Aspen Veterinary
Service
January 2009 Newsletter
Welcome to the first edition
Newsletter brought to you by Aspen
Veterinary Service!
Unless stated otherwise, all
Newsletters will be authored by Dr.
Annie Bowes.
Winter is still here! Making sure plenty of
unfrozen water is available to livestock has
been a rather daunting task this month.
Cows especially need plenty of water since
they are prone to rumen impactions when
they are on dry feed. Impactions can be
resolved rather easily when caught early, but
if not noticed for a while, a cow can loose
the bacteria colony in her rumen and starve.
Some ill thrift cattle are believed to be a
result of unstable bacterial colonies inside
the rumen. Once this cycle begins, it is
very difficult to remedy.
Horses in Winter Though blankets are
difficult to keep on horses for any length of
time, remember to gradually wean them out
of wearing one as spring approaches. They
have a very thin hair coat under there!
Vaccinations
January is a good month to remember
vaccinations: a new year, a new immunity.
For most non-pregnant animals, January is
the month to ‘just get it out of the way’ for
the rest of the year. However, if it’s a
pregnant mare you have, it’s best to boost
her six weeks to one month before her
expected foaling date. And don’t worry
about the cows if they were done when
brought in during the fall. For those of you
that have had specific disease outbreaks, you
may want to boost your cows four to six
weeks before calving to prevent calf hood
diarrheas.
Along with vaccines, Bo-Se is a good choice
for most ruminants born in Kootenai County
where selenium is low. You should treat
your adult swine, cows, ewes, and goats
annually, and your calves, lambs, and kids
when born. Bo-Se is sold over the counter
at many feed stores in a multi-dose bottle. If
you only have a one or two animals, Aspen
Veterinary Service offers individual doses.
Deworming your animals prior to birthing
reduces the exposure of parasites to the
newborn. There are many rotational
schedules available, with equal merit. The
stand alone product remains to be
Ivermectin, but it is ineffective against tape
worms and some flukes. If you haven’t used
paziquantel or fenbendazole in the last six
months, January should be your month to try
it.
Hay, Hay, Hay During the next few
months, many of you may be shortening
your rations to make your hay budget last to
the 2009 grazing season. As your animals
are forced to become less picky, they may
not sort out the toxic weeds.
For those of you fortunate enough to obtain
high quality hay, this is not much of a
concern. However, if your hay has a lot of
stems, weeds, or water damage, you should
feed more volume so your animals have the
opportunity to leave the less nutritious parts
behind. A good ‘filler’ is straw bedding.
Most animals will eat it even when high
quality forage is available. Cattle can also be
fed entirely on straw when combined with
an adequate protein source. For reasonably
priced straw in small square bales and four
foot rounds visit Bluebird Farm & Horse
Ranch, at www.bluebirdfarm.net or (208)
659-6825.
Listeria is January’s Disease Discussion
Listeriosis is caused by infection with the
gram positive bacteria Listeria
monocytogenes. Usually only the weakest
cattle in the herd are susceptible, as well as
new born calves. Listeria species thrive in
cold climates, and during times when cattle
immunity is lowest; such as the long, harsh,
winter months of January and February
when cows are soon to calve. Listeriosis
affects the central nervous system and
causes cattle to become restless, circle
aimlessly, go off feed, abort, and (if left
untreated) die.
Listeriosis is ubiquitous, meaning it is
commonly present in the environment and
can be shed by normal, healthy livestock and
wild animals. It can survive for two years in
manure, hay, and bedding. It is contracted
when cattle eat contaminated feed, and can
be passed in the milk to calves. There is no
vaccine for Listeria monocytogenes, and the
As always, your animal’s health is very
important to Aspen Veterinary Service and
routine care is a major component of
husbandry. It is the hope that this Newsletter
was helpful and informative; and in keeping
with the mission statement of this company:
Aspen Veterinary Service is dedicated to
preserving a country way of life, and
promoting general farm animal health and
production.
Together, we keep American farms and
ranches going strong.
For additional information about Aspen
Veterinary Service, please visit:
www.aspenvetservice.com
Happy Trails!
Copyright 2009 ©
Aspen Veterinary Service. PLLC Post Falls, Idaho
Aspen Veterinary Service
Quote of the Month:
If you get to thinking you’re a person of
some influence, try ordering somebody
else’s dog around.
Got Ideas? Aspen Veterinary Service is
always looking for new topics and great
ideas. If there is something you would like
to know more about, please don’t hesitate to
ask. Dr. Bowes can be reached at
annie@aspenvetservice.com or (208) 6596825. And feel free to share some jokes that
can be published in the next issue!
3521 North Greensferry Road
Post Falls, Idaho 83854
cure is broad spectrum antibiotic therapy
early in the course of the disease. People can
get Listeriosis, too. Good medical measures
are to treat the whole herd if you have an
outbreak, and frequently clean the areas
where infected cattle are fed or kept.