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Safe cattle yards: Yard maintenance

A well maintained cattle yard gives you a foundation for working with livestock safely. Use this quick guide to make sure your cattle yard is safe.

Assess the safety of your yarding

 

Unsafe  

  • Broken rails.
  • Loose or damaged posts.
  • Using yards not designed for beef cattle.
  • Baling twine or wire used to hold yards together.
 

Basic safety  

  • Yard in good repair.
  • Posts secured in-ground.
  • Posts that are appropriate for the size of the animals using the yard and appropriately spaced so they are not able to be pushed over.
  • Secure and fit for purpose fixtures used. Fixtures regularly inspected and maintained.
 

Best practice  

  • Yard designed using latest research and materials and adhering to appropriate Australian Standards.
  • Quality hardware used for all fixtures.

Improve the safety of your yarding

Make sure your rails and posts are safe and secure

  • Repair any broken rails.
  • Make sure rails are attached with quality fixings (screws, bolts, chains etc) or welds so animals cannot dislodge them.
  • Remove any protrusions, such as chains, bolts and long screws from yarding. These can catch on clothing and cause injury. Cattle may also baulk at protrusions.
  • Ensure that posts are firmly secured in the ground and do not move.

Check your yard is safe before each use

  • Check your yards for damage prior to each use and undertake repairs.
  • Have a system in place for people to report yard damage or other issues e.g. a white board in the shed, an online OH&S app, a repair diary.
  • Repair damage to yards as soon as possible.

Consider if your yard design is causing problems

Are there points in your yard that often need repair? This might indicate a problem with the design of the yard. A change of design may improve cattle flow and reduce maintenance.

Talk to the people who use your yards

People who work in many different yards are a great resource. Having safety conversations with the different people who use your yard can help you identify hazards and solutions.

If you are an employer you also have a duty under the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004 (OHS Act) to consult with your employees and contractors about health and safety. You can do this by making safety conversations a normal part of how you work.

Your responsibilities under the law

As a farmer you may be self-employed, employ people, or manage and control a farm. Regardless, you have duties under the OHS Act. which can include ensuring, so far as is reasonably practicable:

  • you provide a farm that is a safe working environment without risks to the health of your employees and contractors
  • your farm activities don't expose persons other than employees, for example family, or visitors, to health and safety risks
  • that people, including people making deliveries on the farm, can enter and leave the farm safely, and without risk to their health
  • you consult with your employees and contractors about health and safety on your farm

More information and advice

Working safely with cattle - Yard maintenance