Drying cows off is an opportunity to reduce herd mastitis which only happens once a year. Doing this job well can have great results. Mistakes and treatment failures are frustrating and costly. This means having a good plan and great records of what happened to which cows and when is becoming essential.   What’s the best dry-off treatment for your herd? Deciding which treatments are used for what cows, involves the milk quality review discussion with your vet. As well as prescribing product, this discussion looks at how well mastitis is controlled, what is working and what needs working o ..read more

The use of cow monitoring technology in heat detection and rumination changes, has become commonplace on many dairy farms around New Zealand, but how about its use for detecting mastitis and reducing the financial impact of one of the most prevalent health issues in the New Zealand dairy herd?  Detecting mastitis with cow monitoring devices Cow monitoring devices that rely on rumination can aid in the detection of severe mastitis. Rumination has been shown to decrease within the 24 hours prior to mastitis being clinically detected, so, in some cases of mastitis, a health alert may be trig ..read more

“UBAC®,” is an exciting development in treating mastitis which is likely the largest cost to the New Zealand dairy industry. It was estimated to cost approximately $180 million for the 2005/2006 dairy season (National Mastitis Advisory Committee, 2006). While several factors can influence the costs per cow on an individual farm, Compton and McDougall (2011) estimated the average cost for each case of heifer mastitis, using a deterministic model involving the costs of antibiotics, milk discard, culling at the end of the season and additional labour input, as being $215.   Mastitis-cau ..read more

The New Zealand Veterinary Association (NZVA) has as its goal that, by 2030, New Zealand will not need antibiotics for the maintenance of animal health and wellness. One may ask just how will this be achievable? Antibiotics have revolutionised the health and well-being of both humans and animals during the 20th century. But 96 years on from the discovery of penicillin in 1928, the effectiveness of antibiotics is declining. The decline in effectiveness and the emergence of ‘super bugs’ or antimicrobial resistance (AMR), is so great that the World Health Organization has suggested that antibioti ..read more

Antibiotic reduction is a major topic in the livestock sector. The pressure is on to reduce the use of antibiotics and in doing so, it also has a direct impact on the human health aspect. Antimicrobial resistance facts Some key facts from the World Health Organization website:  Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the top global public health and development threats. It is estimated that bacterial AMR was directly responsible for 1.27 million global deaths in 2019 and contributed to 4.95 million deaths (1). The misuse and overuse of antimicrobials in humans, animals and plants a ..read more

Parvovirus… it’s a diagnosis that every pet parent and vet clinic dreads, and one that can take the life of a previously healthy puppy in a matter of days. Canine parvovirus is a highly contagious viral disease that affects dogs, particularly puppies. It is a serious and potentially fatal illness that can cause severe gastrointestinal symptoms and weaken the immune system.  Thankfully, it’s not all doom and gloom and this article will give you the information you need to protect your dog from this potentially deadly disease.  What is Canine Parvovirus? Canine parvovirus (CPV) is caus ..read more

Written by Line Ferriman – Cowsmart  During pregnancy testing, we often find cows that are pregnant but not to their most recent insemination. With the recent uptake of automated heat detection, more questions have been raised about this – why are pregnant cows being inseminated when we are using the most accurate heat detection currently available?  Firstly, it is important to understand how the technology works: all collars, tags and boluses are designed to measure cow behaviour (walking, riding, sitting and so on). It is well known that cows increase their activity dramatically du ..read more

Written by Amy Avery – Vetlife Temuka veterinarian  When my 10-year-old finished watching BBC’s ‘Newsround’ last week, I asked him “what was in the news today?”.  I was surprised, expecting to hear about the Gaza conflict, when he answered “oh, they were talking about NZ sheep and how they cause global warming”.    Perhaps I should not have been surprised, because emission conversations have increased significantly across the world in recent years and education of children is a natural follow-on, but it is worth bearing in mind that these children are our future consum ..read more

While care is taken to avoid shearing nicks and cuts, it’s not possible to completely prevent them. Thankfully, you can ensure animals don’t suffer as much as a result. Modern pain relief and wound care can easily be incorporated into good flock management practices. There are several products available now that can help reduce inflammation and pain from nicks and cuts, as well as after tailing. Why are sheep husbandry practices changing? Animal welfare is always a consideration in livestock husbandry practices. That’s why interventions such as tailing are performed to prevent painful ailments ..read more

Algae is present in many of New Zealand’s lakes and rivers all year round, and is found across a range of water qualities (including high quality). In periods of warm weather and low water flow, toxic species of algae can outgrow non-toxic, species. Levels can change dramatically from one day to the next and aren’t necessarily consistent in all parts of rivers and streams.  It can also occur in stagnant water such as bird baths or small ponds/puddles. Blue-green toxic algae (also known as cyanobacteria) is identifiable by a strong musty smell and presents as slimy brown/black mats in rive ..read more