CARRICKVETS.ie
December 2012
Carrick Veterinary Centre,
Unit 11, Stedfast Industrial estate, Carrickmacross,
Co. Monaghan.
Tel. 042 9663152/9661384.
HERD HEALTH +
Pat O Byrne a nutritionist from Nutrobio gave a talk on negative energy
before and after calving, subclinical milk-fever and minerals in dairy cows. Pat is
helping me to deal with nutritional problems in my dairy herds. Co op Animal
Health is the regional distributor of Nutro-bio products. John Cumiskey is the
regional agent. The talk demonstrated to all those present that many have a lot
to learn about dry cow and early post calving cow management. The aim of the
talk is to raise awareness of the issues to dairy farmers and set up a strategy to
solve them.
Pat outlined that metabolic diseases have a cost on farms. In Ireland there
is approximately 5% of clinical milk-fever and a further 5% incidence of
retained afterbirths. Based on these figures this will cost €4,800 in a 100 cow
herd. It is important that farmers know their incidence of milk-fever and
retained afterbirths. A milk-fever rate of 5% could equate to a 33% rate of subclinical milk-fever in the same herd. The range of sub-clinical milk-fever could
be from 20% to 60% on dairy farms that I am visiting. Cows with sub-clinical
milk-fever at calving have a greater incidence of retained afterbirths. They have
a lower dry matter intake and slip deeper into negative energy after calving.
Sub-clinical milk-fever is the gate-way disease of other metabolic diseases in the
herd leading to greater incidences of mastitis, ketosis, fatty liver disease, LDAs
and reduced fertility. Cows are more prone to mastitis if they have calcium
deficiency as their teat sphincter is not closed. These costs are real and in my
opinion may be in the 1000s on individual farms. The jersey cow is the most
prone to milk-fever.
Pat discussed potash and nitrate levels in grass and grass silage. Too
much potash in the diet of the dry cow increases incidence of sub-clinical milkfever. Autumn grass is higher in potash and nitrates. Too much potash varies the
cation/anion ratio. This can lead to high incidences of milk-fever in autumn
calving herds at grass. The cation and anion ratio can be measured by the DCAD
test.
There are many normal physiological changes in the dry period of the
pregnant cow. The cow has a developing foetus which grows 60% larger in the
last trimester. The udder is changing in anticipation of milk production. Dry
cows normally reduce their dry matter intake in the last 3 weeks before calving,
80% in the last week. This can lead to negative energy before calving. This
causes mobilisation of fat reserves leading to ketosis and fatty liver around
calving. Negative energy before calving can increase incidence of retained
afterbirth and reduce the immune response in the cow.
Pat discussed the level of vitamins and minerals in dry cow bagged
minerals. He wanted cows to consume 120g of minerals daily. He wanted up to
6,000 I.U. of selenium and 4,000 I.U. of Vitamin D in the mineral. Vitamin D is
important in calcium metabolism in the cow and can be synthesised in the cow
with direct sunlight. He was concerned that last summer was poor and cows
needed more vitamin D. Vitamin E and selenium is inter-related. The cow can
synthesise a molecule of Vitamin E from 2 molecules of selenium. Vitamin E is a
key anti-oxidant and is important for a healthy immune system in the cow.
Selenium deficiency can lead to increased incidence of retained after-birth and
poorer immune responses in cows.
Pain relief to cows at calving is important. It is reasonable to assume that
a cow with a hard calving is in pain. This cow has bruised tissues internally. The
cow is in stress and has a reduced feed intake. When pain relief is given cows are
less sore and more mobile.
The interaction of sub-clinical milk-fever, negative energy before calving
and mineral deficiencies in the cow can suppress feed intake, impair immune
response, increase incidence of mastitis and lead to other metabolic diseases.
The immune system of the cow is impaired by sub-clinical milk-fever,
negative energy before calving and selenium deficiency. You can be sure that in
higher yielding cows the immune systems of these cows is challenged by these
factors individually and most likely all three together.
