trigger that is the same as that on a caulking gun.
Some guns have the option of attaching a bottle to it.
Majority of dosing guns come in 5,
12.5, 20, 25, and 50 mL sizes. , This is if you have more than one medication or vaccination to give.
The next shot should be administered in a place that is at least four inches (about a palm’s width) away from the first shot site.
If you keep putting medication into the same spot, the cow’s body will have a harder time absorbing it, because the medications could react to each other causing ineffectiveness, or an adverse reaction that may kill the animal. -
Step 2: Restrain the animal in a squeeze chute.
-
Step 3: Read the label.
-
Step 4: Find the injection site.
-
Step 5: Select the syringe or dosing gun.
-
Step 6: Give different injections in different places.
Detailed Guide
Make sure their heads are restrained in a head-gate.
It is much easier to give injections to cattle that are restrained by a head gate or squeeze chute (also called a crush), or by a medina-gate that pins the animal to the fence or side of the barn, than if you were trying to inject them without any of this equipment available.
A squeeze chute or cattle crush is a narrow stall with adjustable sides that is just wide enough for one adult cow to be held.
Here the side panels compress or squeeze the sides of the the animal so that she cannot move from side to side and is supposed to induce a calming effect on the animal.
A gate at the rear keeps the animal from backing up and out of the chute, and a head-gate on the front has an opening wide enough for its neck, but not its head or shoulders.
This makes its head accessible for oral medications, dehorning, and the neck easily accessible for injections.
An alleyway or working chute leads up to the squeeze and can hold multiple cows at a time.
Restraint of the animal keeps both you and the bovine safe, and significantly reduces injury to yourself, your co-workers and the animal being handled.
However, some farms or ranches are not equipped with squeeze chutes, and you may have to rely on some people with lariats and good cow horses to keep an animal down so you can give it the needed injection. , Always read and follow the directions on the label of the medication or vaccination for required dosage and require routes of administration.
The drug manufacturer is obliged by law to print instructions on the injection bottle and provide such information, as well as warnings, targeted micro-organisms, and other information.
If there is an option to choose between an intramuscular (IM) and subcutaneous (SQ) injection route, always go for the SQ as it is less invasive, which means it is less likely to damage valuable carcass meat.However, some drugs do need to be given by IM injection in order to be properly absorbed (see Method 4 for information on which drugs should be given through IM). , The required site for injection, particularly in beef cattle, is a site called the "injection triangle".
However, for dairy cows, often injections are given in the skin between the tail-head and the hip bones (the pins of the pelvis on the bovine).
This triangular area is located on either side of the the neck and contains few vital structures (like blood vessels and nerves).
The injection triangle is broadest at the shoulder and tapers towards the ear.
The retail value of meat from this site is lower than the rump, so you are less likely to lose money if you are planning on selling the meat.The landmarks for finding the triangle are:
The upper boundary, located below the spinal column (below the nuchal ligament) following the line of the neck crest or top-line; The lower or angular boundary, drawn along and above the line of the jugular furrow, located in the middle of the neck.
The posterior boundary (the one closest to the rear of the animal) follows the line above the point of the shoulder, which angles up towards the top-line or top of the shoulder. , Injections are be given by either syringe or with a dosing gun.
The difference between the two is that with a syringe, you manually control how much of the drug gets injected into the cow, while the dosing gun dispenses pre-set volumes of medicine for administering more than one animal.
A syringe is made up of three parts: the body (that contains the drug), the plunger (that fits snugly inside the barrel), and the needle.
Syringes are plastic and often used no more than once or twice before they are thrown away.
Plastic syringes come in 1, 2, 3, 5, 12, 20, 35, and 60 cc (1 cc = 1 mL) sizes.
Use the size of syringe needed according to the dose requirements for a single animal, and one dose in a syringe should only be used for one animal.
A dosing gun or pistol syringe similarly has a glass barrel (typically loaded with multiple doses) with a plunger that has a thick rubber washer at the end to form a vacuum, a needle and a handle-trigger that is the same as that on a caulking gun.
Some guns have the option of attaching a bottle to it.
Majority of dosing guns come in 5,
12.5, 20, 25, and 50 mL sizes. , This is if you have more than one medication or vaccination to give.
The next shot should be administered in a place that is at least four inches (about a palm’s width) away from the first shot site.
If you keep putting medication into the same spot, the cow’s body will have a harder time absorbing it, because the medications could react to each other causing ineffectiveness, or an adverse reaction that may kill the animal.
About the Author
Heather Russell
Creates helpful guides on DIY projects to inspire and educate readers.
Rate This Guide
How helpful was this guide? Click to rate: