Awkward project
Sorting out stock yards
– Small property north of Corowa
When the current stockyards don’t suit your purpose
It’s always a challenge when you move to a new block and the stock yards just don’t suit what you need. A client had moved to a property with cattle yards, but she had horses. Large animals need to be managed safety and effectively in yards. Awkard rural contacting was engaged to reshape the yards to suit working with horses.
What We Did:
The starting point for yards is safety from both the owners and animal perspective. The existing yards had “kinks” in the layout, some tight corners and the access to the yards was a choke area set up in a temporary manner.
We reconfigured the main yard into a large oval shape (no corners) and reconfigured where the stock came in as a secondary working yard based around the gate configuration. In the redesign we removed the need for three temporary panels made from truck gates and repurposed a small rail gate to add shape to the stock entrance eliminating a corner.
The Result:
The yards now have stock flow areas with no corners. The main working area has two access entrance gates which helps with usability when there are multiple people or stock in the main yard.
Elimination of corners, better access, improved gate catches system makes it safer for the owners and the animals. The original cattle crush and ramp remain, but they now hold a secondary place in the layout but can be used if needed.
Overall, there is better functionally for working with horses and better safety all-round.