Dairy Australia recently funded research into the nursing of downer cows, which are cows that are still down one or more days after they become recumbent. The study was conducted under field conditions typically seen in southern Australian dairying areas in the winter. Fortunately, both beef and dairy cows need the same attention if they find themselves down.

An interesting finding of the study was that it’s often the secondary damage that occurred from sitting down, rather than the inciting cause, which was more important in determining a cow’s eventual fate. Because of this fact, the quality of the nursing provided was a key factor in the cow’s chance of survival.

The research highlighted some rules of nursing down cows:

• Provide clean, dry and soft bedding that will provide a non-slip surface when the cow tries to stand
• Provide a continuous supply of clean water and good feed
• Move the cow from side-to-side every three hours to ensure her weight is not always to one side and flex and extend the hind limbs each time the cow is moved
• Regularly hand strip milk from the udder
• Regularly encourage the cow to rise
• Use lifting devices to get her to her feet only, never leave cows hanging in lifting devices
• Regularly reassess her progress and diagnosis

The full article can be found here.

Recent research results suggest that it is time to rethink routine worm control in horses. Best practice for worm control today is not what best practice was 10 years ago. Recent Australian research indicates that there is at least some resistance to all the major horse drench groups, including combinations. Many of these drenches were only 70-80% effective. You may think that 70-80% effectiveness is not bad, but it indicates a serious developing problem and if we continue the same practices, it will rapidly get worse.

Anthelmintic resistance has been a major problem in the sheep industry for over 20 years. You might think that due to population sizes in sheep flocks that this issue may not develop in the horse population due to much lower numbers. However, the resistance is not in the sheep and horses, but in the worms. Due to high populations and relatively high reproduction rates in worms, they are developing genetic resistance to any drugs administered routinely.

The problem

It seems that over-worming and unnecessary worming has contributed to the development of this problem. Thirty years ago, colic and more serious intestinal damage caused by the migration of Strongylus vulgaris larvae was a major risk to horse health. Worming horses twice monthly became the best practice to prevent the serious consequences of this parasite. However, this parasite has become rare and so this regular treatment is no longer justified.
The vast majority of Australian horse owners regularly treat their horses for worms without actually knowing the level of worm populations in their horses. However, in the wild, many healthy horses have worm egg counts of many thousands per gram.

Prevention

The key to dealing with this problem, and to prevent it from getting worse, is to use Faecal Egg Counts (FEC) to decide if worming is justified. The cut-off above is not simple, which is why you really need to involve the vet. It will depend primarily on the horse's age, which species of worms present, pasture management and population size, as well as other issues. In many cases, only treating horses with over about 500 eggs per gram is justified.

The Rolls-Royce approach is to do FEC reduction testing to see how effective your drench is at the time.

Owners also need to keep in mind that different horses often shed different levels of worm eggs and continue to shed at higher or lower levels, compared to other horses, for most of their lives. So good record keeping can also help to formulate a good drenching plan.

Just keep in mind that you can’t eliminate worms, so decreasing the selection pressure on worms with some resistance will extend the effective life of drenches.

Treatment

The current best practice recommendations are:

• Accepting that you will never eliminate worms and understand that clinical worm problems are very rare in Australia
• Develop a worm control program that involves FEC testing
• Keep records of individual horses to monitor their relative shedding capacities
• Involve your vet team in developing your worm control plan
• Ensure you follow your plan to extend the effective life of the drenches you use

• 59 infected piggeries have been reported in Queensland (8), New South Wales (27), Victoria (18) and South Australia (6).
  
  
• 24 human cases of Japanese encephalitis have been confirmed in Queensland (2), New South Wales (10), South Australia (3) and Victoria (9).
  
  
• Three people have been confirmed to have died of Japanese encephalitis - one in Victoria, one in New South Wales and one in South Australia.
  
  
• In New South Wales, mosquito surveillance has identified a few locations with higher numbers of mosquitoes. More intensive communication about mosquitoes and Japanese encephalitis is being provided in these areas.
  
  
• We can all take simple steps to avoid exposure to infected mosquitos:
  
  
  • Use mosquito repellent containing picaridin or DEET on all exposed skin.
    
    
  • Actively avoid mosquitos - use insect screens, mosquito nets, coils and vaporisers; and wear long, loose-fitting clothing.
    
    
• State and Territory Public Health units are coordinating and implementing the priority vaccination program, with initial vaccinations underway, and it is expected they will be free. The immediate priority groups for vaccination against Japanese encephalitis are individuals in affected regions with:
  
  • Direct exposure or close proximity to pigs and mosquitoes
    
    
  • High-level occupational exposures, including veterinarians who work with piggeries.
    
    
• 130,000 vaccines will be made available to the affected states and territories from late-March to early-April.
  
  
• Japanese encephalitis virus is a nationally notifiable disease, which means if you suspect an animal is showing signs of the disease, you must report it. You can do this by calling the national Emergency Animal Disease Watch Hotline on 1800 675 888. This will put you in touch with your state or territory’s agriculture department.

Read more from the Australian Veterinary Association.

