7 Cattle Dehorning Practices

• Dehorning cattle reduces the risk of injury to the animal, other cattle and people, and reduces bruising of carcasses during transportation to slaughter facilities.
• The American Association of Bovine Practitioners (AABP) provides this guideline to assist veterinarians and producers in enhancing cattle welfare through proper dehorning practices.
• Consultation between the Veterinarian of Record and the client is essential, discussing age at dehorning, techniques, and pain mitigation strategies.
• Written, herd-specific protocols are encouraged and should be reviewed regularly.

Age

• Dehorning should be completed when the calf is young, ideally at the youngest age possible.
• Disbudding, the removal/destruction of the horn-producing corium, is preferred over dehorning if feasible within the management system.
• Disbudding is achievable prior to two weeks of age and may be performed as early as the first 24 hours of life.
• Dehorning is considered more painful with a longer healing time, as horns are removed after the corium attaches to the skull.
• In dairy operations, disbudding/dehorning should be performed by 8 weeks of age.
• In open range beef operations, dehorning should be performed as early as the management system allows, ideally before 3 months.
• Increased age at dehorning adds stress.
• Producers must work with their Veterinarian of Record to ensure proper procedures that promote healing and minimize pain.

Restraint

• Calves should be restrained to minimize stress and injury risk to the animal and operator during dehorning.
• Chemical restraint (sedation) may be used to minimize stress and ease handling, but some sedatives lack analgesic properties.
• Sedatives can only be used by or on the order of a licensed veterinarian.
• Employees should be trained in safe, low-stress handling.
• Tools to accomplish proper head restraint include squeeze chutes, tilt tables, calf carts, or halters.
• Utilize local anesthetics to minimize the need for excessive restraint.

Method

• The Veterinarian of Record and producer should develop written disbudding/dehorning protocols that work within their farm management system.
• Caustic paste or an electric/gas iron can be used to destroy the horn-producing corium.
• Caustic paste is less effective and discouraged after 2 weeks of age, ideally applied within the first few days of life.
• Larger horns may require mechanical removal.
• Manage wounds from mechanical dehorning devices with protocols for infection, pain, and fly control.
• Dehorning at the earliest age mitigates the need for gouge dehorning.
• Elastic banders are not recommended for animals with well-developed horns due to increased failure rates, pain, and delayed healing.
• Producers with access to polled sires should incorporate polled genetics into their herds.
• The National Animal Health Monitoring (NAHMS) Beef 2017 Cow-Calf Study reports that only 7.8% of beef cattle in the US are horned.

Pain Management

• All dehorning and disbudding methods cause pain.
• Pain management is a standard of care for all disbudding/dehorning procedures.
• Producers should work with their Veterinarian of Record to develop the most appropriate, individualized pain management protocol.
• Implementing pain management protocols enhances animal welfare during these procedures.

Local Anesthesia

• Local anesthetics mitigate immediate pain during disbudding/dehorning and provide up to five hours of post-procedural analgesia.
• Techniques include cornual nerve blocks or horn bud infiltration.
• The Veterinarian of Record determines the local anesthetic protocol.
• Federal law restricts use of local anesthetics to use by or on the order of a licensed veterinarian.

Systemic Pain Relief

• Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) should be used to provide additional, longer-lasting pain relief.
• Injectable, topical, or oral NSAIDs are acceptable for immediate post-operative pain mitigation.
• Meloxicam can mitigate post-procedure pain for up to 48 hours after a single dose.
• Topical NSAID applications can be administered practically at the time of disbudding/dehorning when oral, IV, or IM administration is difficult.
• The Veterinarian of Record should prescribe the type of NSAID used.
• There are currently no approved drugs in the US for use in cattle with an indication to provide analgesia associated with dehorning pain.
• AMDUCA regulations allow extra-label drug use, provided a valid Veterinarian-Client-Patient Relationship exists.
• The drug selection process, records, and withholding times outlined in the AMDUCA regulations must be followed.

Definitions

• Analgesia: Alleviation of pain, patient is alert.
• Anesthesia: Without sensation, patient is asleep and cannot be awakened, amnesia, and loss of reflexes.
• Dehorning: Removal of the horns and horn-producing corium after the horns have formed and are attached to the skull.
• Disbudding: Removal or destruction of the horn producing corium in young calves, when horn buds are free-floating and not attached to the skull.
• Sedation: Slight depression, patient is awake.