Cattle Handling Equipment

We are happy to talk with you about a corral project.  There are lots of options as far as cost, materials, and equipment.  Corrals tend to evolve to tried and true but you have to start somewhere.  

There are many designs for cattle corrals.  The most important factor in design is to match the style of the handler.  Temple Grandin has published years of research on livestock psychology and handing.  She focuses on reducing the stress of the animal.  The corral design with multiple photos at the bottom of this page was based on her work. What she mentioned that was most important to me was how corral design affects the reaction of the animal.  Specifically that cattle move in circles and are more willing to travel along a curve than in a straight line.  Cattle balk at changes in light and the movement of the handler that sheeted panels can correct. Cattle move downhill well, and balk when asked to step up.  Changes along the ground can disturb them.  When an issue like this occurs, what is important is the fact that you can fix it.  Her website can be found here: grandin.com

Another very popular style is the "Bud Box", designed by Bud Williams.  Mr. Williams chose his design to be very low stress.  Where the majority of corrals are designed to drive the animal from behind, Mr. Williams uses the flight zone at the front of cattle.  His style has been said to resemble the work of Border Collies.  A bud box is very slow handling animals at first, requires training the animals initially, and given enough time, the cattle may handle so well that no lot is needed at all to load them.  He has dvds and books available.  His website can be found here: stockmanship.com

We have wood posts, boards, pipe gates, bow gates, wire, wire panels, pipe panels, premade sweeps and alleys, headgates, squeeze chutes, scales, pap cages, cutting gates, backstops, etc. and from many different manufacturers.