Farm First Newsletter December 2012

Parasite Forecast

Here is a summary of the NADIS parasite forecast. The full version can be found at

 www.nadis.org.uk .There is a risk of very high levels of liver fluke disease in Scotland, Wales and western England, and probably Northern Ireland, with a significant risk of disease across most of the UK. Localised areas that have remained wet for long periods over the summer and autumn will present a threat to livestock in any part of the country.

Sheep

 Death and disease caused by immature fluke may continue to occur into the winter. Ill-thrift and poor production caused by adult liver fluke reaches peak levels in the winter/spring, but can occur throughout the year. Sheep on fluke-infected farms will most likely need winter treatment to remove adult and immature fluke. Repeat doses are likely to be needed this year if risky pastures are still being grazed through the winter.  It’s very important to use the correct drug for the time of year and likely risk level: triclabendazole is usually the best in the autumn/winter if there is a risk of very recent infection, but not if there is any evidence of resistance to it in the fluke on your farm.

 Cattle

 If cattle were housed 6 weeks ago, a closantel or nitroxynil treatment given now should clear the cattle of infection. Cattle rarely suffer from disease caused by young immature fluke, so delaying the dose is often a practical option.

 Depending on previous treatments and grazing conditions, out-wintered cattle will probably require winter flukicide treatment this year.

PGE IN SHEEP

Watch out for: Poor growth and scour caused by worms in store and replacement lambs

 Worm challenge to grazing livestock in December may still be enough to cause disease or poor growth.  Faecal egg count monitoring of batches of lambs, as recommended by SCOPS, is an invaluable tool in controlling PGE without the overuse of anthelmintics. Decisions about dosing and further sampling can then be made with veterinary advice.

PGE in CATTLE

Prevention: All youngstock should receive a dose of wormer at housing

Prolonged housing and shortage of bedding and forage will lead to increased disease problems in stock this winter

 All youngstock should receive a housing dose of anthelmintic to treat arrested Ostertagia larvae (e.g. a Group 3/ivermectin type wormer). Any youngstock that grazed pastures carrying worms in the autumn and did not receive an anthelmintic at housing may carry Ostertagia infection through the winter. This can cause disease in the late winter/early spring (type 2 disease).

LICE IN CATTLE

Watch out for: Lice and mite infestations which are more common over the winter housing period.

 Calves may be treated for lice at housing with a pour-on Group 3 (ivermectin-type) product, primarily given as a wormer.

 Adult cattle rarely require a housing wormer, so a pyrethroid-type pour-on may be required at housing to control lice (under veterinary advice)

Paramphistomum

There is a heightened risk of acute paramphistomum infection for grazing cattle and sheep for the rest of this year.  Paramphistomum is the rumen fluke which is different to the liver fluke, Fasciola hepatica.  Adult rumen fluke can be found in the rumen of cattle and sheep and are not regarded as a major risk to their health.  However immature paramphistomes can cause a severe diarrhoea in cattle and sheep grazing recently flooded, or continually waterlogged fields. These provide a suitable habitat for the intermediate snail host of this fluke species(the water snail).  Cases were reported last year in sheep in Scotland, and this year there have been two outbreaks of diarrhoea in young grazing cattle in the south west of England.  Deaths occurred in these outbreaks. Suitable treatment is more limited than treatment for the liver fluke, but oxyclosanide has been found to be effective against mature and immature infection. Two treatments five days apart may be required but overdosing must be avoided.

Sterimatic Guns – the ideal Christmas present for busy farmers

We now have Sterimatic injection guns in stock. These systems are designed for safer, cleaner injections which improve animal welfare through less abcesses, and operator safety, as needle stick injuries are less likely. The guns come in two sizes and are priced at £16.45+ VAT (pay at time) for the 6ml bottle mounted syringe and £16.90+VAT( PAT) for the 10ml tube fed syringe.

Household Flea Spray

RIP Fleas Extra is a Reliable, Instant, Protecting and complete solution to rid your home of insect parasites. RIP Fleas has a unique triple action formula, which works instantly to stop fleas. As well as rapid results, RIP Fleas also has the assurance of 12 months efficacy to keep on killing flea larvae in the home. RIP Fleas also kills house dust mites, which can be a common cause of allergies in people and pets. RIP Fleas is the highest volume presentation available and will cover the whole house. (Up to 120 square metres). We now have this product in stock at a cost of £12 (inc vat). It should be used in combination with products such as Frontline, which kill the fleas on the animal, and which we also have in stock.

Christmas Opening Hours

The office will be open for the usual hours over the Christmas and New Year Season, apart from the days listed below. Please get your medicines orders to us in good time, so that we can ensure you have what you need.

Christmas Eve, Monday 24^th December     08.30 – 1pm

Christmas Day, Tuesday 25^th December    Closed

Boxing day, Wednesday 26^th December    Closed    

New Years Eve, Monday 31^st December   08.30 – 1pm

New Years Day, Tuesday 1^st January       Closed

We would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your custom this year and to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy NewYear

Farm First Newsletter November 2012-11-03

£250-300/head Penalty from Pneumonia in Heifer Calves

Dairy heifer replacements are the future of your herds’ success yet unfortunately they are often low on the agenda on busy dairy farms. Data from Alex Bach a dairy researcher in Spain indicates heifer growth and health in early life has a huge impact on the productivity and longevity of animals. In his work Alex has looked at the impact of age at first calving and compared this to milk yield. He has shown if we calve heifers at a younger age they will produce more milk. His work also reveals that the higher the growth rate of calves between days 10 and 65 of age the higher the milk yield in the first 305 days in milk.

Milk recording data sourced from an XL Vet member practice confirms this work. The graph below shows that heifers that calve between 23 and 25 months produce more milk in their combined 1^st and 2^nd lactation. Heifers that calve at the optimal age are also more likely to calve again, milk for longer and be more profitable.

