Download North Carolina Beef Quality Assurance

Kentucky
Beef Quality Assurance
Summary of KY-BQA Concepts
Why practice Beef Quality Assurance principles?
To ensure that your cattle are managed in a
manner that will result in a safe and wholesome
products for the consumer and to strengthen
consumer confidence
It is driven by Consumers, Producers & Government
Give all injections in front of the Shoulder
I.M.
&
SQ
Beef Audits have found a
negative relationship
between meat
tenderness and injection
sites even if no visible
lesions are present
IM
SQ
Courtesy of Ohio State University
Intramuscular
Subcutaneous
(under skin)
Using Vaccines and Antibiotics
• Read and follow all directions found on the label
– Using antibiotics differently than specified by the
label is considered “Extra Label” and requires a
veterinarian prescription and valid
Veterinarian/Client/Patient relationship (VCPR)
– Practice judicious use
• Store in a clean location and if refrigerated do not
store on the door of the refrigerator (less
temperature fluctuations)
• When reconstituting vaccines,
– use a transfer needle or separate syringe and needle
– Do not shake – gently swirl or rock back and forth to
mix.
Keep Modified-Live Vaccines COOL!
• Once reconstituted, ML
vaccines are effective for
about 45 minutes
• Keep them cool and out of
direct sunlight
•
If mishandled, vaccine
becomes “water”
•
Do not use
alcohol/disinfectant to
“clean” needles/syringes –
use disposable or boil
Using Vaccines and Antibiotics
• If given a choice for route of administration – chose SQ
• Use separate syringes for each product given
– Even a trace amount of killed vaccine can harm
effectiveness of MLV !!! Use separate needles and syringes
– Inject no more than 10 cc per injection site (Separate
injection sites by at least a hand width)
• Use the appropriate gauge (Diameter of needle) and
length of needle dependent on:
– SQ verse IM,
– size of animal, and
– thickness of injectable product
!!!! NO Larger Needle Used than Necessary!!!! 14-gauge is
least desirable
Table 2-1. Determining proper needle gauge based on the route of administration, animal size, and
viscosity1 of fluid.
SQ Injection
(¾ to 1 inch long needle)
IM Injection
(1 to 1½ inch long needle)
Animal Size (lb)
300700
<300
Fluid
Viscosity1
>700
IV Injection
(1½ inch long needle)
Animal Size (lb)
Animal Size (lb)
600 300lbs steer<300
700
>700
thick liquid SQ
Needle Gauge
<300
Needle Gauge
300700
>700
Needle Gauge
Thin
18
18-16
16
20-18
18-16
18-16
18-16
16
16-14
Thick
18-16
16
16
18
16
16
16
16-14
16-14
Select the needle to fit the cattle size (the smallest practical size without bending).
1 An example of a thin viscosity fluid: saline; thick: oxytetracycline
Using Vaccines and Antibiotics
• Needle Use and Handling
– Change needles at least every 10-15 head or with
every automatic syringe refill
– To prevent spread of blood-borne diseases (BLV
and anaplasmosis), new needle and rectal sleeve
used for each animal
– Change needles that are bent, contaminated by
dirt or manure, or if needle becomes burred
– IF NEEDLE BREAKS OFF IN ANIMAL --- REMOVE
IMMEDIATELY
Purchasing Feeds
• Ruminant-derived animal protein sources (Meat and
Bone Meal from cattle, sheep, goats, and other
ruminants) cannot be fed under current federal law
• Extra-label use of feed additives, often fed to enhance
growth and feed efficiency, is illegal and strictly
prohibited by producers, veterinarians, or nutritionists
• Do not store feeds in areas chemicals are stored or use
pesticide containers to feed cattle
• Maintain feed records for minimum of 2 years
Remember When Transporting Cattle
• Evaluate cattle for illness and severe lameness
• DO NOT LOAD animals that are borderline non-
ambulatory or downer animals, severely lame or
sick cattle
• Disabled or downer animals are not allowed in
the food chain and SHOULD NOT be transported
to the livestock marketing or harvest facility
• When handling cattle- use paddles or sticks with
flags to move cattle– do not poke or slap cattle
with sticks
Marketing Cull Cows and Bulls
• Bottom Line– Market cattle in a timely manner
– Severely lame or weak cows should not be sold,
because they will likely not make it to the slaughter
facility.
– When deciding if a cow should be sold for slaughter,
consider that she will have an 8 hour or more trip on a
trailer and must be able to walk off of the trailer and
into the facility to be acceptable for human
consumption.
Maintain ALL Written Records
for at least two years