Loading cattle on to lorry

[farmer28]

My cattle never like being loaded on to a lorry . I put loads of straw down on ramp but the modern lorrys are tin boxes. The haulier always has a clean lorry but I was just wondering if he's moving sheep and the smell of sheep is turning the cattle off.
I don't think he moves pigs . My cattle are very quiet but as heavy stores I can't push them in .

 

[Tarw Coch]

Have they been moved much/at all before?
As I have several blocks of land my cattle do get moved around from time to time so get used to it.
Quiet cattle can be the worst to do anything with, they just want to stand quiet

 

[Inky]

Our cattle are very docile, the majority get moved around a lot but can be stubborn at times. Single file loading has really changed the ease of loading.

 

[Northeastfarmer]

Cattle definitely load better in single file
The first one is committed and if he isn’t he gets the one behind him’s head up his arse

 

[sticky]

If they've never been loaded before then they will more than likely be difficult to load, it doesn't matter wether the box is clean or smells of sheep or pigs ( incidentally you would find them easier to load if the box was dirty ). A decent loading bay with a forcing gate would help, the amount of farms that just tie a few broken gates together and give them too much room to turn is far too many.

 

[sticky]

Cattle definitely load better in single file
The first one is committed and if he isn’t he gets the one behind him’s head up his arse

Yes, mine load out of the handling, they run down the race and then turn right where there are cattle hurdles with stock board on and they can't see anything else except the lorry and they generally run straight on, but they will of been on a lorry before.

 

[Willie adie]

At marts I see all sorts of techniques for loading.
A guy that always impressed me used to lower his door. Stand to the side and just stand, maybe have a smoke while the cattle sniffed, peered and eventually wondered in a real sight to behold

 

[Dry Rot]

Not the same, I know, but I breed Highland ponies and from an early age, they get fed something they like (soaked sugar beet) in the trailer. Everyone who has horses knows how bad some can be to load! All of mine, except a few bought in, will self load. With some it is a problem keeping them out if they spot a trailer with the ramp down!

I used to let grazing for cattle, so I simply adapted this method and called them into a small corral for 'extras' (usually a bit of nice hay) occasionally or when I opened a gate to a fresh field. My grazier was amazed that I could get all his cattle corralled single handed. He usually chases them around the field on a motorcycle! He tells me some of his (now old) cows still come to a shout.

I realise you might not have your own float, but it's not difficult to mock something up that looks similarly suspicious and uninviting as a lorry! I'd start a few as youngsters and, as said above, if you get one to go on the others will often follow.

 

[Cripper]

Back the lorry to the cattle crush with two hurdles to block escapes. Load them single file using the sliding gates in the handling system to control how many into each pen on the wagon. They load very easily. Used to load them out of a scrape passage with a gate you could bring behind them at the end of the passage. That was much harder and needed a few people.The hardest thing I have ever had to load was a bull who would not step on the ramp and became increasingly annoyed. He had to be haltered and pulled in with a tractor after 2h of trying various ploys Dirty trailers load easier then clean ones. The flap on livestock trailers that you can open to let them see through aids loading especially when trying to get sheep onto the top deck

 

[HarryB97]

Ours get moved once a year max and are very quiet as we rear them all from calves. As long as you load them round a corner and bring a gate round behind them they'll go straight up. All our gates are fully sheeted as well which also helps

 

[Headless chicken]

When we load fat bulls I normally load them up the race and at pace. Once they’re moving I make them move quick enough so they don’t realise what’s going on.

 

[Cowcalf]

At marts I see all sorts of techniques for loading.
A guy that always impressed me used to lower his door. Stand to the side and just stand, maybe have a smoke while the cattle sniffed, peered and eventually wondered in a real sight to behold

could get congested at loading bank, especially if some one had a few hundred miles to go that night

 

[Nearly]

I cheat.
I have a wagon door between 2 different levels of a shed.
By the time they go to mart they think it's normal.