Some work from Northern Ireland provides some reasons as to why animals may produce less milk. Heifer calves treated for a respiratory infection pre-weaning have been found to produce 4% less milk in their first lactation, and up to 8% less in the second, compared with uninfected animals in the same herd. This combined loss  has been calculated to be £247 per head .For pre-weaning protection of dairy heifer calves and minimisation of the consequent losses due to respiratory disease we recommend essential measures to protect calf health including a feed of at least three litres of good quality colostrum within the first six hours from birth, clean and dry bedding, and well-ventilated (but not draughty at calf level), well-drained housing. In addition vaccinations are available to provide additional protection against pneumonia. Please contact us for advice on vaccination of your calves or to arrange for a practical assessment of your housing.

Abortion Questionaires – chance to win £100

A 3rd year vet student at Nottingham University is doing a research project into what prompts farmers to investigate abortions and why they don’t investigate more. We are going to put a few paper copies at reception and it only take 5-10mins to fill in. You must be a beef or dairy farmer who has had pregnant cows on the farm in the last 6 months, but you DO NOT have to have had any abortions
You will get entered into a PRIZE DRAW FOR £100 WORTH OF FARM EQUIPMENT
We would like to know what puts people off investigating, so please participate if you can .

Direct Calls to Vets Mobiles

Please note that if you want to talk to a vet about an animal that may require a visit, that it is safer to ring the office than a vet’s mobile phone. We are always happy to take calls on our mobiles if we can, but if we are at meetings or on days off, they may be switched off, or we may be out of signal and not pick up the message for several hours. We would hate a potentially urgent call to get missed in this way.

Farming Connect

If you have already used up your 5 days of subsidised advice from Farming Connect do not despair – you can now get a further 3 days of mentoring. If you are yet to take advantage of this, there is still plenty of time to get an 80% subsidy on a Whole Farm Plan. These plans can be used for us to investigate and advise on problems such as pneumonia, footrot, mastitis, cattle and sheep lameness, fertility and parasite control. If you have a problem which you would like to get to the bottom of, please speak to one of the vets to see if we could use this source of funding to help you.

TB Tests

Due to changes in the AHVLA computer system, we are now unable to print out TB tests if there have been any reactors or inconclusive reactors. In such cases you now need to contact AHVLA for copies of your test sheets. Also try to book your tests in so that there are several clear days between completion of the test and selling the animals. This will allow time for the test to be added on to the computer system, and for the vet to sign it. Sometimes the system is down and we cannot work as quickly as we would like.

MeetingsJane will be speaking on “Calf Health from Birth to Weaning ” at a Farming Connect meeting at Raglan Golf Club on15th November at 7.30pm.

Newsflash Ubro Red is now back in stock. Please ring us to place your order.

            FARM FIRST NEWSLETTER OCTOBER 2012

Lungworm Risk

Remember that we are now in the lungworm risk period and that cattle of all ages can be at risk. The disease can be very severe, especially if mixed infections with BVD, IBR or pasteurella occur. Young cattle in their first grazing season are most at risk, as they have no immunity, and now they are likely to have no cover from wormers given earlier in the year. Older cattle will have immunity if they were exposed last year, but this cannot be guaranteed, so keep a close eye on them, especially bought-in cattle which may not have come across the parasite previously. Coughing is the most obvious early clinical sign, with cattle developing pneumonia and often dying if untreated. Blood and faeces samples can confirm the diagnosis, and all 3 classes of wormer can be used for treatment. Please contact us if you need advice on diagnosing or treating the condition, or for information on using vaccines to prevent it.

 Gypsum linked to Hydrogen Sulphide (H₂S; slurry gas) poisoning in cattle

AHVLA have received reports of acute neurological disease, including blindness, and deaths in cattle that are very likely to be due to the inhalation of hydrogen sulphide gas from slurry. We would therefore like to raise your awareness of risk factors which result in enhanced hydrogen sulphide production and release.

Hydrogen sulphide is produced by the anaerobic decomposition of sulphur-containing organic matter, which occurs in slurry pits. The risk of hydrogen sulphide poisoning is significantly increased if the slurry is agitated, as this releases the gas and if gypsum (CaSO₄) has been used as a bedding material and added to the slurry.

Poisoning can affect both animals and people.  At low levels the gas is an irritant to eyes and the upper respiratory tract but at higher levels the gas will cause pulmonary oedema, asphyxia and death.  Reports of some cows that have been poisoned by hydrogen sulphide are of acute CCN-like nervous disease followed rapidly by death.  Some cows which survived acute nervous signs have become permanently blind. Although H2S is detectable at low levels from its odour of rotten eggs, this should not be relied upon as a means of detecting the gas because gaseous release can occur very rapidly.   It should also be remembered that the distribution of the gas within the air space will not be uniform.

Gypsum recovered from plasterboard, and waste plasterboard itself, has been used as a bedding material on some cattle farms. The Environment Agency advises that the use of waste gypsum as a bedding material is not allowed without a specific permit and that such permits are very unlikely to be granted.  http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/static/documents/Business/PS_039_Gypsum_in_animal_bedding_March_2012.pdf

Virgin gypsum has in the past been used as a desiccant on a small number of farms. This would have been purchased and used in small quantities as a light dusting not as bedding material.  These smaller quantities are less likely to enhance hydrogen sulphide generation in bedding systems or slurry systems. Backing paper from plasterboard from which the gypsum has been removed can be used as bedding in accordance with a waste exemption.

 We would advise you that the use of waste, recycled gypsum as a bedding material is not advisable and is not legal without a permit. 

New Fresh Cow Product Available

We now have in stock a new fresh cow supplement YMCP Fresh Cow ( £6.58/sachet + VAT) .Despite its name as well as being suitable for freshly calved cows, YMCP Fresh Cow will also benefit cows at all stages of lactation that are off feed, have subnormal rumen function or are recovering from surgery. A significant advantage of this product is palatability which has been put to the test by an XLVets practice. The manufacturers Nutribio claim that at least 8/10 cows will voluntarily drink YMCP Fresh Cow shortly after calving – essential if it is to work as a routine “preventative” product. The vets and their clients were particularly sceptical about this but they report “we were bowled over when more than nine out of ten drank voluntarily. Key to this was making sure that the fluid was presented to the cow as soon as possible after calving.” Voluntary intake from the bucket is best for fresh calved cows and pumping is probably best for sick cows so that a good volume of fluid is administered concurrently.