Pat advised farmers to do their own database specific to their farm. He
said dairy farmers need to think like cereal farmers and get to know their soils.
Farmers should get their silage analysed. Find out the DMD and NDF of the dry
cow silage. Know the DCAD of the dry cow feed.
What can our practice do for you?
We can blood sample dry cows and measure the calcium levels at the
point of calving. The data will indicate the level of calcium deficiency in the dry
cows. We can advise you with Pat’s help how to remedy the situation.
We can measure energy levels before calving. We can blood sample dry
cows and check for negative enrrgy. Results will indicate the level of negative
energy before calving. We can with Pat’s help, advice you on how to remedy the
situation.
We can blood sample dry cows and measure selenium, iodine, copper,
calcium and magnesium levels. Results can guide you on which dry cow mineral
to use.
Vitesel provides selenium short-term. We regularly give cows vitesel four
weeks prior to calving. 30% of the vitesel is rapidly metabolised. We have
procured barium selenate. It is given around Christmas in spring calving herds.
Barium selenate is a long acting provider of selenium. It is a better product for
dry cows than vitesel. Vitesel is great for calves shortly after birth.
All of the above may appeal to some dairy farmers. It is important
however that all my dairy farmers know that there is a framework in place that
they can use in the future if necessary. Dairy farmers with poor fertility should
also be interested in this. In my opinion all of the above is the bible of dairy
medicine. It poses challenges for our practice. How do we provide this service to
our customers in a clear and coherent way.
WHAT SHOULD I DOSE MY HOUSED CATTLE WITH?
The priority for dosing cattle is to kill worms and liver fluke. Rumen
fluke is not on every farm. Rumen fluke requires a water snail as an
intermediate host. The snail requires either a river flowing through the farm or
water logged fields during the summer.
Choose a wormer at housing that kills type 2 ostertagia. Levamisole
containing drugs such as levafas diamond do not kill type 2 ostertagia and should
not be used as the final worming dose. Ivermectins kill type 2 ostertgia. Cattle
are generally 6-7 weeks housed at this time. Closamectin kills worms and 90% of
liver fluke. Trodax kills 90% of liver fluke from 7 weeks housed. There is no
known resistance to trodax. Zanil kills rumen fluke and adult liver fluke. It is
primarily sold for it’s rumen fluke cover as cattle must be housed 10 weeks to
kill adult fluke.
Closamectin pour on and trodax is best given to cattle now as the final
housing dose. If anyone used ivermectin and tribex two weeks after housing this
does not apply. Fasinex should only be given to dairy cows at drying off. There is
a resistance issue with fasinex in sheep this is not proven in cattle. However it is
prudent to restrict the usage of fasinex to dry dairy cows to minimise resistance
in the future.
Zanil has been in short supply nationwide this year. We have been very
lucky to order a lot early. Many vets and farm shops weren’t as lucky. We were
down to our last 5 gallons when we got 40 gallons more on the 1st December.
Replenishment of our stocks is not a certainty at the moment.
Ivomec Super given at 10% extra will kill worms, late mature fluke and
adult fluke. Ivomec Super is better than it’s copies. There are scientific papers to
prove it.
My advice for dosing in beef cattle, calves on their first grazing
and non milking dairy cattle at ‘6-7 weeks housed’ is to use the
following combinations.
1. Closamectin pour-on and zanil.
2. Enovex, trodax and zanil.
3. Alternatively you can use Ivomec Super and zanil now.
Dairy cows and in calf heifers should be dosed with
1. Enovex, fasinex and zanil at drying off.
2. Endospec and zanil at drying off and endospec at calving
down.
Do not give more than 125ml of zanil to an adult cow. Do not
give zanil at calving down. Do not give zanil with trodax
together. Do not give Zanil to suckler cows at weaning.
CALF SCOUR VACCINES?
