Farm safety
Child safety
Around 20 children under 15 years old die in accidents on Australian farms every year.
Provide a safe play area for your children by securely fencing your house. If children are not in a safe play area, they should be closely supervised by an adult.
Children should also:
- always wear seatbelts and restraints when in cars, utes and trucks
- not ride on tractors, quad bikes or in the back of utes
- always wear helmets when riding bikes and horses.
Complete the farm safety checklist to ensure your farm is safe for children.
View more information about child safety on the farm.
Chemical safety
Chemicals can be absorbed through the skin, eyes, inhalation or ingestion. Contact with some agricultural chemicals can cause the following health effects:
- headache
- poisoning
- respiratory illness
- burns
- cancers
- birth defects.
Stay safe around chemicals by ensuring you:
- do not eat or drink where chemicals are used
- wash your hands carefully after handling chemicals
- remove soiled clothing before you enter your home—chemicals can be taken back into your home on clothing and footwear
- always clearly label chemicals and store them in a safe place
- keep all chemicals locked away and out of reach of children
- wear the appropriate protective gear
- always follow the manufacturers' instructions for storage, transport, use and disposal of chemicals.
View more information about how to safely use chemicals.
View frequently asked questions about how to use chemicals safely.
Safe animal handling
Animals are unpredictable and can be dangerous. They should be treated with caution at all times.
Learn how to safely handle:
- horses
- cattle
- sheep
- pigs.
View more information about rural safety.
Disease safety
If you notice signs of disease, abnormal behaviour or unexpected deaths in your animals, under Queensland legislation you must report it to:
- Biosecurity Queensland: 13 25 23
Or - the Emergency Disease Watch Hotline: 1800 675 888.
Report the following signs immediately:
- a lot of sick or dead animals including birds or aquatic animals
- fast spread of disease through a herd or flock
- animals that are lame, drooling or salivating a lot
- animals that have ulcers, erosions or blisters around the feet, muzzle, udder or teats or in their mouth
- unusual nervous signs
- bloody diarrhoea
- respiratory distress or persistent coughing in horses
- deep, smelly, fly-struck wounds
- sick animals with any link to another country
- any unusual or unfamiliar disease in animals or birds.
View a list of animal pests and diseases.
View more information about animal diseases on the Department of Primary Industries website.
Equipment safety
Tractors, quad bikes and farming equipment are the leading causes of deaths on Australian farms.
To prevent injury:
- ensure everyone can use the machinery safely
- regularly check that all machinery complies with safety standards
- always use guards and shields
- keep children away from machinery.
Learn how to stay safe on the farm while using:
- quad bikes
- tractors and front-end loaders
- farm equipment
- silos
- electricity
- custom-built plants
- welders
- chainsaws
- all-terrain vehicles.
View more information about farm equipment and machinery safety.
