Preparing for a bison bull

Although the trailer deck boards are already pressure treated I decided it wouldn't hurt to give them a coating of linseed oil.  Coating should help to reduce the absorption of urine and feces during transportation and extend the life of the boards. 
Tomorrow I plan to post an internal advertisement to National Bison Association members for from one to three plains bison bulls of three to four years in age.  When we purchased bison last year, Delta Manufacturing, the company from which we had purchased our cattle trailer, had not yet completed fabrication of the trailer so we ended up paying someone to bring the bison from North Dakota.  This year, however, we have the trailer and plan to haul the bison ourselves.  In preparation of this momentous occasion I've been painstakingly checking the truck and trailer to make sure everything is in working order.  I'm sure glad I did that.  The photos in this post illustrate some of the things we've encountered. 
When some of the trailer deck boards were removed I noticed that interior grade drywall screws had been used to secure some boards.  These were replaced with exterior grade deck screws. 

The trailer boards reinstalled. 

Once I had finished oiling the deck boards, I moved on to trying to fix the trailer brakes.  When the trailer was plugged into the truck, the truck's brake controller displayed "nc" for "not connected."   I first tested the truck's electrical system by plugging our camper trailer into the truck.  The brake controller lit up with a "c" for "connected."  This meant the problem was with the cattle trailer and not the truck.  Several more hours of testing finally revealed the problem to be a loose ground connection in a junction box near the trailer's axles.
While testing the trailer braking system I removed one of the four tires and then removed the tire hub drum to have a look at the actual brakes.  When I pulled off the hub out fell a nut.  It looked like the type used to attach the brake assembly.  All of the nuts used on the brake assembly were accounted for though and I couldn't see anything wrong with the brake, so I replaced the hub drum minus the extra nut.
 Finally, with everything in working order, I took the trailer out for a spin.  Everything appears to be in working order.
The Primus IQ electric brake controller mounted in the truck's dashboard.  This is what is called a "proportional brakes controller," which senses deceleration and varies the amount of voltage applied to the trailers brakes depending on the rate of deceleration. 
While inspecting the electric brake wiring, I happened to look under the trailer and noticed that none of the metal surfaces on the underside of the trailer had been painted.  According to Delta Manufacturing, painting the underside is "optional" for cattle trailers.  This is odd as it wasn't listed among the options I had been given when I placed my order.  Rust has already set in, so I'll need to sand the metal before painting. 

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