Data from studies done in the US suggest that dairy herds where all cows are routinely given a single dose of YMCP Fresh Cow at point of calving suffered:

·         Less retained foetal membranes

·         Less metritis

·         Less displaced abomasums

·         Lower culling rates.

·          

Routine Visits

For our clients who have regular routine visits please note that the visits are pre-booked in on a four- week rolling rota, so that you can have the same 1 or 2 vets each time. We are happy to be as flexible as we can to change days or weeks to fit in with seasonal work/holidays, etc, but remember that your following visit will be booked in according to the original rota as if no changes had been made. If your routines are monthly or less frequent Tracy will usually ring you a couple of days before to check.  I hope that this makes sense. If you have any queries about this please contact us at the office.

 Sheep Lameness Meeting

We are hoping to hold an on-farm practical meeting on Managing Lameness in Sheep with vet Kate Hovers. She ran an excellent meeting on one of our clients’ farms recently, and we thought that more of you should have the chance to learn from it, so we have asked her to repeat it. If you are interested, please ring the office and we will contact you when we have a date and venue organised.

Visits to A and E

Farm First Vets have been doing their utmost to keep staff at Nevill Hall A+E unit busy. Recently Jane decided one night that the foreign body she had lodged in her upper arm needed removing (apparently the penetration occurred after she fell over walking up Mount Vesuvius!). Rob was the duty vet that night and had a call to a bleeding calf. Whilst stitching the calf up, it decided to spoil Rob’s natural good looks and kicked him in the jaw resulting in a cut chin. Not being able to stop the bleeding also took himself off to Nevill Hall. He walks in with a big blood stained pad of cotton wool held to his chin only to be confronted by Jane with her swollen elbow. Anyway not one to waste time Rob hastily conducted a practice meeting to while away the hours. We even thought of ringing Natalie or Debbie to come and take some minutes, but didn’t think they would be too impressed!

Farm First Newsletter September 2012


Fluke Forecast

After the wet weather through the spring and summer, there is a high risk of liver fluke this autumn (with the risk period already upon us). In sheep, liver fluke infection causes a variety of signs ranging from sudden death through sick scouring sheep with bottle jaw to poor growth rates. Disease in cattle sometimes presents as weight loss and scour, but more commonly presents as less than optimum production.

At this time of year, the first sign you may see if you have fluke problems in your adult sheep is sudden death. On high risk farms where you are used to the effects fluke infection, you may already be on the lookout. However because of the weather conditions, this year fluke maybe a problem even on farms with little history of liver fluke disease, so be aware. One of the easiest ways to diagnose fluke infection even in sheep that have died suddenly, is to look at their livers. If you have any older/adult sheep that die unexpectedly at this time of year and you are concerned about fluke, it’s worth having a look at their livers for signs of fluke infection. If you are unsure you can bring the liver down to us and we will look at it for you (please ring first to make sure a vet is about to inspect it) We are also able to diagnose liver fluke using faeces samples and blood samples but often for acute fluke a PM on the liver is most cost effective. The abattoir is another source of information on fluke infection on your farm, if your stock are going direct for slaughter. You may have to pester the abattoir for the meat inspectors report for your stock, but it’s well worth it (and not just for information on the presence of fluke damage). As well as using strategic drug treatments, the risk of fluke infection can be reduced by not grazing the wettest, high-risk pastures during high risk periods (usually July to October). Consider temporarily fencing off these areas. If you want any more information about fluke infection, please ring and speak to one of the vets for more information.

Sudden Deaths

We are getting lots of reports of sudden deaths in adult cattle at the moment. Staggers or hypomagnesaemia seems to be the most likely cause in many of them, so ensure that your cows are receiving magnesium in some form every day. This can be in feed, water or by slow- release bolus. Licks and blocks are less reliable, as some cows don’t take them. It’s also a good idea to have bottles of magnesium sulphate to hand to treat any cows which do go down, as death can be rapid without treatment. Clostridial disease is also a common cause of sudden death and this can easily prevented with a vaccine such as Bravoxin 10. Remember that all sudden deaths should be reported to us or AHVLA, so that an anthrax enquiry can be carried out if required. These are free of charge, and should be carried out before a post mortem is performed.

Research into the Social Impact of TB

Cardiff University are currently looking to recruit 4-5 farms in the area to take part in a PhD research study.

The aim of this research will be to examine in more depth the links between policy attempts to eradicate animal disease – specifically bTB, and the impact of animal disease on farmer wellbeing. If you were to take part in the study, it would involve a series of regular meetings with the researcher over a period of 18 months. It is anticipated that the researcher will visit you on your farm every four months for a discussion covering your daily lives and practices on the farm. This should take about 1 hour at each visit. Your involvement will provide valuable information and would be greatly appreciated.

If you would like to be involved or for further details please contact Rob at the office in the first instance.

Meetings

There is an event on 20th September between 7:30 and 9:30 at the Hogs Head Pub near Abergavenny, as part of the HCC Red Meat Supply Chain Training Programme which aims to increase the amount of saleable meat produced by cattle and sheep carcases by focusing on the common issues that affect carcase value and offer practical advice on how they can be avoided. The event will highlight the importance of animal health and welfare and address the common issues that affect carcase value including- disease control and treatment/clean animals – diet and management/handling techniques to reduce bruising/over fat animals

Book your place prior to the meeting by phoning 01970 625050 or by emailing info@hccmpw.org.uk.



Poor Growth in Growing/ Weaned Lambs

Have you been looking at your lambs this year thinking to yourself that they just don’t seem to be doing as well as the ones last year? It’s tempting to put all the blame on the terrible weather. But although this may be part of the problem there are plenty of other common causes to poor growth and ill thrift – most of which we can rectify!

