Hospitals and Health, Published 9 May 2026
Brisbane’s history is full of things that would make a modern health and safety officer faint!
Did you know Queensland once relied on one of the world’s deadliest poisons to help save its cattle industry?
The Tick Crisis
By the late 1800s, cattle ticks had spread into Queensland, bringing deadly “tick fever” or “redwater fever.” Entire herds were being lost, threatening the future of the state’s booming beef industry.
The Toxic Solution
To fight back, Queensland turned to arsenic-based cattle dips. Large quantities of these chemicals were manufactured and distributed through industrial centres like Brisbane, becoming one of the frontline weapons against the tick plague.
How It Worked
Cattle were driven through long plunge dips filled with an arsenic-and-soda solution. As the animals passed through, the chemical killed the ticks attached to their hides.
It was highly effective - but incredibly dangerous by modern standards.
Across Queensland, dip yards became common sights in rural communities. Many old dip sites still exist today, with some continuing to be environmentally monitored because arsenic residues soaked deep into the soil decades ago.
A Different Era
Today, the idea of handling massive quantities of arsenic around livestock sounds unbelievable, but at the time it was considered cutting-edge science and essential for protecting Queensland’s economy.
The state even created “tick lines,” inspection stations, and public dip facilities to stop infestations spreading into tick-free regions.
It’s a fascinating reminder that some of Queensland’s biggest industries were built using methods that would horrify modern safety regulators.
Images: Computer‑generated illustrations or enhanced public‑domain photographs. Because they have been digitally modified, they may not accurately reflect the original scenes. Shared for educational, non‑commercial historical storytelling purposes.
Copyright and reuse
We encourage the sharing of history and information, and we support the responsible reuse of our original content.
Written articles. Unless a page says otherwise, our original written content is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). You may copy, share, adapt and reuse it, including commercially, as long as you:
- credit “The Dave & Malou Channel” as the source and, where practical, link to the original page;
- link to the licence; and
- indicate any changes you made, without suggesting that we endorse you or your use.
Photographs and other images. Unless a credit or caption says otherwise, photographs and other images on this website, including illustrations, are available under CC BY 4.0 on the same conditions as our written articles. This covers images we created and images supplied by individuals, archives, libraries and families who have given permission for this use. Please check the credit and caption before you reuse an image, because some are not covered:
- Images marked “© The Dave & Malou Channel” must not be reproduced, reused or distributed without our prior written permission.
- For images credited to another person or organisation that are marked © or otherwise reserve their rights, please contact us before reuse so we can help clarify the copyright status and any permission you need. We cannot give permission on behalf of another copyright owner.
- Images labelled “Public Domain” may be used without permission, subject to any legal restrictions and the accuracy of that label.
Video, audio and third-party material. Video and audio are not covered by the licence unless a page says so. Copyright in material supplied by others, such as quotations, extracts and recordings, stays with its owner and is not covered unless we say so. Please contact us before reusing it.
Our name and logo. The name “The Dave & Malou Channel”, our logo and the look of the website are not covered by the licence. Please do not use them in a way that suggests we are connected with, or endorse, you.
Fair dealing. Nothing in our Website Terms limits your right to use material for private study, research, criticism, review, news reporting, or parody and satire, as permitted by the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth).
