PNEU-DART System Allows Producers to Treat From a Distance

[shaney]

I am interested to hear what everyone's thoughts are on this gun treating method. Some people at NCBA said they would use it and others were very negative.

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[SADIE]

I have had extensive experience with C02 firing "pistor" and "rifle" dart guns applying ROMPUM (perscription) to animals on range conditions during my veterinary practice years. Very popular in the 80s and 90s. We were using 5cc loaded darts and the common strike area on the animal was in the hips (gluteal area)---behind shot or the lateral hip areas.

This method tranquilized the animal (often footrot cases in bulls) and then wait, sometimes long waits and the animal would lie down and you could examine the foot and treat with 80 to 100cc of long-acting liquamicin or Penicillin.

These darts had barbs on the end so to retreive the darts (worth about $20.--$25. ea) you would have to have the whole situation working. Many darts were lost and long hours of your time spent which was very difficult cost-recovery.

If you shoot and do not hit the animal from a perpendicular angle the darts would angle off and the drug is spend on the charge at impact.

Rompum became unavailable to sell to producers so that avenue for producers soon closed down as well.

Problem with this system. Max is 10cc size and with large animals weighing 2000 lbs (like bulls with footrot) to get 80cc in the animal and now with QUALITY STARTS HERE initiatives the injection site is the neck regions of the animal.

IF you treat a condition and only treat and underdose it becomes very difficult to have success on the next attempt of treating and you end up in a chronic condition state.

You will still be loosing lots of darts. Do these darts fall off (With 0 barbs) ????

ONe will be chasing some of these cases to get a second and third shot in them to get a proper the****utic level.

Alot of money, be careful of young kids with you in the truck.

[ALLFARMER]

I think I will stick with my Stock Doctor. Drive up
behind them with a quad and jab him with
penicillin, problem solved.

This year we are vaccinating our bulls against
foot rot.

[shaney]

Sadie, thanks for the in depth feedback. cheers.