Emotional Fitness in Newly Received Cattle

Is there a correlation between the emotional well-being of livestock and their performance? The short answer is yes.

Bud Williams was perhaps the first person to acknowledge and understand that there is a direct correlation between the emotional well-being, or emotional fitness, of animals and animal performance. He realized it is as vitally important to care for an animal’s mental and emotional needs as its physical needs. Bud taught that understanding and providing what an animal needs to be mentally and emotionally healthy affects fertility, immune function, feed conversion, weight gain and meat quality. This is important when receiving new cattle at a feedlot but applies to all classes of cattle, especially purchased cows/heifers.

Receiving new cattle

Conventionally, when new animals are received into a facility, they are vaccinated and administered prophylactic antibiotics, then sent to a pen with feed, water and bedding, and we believe that we have done all we can for them. This process addresses the animal’s physical needs, but what about their mental and emotional needs? For instance, a common belief is that it takes days for new cattle to “learn” to eat in a feedlot. In many cases, the feed they ate before they arrived was inferior to the feed provided at the feedlot. Yet, they won’t eat it! Why? It’s a result of our failure to address the animals’ mental and emotional needs, which limits their ability to address their physical needs. So, the question is not, “Why won’t they eat?” but “Why can’t they eat?” The answer is that their internalized psychological trauma (stress) overrides their basic instinct to survive. In many cases, animals literally lose their will to live, get sick and die.

The role of stockmanship

Mental and emotional well-being in livestock is a topic that our industry rarely addresses except in a discussion about what new drug or feed additive can fix it. We approach the issue from a disease management perspective only. The industry acknowledges that our disease problems have gotten worse, not better, even with the advancement of better drug treatments. So, what should we do? That’s where stockmanship, much more than just being able to move animals, comes in.

Mindset

The art of being able to work with our animals’ mental and emotional well-being begins with our mindset. Our focus needs to be on what the animals need and not on what we want. When it comes to receiving weaned calves or high-risk animals (e.g., sale barn cattle), the advantage goes to those who are able to provide them mental and emotional comfort and security during those critical first days, not merely physical comfort and security. Technical skill will get you a long way, but a proper mindset will win the day. So, what is a proper mindset? 

Here is a scenario to illustrate: A new load of fractious calves arrives at the feedlot. In Scenario 1 the handlers view those animals as wild, crazy, stupid and miserable. In Scenario 2 the handlers view those animals as confused, terrified, disoriented, insecure.

Can you see the difference? In Scenario 1 the handlers have a very negative attitude in which they lack empathy and understanding, and they blame the calves. The calves are very sensitive to this and they know exactly how we feel and what we think about them, which has implications for their emotional fitness. In Scenario 2 the handlers view the calves in a much more positive light, not because their behavior is better, but because there is no negative judgment about it, and they see the calves as they really are — confused, terrified, disoriented and insecure because they have just been hard weaned onto trucks and shipped to an unknown, strange place. 

It might not mean much to us, but it means everything to the animals. We must understand and acknowledge that their behavior is in direct response to their experience. Furthermore, it is our responsibility to change their experience in a positive way, which is their pathway to mental and emotional health.  

Changing experience

How do we change their experience? First, we must be willing to work with the animals. The only cure for previous bad handling and experiences is to provide good handling and experiences. The answer is not just to medicate their feed but to heal their mind and emotions. Our positive contact with our animals is what makes the difference. The first step in this process is to set up a consistent method of communication. All of the technical components of low-stress livestock handling that we have covered in previous articles apply, but in this article we are specifically addressing the psychological components. 

Rules of thumb   

1. Understand that whatever the animals do while you are in contact with them is in direct response to what you are doing. Accept that responsibility; the calves desperately need a leader.  

2. Mistakes are a part of the process. Look at them as learning experiences and not failures. Don’t get upset and blame the animals. The calves can tolerate your mistakes; they cannot tolerate your anger or disappointment. 

3. If something isn’t working it isn’t because the animals are bad or stupid; it’s a failure of communication. Period.  

4. Be consistent. Be sure you understand what it is that you are asking of the animals. Often we are telling them one thing and forcing them to do something else. This is where it is very important to understand the basic principles and techniques of Bud’s low-stress livestock handling (discussed in previous issues of Drovers).  

 5. Understand your limitations. If you are new at this, it would not be a good idea to start with the highest risk animals on the market. Start with some stronger cattle, build your skill and confidence, then move on.

6. Understand that being compassionate toward the animals is not the same thing as feeling sorry for them. Pity is a negative emotion whereas compassion is a positive emotion. Extremes of emotion on either end of the spectrum (e.g., anger or pity) can be damaging to the calves’ psychological health. They tend to internalize the energy that we project to them, so make sure it is positive.  

7. Ride for health, not sickness. If you have established a good relationship with your animals and they trust you and look to you as their leader, the ones who are not feeling well will present themselves instead of hiding it. If you look for sick ones, you will find plenty! Bud used to say, “What you anticipate you will create.” Instead of looking for sick calves, work with them to keep them healthy.

8. Pay attention to bunk space. It is critical to have plenty of room for new cattle so the weaker or more shy have a place to eat where they are not bumped or bossed away. More calves get sick because they don’t eat, than don’t eat because they are sick. Consistent feed and water intake is critical.

9. Don’t be afraid to let the animals move. Yes, panic movement needs to be recognized and dealt with (i.e., dissipated), but happy, fluid and regular movement is a requirement for animal health. Exercise is especially critical to the mental health of animals. Take them for a walk — maybe just out into the alleyway and back — and let them move. There is a huge difference between surviving and thriving. We give away a lot of our profit to the former by not understanding how to facilitate the latter. Take calves out for some exercise.

10. If you lose an animal do not dwell on it. Your focus should be on taking care of the ones that are still alive. There was an instance at Vee Tee Feeders where we had the vet do a postmortem on a dead calf, and several of us were watching. Bud was infuriated. His comment was something like, “Does it really take five of you to figure out that the calf is dead? Why aren’t you out there taking care of the ones that are alive? If you paid as much attention to the live ones as you do the dead ones you wouldn’t have any dead ones!” 

Conclusion

Emotional fitness in newly received cattle is a constantly over-looked and under-appreciated element of animal health and performance, and the key to creating that is good handling, which means stockmanship. 

Addressing animals’ mental and emotional fitness is much more than just providing them with feed and water; it’s all about communication and understanding, building a trusting relationship, seeing what the animals need and then providing it.  

Whit Hibbard is a fourth-generation Montana rancher and the editor of Stockmanship Journal. Dawn Hnatow is Bud Williams’ senior student and manages two cattle ranches in Texas.