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Otago Daily Times

Checklist before getting on the road

If you are selling your dairy herd, moving farms, or sending your stock to grazing, take time to plan their movement in advance and confirm the exact number of cattle you need to transport. You also need to: • Ensure BVD, Johne's and other disease testing is done prior to movement. • Dry off as many cows as possible and do this with sufficient time to ensure they are properly dried off on the day of transport. • Check the farm loading ramp and holding yards are in good order, with no obstacles that could harm cattle or people during loading. Confirm this will also be true for unloading. • Ensure your NAIT records are up to date, all animals are tagged, and you are completing all NAIT actions within the required timelines. • Confirm the health status of any animals that will be mixing with your animals on the new farm, and if necessary, make arrangements for testing, vaccinations, etc. Keeping new animals separate for seven to 14 days reduces the risk of introducing unwanted diseases. • Check there are no biosecurity restrictions or requirements on the new farm, for example as a result of M. bovis or Tb control. • Contact your insurer to confirm you have appropriate livestock transit cover before you move. • If you will be droving, try to find out from local farmers if they will also be droving and plan together how you will avoid each other. Ensure different herds do not come into contact, and their urine/faeces do not end up on other properties, as nose-to-nose or faecal contact can spread disease. • If animals are being moved by truck, ensure you plan with the trucking company well in advance, and make sure the animals are prepared for transport. When booking a stock transporter, ask around for recommendations and/or ask enough questions to ensure you are comfortable trusting your animals in their care. • Confirm the truck will be thoroughly cleaned before your cattle are transported. • Confirm the truck has suitable effluent storage and that it will be emptied. • If your livestock are travelling longer distances, such as inter-island movements, understand your stock transport provider's plans for food and water along the journey. As a general rule, in-calf heifers or cows require water every 12 hours and feeding every 24 hours. • Tell your transporter if any cattle have horns. In most instances, horned cattle should be penned separately on the truck. • If you have large or tall stock over 1.4m high at the hip, prevent back rub injury by ensuring they will be transported on a single-deck truck, or loaded on to the bottom deck as it offers more height than the top deck. Let your transporter know in advance so they can select the right truck and plan the best journey. — DairyNZ