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University recommends limiting the number of participants in spring work, keeping social distance

April 6, 2020

3 Min Read
Shasta College students working with cattle
Students at Shasta College in Redding, Calif., move cattle into chutes in April 2019.Tim Hearden

The COVID-19 pandemic has much of the California population staying home in an effort to reduce the spread of the virus. Across the state, many grocery stores have had shelves emptied of food and other day-to-day necessities as people have stockpiled these essentials. 

Bob Moller, a rancher in Shasta County, recalled this was similar to the grocery stores in 1945, when noted items were out of stock or customers were limited to the number of items they were allowed to purchase.  Livestock require care and management.  For ranchers, working from home isn’t an option, but there are steps that can be taken to reduce the risk.

Agriculture workers are considered “essential” and are allowed to tend crops and care for livestock. Beef cattle ranching differs from more intensive agriculture production as much of the work (fixing fence, feeding, checking cattle) is generally a solitary activity.  This changes as spring work commences. 

While the kind of work may differ between ranches with spring calving cows and fall calving cows, establishing and following some simple protocols should reduce the risk of contracting and spreading COVID-19.  Though many people working cattle are not in the high-risk category, many are, and future contact with someone that is will be inevitable so precaution is necessary. 

Related:'Quarancalving' and other PE activities

We recommend keeping the following in mind to reduce risk of spreading COVID-19:

1. Maintain the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention social distancing recommendations of 6 feet.

This might mean:

  • Taking separate vehicles to the work site

  • Requiring that the chute operator conduct all the work associated with the animal in the chute (shots, tags, etc.)

  • Developing a system to bring cattle to the chute such that hte crew maintains at least this distance

  • Branding crews might need to change the process up with just one person throwing the calf and changing the ropes and only one person conducting their assigned task at hte calf at a time. Crews sould adhere to social distancing while waiting to conduct their task.

2. Tools and equipment 

  • When a task is assigned to someone, provide them with the quipment ot do the task (syringe, eartagger, etc.). Have them wipe the tool down with a disinfectant. For syringes, just wipe the syringe handle--do not  spray alcohol or something else on the vial.  Do not expose modified live vaccines to disinfectants as they may inactivate the vaccine.  Let the person assigned to the task do the job—resist the urge to ear tag the animal while they are refilling the syringe.  The tool needs to be in their control.

  • Provide plenty of hand sanitizer and wipes to disinfect equipment and tools and/or wear gloves. Also remind everyone to not touch their face when working in a group.

  • Consider avoiding meals together.  It might be better to give the crew a gift card for takeout.

Related:Examining COVID-19’s effect on cattle markets

3. Limit the number of people participating

  • The virus spreads readily through community contact. To reduce the possibility of spread, knowing who the crew is and having an idea of who they have been in contact with should help. 

  • If at all possible, try to work with people who are not a high risk for the virus. 

The authors recognize that not all of these ideas will be possible to enact all the time, however, we urge beef cattle producers to consider the severity of this pandemic and their importance as food producers as they plan their spring livestock work.

Larry Foreor, Sheila Barry and Josh Davy are University of California Cooperative Extension livestock and natural resources advisors. Gabrielle Maier is a UCCE beef cattle extension veterinarian.

Source: University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, which is solely responsible for the information provided and is wholly owned by the source. Informa Business Media and all its subsidiaries are not responsible for any of the content contained in this information asset. 

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