Common reasons for poor growth in lambs are inadequate/poor quality nutrition, intestinal worms and trace element deficiencies. Often it is a combination of several of the above that results in poor growth.

True that the wet weather reduces the dry matter content of the grass, meaning the lambs need to eat more than they would on a dry day and when its wet lambs are likely to be sheltering rather than eating. Managing pasture at this year is vital to ensure optimal grazing and reduce poaching. Ideally you want the sward height to be 4-6cm tall (pre-weaning) and 8 cm (post-weaning). If the pasture is bare, either supplement with alternative forage or concentrates. Intestinal parasites have been a real problem this year. Ill thrift in lambs can be caused by a high burden of worms and also the long term damage to the intestines that the worms can cause. This often causes continued poor weight gains well after the worms have gone. We can carry out a faecal egg count on your lambs (the so called ‘mob test’) to see if worms are a problem. Cost £18 + vat. Trace element deficiencies are another common cause of poor growth rates in growing lambs. In this area we see problems with low levels cobalt, selenium and copper and the wet weather can reduce the levels of these in the pasture further. If you are concerned about a possible deficiency then we can blood sample several lambs from the group to assess trace element status in the whole group. Please contact one of the vets at the surgery if you are concerned about any aspect of growth rates in your lambs or if you would like to carry out a mob test.

Hope to see you all at our stand at the Usk Show. Please feel free to pop along for a cup of tea and a cake (Rob has promised not to add it to your bills!)



The Team at Farm First

Farm First Newsletter July 2012

Milking Routine

Diagram of a quarter of a cow’s udder

Jane has just been on a DairyCo mastitis plan update course and one of the main discussions was on milking routine. When cows enter the parlour they have 1.5 – 3kg of milk in the cistern immediately above the teat, and will let this milk down as soon as the cluster goes on. The remainder of the milk is in the alveoli where it is produced, and the oxytocin and the milk let down reflex are required for us to harvest this milk. If the teats are not stimulated properly before the cluster goes on, the cow will not let milk down from the alveoli and after a minute or so the milk in the cistern runs out.At this point, no milk will flow and this has the same effect as leaving a cluster on at the end of milking i.e. teat end damage. This increases the risk of mastitis and high cell counts. To prevent this, cow should be prepared in batches of 5 (or up to 8), and whatever teat preparation is done, it should be done in the order of cow 1-5 each time. e.g. spray cows 1-5, wipe and foremilk 1-5, apply cluster 1-5. Although this may take longer to carry out, it may speed up milking as cows let down their milk faster, can increase yields as more milk is let down, and reduces the risk of mastitis.

Sheep Abortion Vaccines

Now is the time of year to be thinking about vaccinating your replacements against Enzootic Abortion and Toxoplasma. We now have Cevac Chlamydia Abortion Vaccine in stock, at the following prices: 50 dose pack - £114.31 (includes 10% pat discount) = £2.28/dose, 20 dose pack - £50.34 (includes 10% pat discount) = £2.51/dose. There is a free gun for purchases of 50 doses and above, and larger discounts are applied if over 300 doses are ordered. Toxovax costs £84.24 for 20 doses (PAT) or £210.55 for 50 doses. We have to order this in advance and it only has an 8 day shelf life, so be ready to use it when you order it. If you have any questions about vaccinating sheep for abortion please ring us.

Sheep Worming News.

We will shortly be participating in the XLVets Grassroots Worming Campaign and Farming Connect have also provided some funding to enable us to discuss sheep worming and resistance issues with our clients, and carry out some testing. If you are interested in this please contact us at the surgery. The 2012 SCOPS leaflet listing all anthelmintics available for sheep, can now be downloaded from the SCOPS website. http://www.scops.org.uk/alerts-detail.php?AlertID=13

We have an offer on Zolvix at present. Buy your Zolvix before 31.7.2012 and we will give you an extra 5% off the cash price for any quantity of the wormer you purchase

Normal cash price for 1 litre of Zolivix=£147                    Offer price     £139.23

Normal cash price for 2.5litres of Zolvix=£368                 Offer price    £348.08

Normal cash price for promo pack(2x1l + gun/backpack)  Offer price  £321.50

Dose of Zolvix for 25kg lamb = 2.5ml (cost =35p/lamb)

Malvern Sheep Event

NSA Sheep 2012 will be staged at the Three Counties Show Ground, Malvern on Wednesday 4^th July. The event, the largest of its kind for the UK sheep industry, will be building on its previous successes with more than 300 exhibitors and over 9,000 farmer visitors, along with international representatives from the major sheep producing countries. This year’s theme is sustainable intensification. If you go, have a look at the XLVets stand – they usually have some interesting material, and Rob will be there at times during the day, so go and ask him some testing questions.

Sheep Health and Welfare Conference - November 21, 2012

Delivering innovation with practical application for the farm at Worcester Warriors, Sixways Stadium, Worcester.This one day conference is designed to bring together farmers, industry advisers and researchers to explore the future of sheep health and welfare and the current options available.  For further details email: shwconference@nationalsheep.org.uk  

Newsflash -Visit Charges

We have decided to revamp and simplify our visit charges. Our cheapest journey band charge will now apply to many more of you, and even people who live further away will benefit from a reduction in visit charges eg. a visit to Treharris is now £31.20 plus vat.  Please ring in and speak to one of the office staff if you want to clarify what your new visit charge is.

Call for anecdotes

If you read last month’s newsletter, you will notice that several of Jane’s recent misadventures were related. I am trying to redress the balance, so if any of you have any little stories about the vets that you would like to share (especially about Rob) please share them with me (jane.anscombe000@googlemail.com). All information will be held in complete confidence - until publication in the newsletter. I look forwards to hearing from you.

