Handling Facilities

K

khakibob

Well-Known Member
10+ year member
It's great to see the photos of exibits & how each species is displayed,I would imagine that "zoo chaters" would also have an interest in learning how the animals are handled/managed.
Has any one photos or designs of various handling yards,races,draughting rooms,crushes,tunnels,etc.
Explaination on the working & thoughts around the efficiency would be good too.

Thanks Khakibob
 
No one can discuss their thoughts on the pros & cons of designs of various handling facilities.

Round yards or central ally?
Straight or dog leged lanes? How wide?
Light or dark? Natural or artificial? Controlled on/off switch to encourage flow?
Physical or chemical restraint?
Load outs?
Floor types?
When or why an animal is restrained?
Vertical or horizontal bars?

Cheers Khakibob
 
What course are you doing? It seems apparent that you are a student of some sort.

I think that zoochatters would be willing to assist if you are upfront about the reason for your enquiry. Quite often we get one-post-wonders who join simply to get the folks here to do their homework for them - those threads, like this one, usually get few posts.

I suggest that you try a different approach to get people involved in your thread.
 
nanoboy said:
What course are you doing? It seems apparent that you are a student of some sort.

I suggest that you try a different approach to get people involved in your thread.
Click to expand...

Nanoboy,I guess I've been a student of this for 40 years in three countries & still have so much to learn.
My particular interest is not the exibiting of, but the management of wildlife,captive & wild.

Currently I'm building a new indoor,2 storey facility for exotic hoof stock which range in size from hog deer,to antelope & elk.I have departed from the traditional draughting circle to a central laneway which can be divided into smaller pens,or animals draughted from here.So its a long 1.5mX 14m central lane with four 3.5x3.5 pens on the right,a 7x5m "dark" area at the rear left,which has further pens/gates/force gates to the crush or load out in here.The front left has the crush,concrete floor,scales,stainless sink benches,etc.Apart from the dark area there are horizontal 50mm pipe with 50mm spacings from 1.2m to 2.4m on internal walls,so animals can see through the facility & remaim calm as they can see each other & whats going on.Upstairs has vet/biologist accomodation in an appartment above the dark area & a viewing platform above the central lane for viewing into the lab & pens.Outside are several holding /breaking down yards & lane ways from three different directions.This is in the middle of a few thousand acres.

I realise that no one is going to do my homework for me,I would like however thoughts from those who work "wildlife" animals on the more modern approach to a laneway as the draughting circle, the horizontal bars,the use of corners & light & no drugs.

Success for me will be the ability to work several hundred chital by myself with out capture myopathy or losses & sambar withtout me being killed or injured or using chemical restraint on the animals.If I can design around the needs of these two species the others can also be worked.

Thank You
Khakibob
 
See? Now we're talking! I am sure that some people would be able to assist you now. (We often get a lot of kids here who literally post their assignment's title and then expect us to write the report for them. Clearly your enquiry is far more practical and real-world and I hope that those in the know would post on the thread.)
 
I have no practical experience with cervids, but I would suggest that at least some of the small pens be boarded up for privacy if you plan on separating animals that are ill or giving birth etc. Dark colours would probably be best in that environment.

:p

Hix
 
The facility i have seen for eland is completely made of wooden boards with human head sized doors to allow for viewing. you cant see in to the facility at all otherwise, giving the animals total privacy.
 
Jarkari said:
The facility i have seen for eland is completely made of wooden boards with human head sized doors to allow for viewing. you cant see in to the facility at all otherwise, giving the animals total privacy.
Click to expand...

Thanks Jakari.
I would assume the eland are not left alone without another for company in these rooms.
How are they drenched,chipped,tagged etc,in a crush or with chemical restraint?
How are they draughted/seperated,in a darkened round yard or of a lane?
Is light used to calm them or assist the flow through the facility?

Cheers Khakibob
 
Have a look at the work of Dr Temple Grandin, she is a world authority on the humane housing and movement of cattle and some of her work may be applicable to other ungulate species.
 
Thanks for the help folks.
The animals here will be dam raised not bottle.
However by weening in outside yards & having a person feed twice a day for a month some level of tameness/training can be achieved.This has value & these animals remain much quieter for their entire life.
All stags, bucks,bulls,rams,etc remain intact,so being bottle raised or tame is dangerous.
Bottle raised animal also struggle in herds.There are several rescues & find them quite sad as they can't socialise with their own.

Yes,all the animals will be introduced & trained slowly to the new setup,with particular attention to the matriarch of each mob.These girls are the best employees & can do most of the work if well trained.

I'm hoping to avoid having to rejig this new set up once it starts being used by asking questions on here.
Draghting from an ally & having good vision through the facility so the animals can watch each other & their handlers,with only the high pressure area darkened, is quite a departure from the old draughting circle,with solid boarded walls & darkened throughout.

Has anywhere else tried this?
Also thoughts on door & lane widths?
I always say the smaller the gap the faster the animal.Who else uses lane & door widths to control the speed of animals?

Cheers Khakibob
 
Sorry, can't help there. I've only seen the facility from the outside and have never worked with Eland.
 
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