Youngstock Health Review
I can understand feeling that there’s enough happening this time of year, without being asked to do any number crunching. But wherever you are in relation to the calving period, looking at the records you have so far can be extremely useful. Basic data such as calvings, abortions, stillbirths, calf mortality in younger and older animals and barreners can give you a good idea of any challenges the herd is facing and guide you to solutions.
Abortions and stillbirths
There are many causes of abortion and rarely is it “one of those things”. Some infections will cause repeated abortions in the same animal and a diagnosis can aid culling decisions. Others have implications for the herd, perhaps a sign of infectious disease, contaminated forage etc.
Stillbirths are more likely to be incidental, but there are still risk factors such as thin or fat cows or large calves, that result in prolonged calvings. We can help you identify the underlying cause, as these factors can all be managed successfully to give you an extra calf or two to sell next year. Sometimes a less obvious cause, such as trace element deficiencies, can be causing weak calves (this is especially a sign of iodine deficiency).
Calf mortality 0-48hrs
Sometimes, these issues result in a live calf that just doesn’t get going. This can lead to poor colostrum transfer (or none at all), inadequate nutrition and increased risk of disease: E. coli, which causes scours in the first week or sometimes septicaemia and meningitis, is a big killer.
Lots of deaths in this early stage should prompt reflection on the risks discussed already, but also the hygiene around calving, feeding dams to improve colostrum quality or perhaps supplementing weaker calves with extra colostrum. During the “Beast from the East” in 2018, I saw a lot of E. coli deaths in calves that were born inside when the farm was used to outdoor calving, and therefore had overstocked or dirty yards that couldn’t be easily cleaned- hygiene and colostrum are always the keys with early mortality!
Calf mortality 48hrs – weaning
Weaning may seem a long way off at the moment, so this is just a reminder to keep recording any disease (scours, pneumonia, joint ill, navel ill etc.) and the ages at which it occurs – this is really valuable information to use later. Mortality after 48hrs should be absolutely minimal.
This is also the time to start recording weights. Suckler calves should be gaining nearly a kilo a day – anything less could be an opportunity to adjust management and operate with greater efficiency. Another target to aim for this year could be: calves at 200 days old weighing half their dam’s weight (or more!). This is an indicator that the dam is doing her job well, as well as excellent calf health and nutrition.
Conclusion
If you have lost too many calves this calving season or have suffered disease outbreaks, reviewing the basic herd performance figures, combined with a more in-depth investigation with your vet, will identify any common themes that can be addressed before next season. The AHWP or Synergy’s suckler health advisory package may be the way you do this. Remember, at current market prices, one or two extra calves reaching sale will pay for your time, further detective work and allow you to proactively stop the issue happening next year.
Written by: Tom Warboys, Veterinary Surgeon
Notes From The Farm
It’s been a busy few months. We’ve survived our biannual TB ordeal (sorry, test), had a RPA audit, somehow got to the other side of the wettest end of year for a long time – 35 inches of rain in the last 6 months of 2023 (over 9 inches of that in December) and had a good cold snap in January to break up the monotonous precipitation among other things. I’m sure I’m not alone in slightly dreading winter: the lack of daylight hours is the thing that gets to me most, although the cold and damp also seems to penetrate more these days!
Health wise, we had a nasty pneumonia outbreak in the Autumn calves in January. We know the shed is not ideal and this was definitely the year that we didn’t get away with it.
I’m planning to use the AHWP (Animal Health and Welfare Pathway) money to test last year’s calves for RSV, PI3, IBR and BVD to see what bugs they were in contact with to give us an idea if vaccination is the path to follow. More importantly, we need to work out a plan for the shed: unfortunately, there’s a high chance that the roof has asbestos in it so we can’t realistically increase outflow quickly, safely or cheaply. A fan and tube are likely to be the most cost-effective solution to increasing airflow.
I’m keen to stop Autumn calving due to the associated health issues – as well as pneumonia in the calves, the heifers don’t enjoy being housed with the cows due to bullying and the bulls and a few cows always seem to get lame at some point over the service period as they don’t like the concrete. However, the numbers man (my husband!) wants to keep with the 2 blocks to get a more even cash flow through the year…
Talking of numbers, this is the year that I’m going to try to work out the carbon footprint of the farm. I’m fed up with being told in the media how bad beef is for the environment when we are putting so much back in terms of biodiversity (a pair of Cirl Buntings were seen here last week) and carbon capture with grassland etc.
