GFW Knowledge Revision

Quick knowledge revision. Built for apprentices who revise between tea breaks, tractor runs and trying not to get soaked.

⚠️ Health & Safety ▼ tap to expand
💡 REMEMBER: Hazard = something that causes harm
Risk = likelihood + severity
Hierarchy of Control
  • ❌ Eliminate
  • ⚠️ Reduce
  • 🚧 Isolate
  • 🦺 PPE (LAST line of defence)
⚠️ EXAM TRAP: PPE is NOT the first control measure.
⚠️ Key Machinery Laws (FULL NAMES)

Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER)

  • Equipment must be safe, suitable, and maintained
  • Only trained/competent people should use machinery
  • Safety devices (guards, shields) must be in place
👉 Typical exam question: “What is required before using machinery?” → trained + safe equipment

Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974

  • Employer must provide training, PPE, safe systems
  • Employee must follow instructions and take care

👉 Responsibility is BOTH employer and employee

Road Traffic Act 1988

  • Vehicles must be roadworthy and maintained
  • Loads must be secure and safe
  • Loose bale = illegal
  • Faulty lights = illegal

Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER)

  • Equipment must be inspected regularly
  • Safe lifting procedures must be followed
  • Loads must be stable and secure
👉 Overloading or instability = serious offence

Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations 1992

  • PPE must be provided, suitable, and used correctly
  • Examples: gloves, ear defenders, goggles

👉 PPE is last line of defence, not first

Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH)

  • Risk assess all chemicals
  • Provide PPE
  • Safe storage and handling required
👉 Example: spraying without PPE = illegal
🔍 Daily Checks & Maintenance
  • Oil
  • Coolant
  • Tyres
  • Lights
  • Guards
👉 Using faulty equipment = legal offence
Key Rules Summary
  • Employers → training, PPE, safe systems
  • Employees → follow instructions, take care
  • Equipment → must be maintained and safe
🧴 Biosecurity ▼ tap to expand
Key Actions
  • Clean/disinfect boots
  • Quarantine new animals
  • Control visitors
👉 Prevents disease entering farm Law Link
Animal Health Act 1981
🚜 Machinery & Transport ▼ tap to expand
Daily Checks
  • Oil → prevents engine damage
  • Tyres → safety + stability
  • Lights → visibility
Safe Use
  • No passengers unless seat
  • Keep loads stable and secure
  • Visibility – lights + clean windows
Laws
  • Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER)
  • Road Traffic Act 1988
👉 Unsafe machinery use = legal offence
🛠 Maintenance ▼ tap to expand
Why Important
  • Reduces breakdowns
  • Maintains efficiency
  • Improves safety
👉 Example: Blunt blades → poor cut + higher fuel use Law Link
Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER)
📋 Records & Medicines ▼ tap to expand
Must Record
  • Medicine used
  • Animal treated
  • Date + dosage
👉 Ensures traceability Key Law
Veterinary Medicines Regulations 2013 👉 Withdrawal periods:
  • Prevent residues entering food chain
👉 Selling too early = illegal
🐄 Digestive Systems ▼ tap to expand
Ruminants (Cattle & Sheep)
  • Rumen = fermentation vat (microbes break down fibre)
  • Reticulum = traps foreign objects
  • Omasum = absorbs water
  • Abomasum = “true stomach” (acid digestion)
👉 Allows use of grass, silage, hay Monogastric (Pigs)
  • Simple stomach with acid digestion
  • Limited fibre digestion → rely on concentrates
👉 Diet must be higher quality + more digestible Law Link
Animal Feed Regulations 2010
  • Feed must be safe
  • Stored correctly
  • Free from contamination
🎥 Digestion Revision Video ▼ tap to expand

While watching, think about:

  • What each stomach compartment does
  • How food moves through the system
  • Why cattle can digest fibre
🧠 Digestion Video - Quick Quiz ▼ tap to expand

1. Which part of the stomach breaks down fibre using microbes?

2. What is the function of the reticulum?

3. Why is the abomasum called the “true stomach”?

4. Why can cattle eat grass but pigs cannot?

💡 Digestion Video - Instant Feedback ▼ tap to expand
  • Rumen: fermentation vat with microbes
  • Reticulum: traps foreign objects (hardware disease risk)
  • Omasum: absorbs water
  • Abomasum: acid digestion (like human stomach)

Key takeaway: Ruminants can use grass because microbes break down fibre into usable energy.

