Animal Procedures

Agriculture & Animal Science

Mr. McCaul

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Weight

• Use the correct scale:
• Size of animal and scale size

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• Procedure
• Make sure scale is on flat ground
• Zero out the scale and make sure is measuring correctly
• Move animal on scale and have no other items (including self on scale)
• Allow the animal to stop moving to get most accurate reading
• Remove animal from scale and record weight

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Average TPR’s

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Temperature

• Variations in temperature occur due to:
• Infection/disease
• Excitement/stress
• Environment

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• Procedure
• Wipe the thermometer with alcohol
• Only for mercury thermometer other wise skip this step- shake it down until the red ink is below 98 degrees.
• Lubricate the tip with petroleum jelly.
• Gently insert the thermometer into the rectum and hold it securely in place for three minutes.
• Remove the thermometer and wipe with a paper towel.
• Slowly rotate the thermometer until the red marking is visible, and take a reading.

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Pulse

• Variations may occur due to:
• Anxiety
• Exercise
• Pain
• Disease
• Shock
• species

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• Procedure
• Using your index and middle fingers, gently roll them over the artery feeling for the pulse.
• Count the number of pulses in 15 seconds.
• Multiple the number of pulses in 15 seconds by 4 to get beats/minute.

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5

Dog/Cat Pulse

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• Small animals like cats and dogs, hand the rib cage in both hands and count the heart beets

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Sheep/Swine Pulse

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• Sheep and swine, use the artery on the thigh

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Horse/Cow Pulse

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• For cattle, press the artery outside the jaw just below the border
• Horses, artery at the jaw in front of throat latch or inside of elbow

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Respiration

• Respiration is evaluated by looking at three parameters.
• Rate of respiration
• Depth – degree of chest effort needed to take a breath (deep, shallow)
• Character (slow, rapid, normal)

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• Procedure
• Observe the rise and fall of the chest,
• Count the number of breaths for 15 seconds.
• Multiple the number of respiration in 15 seconds by 4 to get breaths/minute.

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Body Condition Score

• Body condition scoring (BCS) is a useful management tool for distinguishing differences in nutritional needs for animals in the herd. This system uses a numeric score to estimate body energy reserves in the animal.

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• Clear bright eyes with pink membranes around the eyes.

• An appearance of contentment.

• An alert attitude and interest in surroundings.

• A sleek, shiny coat with hair that is pliable, not dry and brittle.

• A good appetite.

• Feces and urine that are easily passed and normal in appearance.

• Temperature, pulse, and respiration in normal range.

12 Areas to Examine

• General Appearance - Healthy overall, eyes bright, coat shiny, too fat or too thin?
• Integumentary (skin)- Coat shiny/full, or dull/brittle? Bald patches, rashes, or flaking skin?
• Muscoskeletal - History of lameness or visible lameness? Broken bones?
• Circulatory - Coughing, fainting, dyspnea, or heart murmurs?
• Respiratory - Coughing, sneezing, nasal discharge, exercise intolerance, or cyanosis?
• Digestive - Eating normally? Diet changes? Toxin (rat poison, antifreeze) ingested? Vomiting or diarrhea?

• Genitourinary - Abnormal discharge, smell, or color ? Swelling, inability or difficulty in urinating and defecating?
• Nervous system - Seizures, behavior changes, head tilt, difficulty walking?
• Lymph nodes – Swollen?
• Ears - Discharge, unusual odor, or head shaking?
• Eyes - Excessive tearing or discharge? Visual difficulties?
• Mouth - Gums and teeth healthy, moist, pink mucous membranes? Very red, cyanotic, or pale membranes are abnormal.

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