Montana Beef Quality Assurance Certification Course

• Tutorial Main
• Introduction
  • Education Team
  • Intro to BQA
  • BQA History / Nat. Audits
  • 2005 Nat. Audit
  • Top 10 Industry Goals
  • Defining Quality Beef / Cattle Care
• Regional Curriculum
• Record Keeping
  • Effective Record Keeping
  • Information Recorded
• Care & Handling
  • Producer Attitude
  • Animal Behavior
  • Facilities & Transportation
  • Nutrition
• Feed & Additives
  • Feed
  • Additives
  • Handling / Monitoring
• Animal Health
  • Vaccines
  • Injections
  • Needles
  • Implants
  • Parasite Control
  • Antimicrobials
• Processing
  • Vaccinations
  • Dehorning & Castration
  • Identification
  • Weaning
• Carcass Quality
  • Quality Grade
  • Yield Grade
  • Other Quality Issues
• Marketing
  • Source & Age Verificiation
  • Market Timing
  • Cow Marketing
  • Feeder Calf Grades
  • Shrink
• Breeding & Genetics
  • Uniformity & Consistency
  • EPDs
  • Crossbreeding
• Biosecurity Basics
  • Disease Control
  • Learning Tough Lessons
  • Attention to Zoonotics
  • Agroterrorism
• Certification Process
• MT BQA Directives
• BQA Code
• Certification Exam

Funded, in part, by beef and veal producers and importers through their $1-per-head check off through the Cattlemen’s Beef Board and state beef councils by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association.

Animal Health Products & Practices

Injection site blemishes have been a costly problem for the beef industry for many years. However, the Beef Quality Assurance Programs have helped reduce overall incidences of injection site lesions.

Injection Site Care

Inject only in the neck region.

The administration of practically all injectable animal health products can cause tissue irritation and result in an injection site lesion. There are three common types of lesions that result from injections: active fluid–filled, "woody callous", and discoloration. All result in decreased meat tenderness and damage to muscle tissue.

Injection site lesions are not limited to calves and fed cattle; it is also a significant problem in cull bulls and cows. Annual revaccination of animals exposes them to numerous injections over their productive lives. The good news is that management through employee training can eliminate injection site lesions and related tenderness concerns.

Injection Techniques

• Intravenous injection (IV) — an injection into the vein.
• Intramuscular injection (IM) — an injection into the muscle.
• Subcutaneous injection (SQ) — an injection under the skin

Regardless of animal age, injections (all IM and SQ injections) should be given in front of the shoulders, in the neck region — never in the rump, top loin or back leg.

• Provide proper restraint to avoid breaking needles in the animal’s tissue.
• Do not exceed 10cc per intramuscular (IM) site. Exceeding this amount will increase tissue damage, alter withdrawal time and may require testing before cattle are marketed for consumption.
• Properly space injections 2 to 4 inches apart. Utilize animal health products that are administered orally, topically, or subcutaneously when possible.

"Tent" technique for SubQ injections
The proper and recommended technique for giving injections requires lifting a fold of skin with one hand, forming a "V" or "tent." The needle is inserted through the skin into the space under the skin. The lifting of the skin is necessary to assure that the injection will be subcutaneous.

Injection Site Lesions

Injection–site lesions are caused by scar tissue and tissue reactions from an intramuscular injection. Lesions from an IM injection can travel deep into the tissue. Tenderness is impacted within a three inch diameter of the resulting lesion.

Injection lesions do not just affect one steak, but IM injections in the hind–quarter can damage numerous high priced cuts. Injection lesions may appear small, but in this case the lesion occurred in the center of the eye of the round — damaging this entire retail cut.

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Copyright © 2006, Montana Beef Quality Assurance