Written by: Clare Eames, Veterinary Surgeon
Spring Vaccinations
With turnout and, in most cases, calving followed by the subsequent bulling period just around the corner (hopefully!), now might be an ideal time to sit down and review vaccination strategies for the coming year.
Scours
If you vaccinate your cows to boost the level of colostral antibodies against E coli, Rotavirus and Coronavirus this should be done a month before calving is due to start so that the maximum number of cows are within the optimum time window for the vaccine to have its best effect – ideally it should be given between one and three months before the cow calves. Vaccinating your cows is a highly effective way of keeping neonatal calf scour to a minimum but, of course, it will only work if calf colostrum intake is ensured soon after birth (although the protective effect of antibodies in the calf’s gut will continue to be beneficial for some weeks). Remember, even if colostrum intakes are good, if the challenge to the young calf is overwhelming then immunity will be swamped and disease will still be seen. Hygiene in calving sheds, yards and paddocks, therefore, remains critical.
Leptospirosis
The ideal time for lepto vaccination is just before turnout. During the winter when cows are housed and fed silage, urinary pH tends to be acidic which limits the excretion of bacteria from carrier cows. After turnout, with the cows on a diet of fresh grass, urine pH rises towards normal which will result in the excretion of more bacteria. It makes sense, therefore, to vaccinate, just before turnout so that immunity is maximal at the time of maximal challenge and excretion is reduced.
BVD
BVD vaccination is aimed at protecting the foetus rather than the cow. Booster vaccination should be completed a month before the bulls are introduced to the cows. Where Bovela is used, heifers and cows only require a single dose of vaccine, again at least a month before they are served for the first time, followed by annual boosters. If your policy is to use Bovilis BVD then heifers will require two doses of vaccine a month apart, with the second dose being given a month before serving begins. Then the data sheet requires booster vaccination every six months. If you are uncertain of your herd’s BVD status, AHWP funding to carry out an antibody screen of half a dozen home-bred, unvaccinated, weaned calves would be a good starting point to assess it.
Clostridia
Clostridial disease, in its many guises, remains, alongside staggers, the most common cause of the sporadic loss of grazing cattle each year. Excellent vaccines are available to protect against these losses and are widely used in the sheep industry. Penetration into the suckler cow market is much less, despite the very reasonable cost and the much greater value of a suckler cow over a sheep. Preventing the loss of only one cow from clostridial disease every five years would, in a 100-cow herd, more than pay for the cost of the vaccine required to protect your herd. Again, the ideal time to vaccinate is just before turnout so that immunity is maximal during the grazing season.
If you would like to discuss infectious disease management in your herd and vaccination strategies please do not hesitate to speak with the vet of your choice.
Written by: Keith Cutler, Veterinary Surgeon
Bull Breeding Soundness – A Quick Q and A…
What does it involve?
A bull breeding soundness examination involves a vet visit to assess a bull’s ability to achieve successful pregnancies. The vet will briefly assess the general health of the bull, paying particular attention to the eyes and feet, followed by a detailed physical examination of the testes, sheath and if possible, the penis. An internal examination of the accessory sex glands is achieved via rectal examination. Finally, an electric probe placed in the rectum is used to obtain a semen sample. This sample is examined immediately under the microscope to assess the progressive motility of the sperm. Air dried slides are also prepared for examination back at the laboratory, to look for any abnormalities in sperm morphology which may affect fertility. Libido, the ability to mount a cow and the ability to achieve intromission are not assessed.
Why test?
Poor or subfertile bulls are one of the most common causes of high barren rates in a suckler herd. Carrying out a BBSE prior to the mating period is the best way to identify bulls that may not be up to the job.
What information will I get?
You will receive a full report of the testing and the assessments carried out.
If a bull requires a certificate pre-sale, you will be notified if the bull has passed or failed and issued with a veterinary certificate accordingly.
If you are a commercial farmer more interested in which bulls are infertile, sub-fertile or very fertile, and who will use this information for management purposes and to make culling decisions, your vet can give you a thorough breakdown of the fertility of the bulls tested to aid these decisions. For example: which bull might be best for a single sired group, which may need some back up and which to cull.
Is the test uncomfortable for the bull?
The majority of the examination is not in any way uncomfortable for the bull. All bulls react differently to the electroejaculator and some will experience mild discomfort for a minute or so during the process. Please note however that if a bull has a more exaggerated reaction to the electroejaculator, the vet will immediately terminate the procedure.
Does the test need to be repeated?
Sometimes the vet might recommend a repeat examination. This might be if a problem has been identified and can be treated during the first examination – for example a foot issue. Another reason to repeat might be if the bull failed to produce a semen sample on first attempt or produced a contaminated sample. A repeat examination will usually be recommended after 2-3 weeks.
