Farm First Newsletter May 2011Pro-Rumen and the importance of probiotics
We are constantly being reminded about the benefits of probiotic supplements in our diet and how they can improve digestive disorders, but the same is also true for your herd. Cases of ketosis, digestive upsets, mastitis, bloat, scour, ruminal stasis, twin lamb disease and cereal or protein poisoning in cattle, sheep and goats can all benefit from the use of Pro-Rumen. It can be used as an aid to recovery and to assist the re-establishment of ruminal flora, e.g. following antibiotic therapy. Pro-Rumen also provides additional microflora directly into the rumen, which get to work immediately in-aiding the digestion of herbage. Saccharomyces cerevisiae (live yeast), works by stimulating the activity of beneficial rumen bacteria and stabilising the rumen environment. This produces improvement in dry matter intake and fibre digestion, resulting in production benefits in terms of milk yield and growth rates. Pro-Rumen also contains milk powder and fat soluble vitamins which are of nutritional value to the young ruminant. The cost of Pro-rumen is £5.22 per sachet and the recommended dose is 1 sachet daily.
Insurance ClaimsIf you lose any stock which may be covered by your insurance please contact your insurer immediately to find out exactly what they need in order to process the claim. Often they will ask for a veterinary certificate to say that the animals are dead, and we can only give this if we have seen the animals. It is too late once they have been disposed of. Always ask your insurer if they require a post mortem, and make a note of who you spoke to, as they will sometimes ask for post mortem findings when originally they said it was not necessary.
If possible, leave the animals where they were found, as often we will be asked the say how they died, even though no PM is required. It is then easier for us to confirm the actual circumstances in which they died, which will strengthen your claim.
New Treatment for Milk Fever – Aggers Pro-Calcium DrenchWe have recently seen an upsurge in the cases of milk fever, and a new product has just been launched which will assist in the treatment of affected cows. Aggers Pro-Calcium Drench is a liquid which comes in an especially designed bottle, which makes it easier to drench into the cow. It is intended to be used in the same way as the Botonic Calcium pastes, which some of you may have used, and contains fast release and slow release calcium, some magnesium, potassium and energy, all of which aid in the recovery from milk fever. It has a high DCAB value, which helps the cow to mobilise the calcium in her system.
To treat a cow which is down with milk fever, she should be given oral calcium as well as intravenous calcium. Ideally an Aggers Fresh Cow drench should be given, followed by 2 Pro-calcium drenches at 8-12 hours intervals. For cows thought to be at risk of milk fever, prevention can best be achieved by giving 1 bottle 8-12 hours before calving, a second one at calving followed by 2 at 8-12 hour intervals. In practice, giving one at calving and one 8 hours later is often successful. The cost of this new product is £6.83/tube
Uterine Prolapse Uterine prolapse is a fairly uncommon complication of the calving cow, but during this busy spring calving period we are being called to attend a number of cases. When prolapse does occur rapid and effective treatment is required to increase the chances of a successful outcome. Prolapse typically occurs within 24 hours of calving. Various factors increase the likelihood of prolapse, these include: milk fever, prolonged calvings, large calves, applying traction (using a jack) and retained placenta (cleansing). Uterine prolapse should be regarded as an emergency, and veterinary attention should be sought immediately. Before the vet arrives there are a number of steps which can be taken to aid the cow’s chances of survival:
• The cow should be kept on clean dry bedding, with the uterus kept clean and moist.
• To aid the vet in prompt replacement having an extra pair (or two) of hands will greatly help, as the uterus is a heavy organ and can be very difficult to replace.
• A clean piece of clean sheeting/towel can be very useful to rest the uterus on when cleaning to prevent contamination with dirt and straw, and to support the organ when attempting to replace.
• Clean warm water should be made available to wash the uterus before replacement.
• If milk fever is suspected a bottle of calcium should be given under the skin.
If the uterus is replaced promptly and without serious damage then survival is likely to be around 70-80%.
Staff newsSome of you may know that Lia Ris left the practice at the end of April after being with us for over 2 years. We wish her well for the future. We are at present advertising for a permanent replacement, but will probably take on an experienced locum to fill the gap whilst we look. In the meantime Jonathen will continue to help us out on the TB and clinical front. You will probably have met him, he’s the tall guy who wears the stupid hat.
MeetingsWe held a meeting on lameness in sheep at the King of Prussia recently, and some very useful discussions took place among the vets and farmers present. We appreciate that the timing of this meeting was not ideal for many of you sheep farmers, so please let us know if you would like us to put it on again at a more convenient time.
Thursday 23 June 2011
APRIL 2011 NEWSLETTER
Farm First Newsletter
April 2011Heifer RearingSome of you attended the dairy heifer rearing talk by Sam Leadley an American heifer rearing expert, at the end of February. For those who were unable to attend, here’s a summary of the main points:
• Aim to give at least 6 pints(3.4litres) of colostrum in the first 6 hours of life, this may mean milking the cow and stomach tubing the calf to ensure adequate intake. Disease in baby calves is almost always associated with inadequate colostrum intake.
• To ensure adequate colostrum intake in a suckling calf ‘educate your fingers’. Palpate the abdomen of a newborn calf before it has had a chance to suckle. Stomach tube with a known quantity of milk e.g. 3 litres, then re-palpate. Now you know what a calf feels like with 3 litres of milk inside. Repeat with a few calves until you have achieved confidence in what you’re feeling.
• Ideally 2nd >4th milkings should also be fed to calf as this provides continued protection through the provision of antibodies(and its higher in solids)
• If freezing colostrum, it should be frozen in 1 litre amounts in 4 litre freezer bags laid flat(sheets of colostrum form), and defrosted in hot(not boiling) water. Microwaves should not be used as they will destroy the antibodies.
• Keep things clean, especially buckets. You should be willing to drink from the same bucket as the calf
• Feed milk when still warm, ideally within 30 minutes of milking. Leave longer and the bacteria in the milk will start to multiply as the milk cools.
• It’s important to monitor growth in baby calves, a newborn 45kg calf should double its weight by 2 months of age. A cheap way to monitor this is using a weigh band.
• Takes 3 weeks from the start of feeding solid food for the rumen to adapt sufficiently to allow the calf to survive. Grain (concentrate) and water are essential to promote this adjustment.
• Calves which have grown well during the first 2 years of life and have hit target weight at calving , will produce more milk in the first and second lactation; poorly grown animals will not reach full potential in terms of yield until third lactation and will also be more difficult .
• With youngstock, don’t change feeds abruptly, especially forages. Giving each animal a big handful of the new forage daily for 5-7 days prior to the change, will allow the rumen time to adjust.
• Bull heifers at 55% of the weight of the average 3rd/4th lactation cows in the herd. Heifers should to calve down at 85% of the weight.
Please contact us if you’d like a copy of Rob’s more in depth notes.