 

[farmer28]

I cheat.
I have a wagon door between 2 different levels of a shed.
By the time they go to mart they think it's normal.

That's cool

 

[Nearly]

That's cool

Only way I could think to avoid walking cattle around to go into end pen.
It's going to be a party / function barn in the summer when we get sick of subsidising beef production. Top bit will be the stage and lower level is audience / bar.

Park an old cattle trailer in the shed area or in a field over the summer and put a bit of hay in the front now and again. They can get used to anything.

 

[DRC]

When we contract reared dairy heifers, the heavily in calf ones were a sod to load, as had never been on a lorry since arriving here as calves. They were too docile. Often had to get a big bale of straw and gently squeeze them from behind until the first one went up the ramp

 

[Smith31]

Patience, allow them to stand around the loading ramp, after a few minutes calmly try to move them on. Do not stress the animals if they are going to the abattoir, it will effect meat quality.

Failing that do what our drivers do just shout and swear at everything that moves and flap a feed bag about. It usually works with sheep, but bulls aren't scared as easily.

One trick we use whilst moving in lamb ewes during winter is spread a little hay into the trailer. The smell usually attract one or two to enter and the rest follow.

 

[Kiwi Pete]

My cattle never like being loaded on to a lorry . I put loads of straw down on ramp but the modern lorrys are tin boxes. The haulier always has a clean lorry but I was just wondering if he's moving sheep and the smell of sheep is turning the cattle off.
I don't think he moves pigs . My cattle are very quiet but as heavy stores I can't push them in .

Part of it is those full-width loading ramps that you have over there, I've often wondered if they wouldn't just be a complete PITA to load some stock with?

Cattle generally load fine after sheep and vice-versa, the stink they really don't like is calfshit from unweaned calves, don't blame them for baulking at that. It really reeks, and has a standout yellow hue.

The doors/ramps here for cattle/deer/sheep transport are little over a metre wide, I think my cattle ramp is about 950mm wide and quite steep uphill, and cattle roar up and down it without any "helping" from us. They see old mate turn the corner at the end and bowl up the ramp.

If they think they may be able to turn around, they invariably will - or at least pause to think about it.

Proper single-file is best, although sheep will load well with a double ramp (two abreast, just a couple of rails in the middle, they race each other up the ramp).

 

[unlacedgecko]

Part of it is those full-width loading ramps that you have over there, I've often wondered if they wouldn't just be a complete PITA to load some stock with?

Cattle generally load fine after sheep and vice-versa, the stink they really don't like is calfshit from unweaned calves, don't blame them for baulking at that. It really reeks, and has a standout yellow hue.

The doors/ramps here for cattle/deer/sheep transport are little over a metre wide, I think my cattle ramp is about 950mm wide and quite steep uphill, and cattle roar up and down it without any "helping" from us. They see old mate turn the corner at the end and bowl up the ramp.

If they think they may be able to turn around, they invariably will - or at least pause to think about it.

Proper single-file is best, although sheep will load well with a double ramp (two abreast, just a couple of rails in the middle, they race each other up the ramp).

I'll never understand why were have full width trailer ramps here. Loading through a race of the easiest way to load anything.

Having a forcing pen which is too large at the bottom of the ramp is the worst.

I use dogs for all loading and unloading. I'd maybe be less quick to do so with slaughter stock though.

 

[Kiwi Pete]

I'll never understand why were have full width trailer ramps here. Loading through a race of the easiest way to load anything.

Having a forcing pen which is too large at the bottom of the ramp is the worst.

I use dogs for all loading and unloading. I'd maybe be less quick to do so with slaughter stock though.

Our crates are really quite good, I'll get you some pictures next time I'm washing out a Delta crate.

The downside of them is your cattle are mostly too big for them, so they'd get back-rub or be over the height limit; but they have considerable advantages when it comes to ease/speed of work - it took about 30 minutes to jam 600 hoggs on at the ranch, and less to unload at this end