Achieving Excellence in Health and Productivity
PARAGON VETERINARY GROUP
ISSUE 31
Livestock NEWS Listeriosis Listeriosis is caused by a bacterium that is common in soil. It can survive and indeed grow in cold conditions, even surviving freezing.
Septicaemia/meningitis/mastitis/ haemorrhagic gastroenteritis these are all uncommon manifestations of listeria infection.
It is killed by acid and anaerobic conditions so it is killed in good quality silage but can flourish in poorly preserved forage, particularly if there is a lot of soil picked up with the grass. Obviously with the wet and muddy summer this may have been impossible to avoid.
Facial paralysis is the common manifestation in adult animals. This can cause drooling, inability to eat, unilateral facial drooping (often including the ear) and circling. The symptoms are related to the bacteria travelling up facial nerves to the brainstem where they cause small abscesses. Advanced cases are difficult and often unrewarding to treat. High doses of antibiotics that can cross into the brain are needed and the course frequently has to be prolonged.
Listeria causes a range of syndromes in cattle: Silage eye - an infection within the eye, which often looks cloudy and even bloodshot. Topical treatment on the surface of the eye is often unsuccessful and antibiotics and steroids given by subconjunctival injection may be necessary.
PRODUCT FOCUS SYNULOX LC
As early intervention is required for a reasonable prognosis, vigilance is important and advice should be sought early for any suspect cases.
NOVEMBER 2012
Contact us: PARAGON VETERINARY GROUP CALDEW VETERINARY HOSPITAL Carlisle House, Townhead Road, Dalston, Carlisle
Tel: (01228) 710208 vets@paragonvet.com TOWNHEAD VETERINARY CENTRE Townhead Veterinary Centre, Newbiggin, Stainton, Penrith, Cumbria CA11 0HT
Tel: (01768) 483789 townhead@paragonvet.com PARAGON ET The Mart, Tyne Green, Hexham, Northumberland NE46 3SG
Tel: (01434) 600566 et@paragonvet.com
The milk withdrawal for Synulox LC is no longer 60 hours. It has increased to 84 hours.
For more information, speak to one of the farm animal vets.
PARAGON VETERINARY GROUP
visit us at: www.paragonvet.com
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LIVESTOCK NEWS
NOVEMBER 2012
Pneumonia Housing youngstock this year is going to be more stressful than most, with poor weather leading to people housing earlier, and affecting feed quality. The weather also provides the perfect groundwork for pneumonia to strike, so good management and preventative measures are going to be even more vital to keeping your animals fit and healthy over the next few months. Decreasing the risk of pneumonia on your farm is also a good way to reduce financial losses, with the average cost of pneumonia in dairy calves costing £43, due mainly to reduced growth rates and drugs costs, but also causes a 2 week delay to first service, and a 2.2% drop in yield in the first lactation. While the cost of pneumonia in a beef calf is even more dramatic, with the average cost at £82 for a sick calf, and £74 for every calf in the group. Pneumonia can also cause significant reductions in daily weight gain.
North West Dairy BVD Campaign The NFU, the SAC and the Northwest Livestock Programme have all joined forces to launch the North West BVD Awareness Campaign. The aim is to increase awareness of BVD in dairy farms in the North West and help to identify Persistently Infected (PI) animals and work towards keeping herds BVD free. Other areas of the country have taken part in such schemes and with our proximity to Scotland the advantages for BVD free status in terms of cross border trade should not be under estimated. This scheme is for farms that have not investigated BVD at all as well as farms that currently vaccinate. If you vaccinate there may still be PI's on the farm that affect how well the vaccine works. BVD can cause significant calf health issues by causing immunosuppression that leads to higher incidence of pneumonia and reduced growth rates and general calf ill health. In adult stock it is linked to reduced fertility. Please see the enclosed flier for further details or contact Jemma or Victor for further information on how to be part of this scheme.
There is usually more than one pathogen involved in a case of pneumonia, with the initial problem being a virus, which then causes damage that secondary bacteria can make the most of. The key to managing this disease though is to reduce the amount of trigger factors that can affect the calves' immune system, with housing, in particularly ventilation, playing a major role in preventing pneumonia. The major stressors and pathogens are listed below. Once the trigger problems have been looked at and dealt with as much as possible, then vaccination is the best strategy to reduce the effect that the virus pathogens can have. Feel free to contact one of our farm vets to discuss vaccination, and how best to reduce the trigger factors and help prevent pneumonia becoming a problem on your farm.