Hoof Disorders
A recent article in the “Veterinary Record” has shown a link between the infectious agents (treponemes) which lead to digital dermatitis and non-healing hoof disorders, namely: toe necrosis, white line disease, and sole ulcers. Both vets and foot trimmers have reported a significant rise in the number of these non-healing lesions in the past 10 years. Given the likelihood that it is the same organisms causing non-healing lesions as those that cause digital dermatitis, it means that an even greater effort emphasis is needed to reduce the incidence of digital dermatitis on farm, i.e. regular footbathing, regular scraping of passages and prompt treatment of clinical cases etc.
Some of our clients have switched to footbathing with Kling-On Blue for digital dermatitis, and so far the results have been encouraging. One of the major advantages of this product is that the cows only need to be put through the bath once a week for 8 weeks, and then once a fortnight. A pressure washer is required to mix up the solution in a 200 litre drum. A 20kg bag costs £88.35 + VAT makes enough solution for a 200 litre footbath, which will treat 100 cows. There are discounts on purchases of larger amounts. For more information, please contact us at the office.
Sheep Abortion
Intervet Schering Plough will again be funding blood checks for aborting ewes. Ewes can be blood sampled up to 3 months post lambing to test for the two most common causes of sheep abortion: toxoplasma and chlamydophila (enzootic). Ideally 6-8 aborting ewes should be identified, which can then be sampled at the end of the lambing period. The cost for this without Intervet’s subsidy would be about £70
Scabivax(Orf)Vaccine
It looks like there will be no further supplies of Scabivax available for the foreseeable future. This could be a big issue for those of you that have orf problems on your farms. There is no alternative vaccine. In the face of an outbreak management of the infected animals plays an important role. Stocking density should be reduced as much as possible(especially in housed situations) and separation of affected and non-affected sheep should be considered(whether ewes at lambing time or older lambs) This will help reduce the spread of the disease. Affected lambs or lambs from badly affected ewes may have to be fed artificially(paying particular attention to hygiene of teats/bottles etc). Ewes with severely affected teats can be dried of early and the appropriate intramammary antibiotic therapy instituted to prevent secondary mastitis.
Orf is a virus, so is not killed by antibiotics. Antibiotics can be used to control secondary infection. Repeated high doses of an antibiotic like Betamox LA is probably best(and is thought to work slightly better than Alamycin LA). Painkillers such as Flunixin or Metacam could also be used in severe cases. Antibiotic or antiseptic sprays can be sprayed onto the lesions.
Remember the orf infection usually runs its course in about a month.
E mail Addresses
If any of you would like to receive these newsletters by email, if you could let the office know your email address we can send them out to you electronically.
Farm First Beef and Sheep Farmer Talks
Please add these dates to your diary.
Jane will be doing a talk on ‘Tackling lameness in the Sheep Flock’ on at 7.30pm Wednesday April 20th at the King of Prussia.
Rob is going to give a talk on ‘Improving the Fertility of Your Beef Suckler Herd’ at 7.30pm on Wednesday May 4th at the King of Prussia.
Ring and speak to Tracy in the office to book your places
April 2011Heifer RearingSome of you attended the dairy heifer rearing talk by Sam Leadley an American heifer rearing expert, at the end of February. For those who were unable to attend, here’s a summary of the main points:
• Aim to give at least 6 pints(3.4litres) of colostrum in the first 6 hours of life, this may mean milking the cow and stomach tubing the calf to ensure adequate intake. Disease in baby calves is almost always associated with inadequate colostrum intake.
• To ensure adequate colostrum intake in a suckling calf ‘educate your fingers’. Palpate the abdomen of a newborn calf before it has had a chance to suckle. Stomach tube with a known quantity of milk e.g. 3 litres, then re-palpate. Now you know what a calf feels like with 3 litres of milk inside. Repeat with a few calves until you have achieved confidence in what you’re feeling.
• Ideally 2nd >4th milkings should also be fed to calf as this provides continued protection through the provision of antibodies(and its higher in solids)
• If freezing colostrum, it should be frozen in 1 litre amounts in 4 litre freezer bags laid flat(sheets of colostrum form), and defrosted in hot(not boiling) water. Microwaves should not be used as they will destroy the antibodies.
• Keep things clean, especially buckets. You should be willing to drink from the same bucket as the calf
• Feed milk when still warm, ideally within 30 minutes of milking. Leave longer and the bacteria in the milk will start to multiply as the milk cools.
• It’s important to monitor growth in baby calves, a newborn 45kg calf should double its weight by 2 months of age. A cheap way to monitor this is using a weigh band.
• Takes 3 weeks from the start of feeding solid food for the rumen to adapt sufficiently to allow the calf to survive. Grain (concentrate) and water are essential to promote this adjustment.
• Calves which have grown well during the first 2 years of life and have hit target weight at calving , will produce more milk in the first and second lactation; poorly grown animals will not reach full potential in terms of yield until third lactation and will also be more difficult .
• With youngstock, don’t change feeds abruptly, especially forages. Giving each animal a big handful of the new forage daily for 5-7 days prior to the change, will allow the rumen time to adjust.
• Bull heifers at 55% of the weight of the average 3rd/4th lactation cows in the herd. Heifers should to calve down at 85% of the weight.
Please contact us if you’d like a copy of Rob’s more in depth notes.
Hoof Disorders
A recent article in the “Veterinary Record” has shown a link between the infectious agents (treponemes) which lead to digital dermatitis and non-healing hoof disorders, namely: toe necrosis, white line disease, and sole ulcers. Both vets and foot trimmers have reported a significant rise in the number of these non-healing lesions in the past 10 years. Given the likelihood that it is the same organisms causing non-healing lesions as those that cause digital dermatitis, it means that an even greater effort emphasis is needed to reduce the incidence of digital dermatitis on farm, i.e. regular footbathing, regular scraping of passages and prompt treatment of clinical cases etc.
Some of our clients have switched to footbathing with Kling-On Blue for digital dermatitis, and so far the results have been encouraging. One of the major advantages of this product is that the cows only need to be put through the bath once a week for 8 weeks, and then once a fortnight. A pressure washer is required to mix up the solution in a 200 litre drum. A 20kg bag costs £88.35 + VAT makes enough solution for a 200 litre footbath, which will treat 100 cows. There are discounts on purchases of larger amounts. For more information, please contact us at the office.
Sheep Abortion
Intervet Schering Plough will again be funding blood checks for aborting ewes. Ewes can be blood sampled up to 3 months post lambing to test for the two most common causes of sheep abortion: toxoplasma and chlamydophila (enzootic). Ideally 6-8 aborting ewes should be identified, which can then be sampled at the end of the lambing period. The cost for this without Intervet’s subsidy would be about £70
Scabivax(Orf)Vaccine
It looks like there will be no further supplies of Scabivax available for the foreseeable future. This could be a big issue for those of you that have orf problems on your farms. There is no alternative vaccine. In the face of an outbreak management of the infected animals plays an important role. Stocking density should be reduced as much as possible(especially in housed situations) and separation of affected and non-affected sheep should be considered(whether ewes at lambing time or older lambs) This will help reduce the spread of the disease. Affected lambs or lambs from badly affected ewes may have to be fed artificially(paying particular attention to hygiene of teats/bottles etc). Ewes with severely affected teats can be dried of early and the appropriate intramammary antibiotic therapy instituted to prevent secondary mastitis.