Farm First Newsletter June 2012

Farm First Newsletter – May 2012


IBR Vaccination Offers

For those of you who didn’t make it to our meeting last week, there has been new research on IBR vaccines which has shown that the best protection for herds is given by following the protocol below:

1st dose - IBR Marker live (either IM or intranasal)

2nd dose – (within 6 months) IBR marker inactivated (IM). The inactivated dose is then repeated annually. To get the best protection all animals (heifers and cows) should have the same course of vaccines, with heifers started before they go to the bull.



The usual (pay at time) prices for these vaccines are:



IBR Marker live 10 dose £25.31-£2.53/dose,

IBR marker live 50 dose £126.-£2.52/dose

IBR marker inactivated £25.19- £2.51/dose.



Pfizer, one of the companies that makes an IBR vaccine has some offers available on the above vaccines which reduce the price significantly, so if you are interested please phone the practice to discuss



Calvings - When to Call the Vet

There are unfortunately no fail-safe rules that indicate that a calf will have a normal delivery, but here are some rules that might help decision making. The calf may be too big to deliver if:

1. The body of the calf will not enter the pelvic canal, especially if the bone of the calf is pressing against the bone of the cow.

2. The front legs are forced to cross over as they enter the pelvic canal, due to the size restriction of the canal.

When coming forwards, it is a good sign if there is room to put your hand above the calf’s head as it enters the pelvic canal.

If the calf is coming forwards, it’s best if two people pull on a rope, pulling one leg at a time. If BOTH legs can be pulled out so that more than a hands breadth above the fetlock are sticking out of the vagina, then the calf should come (using the jack).

If the calf is coming backwards, if both back legs can be pulled out by two men so that a hand’s breadth above the hock is visible outside the cow’s vagina, then it should come (always check other signs as well).

Other things to check:

• If coming backwards, check that the calf’s tail is tucked down between its legs and not sticking upwards.

• If the soft tissue ring of the cervix is catching on the calf (usually on the head if coming forwards), see if you can push it back over the head with your hand, rather than just pulling against it.

• If unsure, do not risk the cow going down in the crush.

• For big calves coming forwards, rotate the calf 45 degrees after the chest has been delivered, to reduce the chance of the calf’s hips getting stuck in the pelvic canal.

• Calving may be easier when the cow is lying down.

• Use plenty of lubricant.



Remember a healthy non-traumatised calf with good vitality should;

a )be active and able to lift his head within a few minutes of birth

b) should be able to achieve sternal recumbancy within 5 minutes(sit up on his chest)

c) should be attempting to stand within 15 minutes and standing within 1 hour

d) suckling should commence within 2 hours(and ideally sooner!)



Ram Vasectomies

A vasectomised (teaser) ram can be used to bring your ewes into season before your tups go out. Not only does this enhance fertility it can also be a great way of tightening your lambing period. The ewe flock is isolated for at least one month from sight, smell and hearing of rams or wethers, after which a vasectomised ram is put with the flock for a period of 12 days. The ram is then removed and replaced by normal rams. Provided the ewes were on the point of cycling, this results in a close compacted lambing, usually in two peak periods some six to eight days apart.

Once a ram is vasectomised he should not be used for at least 8 weeks as he may still be fertile, so if you want a ram to be vasectomised for use this year, we should be operating on him in the very near future. Vasectomies can be performed on farm or at the practice. The cost is £74 + vat, with significant reductions for multiple vasectomies

Farming Connect

Just a reminder that if you register your farm with Farming Connect you can get 80% funding for up to 5 days consultancy on your farm. Rob, Andrew and Jane are all registered consultants with the scheme and so far our clients have used the grants to fund DairyCo mastitis and lameness investigations and Beef and Sheep Health Plans. We are keen to make the most of this funding while it is available, so if there is an issue on your farm that you would like to get to the bottom of, please give us a ring to discuss how we can help. It’s worth just registering with Farming Connect even if you are in no hurry to access the funding, because if you hit a disease issue for which we could utilise the funding, it speeds up the application process considerably.

Meetings

Rob will be speaking at a meeting on June 13th at the Hogs Head at 7.30 pm. The subject of the meeting is “Worming Strategies for Beef and Sheep Farmers”.

Breaking Practice News

Andrew has just announced that he and his wife Ana are expecting their third baby. I know you will all wish to join us in congratulating them both! We think they might be going for a rugby team. Robert has decided that he obviously isn’t working Andrew hard enough so if any of you have any castrating or dehorning(especially of adult animals)you would like done, please could you ring in and we will get Andrew to come along do the necessary(that should sort him out!-Rob)

Farm First Newsletter April 2012.

Schmallenburg Update
Schmallenberg virus (SBV) infection has been identified on 235 farms in GB. Twenty five of the positive cases have been diagnosed in cattle, 210 in sheep, and none to date in other species such as goats, camelids or deer. Currently, SBV infection has only been identified in areas predicted to be at risk of midge incursion from Northern Europe during summer / autumn 2011. The possibility that domestic (local) midges may have transmitted SBV within the affected areas cannot be ruled out according to AHVLA. The figures are correct as of 30 March 2012. The virus causes stillbirths and deformities of foetuses. It is almost certainly transmitted by biting insects, so control is problematic. A stringent fly control policy will be the best way (though by no means foolproof) to try to reduce transmission via the insect population. The main fly control products have an 8-week period of persistency, and ideally they should be applied earlier than normal this year and reapplied at the 8-week intervals throughout the spring and summer.
We would urge all producers where a suspicious case arises, to take advantage of the confidential reporting service offered by AHVLA. Information on the current disease situation in Great Britain is published on the AHVLA website at: http://www.defra.gov.uk/ahvla/news Please contact us at the surgery for more advice.

