Listen for a soft, repetitive cough and watch for a slight increase in respiration rate. Sick cattle will often have watery, dull eyes, a clear nasal discharge and will not be cleaning their noses as often as normal cattle. Their movement will be a little stiff and weakness will cause them to shorten their stride and drag their toe or knuckle slightly. You may notice their tails are tucked slightly between their hocks. The best way to improve someone's skill for finding sick cattle early is to let them follow the progress of the cattle they pull for treatment, especially if all treatments are given before noon.
Cattle treated in the afternoon are much harder to evaluate.
If 90 percent of the cattle are responding to treatment within three days, the pen checker is on the mark. If the treatment program is appropriate and less than 80 percent of the cattle are responding to treatment or the relapse rate is more than 10 percent, the pen checkers are starting treatment too late. Summary Make sure you have plenty of time early in the morning. This is the best time to look for sick cattle. New cattle need at least 150 square feet of dry, dust free pen space per animal.