Orf is a virus, so is not killed by antibiotics. Antibiotics can be used to control secondary infection. Repeated high doses of an antibiotic like Betamox LA is probably best(and is thought to work slightly better than Alamycin LA). Painkillers such as Flunixin or Metacam could also be used in severe cases. Antibiotic or antiseptic sprays can be sprayed onto the lesions.
Remember the orf infection usually runs its course in about a month.
E mail Addresses
If any of you would like to receive these newsletters by email, if you could let the office know your email address we can send them out to you electronically.
Farm First Beef and Sheep Farmer Talks
Please add these dates to your diary.
Jane will be doing a talk on ‘Tackling lameness in the Sheep Flock’ on at 7.30pm Wednesday April 20th at the King of Prussia.
Rob is going to give a talk on ‘Improving the Fertility of Your Beef Suckler Herd’ at 7.30pm on Wednesday May 4th at the King of Prussia.
Ring and speak to Tracy in the office to book your places
MARCH 2011 NEWSLETTER
NEWSLETTER MARCH 2011
Giving fluids to ewes
Many of you will have seen us use the ‘Aggers Pump’ to give fluid to sick cows. Well now there is a similar product for sheep, its called the Progress Ewe Drencher. Ewes will easily get dehydrated when they have mastitis, twin lamb disease or hypocalcaemia. The Progress Ewe Drencher works in a similar way to the cattle pump. It has a flexible hose, with a bulbous end to encourage ewes to swallow it. The tube passes through a hard tubular gag which protects it from being bitten. With the hose in the rumen it can be attached to a jerry can fitted with a tap and air inlet and ewes can be given up to 5 litres of fluid with or without powders for rehydration or rumen stimulation or liquid to provide energy. The cost of the pump is £49.79 + vat.
Please contact the practice if you are interested or would like more information.
Anti-inflammatory/ painkiller use in ewes
Anti-inflammatories/ painkillers are not used widely in sheep. However there are certain indications where sheep seem to benefit from the use of them. One of the indications is vaginal prolapse where the use of Flunixin reduces the swelling. This in turn reduces straining in the ewe. Another indication of using Flunixin at lambing is when treating a ewe for twin lamb disease. Recent research has indicated that ewes that received Flunixin for three days when treated for twin lamb disease had a higher survival rate. Lambs born to these ewes also had a higher survival rate. It is also beneficial to use it when a ewe has a bad lambing as it will reduce the associated swelling and also make the ewe feel better. Similarly when a ewe has mastitis, Flunixin given for 1 to 3 days, will help reduce the pain and swelling and help to keep her feeling well.
Is a cost effective drug to use; the dose rate is 2 ml/ 45 kg once daily for 1 to 3 days. A 50ml bottle works out at £16.15 + vat.
Funding for BVD and Johne’s disease testing for beef herds
There is funding available from HCC (Hybu Cig Cymru) for beef herds for BVD and Johne’s disease testing.
BVD: BVD has a major impact on the health and profitability of herds. To raise awareness and to control the spread of BVD HCC are running a £40,000 project. Funding is available for Farms to take part in a testing and control project with the ultimate goal to eradicate Bovine Viral Diarrhoea (BVD) from the herd. One hundred farms can take part in this project and it will be on a first come first served basis. (The latest information is that 60 places have already been filled) If you are interested or need more information contact the WRVC at Gelli Aur on 01554 748597.
.
Johne’s: There is still funding available from HCC for help with controlling Johne’s disease in beef herds. You need to be a member of a cattle health scheme that is licensed by the Cattle Health Certification Standards (UK), abbreviated CHeCS. (At the moment there are 10 approved schemes; check www.checs.co.uk). HCC offers funding to Welsh pedigree and commercial beef breeders to test their cattle for Johne's disease. Funding of £4 per animal tested for up to 100 animals is available to cover lab fees. This can easily be fitted in with your annual TB test. If you are interested in obtaining the support please contact HCC on 01970 625050 or give us a ring at the practice to discuss.
Lungworm vaccination reminder
As spring is approaching rapidly we would like to remind farmers about the Huskvac® vaccination against lungworm. Calves need to be ideally 8 weeks old and require need to have two doses, 4 weeks apart (with the second dose 2 weeks before turnout). If you want to vaccinate your calves this year and need to place an order or require more information about the vaccine please contact the surgery.
Dopram-V drops
Many of you will be used to using Dopram-V drops under/on the tongue of newborn calves or lambs to initiate or stimulate the breathing after birth. When you do this it is important to make sure that the airway is clear (no mucus) before you use the drops. Unfortunately this year Dopram-V drops (5ml/bottle) is unavailable. As an alternative you can use Dopram-V injection (20ml/bottle). Cost £37.66 + vat for 20mls. The dose for calves is 2 to 5 ml either by subcutaneous/intramuscular or sublingual (into the underside of the tongue) injection. The dose for lambs is 0.25 to 0.5ml again into the muscle/under the skin or into the tongue.
Abortions in sheep
As lambing time has started again, unfortunately, so have the sheep abortions. There are a number of causes of abortion in sheep and it is usually very difficult to diagnose which pathogen is causing the problem by just looking at a dead foetus. If you want to investigate a problem we need a freshly aborted lamb or lambs, plus placenta which can be sampled and the samples sent away. This will determine the cause of abortion in the majority of cases and will enable us to advise you about what to do. The cost for an investigation using the fetus(es) from 1 dam will be £80 + vat. For the fetus (es) from 2 dams the price is £100 + vat. These are set fees and include the taking of samples, packing and postage and interpretation. The charges do not include the disposal of the lambs
Alternatively at the end of the lambing season we can blood sample barren ewes and ewes that aborted to see if we can establish the cause of the infertility. Obviously these ewes have to be identified.
Generally speaking when a ewe aborts, keep her in isolation and away from ewes that are due to lamb.Also clean and disinfect the pen that the ewe was in(or if possible do not use it again as a lambing pen this season).
Bull Fertility.
It won’t be many months now until many of you will turning the bull in with your spring calving cows. Various studies have found that around 20 to 25% of breeding bulls are found to be infertile or subfertile at a routine Bull Breeding Soundness Evaluation(BBSE). Obviously a subfertile bull will contribute to reproductive inefficiencies in your suckler herd by considerably extending your mating period. This is especially important in single sire mating groups when only 1 bull runs with 30 or 40 cows. A BBSE can be carried out on farm relatively simply, costs £80 + vat for 1 bull and is a a reasonable way of detecting bulls with potentially high fertility and those which are clearly unsatisfactory. The ideal time to carry these out is about 2 mths prior to the breeding period so if you are interested please give Rob a ring at the surgery.
