When examining the eyes, it is important always use be as sanitary as possible. One way this can be accomplished is by using disposable latex gloves. The pinkeye agents can bind to your hands and you can become a very effective transmitter of the disease. So you can become a “giant face fly” in terms of causing more problems in your herd. When you do treat a pinkeye animal, be sure to use disposable needles and syringes—then dispose of them!
Just as with your hands, your clothing can easily become contaminated with the pinkeye agents. Therefore, it is best to treat any pinkeye or potential pinkeye cases after you have done all the routine animal handling procedures on healthy animals for the day. Alternatively, change clothes after handling pinkeye cattle and before handling normal cattle.
The routine use of a disinfectant for any equipment used on animals with pinkeye is necessary. Nolvasan (chlorhexidine; Fort Dodge) is an excellent choice because it is not irritating to tissues and works well as a disinfectant. Your veterinarian can also suggest other disinfectants that will accomplish your goals.
Things to be disinfected include (1) forceps, hemostats, or tweezers used to remove foxtails; (2) nose tongs for restraint; or (3) rope or nylon halters. It may be a good idea to clean and disinfect the head catch or head restraint area of the chute as it may be an area of contamination and spread of the agents.
Source: UC Davis