How and where a sheep receives an injection affects the quality of meat and pelt that they produce. It is not unusual for meat processors to find abscesses and scar tissue from injections in expensive cuts of meat. The location where a vaccine is to be injected is a critical part of a successful vaccine program. The vaccine must be placed in a site compatible for its action as well as one that reduces the chance of contamination and potential trim loss or pelt damage if a reaction occurs.
Subcutaneous injections cause much less damage to the meat tissue.
This is even more important in baby lambs because of the small smount of muscle tissue, and the damage that can be caused by the intramuscular injections can cause lameness and stiffness which often leads to unthrifty lambs. Never give an injection into the rear leg or loin area. The best locations are the sides of the neck, or the low area on the rib cage just behind the bare spot behind the front leg. The meat in this area is less valuable and if pelt damage occurs it can easily be trimmed to help reduce losses. Use the correct needle size.