Farm First
Giving fluids to ewes
Many of you will have seen us use the ‘Aggers Pump’ to give fluid to sick cows. Well now there is a similar product for sheep, its called the Progress Ewe Drencher. Ewes will easily get dehydrated when they have mastitis, twin lamb disease or hypocalcaemia. The Progress Ewe Drencher works in a similar way to the cattle pump. It has a flexible hose, with a bulbous end to encourage ewes to swallow it. The tube passes through a hard tubular gag which protects it from being bitten. With the hose in the rumen it can be attached to a jerry can fitted with a tap and air inlet and ewes can be given up to 5 litres of fluid with or without powders for rehydration or rumen stimulation or liquid to provide energy. The cost of the pump is £49.79 + vat.
Please contact the practice if you are interested or would like more information.
Anti-inflammatory/ painkiller use in ewes
Anti-inflammatories/ painkillers are not used widely in sheep. However there are certain indications where sheep seem to benefit from the use of them. One of the indications is vaginal prolapse where the use of Flunixin reduces the swelling. This in turn reduces straining in the ewe. Another indication of using Flunixin at lambing is when treating a ewe for twin lamb disease. Recent research has indicated that ewes that received Flunixin for three days when treated for twin lamb disease had a higher survival rate. Lambs born to these ewes also had a higher survival rate. It is also beneficial to use it when a ewe has a bad lambing as it will reduce the associated swelling and also make the ewe feel better. Similarly when a ewe has mastitis, Flunixin given for 1 to 3 days, will help reduce the pain and swelling and help to keep her feeling well.
Is a cost effective drug to use; the dose rate is 2 ml/ 45 kg once daily for 1 to 3 days. A 50ml bottle works out at £16.15 + vat.
Funding for BVD and Johne’s disease testing for beef herds
There is funding available from HCC (Hybu Cig Cymru) for beef herds for BVD and Johne’s disease testing.
BVD: BVD has a major impact on the health and profitability of herds. To raise awareness and to control the spread of BVD HCC are running a £40,000 project. Funding is available for Farms to take part in a testing and control project with the ultimate goal to eradicate Bovine Viral Diarrhoea (BVD) from the herd. One hundred farms can take part in this project and it will be on a first come first served basis. (The latest information is that 60 places have already been filled) If you are interested or need more information contact the WRVC at Gelli Aur on 01554 748597.
.
Johne’s: There is still funding available from HCC for help with controlling Johne’s disease in beef herds. You need to be a member of a cattle health scheme that is licensed by the Cattle Health Certification Standards (UK), abbreviated CHeCS. (At the moment there are 10 approved schemes; check www.checs.co.uk). HCC offers funding to Welsh pedigree and commercial beef breeders to test their cattle for Johne's disease. Funding of £4 per animal tested for up to 100 animals is available to cover lab fees. This can easily be fitted in with your annual TB test. If you are interested in obtaining the support please contact HCC on 01970 625050 or give us a ring at the practice to discuss.
Lungworm vaccination reminder
As spring is approaching rapidly we would like to remind farmers about the Huskvac® vaccination against lungworm. Calves need to be ideally 8 weeks old and require need to have two doses, 4 weeks apart (with the second dose 2 weeks before turnout). If you want to vaccinate your calves this year and need to place an order or require more information about the vaccine please contact the surgery.
Dopram-V drops
Many of you will be used to using Dopram-V drops under/on the tongue of newborn calves or lambs to initiate or stimulate the breathing after birth. When you do this it is important to make sure that the airway is clear (no mucus) before you use the drops. Unfortunately this year Dopram-V drops (5ml/bottle) is unavailable. As an alternative you can use Dopram-V injection (20ml/bottle). Cost £37.66 + vat for 20mls. The dose for calves is 2 to 5 ml either by subcutaneous/intramuscular or sublingual (into the underside of the tongue) injection. The dose for lambs is 0.25 to 0.5ml again into the muscle/under the skin or into the tongue.
Abortions in sheep
As lambing time has started again, unfortunately, so have the sheep abortions. There are a number of causes of abortion in sheep and it is usually very difficult to diagnose which pathogen is causing the problem by just looking at a dead foetus. If you want to investigate a problem we need a freshly aborted lamb or lambs, plus placenta which can be sampled and the samples sent away. This will determine the cause of abortion in the majority of cases and will enable us to advise you about what to do. The cost for an investigation using the fetus(es) from 1 dam will be £80 + vat. For the fetus (es) from 2 dams the price is £100 + vat. These are set fees and include the taking of samples, packing and postage and interpretation. The charges do not include the disposal of the lambs
Alternatively at the end of the lambing season we can blood sample barren ewes and ewes that aborted to see if we can establish the cause of the infertility. Obviously these ewes have to be identified.
Generally speaking when a ewe aborts, keep her in isolation and away from ewes that are due to lamb.Also clean and disinfect the pen that the ewe was in(or if possible do not use it again as a lambing pen this season).
Bull Fertility.
It won’t be many months now until many of you will turning the bull in with your spring calving cows. Various studies have found that around 20 to 25% of breeding bulls are found to be infertile or subfertile at a routine Bull Breeding Soundness Evaluation(BBSE). Obviously a subfertile bull will contribute to reproductive inefficiencies in your suckler herd by considerably extending your mating period. This is especially important in single sire mating groups when only 1 bull runs with 30 or 40 cows. A BBSE can be carried out on farm relatively simply, costs £80 + vat for 1 bull and is a a reasonable way of detecting bulls with potentially high fertility and those which are clearly unsatisfactory. The ideal time to carry these out is about 2 mths prior to the breeding period so if you are interested please give Rob a ring at the surgery.
Farm First
JANUARY NEWSLETTER 2011
FARM FIRST
January Newsletter
January 2011
A HAPPY, HEALTHY AND PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR TO ALL
We certainly learn from experiences! The cold weather of the past month does not seem to have adversely affected livestock, so I suppose that we learn from this that its best not to keep them too enclosed. Cows especially are amazingly ‘wet’ animals. They produce around 50 litres of water per cow per day in the urine, faeces breath and sweat (ie in addition to the water in milk), and this moisture needs to be taken out of the building. Failure to do so results in increased lameness and mastitis. At a recent meeting the speaker stated that the ideal temperature for a cow is 4C – so unless you are cold she is probably too hot! Increased air flow (and hence decreased humidity) is achieved by giving the cows ample space and by providing vents at the sides and at the apex of buildings.
RESPIRATORY DISEASE MEETING
Thanks to all of you who supported our meeting in December. What were some of the essential elements of being able to rear calves with less than 1.0% mortality and calving at two years of age? There will of course be variations in the feeding regimes depending on availability of waste milk, size of calf etc, but the following is a summary of the major points we learned for the average calf
Once a day feeding.
The calves are given colostrum for the first 3 days of life then fed whole milk twice daily for the first week. They are then changed abruptly onto ‘Once a Day’ powder, simply be feeding them in the mornings only. This is fed this until weaning at 8 weeks, making sure that there is ample water and hard food available. The advantages of the once a day system were felt to be that calves started eating solid food sooner, that pens stayed drier and of course there is less labour. It’s important to check the calves in the afternoons though, and because they are not being fed you have a bit more time to spend with them.
