The use of anaesthesia and analgesia during dehorning and their effects on the welfare of Bos indicus cattle

In northern Australia, cattle genotypes are predominantly Bos indicus-derived and the extensive nature of the production systems mean they are commonly dehorned at 5-9 months of age. Dehorning at this age is permitted without the use of anaesthetics or analgesics. To adopt pain relief management, producers must be convinced it is effective and practical. We examined the effects on welfare of the administration of a local anaesthetic and/or a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) during the dehorning of Brahman heifers (animal ethics approval RH245/08). Weaners, 5-7 months-old, were allocated to four treatments (n=15/group): Sham dehorn (S); Dehorn only (D); Dehorn + local anaesthetic (cornual block) + NSAID (LA/NSAID); and Dehorn + NSAID (NSAID). Blood samples were taken, via jugular venipuncture, 20min before treatment then 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2, 3, 5, 7, 9, 24, 48 and 72 hours and 2, 4 and 6 weeks post-dehorning. Liveweights were recorded fortnightly for 8 weeks. Counts of behaviour during dehorning showed LA/NSAID vocalised (mean±s.e; 1.6±0.9) and struggled (1.9±0.9) less (GLM,