Читать книгу Medicine and Surgery of Camelids - Группа авторов - Страница 29

1 A secure catch pen. Square is best and size can range from 8 × 8 to 10 × 10 ft; a larger area is too big. Stacking bales of hay two feet high inside a 12 × 12 box stall will transform it into a suitable working area for camelids (Figure 2.8).

2 A mini‐ or half‐catch pen. This is a space roughly half the size of a catch pen (4 × 8 to 5 × 10 ft). It can be constructed of plywood or, if you already have a catch pen, by moving one panel closer to the other and securing it with baling twine or rope; heavy duty zip ties are also effective. You can experiment with the idea by piling bales of hay inside your catch pen until only a mini‐catch pen remains. A mini‐catch pen is a useful tool for handling untrained crias and weanlings. Because of their smaller size, a standard catch pen is too large for these animals. A mini‐catch pen can take the place of a standard catch pen for herd management tasks such as injections and oral deworming (Figure 2.9).Figure 2.8 An ideal catch pen. This pen is 8 × 8 ft. square. If the area is much larger, the animals will have too much freedom and will be more difficult to control.Figure 2.9 “Mini” or “half” catch pen. If the animals are small or you don't have many, this is a great solution for making the pen more crowded.

3 A livestock trailer. This is the author's favorite place to work. Most trailers have a top on them, and this discourages rearing, which is one of the more problematic forms of evasion. Longer livestock trailers are more useful if they have a divider. Animals that arrive at a vet clinic in a trailer should be treated in the trailer if possible. On the farm, the trailer can be parked adjacent to or in the barn. Animals that are not halter trained can be herded into the trailer and treated there.

4 Camelidynamics Handling Facility ( CHF). This is the Cadillac of handling systems and combines a variety of handling areas in which the animal can be moved from one area to another depending on the task and the animal. Incorporating your trailer into a CHF offers all the options described thus far into one facility and provides more value when it comes to the investment of a trailer (Figure 2.10).

5 A livestock chute. A chute can be a useful piece of equipment for many situations; however, the author finds it more useful to view a chute as an intermediate step rather than a permanent solution for handling. Animals can “graduate” from the chute to the mini‐catch pen and finally to a catch pen. Chemical sedation should be considered if the animal must be completely immobilized or if the procedure is longer than a few minutes. Even though they are typically called restraint chutes, many models can be modified successfully to serve as containers rather than actual restraint devices. The author has worked effectively in chutes that had solid sides and chutes that had a single rail at chest height. The author advises against the kind of chute that has a single chin support in the front designed to be used with a halter and to immobilize the head. To be safe, these head‐restraint devices must be used with belly and back bands turning them into “camelid straight‐jackets.” Without total restraint of the body, the risk of neck, head and leg injuries is great.Chutes with upright shoulder supports can be humane, safe, and useful for certain procedures that involve the head and neck. Shoulder supports limit the movement in the front half of the body without restraining the head (Figure 2.11).To be effective for containment rather than restraint, a chute must have a rear barrier. The animal is restricted to the chute by virtue of the rear barrier in the back and the gate or shoulder supports in the front; therefore, the animal does not need to be tied. Camelids are much less likely to panic if restricted to the chute from the back than if tied by the head. In addition, these chutes can be used to handle animals who are not halter trained. The worst introduction to a halter is to have it put on the first time to be restrained in a chute. Adding a rear barrier is a modification that the author considers essential for all chutes. When using a rear barrier, it is not necessary to tie the llama or alpaca in the chute. A handler can stand at the front of the chute, offer food, and prevent the animal from turning with signals on the lead. When working alone, the animal can be tied with enough slack in the rope so it can back up and feel the rear barrier. In this way, the rear barrier stops the animal before he runs out of rope and panics.

Figure 2.10 Schematic of the Camelidynamics handling facility. This system combines a variety of handling areas depending on the task at hand. The animals can be moved from one size area to another by sliding panels or opening gates.

Figure 2.11 Llama contained in a chute. This chute has solid sides and a bar at the rear of the animal to prevent it from backing up and therefore does not require tying the animal by the head.

A rear barrier is the key to using any type of chute for containment rather than restraint.