Calf pens
The calf pens comprised 8’ x 4’ sheets of marine ply (some of them 40+ years old, ie the original sheets used by Jim when he set up the system!) attached to gates at the rear and wooden feeding rails at the front. Thick wads of big bale straw are laid in the base, then loose straw on top. Fresh clean palatable straw is added 3 times per week as a forage source and as bedding. Calves are kept in these pens for 1 – 2 weeks after weaning to ensure that they are eating ample concentrates and then the pen sides are removed leaving the calves on the same straw and in the same area. This produces and almost ‘all in all out’ system that minimises infection transfer from group to group. Only under exceptional circumstances do calves change groups.
Pneumonia control
The calves are certainly not free from pneumonia and some treatments are given every year. Post treatment blood samples taken from affected calves this year showed exposure to IBR and RSV viruses. Calves are vaccinated against IBR and the current strategy is to hope that any RSV infection can be overcome naturally, although this position is always under review, and intranasal vaccination at around 4 weeks of age is an option. If an increase in coughing is seen the calves are monitored for feed intake and general respiratory signs. When more than 10% of calves are affected the whole group is injected. Last year the Draxxin was ordered and collected, but by the time it arrived on farm calves were improving and it was not used!
This balance between whether to treat and whether to let disease run its course is never easy. Vaccination is likely to be the safer option, but as with all such options, cost effectiveness is the difficult decision. The Pfizer subsidised blood sampling (£10 per calf for 5 calves) is well worthwhile to determine disease risk, especially in closed herds.
Vaccination
Vaccination is an important aspect in the control and prevention of BRD. Preventing pneumonia will reduce the costs associated with a clinical case of the disease, for example the cost of treatment, risk of spread to other animals and failure to grow/reach targets compared to unaffected calves.
We can vaccinate for the major causes of pneumonia starting with an intranasal vaccine from 9 days of age which will cover for RSV and Parainfluenza 3 viral causes and injectable vaccines administered from 2 weeks of age which cover RSV, PI3 and Pasteurella. We have a range of vaccines which we can use depending on your farming business and depending on the causes of pneumonia. Please discuss with us at the practice to determine the best protocol. Bovipast RSP vaccine can also be administered to dry cows 6-4 weeks before calving to protect the calves via colostral immunity.
It must be remembered that vaccination is part of a control plan and is not a ‘cure all’ for pneumonia. Housing, colostral status and management all require looking at too. Also an underlying BVD problem will affect the chances of pneumonia developing in a herd due to immunosuppressive effects.
JEJUNAL HAEMORRHAGE SYNDROME, JHS
Also known as haemorrhagic bowel syndrome (HBS), haemorrhagic gut syndrome (HGS), or simply haemorrhagic enteritis “hemorrhagic enteritis”, this condition, first reported in North America, now seems to have reached Gloucestershire! Affected cows are extremely ill, often totally collapsed with shock, severe abdominal pain and blood loss into the small intestine. Those that survive this first acute phase will then start passing a mixture of thick stinking dark bloody faeces and mucous. For those cows that do make it, recovery is slow. The cause is unknown, but affected animals are usually higher yielding early lactation animals on higher levels of feed. Clostridia can often be isolated from the gut and some US farms apparently use clostridial vaccination as a means of control. Vaccination is cheap enough, but most herds only have sporadic cases.
January Newsletter
January 2011
A HAPPY, HEALTHY AND PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR TO ALL
We certainly learn from experiences! The cold weather of the past month does not seem to have adversely affected livestock, so I suppose that we learn from this that its best not to keep them too enclosed. Cows especially are amazingly ‘wet’ animals. They produce around 50 litres of water per cow per day in the urine, faeces breath and sweat (ie in addition to the water in milk), and this moisture needs to be taken out of the building. Failure to do so results in increased lameness and mastitis. At a recent meeting the speaker stated that the ideal temperature for a cow is 4C – so unless you are cold she is probably too hot! Increased air flow (and hence decreased humidity) is achieved by giving the cows ample space and by providing vents at the sides and at the apex of buildings.
RESPIRATORY DISEASE MEETING
Thanks to all of you who supported our meeting in December. What were some of the essential elements of being able to rear calves with less than 1.0% mortality and calving at two years of age? There will of course be variations in the feeding regimes depending on availability of waste milk, size of calf etc, but the following is a summary of the major points we learned for the average calf
Once a day feeding.
The calves are given colostrum for the first 3 days of life then fed whole milk twice daily for the first week. They are then changed abruptly onto ‘Once a Day’ powder, simply be feeding them in the mornings only. This is fed this until weaning at 8 weeks, making sure that there is ample water and hard food available. The advantages of the once a day system were felt to be that calves started eating solid food sooner, that pens stayed drier and of course there is less labour. It’s important to check the calves in the afternoons though, and because they are not being fed you have a bit more time to spend with them.
Calf pens
The calf pens comprised 8’ x 4’ sheets of marine ply (some of them 40+ years old, ie the original sheets used by Jim when he set up the system!) attached to gates at the rear and wooden feeding rails at the front. Thick wads of big bale straw are laid in the base, then loose straw on top. Fresh clean palatable straw is added 3 times per week as a forage source and as bedding. Calves are kept in these pens for 1 – 2 weeks after weaning to ensure that they are eating ample concentrates and then the pen sides are removed leaving the calves on the same straw and in the same area. This produces and almost ‘all in all out’ system that minimises infection transfer from group to group. Only under exceptional circumstances do calves change groups.
Pneumonia control
The calves are certainly not free from pneumonia and some treatments are given every year. Post treatment blood samples taken from affected calves this year showed exposure to IBR and RSV viruses. Calves are vaccinated against IBR and the current strategy is to hope that any RSV infection can be overcome naturally, although this position is always under review, and intranasal vaccination at around 4 weeks of age is an option. If an increase in coughing is seen the calves are monitored for feed intake and general respiratory signs. When more than 10% of calves are affected the whole group is injected. Last year the Draxxin was ordered and collected, but by the time it arrived on farm calves were improving and it was not used!
This balance between whether to treat and whether to let disease run its course is never easy. Vaccination is likely to be the safer option, but as with all such options, cost effectiveness is the difficult decision. The Pfizer subsidised blood sampling (£10 per calf for 5 calves) is well worthwhile to determine disease risk, especially in closed herds.
Vaccination
Vaccination is an important aspect in the control and prevention of BRD. Preventing pneumonia will reduce the costs associated with a clinical case of the disease, for example the cost of treatment, risk of spread to other animals and failure to grow/reach targets compared to unaffected calves.
We can vaccinate for the major causes of pneumonia starting with an intranasal vaccine from 9 days of age which will cover for RSV and Parainfluenza 3 viral causes and injectable vaccines administered from 2 weeks of age which cover RSV, PI3 and Pasteurella. We have a range of vaccines which we can use depending on your farming business and depending on the causes of pneumonia. Please discuss with us at the practice to determine the best protocol. Bovipast RSP vaccine can also be administered to dry cows 6-4 weeks before calving to protect the calves via colostral immunity.
It must be remembered that vaccination is part of a control plan and is not a ‘cure all’ for pneumonia. Housing, colostral status and management all require looking at too. Also an underlying BVD problem will affect the chances of pneumonia developing in a herd due to immunosuppressive effects.