We only stock Rotavec corona. It only needs one shot 3-12 weeks before
calving. Rotavec corona covers e-coli, rotavirus and coronavirus scours. Other
scour vaccines need two shots as a primary vaccination. In addition other scour
vaccines are generally given six weeks before calving. This is not always accurate
if calving dates are not known. We have scour test kits in the office to distinguish
scour problems. The kit will check for e-coli, rotavirus, coronavirus and
cryptosporidium. Interestingly it is common to find multiple bugs in a calf poo
sample. There is no vaccine for cryptosporidiosis. Treatment requires halocur
given orally to new-born calves on day one and each day until they are 7 days
old. Rotavec corona given at the 1st January will cover cows calving from the 21st
January until the 1st of April. Rotavec corona is in short supply. The 10ml of
Rotavec corona has not been available for months. We have 40 bottles of rotavec
corona in stock. This will treat 20 cows. Supplies of Rotavec corona are in short
supply.
IBR VACCINATION. WHICH ONE TO USE?
Pfizer has introduced an inactivated or dead IBR vaccine this year. The
vaccine is called Rispoval IBR inactivated . The vaccine works for 12 months.
The vaccine should be given in December to spring calving herds that are
starting to calf in January. It is essential that a live IBR vaccine is given before
the cattle are put on the inactivated IBR vaccine. The live vaccine must be given
6 months before. If you are switching to the dead or inactivated IBR vaccine use
the live IBR vaccine in the young cattle every 6 months until you want to switch
to the inactivated vaccine just before the heifer calves for the first time.
I had issues with the IBR inactivated vaccine when it only worked for six
months in the past never mind 12 months. We had seen vaccine failures on our
farms in the past were reluctant to promote the inactivated or dead vaccine. I am
of the opinion that vaccine failures have principally arisen were there has been a
concurrent infection with BVD on these farms. A lot of my concerns should be
alleviated as BVD is cleared from farms in 2013 due to the ear-notching
program.
Pfizer also has a reproductive claim for their IBR vaccines. They advise
vaccinating calves over 3 months of age twice initially in the muscle, 4-6 weeks
apart.
GREAT VALUE IN UBRO YELLOW TUBES CURRENTLY.
EAR NOTCHING FROM 2013.
Many of you are aware that there is an initiative by Animal Health
Ireland to ear notch all calves born in 2013 for BVD. Basically when you are
routinely tagging calves an ear notch is produced. This ear notch is stored in the
fridge and posted when enough calves are born to the laboratory.
If a calf proves positive to BVD virus. It is essential that this calf is
isolated from all other cattle until it is re-tested four weeks later. If the calf is
positive to the BVD virus four weeks after it was ear-notched positive you can be
certain that the calf is persistently infected. Otherwise known as A P.I. It is
essential that this animal is disposed off. It is a serious financial threat to your
farm and your neighbours. The dam of the calf and the grand-dam must be
checked if the calf is a P.I.
The initiative has two flaws in my opinion. Vets are not informed that
their customer’s calves are positive to the BVD virus. A department vet in Cavan
knows that my customer’s calves have proven BVD positive and I do not know.
Nor will the department contact their vets over this. It is important to keep your
vet in the loop about this.
Another flaw that I have noticed is that farmers are not being informed
by the operators of this plan on the importance of vaccination. This scheme
should remove a lot of P.I. calves and P.I. dams over the next 2 years but unless
you keep up vaccinating whilst this scheme is in operation innocent dams will
still be infected by the virus producing more P.I.s down the road. The reason I
am convinced of this is that 90% of the P.I. calves discovered in the voluntary
program of 2012 had normal mothers. Obviously these mothers were infected by
a transient infection. Removal of P.I.s in a large herd will not remove the
transient infections for up to 18 months. Hence the importance of BVD
vaccination for the next few years.
OPENING TIMES FOR CHRISTMAS.
On behalf of all the staff at Carrick Veterinary Centre we would like to wish all
our customers a happy Christmas and can we dream of a prosperous new year
for all. Below is our opening hours during the festive season.
Christmas day
Closed all day.
Stephen’s day
Closed all day.
27th,28th, 29th, 30th, 31st December . Open 9am-1pm and from 2pm to4.30pm.
New Year’s day
Closed all day.