Milk Fever Prevention and Bovikalk Offer
Clinical milk fever is thought to affect between 4-9% of the UK’s dairy cows, while evidence suggests the subclinical form (hypocalcaemia) can affect up to 39%. It is also seen regularly in beef cows, especially in older cows originating from a dairy herd. This need not be the case however as milk fever is preventable. Clinical cases serve as an indicator that other cows in the herd could be suffering at a sub-clinical level. Hypocalcaemia has numerous links to health and productivity post-calving e.g. milk fever increases the risk of dystocia by three times and increases the risk of mastitis in the following lactation by eight times.
Clinical and subclinical milk fever can, to a large extent, be prevented through dietary management and nutrition. However there are situations or cases where the risk of milk fever is increased. High yielding multiparous dairy cows and those with a previous history of milk fever are counted amongst this at risk group. For these individuals oral calcium can be supplied prior to the risk period. Bovikalc® is an oral calcium supplement bolus containing calcium chloride and calcium sulphate. Each bolus provides 42g of available calcium, in rapid release and slow release forms, as well as having an acidifying effect to help the cow to mobilise her own calcium reserves.
How to use Bovikalc to reduce the risk of milk fever in “at risk” cows: Around the time of calving: Give the first bolus immediately prior to calving, give the second bolus immediately after calving and follow up with 2 further boluses at 12-15 hour intervals as necessary .
Following treatment of a clinical case: Give the first bolus 2-3 hours after calcium injection, give the second bolus 12-15 hours later.
Bovicalk boluses should be given with the Bovikalk metal applicator, and there is currently an offer on Bovikalc Farmer Spring Pack. These contain 6 packs of 4 boluses and a FREE METAL BOLUS GUN. Cost for one of these Bovikalc Farmer Packs is £110.81+VAT (pay at time or contract price).These packs are limited in number, so reply quickly to take advantage of the offer.


Fluid Therapy in Lambs
Unlike scouring calves, lambs are rarely given oral rehydration therapy (ORT). The benefits of ORT are replacement of electrolytes lost in diarrhoea and reversal of acidosis, both of which contribute to deaths in these lambs. There is now a product, REHYDION, which can be added to milk fed to lambs and the milk will still clot. Adding 2ml per 100 ml of milk (20 ml/litre) helps maintain electrolytes and acid-base balance, whilst the milk provides the fluid and energy requirements. One bottle contains 320 ml, enough for 160 administrations. It is easy to use and costs less than 10p per dose. As well as for scouring lambs the product can also be used in the treatment of watery mouth.

Risk of Staggers
Just a reminder that we're coming up to the peak risk period for Staggers, and that cows should have a constant, daily supply of magnesium at turnout. It is also useful to have a couple of bottles of magnesium sulphate to hand in case any cows are affected, as rapid deaths can occur. A bottle should be given under the skin in several sites to allow for faster absorption, whilst you are awaiting the arrival of a vet.

Dates for Your Diary
There will be a talk on IBR for our dairy clients at 12.30 pm on Thursday 26th April, at the King of Prussia. Please contact the surgery to book your place.

Rob and Jane will be doing a talk for Farming Connect on “The Responsible Use of Medicines”at The Huntsman, Shirenewton 7.30 pm on the 19th of April.

Rob will be doing a talk for Farming Connect at the Hogshead Pub on the 13th June on Worming Strategies for Beef and Sheep(7.30pm start).

For any goat owners there will be Health and Welfare Workshop at the Royal Welsh Showground on Wednesday 2nd May .Please contact Sian Lloyd on 01970 617309 or Lynne Holmes on 01522 751374 or email sian.lloyd@adas.co.uk

***************************Newsflash ***************************

Free coccidiosis testing for dairy calves and lambs. Please contact the surgery for details.

Practice Organisation
I would like to inform all our clients that from the beginning of April Jane will become a shareholder and director of Farm First Veterinary Services Ltd. Jane and I have worked on and off together for several years now and I hope that together we will continue to grow and improve the business. You may notice over the coming months that Jane becomes more and more grumpy, though I hope (for her sake) that the stress doesn’t make her as bald as me! As part of her preparation for management, she has also recently attended an assertiveness course, so watch out you lot!
Rob

FARM FIRST NEWSLETTER MARCH 2012

NSAIDS-Pain-Killing and Anti-Inflammatory Drugs
These drugs have many uses in farm animals and we have several products licensed the cattle in stock. Unfortunately none of these products are licensed sheep, but they are widely used and the prescribing cascade. At this time of year ewes will benefit from treatment with NSAIDs after difficult lambings, or after having prolapses replaced. The reduction in swelling and discomfort will improve feed intake and therefore milk production, and help mothering behaviour. There is also evidence that one of the drugs, Flunixin, helps in the treatment of Twin Lamb Disease, although the mechanism for this is not known. NSAIDs are also beneficial in the treatment of mastitis in both cattle and sheep, and in the treatment of pneumonia. Rapid administration of NSAIDs as soon as the first signs of pneumonia are seen will help to reduce lung damage. The other main area where these drugs are indicated is in cases of lameness, when the reduction in pain will help to maintain mobility and feed intakes, and therefore production.
DRUG Dose Rate Cost /dose (75kg) Milk Withold
CATTLE CATTLE
FLUNIXIN 2ml/45kg i/v daily for 3-5-d(or IM ) £0.57 36 hrs






METACAM 1ml/40kg s/c single dose £1.86 (7days IM)





RIMADYL 1ml/35kg s/c single dose £1.84 120 hrs



Please note that as none of the products is licensed for use in sheep a standard withdrawal of 28 days for meat withhold must be applied. We advise using the same dose for sheep as you would in cattle and we are assuming the length of action is similar

Casualty stock
With the main lambing season about to begin dealing, with casualty stock inevitably becomes more commonplace. Treating casualty stock humanely is a legal requirement and in addition dealing with cases sensitively and responsibly is an essential part of maintaining the image of our industry. It is worth bearing in mind that Spring is a time when the public start to get out into the countryside more and in many cases we have casual labour helping out with lambing duties that may be entirely new to farming activities. Please follow this link to a very useful document produced by the Sheep Veterinary Society http://www.sheepvetsoc.org.uk/docs/Casualtysheep.pdf and remember that if dispatch is necessary then this should be done as humanely and compassionately as possible, with carcasses being kept secure and out of contact until disposal.