JEJUNAL HAEMORRHAGE SYNDROME, JHS
Also known as haemorrhagic bowel syndrome (HBS), haemorrhagic gut syndrome (HGS), or simply haemorrhagic enteritis “hemorrhagic enteritis”, this condition, first reported in North America, now seems to have reached Gloucestershire! Affected cows are extremely ill, often totally collapsed with shock, severe abdominal pain and blood loss into the small intestine. Those that survive this first acute phase will then start passing a mixture of thick stinking dark bloody faeces and mucous. For those cows that do make it, recovery is slow. The cause is unknown, but affected animals are usually higher yielding early lactation animals on higher levels of feed. Clostridia can often be isolated from the gut and some US farms apparently use clostridial vaccination as a means of control. Vaccination is cheap enough, but most herds only have sporadic cases.
DECEMBER NEWSLETTER 2010
FARM FIRST DECEMBER NEWS LETTER
Pneumonia Treatments
As you are aware this is a high-risk time of year cattle for pneumonia in cattle. Several vaccines are available to prevent pneumonia, but it is too late for vaccination when the animals are already ill.
The treatment for pneumonia is usually 2-fold: an anti-inflammatory/painkiller and an antibiotic. The anti-inflammatory/painkiller reduces pain and inflammation, lowers the temperature and reduces the damage done to the lungs. It makes the animal feel a bit better, so it keeps eating and drinking, enabling a speedy recovery. The antibiotic acts against the bacteria involved.
The anti-inflammatories that we use in the practice are Flunixin and Metacam. Flunixin can be given daily for up to 5 days, whereas Metacam is given as a single subcutaneous (or intravenous) injection that works for 2-3 days.
The following table gives details of the most commonly used treatments. Please speak to one of the vets for advice on using the products to treat pneumonia in your herd, and on how to prevent the problem in future years.
Product Cost Cost per 150kg calf Duration of action
Antibiotic Alamycin LA £14.26/100ml £ 2.14 2 days
Shotaflor
(“Nuflor”) £39.36/100ml £ 7.88 (2 doses i.m. or 1 dose s.c.) 4 days
Draxxin £172.89/50ml £12.97 9 to 14 days
Antibiotic and Anti-inflammatory Resflor £73.17/100ml £14.63 (1 dose s.c.) 4 days (antibiotic)
2 days (anti-inflammatory)
Anti-inflammatory Flunixin £19.28/50ml £ 2.57 1 day
Metacam £56.90/50ml £ 4.27 2-3 days
Enzootic abortion
If you have been unable to vaccinate ewes against Enzootic Abortion this year, a single dose of Alamycin LA (1ml/10 kg intramuscular) given 4-6 weeks before lambing will help to minimise losses. Sometimes a repeat treatment is required closer to lambing.
Please note that discounts are available on pay-at-time purchases of drugs like Alamycin LA(this also applies to drugs listed above in the pneumonia treatment section). Larger purchases attract bigger discounts but please give us notice if you require larger quantities so that we can make sure we have sufficient in stock.
TB Testing
This is a request from Debbie, our administrator responsible for organising your TB-tests:
Please be aware that TB-tests are usually fully booked 2-3 weeks ahead, and at busy times it can be as much as four weeks. So if you want your TB test done by a certain date (e.g. because you are taking animals to a sale), or on a particular date, then contact Debbie as far in advance as possible, so that we will be able to accommodate you.
Also Animal Health are currently doing all the short-interval(60 day) tests themselves and we can only agree to do a short-interval test when a BT4 (Animal Health release paper) has been sent to us. Please bear this in mind when booking tests and talking to our staff. We understand it can be a very frustrating not to be able to book your test in, but when we have the necessary paperwork from Animal Health we will do our very best to accommodate you.
Thank you very much for your cooperation!
Caesarean Section in Cattle
Farmers are often pessimistic about Caesarean Sections in cattle; however, if the decision to deliver a calf by caesarean is made promptly, it should save the life of both the cow and the calf and is therefore a viable option.
The outcome of a caesarean section depends on the length of time that the cow has been calving, whether the foetus is alive or dead, any infection which is present, whether the cow is able to stand for the operation, the cleanliness and sterility of the environment that the operation is to take place in, whether the cow has had previous operations and whether the uterus can be exteriorised.
If the decision to operate is delayed, the foetus becomes stressed and gets weaker; the level of uterine infection increases and the cow becomes exhausted and depressed. These factors together equate to a higher likelihood of a poor outcome i.e. a dead calf, a dead cow or both.
Once the decision to operate has been made it is important that the cow is adequately restrained, that the caesarean section takes place in a clean and dry environment. There should be adequate lighting and plenty of clean, warm water. Do not bed the area with straw just before the operation as it will create dust, which might cause infection in the cow. Every effort should be made to keep the operation as sterile as possible but it does not exclude the need for antibiotics and anti-inflammatories. Obviously the course of antibiotics should be completed and anti-inflammatories should be used to help minimise swelling and pain, thereby helping the animal’s appetite and demeanour to return to normal as quickly as possible.
Bleeding Calf Syndrome/ Bovine Neonatal Pancytopenia
You might have heard about an entirely new disease in calves called Bleeding Calf Syndrome (official term: Bovine Neonatal Pancytopenia). It affects calves between two days and four weeks old, it equally affects bull and heifer calves and there is no effect of breed or type of farm. There seem to be three different forms of this disease: calves found dead and diagnosed at post-mortem, calves that die on the day that they are seen ill (most typical form) and calves that die within three to four days of showing signs. Affected calves that are alive have a temperature, a dull appearance and have signs of bleeding from various points on the skin. These points can be on the head, the back and on the legs and originate from injections, fly bites or ear tags. Usually the faeces is blood-stained. Interestingly, not many cases have been reported in Wales and it is unclear if there are not many cases in Wales or if there are cases in Wales but these are not recognised or reported. Therefore if you have any suspected cases please contact the surgery.
Christmas and New Year
It is early December now but we would like to let you know we are closing early on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve (1 pm). With the Bank Holidays following Christmas and New Year please make sure that you place any drug orders in advance so that we can provide you with the drugs required and still have drugs in stock as well.
Merry Christmas and a Happy (and profitable) New Year!
Pneumonia Treatments
As you are aware this is a high-risk time of year cattle for pneumonia in cattle. Several vaccines are available to prevent pneumonia, but it is too late for vaccination when the animals are already ill.
The treatment for pneumonia is usually 2-fold: an anti-inflammatory/painkiller and an antibiotic. The anti-inflammatory/painkiller reduces pain and inflammation, lowers the temperature and reduces the damage done to the lungs. It makes the animal feel a bit better, so it keeps eating and drinking, enabling a speedy recovery. The antibiotic acts against the bacteria involved.
The anti-inflammatories that we use in the practice are Flunixin and Metacam. Flunixin can be given daily for up to 5 days, whereas Metacam is given as a single subcutaneous (or intravenous) injection that works for 2-3 days.
