Tag Archives livestock health
Coccidiosis in beef calves
Veterinary Case Study: Treatment protocols to help manage this common, yet troubling, disease
Nate walked through a pen of calves he had just weaned from his first-calf heifers. The day before, he’d noticed flecks of blood in some of the stools, but overall, the calves seemed bright and were eating the hay and chopped oats he offered in bunks. Today, however, he saw blood clots in stools and […] Read more
Online resources on everything from working with family to animal health
You’ve heard this before: Every farm and ranch is a system. Soil health, animal health, plant species, weather and climate, equipment, fencing, possibly a few stock dogs and horses and the people running the show all play a part in that system. Then you have markets and interest rates and input costs, and other financial […] Read more
Using forage to prevent liver abscesses in finished cattle
Liver abscesses are a leading cause of beef defects and economic losses in the Canadian beef industry. On average, 12 to 32 per cent of cattle develop liver abscesses, which account for over $60 million in yearly losses by the Canadian beef industry due to liver discounts and condemnations. Liver abscesses are pus-filled lesions found […] Read more
Drought can heighten lungworm risk in summer and fall
The effect of lungworms depends on an animal’s immune system and how many larvae it has ingested, but the worst infections tend to occur in young animals
Luke Smith’s east quarter section on the edge of the Blue Hills southwest of Avonlea consisted mainly of slough grass and willow with patches of fescue and brome where prairie sat above a large spring-fed slough. The area provided abundant grazing for 20 replacement heifers and a bull. He called after checking the group with […] Read more
Milk fever in beef cows
Veterinary Case Study with Dr. Ron Clarke
Matt called early on January 1, 1975, worried about a downer cow on a field of swathed barley damaged by hail in July of the previous summer. Matt let the crop volunteer through the growing season with plans to swath it near the end of harvest as winter graze for his herd of 200 Hereford-cross […] Read more
Preventing weak calf syndrome
Factors ranging from cow nutrition to weather to disease can cause this often complex condition
Weak calf syndrome is a general condition rather than a specific disease, and can be caused by several different factors, sometimes multiple factors at the same time. The newborn calf is weak, unable or slow to rise, stand or nurse. These calves often die within three days of birth. They are sometimes called “dummy calves” […] Read more
Herd health consultations necessary to buy antimicrobials
A veterinarian shares the process of establishing a veterinarian-client-patient relationship through a herd health consultation
While establishing and maintaining a veterinarian-client-patient relationship takes some time and effort, it’s likely simpler than expected, according to one beef cattle veterinarian. Creating a relationship with a veterinarian can provide great value to producers, says *Dr. Cody Creelman, beef cattle veterinarian at Veterinary Agri-Health Services in Airdrie, Alta. Although a large percentage of producers […] Read more
An animal health tale about us
Animal Health: News Roundup from the October 2018 issue of Canadian Cattlemen
October. The cattle come off the mountain pastures and the prairie grasslands into the corrals where the calves will be separated from their mothers. The lucky ones will stay on the farm or ranch as replacement breeding stock or be fed on the home place so the stress of weaning is minimal. Others will be […] Read more
Livestock industry faces trouble ahead from vitamin shortage
Health: News Roundup from the May 2018 issue of Canadian Cattlemen
My all-time favourite TV show remains the 1990s comedy “Home Improvement,” and my favourite actor: Tim “The Toolman” Taylor (Tim Allen). Since the show aired three decades ago, I have crossed paths with remakes of every character in racehorse barns, in feed alleys, at stock shows across Canada, and in western Canadian branding corrals. I’ve […] Read more
One Health: Recreating the future
Vet Advice with Dr. Ron Clarke
On November 3, 2016, individuals, academics, nonprofit organizations and the corporate world recognized “One Health Day.” This was an opportunity to address the inextricable interaction between animals, environment and humans, and how the veterinary and medical health professions should interact. Barbara Natterson-Horowitz, MD speaking at the 2016 Hill’s Symposium, recognized that the human medical community […] Read more