May 2008 Update
Bluetongue – the symptoms
Enclosed with this newsletter is a laminated fact sheet with some basic data about the disease, vaccination and midge control using the insecticide Butox Swish. We hope the pictures of clinical disease will give you a better idea of what the disease may present like, but even these pictures probably don’t do the disease justice, especially in sheep. Also enclosed is a vaccine order form, but as yet it is not clear which of the BTV8 vaccines the Scottish Government will choose. We hope and urge them to choose the Intervet Bovilis BTV8 vaccine, the single injection small dose in sheep will be crucial in getting the critical mass of sheep vaccinated and could make it easier to organise all the other routine vaccinations that cattle and sheep have to get over the winter period. This vaccine has been prepared very quickly and much of the ancillary testing to see about the effects on pregnant animals and when given in conjunction with other vaccines has yet to be done. However the volume of vaccine to be used over the summer in the vaccine zones is enormous and much supportive data will come from there. Sheep respond with remarkable efficiency to this vaccine, the downside is they seem to respond to live infection with a much more serious reaction than cattle and as a result suffer much more serious disease. Hopefully vaccine supplies will be plentiful come the vector free period yet to be named by the Scottish Government, but please do use this reply card to let us know what you will need and the date you replied. Vaccine will have to be available on a first come, first served basis if supplies are limited. Infected viraemic animal movements are currently much more of a threat than unpredictable midge movements so try and keep movements to a minimum. From the outbreaks of BTV8 in Northern Europe since 2006, these are the most common clinical signs seen.
CATTLE
Crusting of the nose area
Salivation
Fever
Conjunctivitis (runny eyes)
SHEEP
Fever – dullness and loss of appetite
Salivation
Swelling of the face
Can’t eat, dropping food
Just to give you an idea of what may happen - when suspect cases are reported we will visit the farm to look at the animals concerned. The range of alternative diagnosis is long so it may not be clear if BTV8 is the cause or not. In most cases we will contact Animal Health in Gala. They will visit the farm whilst we are there to examine the animals and advise on testing and further sampling. Movements of animals will be restricted till test results are known. If results were to be positive then further extensive blood testing surveillance would take place. We need to identify and close this disease down if/when it appears and we would urge your co-operation in reporting any unusual or suspicious disease as soon as you see anything.
The insecticide Butox Swish has proven efficacy against midges. You should consider it’s use in all animals but in reality units such as housed dairy cows and breeding bull farms/studs may have most to gain. This disease is not contagious apart from semen transfer. The long term effects of infection and disease in bulls and rams is not fully proven but appears to be serious and long standing. It might be useful to treat all stock bulls mating during the summer with Swish on a 4 weekly basis. Please feel free to give any of the surgeries a call to discuss the disease in general or more specifically your own animals.
High Risk of Nematodirus Infections in Lambs
The risk of Nematodirus in lambs is high this year NOW on pastures used for young lambs over the last 2 years. We have seen cases of fatal infections in lambs as young as 5 weeks old. Lambs will need wormed now and again in 3 weeks and possibly again 3 weeks later if they continue to be kept on the same pastures. As yet the white wormers are effective but in farms with a resistance problem they may create problems with the control of other worms. Levamisole is also a very effective wormer group.
Bull Fertility Testing
The diary is getting booked up now so if you have bulls to test please give Robert or David a call. They are such critical elements of achieving and maintaining a compact calving that testing of all the bulls you will use should be a routine part of herd management. Vet costs will range from £1-1.50 per cow put to the bull, depending on the mating load. The costs of getting it wrong are too great to contemplate. In one spring calving local herd with a long drawn out calving, the calves averaged £90 less at weaning sale than they would have done had they been restricted to a normal 9 week window. Sub-fertile bulls were to blame.
Welcome Back We are delighted to welcome back Natalie McDonald to work at Kelso after almost a year off after the birth of baby Eleanor. It was straight in at the deep end – collie dogs with broken legs, cows calving and caesareans, and cows with calf-beds out!! She is a tremendous asset to the practice and we are really pleased to have her back working for Merlin again.
