30 NEBRASKA CATTLEMAN January 2025 to try to train yourself or others while in the middle of a time sensitive cattle working. As with any skill, you must practice in-between “competitions” to truly get skilled at implementing all the techniques while in the middle of working cattle. Pate: Start training animals to work for them rather than forcing them. This Gill: New facilities are rarely needed to implement improvements in stockmanship. By understanding behavior and pressure, most facilities can be worked to improve cattle flow and efficiency. When you work with cattle instead of forcing them through a system, it also gets safer for both cattle and people. Pate: Change the way you pressure animals. Use your facilities where you create a leader/follower movement. You need to do this at the front of animals, so you must change your position to get many facilities to work. NC: What advice would you give to producers who are looking to design a new cattle handling facility? Fish: Visit as many as you can, especially when cattle are being worked. Most people don’t mind an extra hand, and you can see the features that work or ones that can be improved. A good place to look for designs is Temple Grandin’s website. That gives you a base to work from. Gill: Truly understand cattle behavior and consider how you would establish good flow and draw throughout the system. It does not take elaborate facilities to accomplish this, but it does take consideration of where people will need to be to apply the correct pressure on the cattle. Always have someone else look at your design to see if they can detect changes that would make it work easier. I have found that utilizing equipment manufacturers to help design corrals is not always the best thing to do as they will design something that works with what they already produce and market. Most pre-fab processing areas are not designed for good cattle flow. Pate: Be realistic with your needs and abilities. Go to different operations and work in different facilities. Don’t just see a video and make decisions from that. Get in a facility and work it. NC: Do the principles of stockmanship and proper handling techniques differ when handling cattle in a pasture vs. a chute? change in mindset is the start to more effective stockmanship. NC: What can producers do to help improve handling efficiency in their facilities and ensure safety of animals and handlers? Fish: Identify where cattle are balking and try to find out why. Maybe it’s a shadow or something that is sharp poking out. Also, do a walk through as if you were the animal. This sometimes tells you a lot. STOCKMANSHIP SUCCESS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 29 , BULLS PAP TESTED AT LARAMIE, WY Ryan: 308.235.5187 Royce: 308.230.0430 Roger: 970.215.3204 info@mcconnellangus.com Friday 01/24/2025 12:30 MST - At The Ranch Scan QR code for sale information AAA 21073030 AAA +*20794686 McConnell Magnum 4120 McConnell Yeti 353 Annual Bull & Female Sale
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