Leptavoid –H Boosters
Just a reminder that in herds which vaccinate against leptospirosis, cattle should be given their annual boosters before turnout in the spring. Any youngstock which have not been previously vaccinated require two doses to be given four weeks apart, and all replacements that are likely to be served this year should receive these two doses prior to turnout

FOOT TRIMMING COURSE
We are planning to hold a three day herdsman's trimming course in the near future on one of our clients’ farms. If you are interested in attending this course (or in hosting the event), please contact Andrew at the surgery for further details. Farming Connect grants of 80% will be available to cover the cost of the course fees.

Ram and Bull Fertility Testing
I’m sure ram and bull care is not top of your list of priorities at the moment as calves and lambs are hitting the floor with a vengeance, but just a reminder that Farming Connect are subsidising the cost of these checks to the value of £70/test for bulls and £50/test for rams. Every famer is entitled to one subsidised test per ram and bull per year for each registered CPH number you have. All you have to do is have the test done and then send a copy of the invoice in to Farming Connect and the money will be refunded.
Various studies have shown that 20% plus of bulls are subfertile or infertile. If a bull is subfertile then this will obviously have a marked effect on your calving spread even if you rotate bulls. In rams and bulls we examine them to ensure that they are healthy and there are no abnormalities of the important bits. We then electroejaculate them to get a semen sample which is examined under the microscope. In bulls, the test is relatively easy to carry out, we only require a good crush (one where we can access the bulls sheath) and a nearby shed with electricity to set up the microscope to examine the sample. The whole process only takes about 45 mins to an hour and initial results are available straight away. The cost is £80(+ vat) for the first bull examined and £60 for any additional bull tested.
A similar situation occurs with rams, though it’s not so easy to identify the problem ram as rams often work in groups. Fertility testing in rams involves a trip to the surgery and is similar though obviously much more straight forward. The cost is £55 for 1 ram and then £40 for each additional ram.
Hopefully if ram and bull fertility is up to spec then this will help you to have even more lambs and calves to contend with next year! Please phone and speak to Robert at the surgery if you are interested.

MEETINGS
Rob will be giving a talk on BVD and Johnes Disease in the Beef Herd organised by Farming Connect.. The meeting will be held at 7.30pm on Wednesday 14th March at the Star Inn in Llansoy.
On 21 March the Dairy Development Centre has organised a specialist event for dairy farmers on Johnes disease, which will be held at Cardiff City Stadium from 11 am until 3 pm. For further information please telephone 01554 748592.

TB Tests
AHVLA have informed us that they will be carrying out field audits at TB tests in Wales in the near future, to ensure that tests are being carried out according to official instructions. It is likely that AHVLA vets will turn up unannounced at some of our tests in the next few weeks.

Farm First Newsletter February 2012
Treatment of Hypothermia in Lambs
Hypothermia results from a combination of heat loss and starvation. Adequate shelter should be provided outdoors, and indoor pens should be draught-free. Severely affected lambs have an arched back, hollow flanks and a lowered head, with a rectal temperature below 37 °C. If less than 5 hours old these lambs can be dried, warmed to 37°C, fed colostrum, warmed to 39°C and returned to the ewe. However, if they are over 5 hours old they will need an intraperitoneal injection of 20% glucose at a rate of 10ml/kg to help them recover. After this they should be dried, warmed and fed as for the younger lambs.
For further information in this subject, including how to perform intraperitoneal injections, please contact us at the surgery on 01873 840167 or call in for a fact sheet.

Managing the Calf in Cold Weather
Calves which are underfed and energy deficient are at high risk of developing common diseases such as scours and pneumonia. This is because at low or negative growth rates the immune system will no be maturing rapidly enough to provide adequate protection from infectious disease. Calves can be body condition scored (BCS) by feeling for the amount of tissue covering the bones of the back and pelvis. If the BCS of healthy calves 2-3 weeks old is less than a newborn calves, it is likely that they have been energy deficient due to inadequate feeding.
Calves need energy for both maintenance and growth, and energy requirements increase significantly in a cold environment. The Lower Critical Temperature (LCT) is the environmental temperature at which animals start using extra energy to maintain normal body temperature. Calves under three weeks old have an LCT of 20°C, below this they will be using energy to keep warm and when temperatures drop to the 0°C they require 40% more energy for maintenance.
The volume of milk required for maintenance increases significantly as temperatures decline. A calf fed 2l twice-daily at 16°C will gain weight, but below 4°C it will start losing weight. Therefore, more milk must be given during cold weather particularly to younger calves which are only consuming small amounts of solid feed. The energy content of milk depends on the level of milk solids it contains, and the total quantity of milk solids that is fed can be increased in the following ways:

• increase the volume of milk given at each feed or add an extra daily feed
• increase the dry matter content of the milk e.g. mix milk powder at 160 g/l rather than 125 g/l
• feed milk from cows for the first four days after calving to the youngest calves
• use a milk replacer with adequate fat content (20%) in winter
• larger calves require more energy than smaller calves, so feed accordingly
The energy requirements of calves can be reduced with well-designed housing. It is important to strike a balance between providing good ventilation and avoiding excessive air movements at calf level. Provide clean dry straw so that they can "nest" down into it, as body heat is lost rapidly when lying on a damp, poorly-drained bed. Sick calves require additional energy to overcome infection.

Metabolic Profiling of Ewes
If sheep are blood sampled in the last 2-3 weeks before lambing to check their energy/protein and mineral status, the feeding of ewes in the last weeks can be adjusted to better suit energy requirements and avoid problems The BHB levels in groups of 5 ewes carrying singles, doubles and triplets should be sampled to allow increases (or decreases) in concentrates in the last weeks before lambing to be accurately defined. This results in more economic use of concentrates, optimum birth weights and good lamb viability, and allows early identification of ewes at risk of Twin Lamb Disease. Protein feeding in late pregnancy has a significant effect on milk production and therefore lamb health and growth rate. Blood testing will monitor both the longer-term aspects of protein nutrition, and the more immediate question of rumen degradable protein shortages, which are increasingly common in housed sheep.
Blood sampling should be done 2-3 weeks before lambing is due to start so that dietary changes can be made in time. The lab. Fees for testing up to 20 ewes are only £85(including post, packing and interpretation). Magnesium and copper tests are included in this package.