The following table gives details of the most commonly used treatments. Please speak to one of the vets for advice on using the products to treat pneumonia in your herd, and on how to prevent the problem in future years.
Product Cost Cost per 150kg calf Duration of action
Antibiotic Alamycin LA £14.26/100ml £ 2.14 2 days
Shotaflor
(“Nuflor”) £39.36/100ml £ 7.88 (2 doses i.m. or 1 dose s.c.) 4 days
Draxxin £172.89/50ml £12.97 9 to 14 days
Antibiotic and Anti-inflammatory Resflor £73.17/100ml £14.63 (1 dose s.c.) 4 days (antibiotic)
2 days (anti-inflammatory)
Anti-inflammatory Flunixin £19.28/50ml £ 2.57 1 day
Metacam £56.90/50ml £ 4.27 2-3 days
Enzootic abortion
If you have been unable to vaccinate ewes against Enzootic Abortion this year, a single dose of Alamycin LA (1ml/10 kg intramuscular) given 4-6 weeks before lambing will help to minimise losses. Sometimes a repeat treatment is required closer to lambing.
Please note that discounts are available on pay-at-time purchases of drugs like Alamycin LA(this also applies to drugs listed above in the pneumonia treatment section). Larger purchases attract bigger discounts but please give us notice if you require larger quantities so that we can make sure we have sufficient in stock.
TB Testing
This is a request from Debbie, our administrator responsible for organising your TB-tests:
Please be aware that TB-tests are usually fully booked 2-3 weeks ahead, and at busy times it can be as much as four weeks. So if you want your TB test done by a certain date (e.g. because you are taking animals to a sale), or on a particular date, then contact Debbie as far in advance as possible, so that we will be able to accommodate you.
Also Animal Health are currently doing all the short-interval(60 day) tests themselves and we can only agree to do a short-interval test when a BT4 (Animal Health release paper) has been sent to us. Please bear this in mind when booking tests and talking to our staff. We understand it can be a very frustrating not to be able to book your test in, but when we have the necessary paperwork from Animal Health we will do our very best to accommodate you.
Thank you very much for your cooperation!
Caesarean Section in Cattle
Farmers are often pessimistic about Caesarean Sections in cattle; however, if the decision to deliver a calf by caesarean is made promptly, it should save the life of both the cow and the calf and is therefore a viable option.
The outcome of a caesarean section depends on the length of time that the cow has been calving, whether the foetus is alive or dead, any infection which is present, whether the cow is able to stand for the operation, the cleanliness and sterility of the environment that the operation is to take place in, whether the cow has had previous operations and whether the uterus can be exteriorised.
If the decision to operate is delayed, the foetus becomes stressed and gets weaker; the level of uterine infection increases and the cow becomes exhausted and depressed. These factors together equate to a higher likelihood of a poor outcome i.e. a dead calf, a dead cow or both.
Once the decision to operate has been made it is important that the cow is adequately restrained, that the caesarean section takes place in a clean and dry environment. There should be adequate lighting and plenty of clean, warm water. Do not bed the area with straw just before the operation as it will create dust, which might cause infection in the cow. Every effort should be made to keep the operation as sterile as possible but it does not exclude the need for antibiotics and anti-inflammatories. Obviously the course of antibiotics should be completed and anti-inflammatories should be used to help minimise swelling and pain, thereby helping the animal’s appetite and demeanour to return to normal as quickly as possible.
Bleeding Calf Syndrome/ Bovine Neonatal Pancytopenia
You might have heard about an entirely new disease in calves called Bleeding Calf Syndrome (official term: Bovine Neonatal Pancytopenia). It affects calves between two days and four weeks old, it equally affects bull and heifer calves and there is no effect of breed or type of farm. There seem to be three different forms of this disease: calves found dead and diagnosed at post-mortem, calves that die on the day that they are seen ill (most typical form) and calves that die within three to four days of showing signs. Affected calves that are alive have a temperature, a dull appearance and have signs of bleeding from various points on the skin. These points can be on the head, the back and on the legs and originate from injections, fly bites or ear tags. Usually the faeces is blood-stained. Interestingly, not many cases have been reported in Wales and it is unclear if there are not many cases in Wales or if there are cases in Wales but these are not recognised or reported. Therefore if you have any suspected cases please contact the surgery.
Christmas and New Year
It is early December now but we would like to let you know we are closing early on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve (1 pm). With the Bank Holidays following Christmas and New Year please make sure that you place any drug orders in advance so that we can provide you with the drugs required and still have drugs in stock as well.
Merry Christmas and a Happy (and profitable) New Year!
OCTOBER NEWS LETTER 2010
FARM FIRST NEWSLETTER October 2010
Neosporosis Testing Programme
Neospora is the most commonly diagnosed cause of abortion in dairy and beef cows. Infected cows may either abort or give birth to infected calves which, when pregnant in later life, may also abort. A recent study has shown the extent of the risk. 460 heifers from 18 farms were blood-sampled at around 6 months old (7.2% were positive) and their subsequent breeding performance assessed. Positive heifers were 3-5 times more likely to abort and 2-3 times more likely not to fail to conceive. The authors considered that the main risk of infection was from an infected dam, although some heifers do get infected during their lives from contaminated dog faeces.
A testing programme for neosporosis has recently been launched by the VLA as part of its ‘Herdsure Cattle Improvement Service’. Blood samples are taken during pregnancy or from calves under 2 weeks of age. Two negative tests are required for the animal to be officially deemed free of infection. If you’ve had neospora diagnosed as a cause of abortion on your farm and would like to find out more about registering with Herdsure please contact us.
Grass Staggers
Just a quick reminder to be on the lookout for signs of grass staggers in cows as autumn approaches, especially if there has been a sudden turn in the weather. Cows cannot store magnesium, so need it on a daily basis, so it is vital that buckets or other sources of magnesium do not run out at this time of year. It’s worth having a bottle of Magniject 9 on the farm to give under the skin to any animal showing typical signs of the disease. If given in the early stages of the disease before symptoms progress, (while the animal is still standing) most cows will make a full recovery.
Toxic (E-Coli) Mastitis
In the past month or so we have seen a significant number of cows with toxic mastitis. The disease has a rapid onset and, despite appropriate treatment, often results in death. Clinical signs are a watery liquid in the affected quarter and the cow may be scouring. They will often be cold to touch, sunken-eyed and wobbly or recumbent. Aggressive, immediate treatment is needed to give any chance of recovery and treatment usually involves intravenous fluids, oral fluids, anti-inflammatories, antibiotics and oxytocin to assist in regular stripping out of the affected quarter.
As the bacteria which cause toxic mastitis are almost always environmental in origin, careful attention to husbandry especially in the dry and calving period should reduce the incidence of the disease. Factors which should be considered include:
• Post milk dipping and try to prevent access to lying areas for 30 minutes post milking, to allow time for the teat orifice to close.
• Ensure cubicles are regularly cleaned and freshly bedded, and that passageways are scraped at least twice a day to reduce contamination of teats from splashing. The use of drying agents in the cubicles e.g. lime, will also be of benefit.
