In this issue
Tackling Sheep Lameness – The Flock Approach
CALF PNEUMONIA… Looking to cut your costs?
OTMS Scheme.

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Tackling Sheep Lameness – The Flock Approach

How long do you spend treating lame sheep? Too long is probably the answer. Many people now just accept that turning sheep over, paring the foot then giving them a shot of antibiotic is just part of sheep farming.
But it doesn’t have to be the case! A whole flock approach to the disease can reduce the workload.
First, it is important to make a diagnosis – that’s where we can help. Scald and Contagious Ovine Digital Dermatitis can appear similar to foot rot but may need different treatment regimes.

Foot Rot

When faced with a flock with footrot, the following regime is very effective.

• Vaccinate all sheep with Footvax. This provides an effective treatment for footrot and long-term protection.
• Trim the feet of all the lame ewes and treat with Alamycin LA (in addition to vaccine).
• Foot bath all the ewes. (3%formulin or 10% zinc sulphate).
• Separate the lame and sound ewes.
• Foot bath the lame ewes every 5 days for 3 treatments. If it’s not practical to separate the lame ewes from the rest of the flock, footbath the whole flock every 5 days.
• Any ewes not responding to treatment should be culled.
• One shot of vaccine will protect the sheep for up to 5 months. Two shots 4-6 weeks apart will give 12 months cover. Thereafter, an annual booster will give continual protection.

Clients using Footvax have reduced their lameness and associated workload dramatically.

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CALF PNEUMONIA… Looking to cut your costs?

As we’re in the pneumonia season once again, it’s time to start considering the best approaches for tackling a disease outbreak...

Calf pneumonia is a huge drain on resources, both physically and financially. An outbreak of pneumonia will, on average, cost you around £82 per infected beef calf and £43 per infected dairy calf. Research also shows that it’s not just the infected calves that cost you money. Despite showing few visible signs, apparently unaffected calves in a group can also suffer reduced daily liveweight gain resulting in increased time to reach finishing weight and reduced lifetime productivity.

We are fortunate in that we now have long acting antibiotics such as Hexasol LA and Draxxin, in our pneumonia armoury. Designed specifically for calf pneumonia, they are long acting (6 and 15 days respectively) and effective against the key bacterial causes of pneumonia.

Length of antibiotic cover is vital, as anyone that has suffered a bout of pneumonia would know! This means fewer relapses, fewer re-treatments and better weight gain.

Draxxin is licensed to be given to ‘in-contact’ animals to help limit the spread of pneumonia and also some of the weight gain losses (i.e. financial losses) encountered as pneumonia pathogens continue to circulate amongst the group.

Ask one of the vets for more information on a cost-effective antibiotic solution to treating a calf pneumonia outbreak.

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OTMS Scheme

We have had confirmation in writing from the RPA that on 1st January, the on farm OTM casualty slaughter scheme will only apply to animals which would be eligible for human consumption and have had an accident. Therefore chronically lame animals and sick animals will have to go on the fallen stock scheme i.e. are worthless.
We have to write the reason for emergency slaughter in detail on the OTM22 forms or payment will not be made.
Cows born before 1st August 1996 will be disposed on the Older Cattle Disposal Scheme (OCDS).

"A downer cow - "accident" or not ?"

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