👶 Livestock Reproduction ▼ tap to expand
Oestrus Cycle
AnimalCycleKey Detail
Cow21 daysShort heat → easy to miss
Sheep17 daysSeasonal (autumn breeders)
Pig21 daysLong heat → easier detection
Heat Signs
  • Standing to be mounted (most reliable sign)
  • Mounting others
  • Increased activity
Gestation
AnimalGestationKey Detail
Cow283 days~9 months
Sheep147 days~5 months
Pig115 days3-3-3 rule
👉 EXAM trap: mixing up sheep and pigs Law Link
Animal Welfare Act 2006
  • Monitor animals during birth
  • Intervene if needed
  • Provide clean environment
Animal Cycle Gestation
Cow 21 days 283 days
Sheep 17 days 147 days
Pig 21 days 115 days
⚠️ Common exam trap: Mixing up sheep and pig cycle lengths.
🎥 Watch Reproduction Video
🧠 Quiz — Which animal has a 17-day cycle?
✅ Correct — Sheep are seasonal breeders with a 17-day cycle.
🐑 Animal Health ▼ tap to expand
Daily Health Checks
  • 👀 Eyes + discharge
  • 🥣 Appetite
  • 🐾 Movement
  • 💨 Breathing
  • 👂 Behaviour changes
Key Signs
  • Reduced intake → early illness indicator
  • Lameness → pain/injury
  • Isolation → stress/disease
  • Discharge → infection
Species Differences
  • Cattle → lameness common (foot issues)
  • Sheep → flystrike risk in warm weather
  • Pigs → respiratory disease in poor ventilation
Key Law
Animal Health Act 1981 Notifiable Diseases 🐄 Cattle
  • Bovine Tuberculosis (TB)
  • Brucellosis
  • Anthrax
🐑 Sheep & Goats
  • Scrapie
  • Bluetongue
🐖 Pigs
  • African Swine Fever
  • Classical Swine Fever
👉 Legal duty: report immediately 🧠 If you suspect a notifiable disease:
  • Report to employer / supervisor
  • 🚫 Do NOT move animals
  • 📞 Report immediately (APHA in the UK)
  • 🧼 Lock down biosecurity
💡 Know your NORMALS. Most illness starts with subtle behaviour change.
🎥 Watch Health Video

While watching, think about:

  • What healthy animals look like
  • Early signs of illness
  • What checks should be done daily
  • What actually causes disease
🧠 Livestock Health - Quick Quiz ▼ tap to expand

1. Which of these is a clear sign of a healthy animal?

2. What is often the FIRST sign of illness?

3. An animal isolating itself from the group suggests:

4. What should be checked EVERY day?

5. Which of these is NOT a cause of disease?

6. What is the BEST approach to livestock health?

7. Complete the phrase: “Know your ______.”

💡 Livestock Health - Key Takeaways ▼ tap to expand
  • Healthy animals: bright, active, eating, moving normally
  • Early warning: reduced appetite, behaviour changes
  • Daily checks: body, legs, eyes, breathing, behaviour
  • Causes of disease: bacteria, viruses, fungi, parasites
  • Best practice: prevention through hygiene, nutrition, biosecurity

Key message: Know your normals. Check daily. Act fast.

💧 Feeding & Water ▼ tap to expand
Key Principles
  • Water = most important nutrient
  • Intake drops quickly if water unavailable
Feeding by Stage
  • Young → protein (growth)
  • Lactating → energy (milk production)
  • Finishing → energy (weight gain)
👉 Poor feed = poor performance + welfare issue Law Link
Welfare of Farmed Animals Regulations 2007
  • Adequate diet
  • Constant access to clean water
❤️ Five Welfare Needs (LEGAL REQUIREMENT) ▼ tap to expand

Animal Welfare Act 2006

  • Environment → shelter, dry bedding, ventilation
  • Diet → correct nutrition + water
  • Behaviour → ability to graze/root/move
  • Social → correct grouping
  • Protection → prompt treatment

👉 EXAM trap: missing one or adding a fake one

🐑 Livestock Handling ▼ tap to expand
Principles
  • Calm movement reduces stress hormones
  • Stress reduces productivity and increases injury risk
Behaviour
  • Sheep → follow flock instinct
  • Cattle → move in groups, follow leader
  • Pigs → dislike pressure, need guidance
Law Link
  • Welfare of Farmed Animals Regulations 2007
👉 Handling must:
  • Avoid injury
  • Avoid unnecessary stress
🌾 Crops ▼ tap to expand
Key Crop Facts
  • Milling wheat → high protein
  • Malting barley → low nitrogen
  • Lime raises soil pH
  • Compaction damages roots
Grassland
  • Too short → weak regrowth (plant stressed)
  • Too long → stemmy, low nutrition
Crop Problems
  • Yellowing → nutrient deficiency (often nitrogen)
  • Patchy growth → soil compaction/drainage
Law Link
  • Environmental Protection Act 1990
👉 Illegal to:
  • Pollute water
  • Mismanage waste
  • Protect watercourses
🌍 Soil ▼ tap to expand
Key Points
  • pH affects nutrient availability
  • Ideal pH ~6–7 (most crops)
  • Lime raises pH
👉 Wet soil → compaction damage
♻️ Sustainability ▼ tap to expand
Key Practices
  • Crop rotation → reduces pests/disease
  • Cover crops → protect soil
  • Buffer strips → protect water
Scheme
  • Environmental Land Management Scheme
👉 Pays farmers for environmental work

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