While Artificial Insemination (AI) has been the mainstay breeding methodology of dairy and stud beef herds, there is an increasing shift towards AI in commercial beef herds. The big driver of this is the uptake of Fixed Time AI (FTAI), so that large mobs of cattle can be mated on the same day. Using this technology, beef producers are now able to better manage the genetics of their herd to meet the market they are selling into.

The obvious advantage of AI in beef herds is that proven sires with high reliability Estimated Breeding Values (EBVs) can be used to increase the genetic merit of the mob. Traits lacking in the herd can be identified and bred into the herd. EBV traits are classified into several categories, these help to select bulls with traits to suit your herd. The traits reported are:

1. Calving ease - A highly important, highly valuable trait. This is a ‘no-brainer’ for anyone who has bred cattle.
   
   
2. Growth traits - These are reported as 200, 400 and 600 day weights, which enables you to tailor growth rates to meet target markets.
   
   
3. Maternal traits - These traits really reflect the amount of milk the dam produces. The more milk, the faster the calf grows.
   
   
4. Fertility traits - Genetics play an important role in the fertility of both males and females. These traits can be manipulated so that progeny reach puberty at an earlier age, and conceive earlier in the joining period.
   
   
5. Carcass traits - These traits contribute to producing cattle suited to your target market. Traits such as eye muscle area, rib fat, rump fat, intramuscular fat and retail beef yield can all be selected for. Depending on your target market, and your current herd, your preferences will vary.

Many horses are more than irritated by the behaviour of botflies when they are attempting to lay their eggs. Surprisingly, this may be the most dangerous part of the botfly lifecycle, as some horses seem overly sensitive to the attention of botflies and may injure themselves trying to evade the fly laying its eggs on them.

Causes

There are three species of botfly found in Australia, but only two are common. The G. intestinalis (stomach bot), which mainly infects the stomach and G. nasalis (intestinal bot), which mainly infects the upper small intestine. The adult flies, which have a relatively short life, lay eggs on the horse’s hair, whereas the intestinal bot lays its eggs on the forelegs and the nasal bot on the face and throat.

The stomach bot eggs are activated to hatch by the horse licking the area. The nasal bots hatch spontaneously. The first and second stage larvae develop in the mouth and are swallowed. The third stage larvae then develop into adults.

Signs

The most common sign of bot infestation is through a veterinary examination of your horse’s stomach or intestine with a gastroscope for another reason. If during the scoping procedure a few bots are seen, there can be an overwhelming urge to treat what looks like an ugly and invasive parasite.

However, clinical disease from bot infestation is very rare and a few bots are completely normal to find in healthy horses. The early-stage larvae may cause inflammation to the mucosa in the mouth if the bots present in large numbers, which can lead to difficulties in feeding. Large infestations with either species have been known to cause ulceration or obstruction in the stomach or upper intestine.

Treatments

One of the reasons that severe botfly infestations are rare is their susceptibility to ivermectin, which has been used routinely (some would say overused- see above article) to control intestinal worms. This is the most effective treatment for bot infestations, but should only be used when significant infestations are detected by faecal testing bot larvae.

In rare cases, when serious infestations have been treated, supportive treatments to restore gut health are advisable.

Prevention

Some insecticides can be applied topically to horses at times when bot flies are seen to be irritating horses. This may be helpful in preventing injuries, due to misadventure caused by botfly avoidance. However, there is some anecdotal evidence that this may have little effect. Daily removal of bot eggs with a bot knife or razor, or washing with warm water or alcohol, may be effective.

Talk to us if you are concerned about your horse and irritable botflies. 

Scabby mouth is a viral disease that has been recognised by sheep producers for many years as a costly disease in terms of reduced productivity and profitability, but one which can be controlled by using an effective vaccination program.

Here is a guide to getting underway with a vaccine program:

• Because the vaccine contains live virus, it does introduce the disease to the property. Given this, vaccines are not suitable for unaffected properties.
  
  
• Vaccinate all lambs every year at the first opportunity (generally at lamb marking/tailing/docking). Lambs can be vaccinated within the first week of life.
  
  
• Vaccinate sheep on the bare skin, preferably inside the front leg or on the side of the brisket
  
  
• Check for “takes” from a sample of the flock, 10-to-14 days after vaccination to ensure immunity has developed.
  
  
• Whole flock vaccination should be considered when commencing a program, as vaccinated sheep may act as a source of infection for unvaccinated sheep. Whole flock vaccination is also recommended in the face of an outbreak of scabby mouth.
  
  
• Vaccination should be completed at least six-to-eight weeks before the commencement of shearing to give the scabs enough time to form and fall off, thereby not placing the shearers at potential risk, as the virus can cause a similar skin disease in humans.
  
  
• Vaccination of ewes should be completed at least six-to-eight weeks prior to the commencement of lambing to ensure young lambs are not placed at risk of disease. It is safe to vaccinate pregnant ewes.
  
  
• When introducing sheep onto a property that is known to have scabby mouth, it is recommended that they are all vaccinated prior to being put to pasture.