This is a happy time of year when many young foals are joining us. However, a thing that is often overlooked, especially in non-racing breeds, is the conformation of their lower legs. Some limb deformities can, if untreated, become permanent disabilities rendering horses unsound for life.

Common angular limb deformity (ALD) sites include above the fetlocks and above the carpi (knees). These abnormalities of the bone can cause the leg to angle into or away from the body.

Preventing ALD can be difficult in many cases. Feeding foals a balanced diet, and restricting feed intake and exercise during periods of fast growth can be beneficial. Remedial farriery early in life can help, and often resolve, minor ALD.

In cases not responsive to conservative management we recommend surgery. This may involve a periosteal elevation (strip) or a trans-physeal screw. These surgeries work by either increasing or decreasing growth on one side of the limb and absolutely need a functional growth plate to work. Strict timeframes apply and performing surgery early gives a much better chance of complete resolution.

Fetlocks must receive a strip by one month of age, or a screw by 4.5 months of age. Knees must receive a strip by 3 months, or a screw by 15 months.

If you are concerned about the conformation of your young foal please call us to have it assessed by one of our experienced veterinarians. Waiting for them to ‘grow out of it’ is highly discouraged because some of them never will!

Critical mating weights are one of the key drivers of heifer fertility. Weight has an extremely large influence on the age at which heifers go through puberty and begin to cycle. Lighter heifers will go through puberty later in life than heavier heifers. This weight effect is a major driver of fertility and longevity in herds (both beef and dairy). Interestingly, age only has a very small effect on fertility. Critical mating weight is the weight at which 85% or more of heifers joined will fall pregnant in 6 weeks, and is the minimum weight a heifer should be at the start of mating.

The actual weight varies between breeds, and is based on the mature weight of the herd. Heifers usually begin cycling around 55% of their mature body weight, and are sexually mature at 65%. Once they have reached sexual maturity, the chance of each heifer becoming pregnant during the joining maximised.

This means that for a 600kg mature weight cow, heifers need to be a minimum of 390kg at joining to maximise their chance of becoming pregnant. To achieve this, regular weighing of heifers and supplementary feeding through feed shortages is extremely important.

If you have been disappointed about the fertility of your heifers, or if your first calving heifers are always a problem to get back in calf, speak to us about managing them for better reproductive success. In herds that meet critical mating and calving weights, their first calving heifers can be one of the most fertile of the age groups!

To find out more about CMW and MLA recommendations on minimum weights of heifers at puberty, click here.

With many farms joining their spring calving cattle, have you considered why short joining periods are important to your herd?

Shorter joining periods reduce the age difference in the herd. At the end of the day, you are paid for beef weaned, not the number of cows pregnant every year. Tight joinings produce even lines of animals for sale, and maximise the kilograms of beef for sale.

Long calving patterns reduce the period of time from calving to joining for many cows, which in turn reduces the number of early pregnancies in the joining period, resulting in a large calving spread.

For replacement heifers, tight calvings allow more time to grow out before their first mating. When more heifers meet critical mating weights, more heifers will fall pregnant in that joining. This results in these heifers calving at greater weights, and subsequently being more fertile at their second joining.
Short calving periods also reduce the risk of scours, as the environmental contamination is reduced.

So how do you reduce your joining period?

1. In southern beef enterprises – aim for a 9 week joining in cows and 6 weeks in heifers
2. If attempting to reduce your joining period, do so slowly by shaving 1-2 weeks off the cows’ calving period every year. Providing heifers meet critical mating weights, the heifer mating period can be reduced quickly.
3. 2% bull power is optimal in southern beef enterprises, however if running below 100 breeders, still run two bulls.
4. Bulls should undergo a BULLCHECK™
5. Major reproductive diseases should be vaccinated against – Bovine Viral Diarrhoea Virus, leptospirosis and vibriosis.
6. Pregnancy test using PREgCHECK™ accredited vets. Pregnancy testing should be performed 6 weeks after the bulls are out of the herd. This allows the best foetal aging, which enables you to cull empties and potentially late calvers.

Pregnancy rates in cattle herds vary from very good to very bad. Some of the poorest results achieved are when bulls fail and pregnancy rates can drop well below 50% for any given joining period. To help avoid this scenario, BULLCHECK was devised to screen bulls prior to a joining to identify issues which are high risk of causing reproductive failure.

What is a BULLCHECK?

BULLCHECK is a relatively quick and economic procedure for screening bulls prior to sale or use. The Australian Cattle Veterinarians (ACV) have developed world recognized procedures and standards for conducting VBBSEs and for computerizing the relevant information.

What does it involve?

Usually, the following procedures are followed:

• A general physical examination
• A reproductive examination (including measurement of testicle size and palpation of the testicles and sex glands).
• Collection and examination of semen (particularly for sperm motility and morphology).