Enclosed with this newsletter is a laminated fact sheet with some basic data about the disease, vaccination and midge control using the insecticide Butox Swish. We hope the pictures of clinical disease will give you a better idea of what the disease may present like, but even these pictures probably don’t do the disease justice, especially in sheep. Also enclosed is a vaccine order form, but as yet it is not clear which of the BTV8 vaccines the Scottish Government will choose. We hope and urge them to choose the Intervet Bovilis BTV8 vaccine, the single injection small dose in sheep will be crucial in getting the critical mass of sheep vaccinated and could make it easier to organise all the other routine vaccinations that cattle and sheep have to get over the winter period. This vaccine has been prepared very quickly and much of the ancillary testing to see about the effects on pregnant animals and when given in conjunction with other vaccines has yet to be done. However the volume of vaccine to be used over the summer in the vaccine zones is enormous and much supportive data will come from there. Sheep respond with remarkable efficiency to this vaccine, the downside is they seem to respond to live infection with a much more serious reaction than cattle and as a result suffer much more serious disease. Hopefully vaccine supplies will be plentiful come the vector free period yet to be named by the Scottish Government, but please do use this reply card to let us know what you will need and the date you replied. Vaccine will have to be available on a first come, first served basis if supplies are limited. Infected viraemic animal movements are currently much more of a threat than unpredictable midge movements so try and keep movements to a minimum. From the outbreaks of BTV8 in Northern Europe since 2006, these are the most common clinical signs seen.
CATTLE
Crusting of the nose area
Salivation
Fever
Conjunctivitis (runny eyes)
SHEEP
Fever – dullness and loss of appetite
Salivation
Swelling of the face
Can’t eat, dropping food
Just to give you an idea of what may happen - when suspect cases are reported we will visit the farm to look at the animals concerned. The range of alternative diagnosis is long so it may not be clear if BTV8 is the cause or not. In most cases we will contact Animal Health in Gala. They will visit the farm whilst we are there to examine the animals and advise on testing and further sampling. Movements of animals will be restricted till test results are known. If results were to be positive then further extensive blood testing surveillance would take place. We need to identify and close this disease down if/when it appears and we would urge your co-operation in reporting any unusual or suspicious disease as soon as you see anything.
The insecticide Butox Swish has proven efficacy against midges. You should consider it’s use in all animals but in reality units such as housed dairy cows and breeding bull farms/studs may have most to gain. This disease is not contagious apart from semen transfer. The long term effects of infection and disease in bulls and rams is not fully proven but appears to be serious and long standing. It might be useful to treat all stock bulls mating during the summer with Swish on a 4 weekly basis. Please feel free to give any of the surgeries a call to discuss the disease in general or more specifically your own animals.
High Risk of Nematodirus Infections in Lambs
The risk of Nematodirus in lambs is high this year NOW on pastures used for young lambs over the last 2 years. We have seen cases of fatal infections in lambs as young as 5 weeks old. Lambs will need wormed now and again in 3 weeks and possibly again 3 weeks later if they continue to be kept on the same pastures. As yet the white wormers are effective but in farms with a resistance problem they may create problems with the control of other worms. Levamisole is also a very effective wormer group.
Bull Fertility Testing
The diary is getting booked up now so if you have bulls to test please give Robert or David a call. They are such critical elements of achieving and maintaining a compact calving that testing of all the bulls you will use should be a routine part of herd management. Vet costs will range from £1-1.50 per cow put to the bull, depending on the mating load. The costs of getting it wrong are too great to contemplate. In one spring calving local herd with a long drawn out calving, the calves averaged £90 less at weaning sale than they would have done had they been restricted to a normal 9 week window. Sub-fertile bulls were to blame.
Welcome Back We are delighted to welcome back Natalie McDonald to work at Kelso after almost a year off after the birth of baby Eleanor. It was straight in at the deep end – collie dogs with broken legs, cows calving and caesareans, and cows with calf-beds out!! She is a tremendous asset to the practice and we are really pleased to have her back working for Merlin again.