What equipment will I need to provide and how long does it take?
Your vet will need the bull to be restrained in a substantial crush with low access points along at least one side. The vet will also require an electricity supply and a sheltered area close to the crush with a table or bales, on which to set up the microscope.
Once the equipment is set up it can take 10-15 minutes per bull to carry out the test on farm, depending on the set up of the crush etc.
What is the cost?
Due to the time taken to set up the testing equipment, the first bull tested is charged at a higher rate than any subsequent bulls tested at the same session. 1st bull examination is £179.50 ex vat, subsequent bulls £102.60 ex vat.
Please contact your vet to discuss having your bulls tested. We would recommend they are tested 4-6 weeks pre-mating. This leaves time to source replacements if any problems are discovered.
Written by: Louise Silk, Veterinary Surgeon
Pre-Breeding Female Focus
Cow nutrition – energy and protein
We know that nutrition of the cow (and heifer) in the run up to, and around calving is absolutely critical to the future fertility of the cow.
A cow in poor body condition at calving and/or in a negative energy balance in the last month before calving will need to draw on body reserves during the period of very high energy demand that follows i.e. lactation. She will prioritise milk production and consequently fertility will suffer – due to poor egg quality and development, delayed ovulation, reduced hormone production and negative effects on the uterine environment, reducing the chance of embryo implantation. She is also more likely to suffer from post-partum problems such as retained cleansing or post -partum uterine infection. The consequence of this is longer to return to cyclicity and less likely to hold to service.
Conversely, over-conditioning can result in fat accumulation within the liver which impairs liver function, reducing the production and metabolism of critical hormones required for reproduction, resulting in a negative effect on ovarian follicular activity.
I know that many of you have worked with myself and other vets over the last few months with the aim of optimising cow nutrition in the run up to calving. This has included checking cow body condition, analysing a small number of blood samples taken pre-calving for energy and protein status (metabolic profiling), analysing forage and discussing diets. This will pay dividends when it comes to getting your cows back in calf later in the spring.
Cow nutrition – trace elements and minerals
Trace elements can also play an important role in fertility. Deficiencies in selenium and copper can result in higher barren rates. If you are concerned this may be an issue for your herd, please discuss this with your vet ASAP.
Magnesium deficiency is a problem we commonly see in beef cows as we move into spring. Lush spring grass passes rapidly through the gut with minimal time for magnesium to be absorbed into the body. Magnesium must be ingested daily to meet the cow’s metabolic demands, which increase significantly as lactation gets going. Magnesium can be supplemented via boluses or in drinking water, or (less effectively) in high-mag licks.
Pre-breeding vet checks
Finally, it is possible you may have encountered the odd difficult calving that has resulted in farmer or vet intervention and possibly placental retention. Whilst this is rarely a major problem in the short term, uterine infections can develop into a chronic problem– you may know this as ‘whites’. The presence of pus inhibits the action of various hormones involved in the return to cyclicity and can result in infertility. We would strongly recommend that any cows with assisted calvings or retained placentae are checked a few weeks before the bull goes in, to ensure they have not developed a chronic, low grade uterine infection, which can be easily treated.
Vaccinations
Pre-breeding is often the time when vaccinations are due – BVD vaccine, for example, should be administered at least 3 weeks before mating to maximise protection of the foetus from the effects of the virus. Now is the time to check your health plan vaccination protocols and discuss any queries with your vet.
And not forgetting the new replacements….
It is important that in all the excitement of calving we do not take our eye off the ball when it comes to the future of the herd. The heifers, be they bought in or homebred, should be a priority when it comes to nutrition in the run up to breeding. Heifers should be regularly monitored and ideally weighed in the months and weeks pre-breeding to check growth rates and body condition.
Onset of puberty is directly linked to body weight and fat deposition. Whilst we do not want heifers over fat (fat can deposit in the udder and reduce lactation yields), in order to have good fertility at 15 months old (to calve at 2 years), heifers must be well grown and in good condition. Your vet can check a group of heifers internally to identify animals that are sexually mature. This can also help to weed out any freemartins or ‘non breeders’ before they go to the bull. This can be particularly valuable if you are investing in a synch AI programme.
Consider also that first calved heifers can take longer to return to cyclicity and can therefore struggle to get back in calf the following year. This effect can be mitigated by putting heifers to the bull one month prior to the main herd, thus giving them an extra month to recover from calving before they go to the bull for the second time.
Written by: Louise Silk