In addition, a serving ability test may be included, as may special tests for diseases (e.g. vibriosis or trichomonosis). Although these procedures add value to the BullCheck and may be indicated in some situations, they are not mandatory.

Following these tests, bulls are placed into the following categories:

Satisfactory: All factors assessed were consistent with ACV standards. No risk factors for reduced fertility were identified.

Unsatisfactory: Some factors assessed were not consistent with ACV standards. E.g. Lameness, penile injury or semen morphology defects.

Classification Deferred. Although not all factors met ACV standards, this probably would not preclude using the bull under certain conditions. E.g. mild posty leg – likely to develop arthritis prematurely.

Not tested. Factor(s) could not be adequately evaluated. A retest is often recommended.

In Summary

Where natural breeding bulls are employed, BULLCHECK should be an integral management tool for optimizing herd fertility, genetics and profitability. If done pre-joining, 1-3 months prior to the joining is optimal.

Horses and ponies can often live into their thirties or beyond with the right care. If you're lucky enough to own an older horse, here are some key health tips.

Maintaining healthy body condition in older horses is very important and can be achieved by supplementing their diet with an energy dense feed. Older horses may eat less and can lose the ability to absorb nutrients efficiently.

Caring for an older horse involves maintaining their dental health and ability to eat. Older horses can lose teeth, develop sharp points and grow painful ulcers, which affect their ability to chew and digest. Signs that your horse may have a dental problem include weight loss, dropping feed and foul-smelling breath.

Older horses often develop arthritis. Arthritis means painful joints and horses that have had an athletic career are at increased risk. Fortunately there are many treatments available such as supplements, anti-inflammatory medication and intra-muscular injections which can be extremely helpful in keeping your older animal moving comfortably.

Annual veterinary health checks are recommended. We perform a thorough physical examination and blood tests if required to identify horses with liver, kidney, gastrointestinal or hormonal dysfunction, all of which are increasingly common in older horses.

In the end, when the sad time comes to make the difficult decision to part with your aged equine friend our caring veterinarians can be there to offer advice regarding euthanasia.

If your horse is due for a check up or you're worried about their health, call us today.

Getting your rams to the paddock

When joining comes around, you should be well prepared and know how many rams, and which ones, will be used in each paddock. Taking rams to paddocks can either be via trailer or truck to prevent walking long distances, overheating, and to save time. Walking to joining paddocks is acceptable, provided the weather is suitable and distances are not too great. Take rams to the ewes when you reach the paddock. Adult ewes will often move towards the new introductions.

Ram joining percentages

As a rule, healthy, sound Merino and British breed rams can be used at a rate of 1 per cent plus 1 (1 per cent is 1 ram to 100 ewes). This ratio can be modified to suit different conditions. Adjust the number of rams upwards in the joining paddock if joining out of season, extreme weather conditions, sheep type, local experience or paddock characteristics (e.g. multiple watering points, large paddocks, other landscape features) warrant extra rams. Use 1.5 per cent plus one for joining maiden ewes, and use 2 per cent rams when joining ewe lambs.

Age of rams at joining

In order to be effective sires, rams should not be used until they are approximately 70 per cent of their adult body weight. Hogget rams are not suitable for use with maiden ewes as maiden ewes exhibit shorter standing oestrus. The more subtle expression of oestrus in young ewes means that
experienced rams will better recognise oestrus in young ewes than young rams, so conception will be higher when using older rams with younger ewes, and vice versa. Older rams are perfectly suitable, provided they meet all other considerations (such as soundness), physical traits (such as conformation) and fit in with your breeding objective.

Source: AWI – Ramping Up Repro workbook 2017

Botulism is a rare but serious disease that can affect all animals. It occurs when the toxin produced by the bacteria Clostridium botulinum is eaten or enters a wound causing paralysis that is generally fatal. In herds that have not been exposed or vaccinated, outbreaks of botulism can cause devastating losses.

The botulism bacteria can grow in wet or rotting feeds, or dead carcasses. The bacteria then produce the toxin that contaminates the whole feed source and affects the animals that eat it.

Treatment of animals with Botulism is often ineffective and prevention is the best insurance.

Vaccination is our most effective tool in prevention, and cows should be vaccinated one month before the start of silage being fed. There are a few different botulism vaccines on the market, and we can help you choose the correct strategy for your herd.

In addition to vaccination, other important risk management includes:

• Correcting dietary deficiencies that prevent cattle to eat bones (sodium, phosphorus and protein)
• Hygienic disposal of animal carcasses - if using animal dumps, keep well fenced
• Remove animal carcasses from paddocks
• Do not feed rotten or moldy silage or hay
• Ensure decaying feed is never left in feed troughs
• Keep water troughs free of dead rodents and birds
• If using manures as fertilizer, prevent cattle from getting access

Consult with us on vaccination and other preventive strategies that are suitable for your herd.