Schmallenberg Virus
This virus has now been reported on four sheep farms in Norfolk, Suffolk and East Sussex. Congenital defects have been seen in aborted and newborn lambs, calves and goat kids. Affected animals have had twisted joints, limbs and neck and are usually born dead or die soon afterwards. Some animals have shown signs of in coordination, paralysis and dullness due to fluid filled sacs in the brain. In adult cattle, fever and reduced milk yield of up to 50% for a week has been reported, in some cases with severe diarrhoea. If you have animals with the suspicious signs on your farm please contact us at the surgery or AHVLA.

Orf Vaccine
If Orf is a problem on your farm now is the time to consider vaccination. We have been informed by the manufacturers of the vaccine, Scabivax Forte, that there are no supply problems this year. The vaccine should only be used if there is a history of Orf on the farm. The vaccine is administered by a special applicator which scratches the skin and injects. A scab should be formed at the site of vaccination within 14 days – if not then they may have not been vaccinated correctly.
In an infected flock, pregnant ewes should be vaccinated not less than 7-8 weeks prior to lambing. If only baby lambs are vaccinated there is a small risk of spread to un-vaccinated ewes. If Orf is a problem in older lambs they can be vaccinated at turnout, or even later. Immunity lasts 6-8 months so the flock should then continue to be vaccinated once a year. The vaccine costs £27.27 + VAT for 50 doses (includes 10% pay at time discount).

Alamycin LA
If you have not vaccinated your ewes against Enzootic Abortion and have had the problem diagnosed in your flock, Alamycin LA can be given between day 90 and 120 of gestation to reduce the number of abortions and shedding of the organism. The dose is 1ml/10kg and a 100ml bottle costs £11.54 +VAT. There is a 10% discount for payment at the time, with larger discounts applied for the purchase of greater volumes.

Farm First Newsletter January 2012
ARE COWS THIN BECAUSE THEY ARE LAME, OR LAME BECAUSE THEY ARE THIN?
So which do you think is correct?! A recently reported study by Bicalho and colleagues from Cornell used ultrasound to measure the thickness of the digital cushion, which is the pad of fat between the pedal bone above and the horn of the sole below.


They scanned 500 cows and found at high correlation between
1. the fat pad thickness and the presence of sole ulcers and white line abscesses (thin fat pad gave more disease)
2. fat pad thickness and body condition score – thin cows had thinner fat pads
3. fat pad thickness and stage of lactation. By 120 days the fat pad was at its thinnest (as were most cows) and hoof lameness at its highest.

This does not mean that changes around calving are no longer thought to be important. The poorer suspension (and subsequent increased movement) of the pedal bone inside the hoof just before and just after calving increases the risk of coriosis and this leads to the subsequent production of defective horn. A thinner fat pad exacerbates these effects.
Conclusions – take extra care over the comfort of your cows around calving (and yes, thin cows get more lameness!). We at last seem to be getting away from the obsession by some that lameness is primarily a dietary problem (although it is accepted that acidosis can lead to low biotin and subsequently increased lameness). In fact the authors concluded that diet can at most be only a contributory factor in most herds, although they did acknowledge that high yielding cows would lose more weight, lose more thickness of the fat pad and then develop more lamenesss.
Use of Elastrator Rings in Calves
Recent submissions to AHVLA regional laboratories indicate that the illegal practice of applying rubber elastrator rings to the scrotum, particularly of purchased, entire calves aged over seven days, is occurring. Legislation prohibits the application of a rubber ring or other device to constrict the flow of blood to the scrotum of cattle older than seven days of age. The Veterinary Surgeons Act (1966) allows persons over the age of 18 (17 for supervised animal husbandry students) to carry out castrations on calves less than two months of age using for example a burdizzo. Only a veterinary surgeon can carry out castrations in calves over two months of age and an anaesthetic must be used. In all cases the procedure used must minimise the pain and suffering to the animal, be performed in good hygiene conditions, and in accordance with best practice.
In addition to the practice being illegal, it is likely that the calves which had the elastrator rings applied at greater than seven days of age would have been subjected to prolonged discomfort which would have reduced growth rates, and increased their susceptibility to disease.

New bovine and ovine illness in Germany and Holland
What appears to be a new virus has been discovered in the North Rhein Westphalia district of the west of Germany, and in Holland. It has been named Schmallenberg virus after the small town where it was first discovered.The virus was originally seen in cattle, from August to October, when it caused a moderate fever, with temperatures up to 40 degrees centigrade, inappetance, loss of condition, diarrhoea in some cases, and a drop in milk yield of up to 50%. All the cattle recovered, BUT there is a considerable sting in the tale in that in the last few weeks, many of the affected cattle have either aborted, or had stillborn calves. Typically these calves have limb deformities, stiff limbs, crooked necks, sometimes a twisted spine, or hydrocephalus. Numerous calves born alive to affected cows have failed to live longer than a day or two. They have severe brain damage and appear to be “Dummies”, which are unable to suck.
At the same time, there have been numerous reports of similarly deformed lambs being born, mainly in Holland, again put down to Schmallenberg disease. Research is at a very early stage and the virus has yet to be isolated, but DNA sequencing shows it to be an orthobunyavirus. In Australia, the best known of these viruses is spread by midges, but it is yet to be shown whether this will happen in this case.
If you have any lambs or calves born with these typical deformities, AHVLA are interested in sampling affected animals. Equally, if you're experiencing unusually high levels of abortion in either cattle or sheep please contact us to discuss how we should investigate, for either this or more common causes of the problem.MeetingsFarming Connect are sponsoring a meeting to be held on 19 January at 7:30 pm. Subject of the evening's discussions is “Lameness in sheep, the causes, treatment and prevention”. Please contact us nearer the time for details of the venue.
Anyway hope you all had a good Xmas and wishing you all a prosperous 2012!