• Clean, Dry, Cool: Attention to drainage and ventilation to reduce humidity, General cleanliness and prevention of overcrowding. Especially important in the calving pen, which should be cleaned and disinfected and freshly bedded between calvings.
• Hygienic administration of dry cow tubes using pre-dip and surgical spirit to clean the teat, and the use of a teat sealant e.g. Orbeseal to minimise entry of environmental bacteria.
VLA Post Mortem Service
The post mortem service provided by the VLA at Carmarthen, Langford and Luddington has proved very useful to many of our clients in recent years. We have been informed that some changes to this service will be in effect from 1st October, 2010. If you wish to take an animal to one of these labs for a PM, you must speak to one of our vets first to discuss the case. We will have to talk to the Duty Vet at the VLA who will decide whether they will carry out the PM at the rate subsidised by DEFRA. This will depend on whether they consider the carcass to be the most suitable way to make a diagnosis. If you just turn up at the lab, the examination may be carried out at full economic cost, which is considerably more expensive. In addition, there will also be a charge for disposal of all carcases which are examined, which until now has been absorbed in to the cost of the PM. This means that a ewe/ram PM will cost £67.10, a calf will cost £94 and a cow will cost £240. These are the subsidised prices and include the examination, all subsequent tests and carcass disposal.
If you have any queries about this or any disease problem that you wish to investigate please contact one of the vets at the surgery.
Ordering of drugs
Please give the practice ample notice (ideally two days) when you would like to place a big order of drugs, so that we have enough time to order the drugs from our wholesaler if needed. Even if you are just picking up a bottle of antibiotic or two’ the girls in the office would appreciate a phone call so they can get it ready for you. This is even more important if you don’t know exactly what you want; they can then speak to a vet to sort which treatment you need or the vet can ring you. Its also useful if you tell us if you want to pay at the time for the discount.
Usk Show
Thanks to everyone who came to visit us at the stand and congratulations to Mr Thomas, Penrhiw Farm, Trelewis, who won the competition and collects £25 in Waitrose shopping vouchers.
Meeting on Fluke and Worm Control
We are holding a meeting on Fluke and Worm Control in Sheep and Cattle at the King of Prussia on Wednesday 27th October at 7 pm. The meeting is sponsored by Norbrook . To give us some idea of numbers please contact the office on 01873 840167 if you wish to attend.
Neosporosis Testing Programme
Neospora is the most commonly diagnosed cause of abortion in dairy and beef cows. Infected cows may either abort or give birth to infected calves which, when pregnant in later life, may also abort. A recent study has shown the extent of the risk. 460 heifers from 18 farms were blood-sampled at around 6 months old (7.2% were positive) and their subsequent breeding performance assessed. Positive heifers were 3-5 times more likely to abort and 2-3 times more likely not to fail to conceive. The authors considered that the main risk of infection was from an infected dam, although some heifers do get infected during their lives from contaminated dog faeces.
A testing programme for neosporosis has recently been launched by the VLA as part of its ‘Herdsure Cattle Improvement Service’. Blood samples are taken during pregnancy or from calves under 2 weeks of age. Two negative tests are required for the animal to be officially deemed free of infection. If you’ve had neospora diagnosed as a cause of abortion on your farm and would like to find out more about registering with Herdsure please contact us.
Grass Staggers
Just a quick reminder to be on the lookout for signs of grass staggers in cows as autumn approaches, especially if there has been a sudden turn in the weather. Cows cannot store magnesium, so need it on a daily basis, so it is vital that buckets or other sources of magnesium do not run out at this time of year. It’s worth having a bottle of Magniject 9 on the farm to give under the skin to any animal showing typical signs of the disease. If given in the early stages of the disease before symptoms progress, (while the animal is still standing) most cows will make a full recovery.
Toxic (E-Coli) Mastitis
In the past month or so we have seen a significant number of cows with toxic mastitis. The disease has a rapid onset and, despite appropriate treatment, often results in death. Clinical signs are a watery liquid in the affected quarter and the cow may be scouring. They will often be cold to touch, sunken-eyed and wobbly or recumbent. Aggressive, immediate treatment is needed to give any chance of recovery and treatment usually involves intravenous fluids, oral fluids, anti-inflammatories, antibiotics and oxytocin to assist in regular stripping out of the affected quarter.
As the bacteria which cause toxic mastitis are almost always environmental in origin, careful attention to husbandry especially in the dry and calving period should reduce the incidence of the disease. Factors which should be considered include:
• Post milk dipping and try to prevent access to lying areas for 30 minutes post milking, to allow time for the teat orifice to close.
• Ensure cubicles are regularly cleaned and freshly bedded, and that passageways are scraped at least twice a day to reduce contamination of teats from splashing. The use of drying agents in the cubicles e.g. lime, will also be of benefit.
• Clean, Dry, Cool: Attention to drainage and ventilation to reduce humidity, General cleanliness and prevention of overcrowding. Especially important in the calving pen, which should be cleaned and disinfected and freshly bedded between calvings.
• Hygienic administration of dry cow tubes using pre-dip and surgical spirit to clean the teat, and the use of a teat sealant e.g. Orbeseal to minimise entry of environmental bacteria.
VLA Post Mortem Service
The post mortem service provided by the VLA at Carmarthen, Langford and Luddington has proved very useful to many of our clients in recent years. We have been informed that some changes to this service will be in effect from 1st October, 2010. If you wish to take an animal to one of these labs for a PM, you must speak to one of our vets first to discuss the case. We will have to talk to the Duty Vet at the VLA who will decide whether they will carry out the PM at the rate subsidised by DEFRA. This will depend on whether they consider the carcass to be the most suitable way to make a diagnosis. If you just turn up at the lab, the examination may be carried out at full economic cost, which is considerably more expensive. In addition, there will also be a charge for disposal of all carcases which are examined, which until now has been absorbed in to the cost of the PM. This means that a ewe/ram PM will cost £67.10, a calf will cost £94 and a cow will cost £240. These are the subsidised prices and include the examination, all subsequent tests and carcass disposal.
If you have any queries about this or any disease problem that you wish to investigate please contact one of the vets at the surgery.
Ordering of drugs
Please give the practice ample notice (ideally two days) when you would like to place a big order of drugs, so that we have enough time to order the drugs from our wholesaler if needed. Even if you are just picking up a bottle of antibiotic or two’ the girls in the office would appreciate a phone call so they can get it ready for you. This is even more important if you don’t know exactly what you want; they can then speak to a vet to sort which treatment you need or the vet can ring you. Its also useful if you tell us if you want to pay at the time for the discount.
Usk Show
Thanks to everyone who came to visit us at the stand and congratulations to Mr Thomas, Penrhiw Farm, Trelewis, who won the competition and collects £25 in Waitrose shopping vouchers.
Meeting on Fluke and Worm Control
We are holding a meeting on Fluke and Worm Control in Sheep and Cattle at the King of Prussia on Wednesday 27th October at 7 pm. The meeting is sponsored by Norbrook . To give us some idea of numbers please contact the office on 01873 840167 if you wish to attend.
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