Medi-Dart new plastic wingnut (MDEWN)

Details

Mature cattle are the hardest thing this system is asked to do. There is more hide, more muscle and more animal moving away from you, and the front end of the dart has to cope with all three. That is what the larger wingnut is for. At 13 mm (1/2 in) with the longer wings, this is the size Medi-Dart puts on cows and bulls. The smaller 9.5 mm (3/8 in) wingnut is the one for younger cattle up to yearlings. The wingnut is not decoration: it works alongside the needle and the push rod so that when the barrel finishes emptying, the ejector pushes ahead and the needle is lifted back out of the animal, leaving the syringe to drop free where you can find it. It suits both the current #6 needle and the older #5. Note that fitting a wingnut alone does not bring an older dart up to the newer arrangement, because the #6 also requires the half-moon push rod. If you are converting rather than replacing a lost part, the conversion kits bundle the needle and both wingnut sizes together. Plastic parts on a piece of pasture equipment go missing, so keeping a spare in the case is sensible. This is a reusable part rather than a consumable, and it costs very little to have two. Whatever you are administering, follow the label and take the treatment decision with your veterinarian.