Beef cattle production and management
Practical Action
2. Tick control
Ticks cause the following problems to animals: they are transmitters of tick borne diseases,
loss of blood, irritation and also animals become prone to other bacterial, fungal and other
parasite infections. Hence the need to control them.
This illustration shows the parts of the body where ticks most often live
There are four main methods of tick control, which are:
Plunge dipping
It is the most commonly used dipping method where by an animal leaps into a dip tank
resulting in total immersion of the said animal. It then swims through to exit ensuring
thorough soaking of the body.
Spray Race
Animals are forced to walk though a passage in which jets of spray wash are sprayed over the
entire body of the animal resulting in wetting of the body. It can be as effective as plunge
dipping.
Hand spraying
Used in small herds where there are no other alternative dipping facilities. A nap sack is
used. For this method to be effective, the animal has to be thoroughly wetted.
Pour-on
The dip chemical is applied from the poll of the head along the top line of the animal and
up to the base of the tail. The chemical then spreads to cover the entire body. Pour-on
acaricides are expensive and are mainly used in areas where water is scarce.
A cow in a spray dip
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