Animal health “key to bridging gap between top and bottom performing farms”

After a warm, dry March, followed by a cold, dry and windy April – which saw frost in most of the UK – the biggest parasite issues facing sheep will be nematodirus, gastrointestinal worms and lungworm, as well as blowfly as temperatures have been rising. For cattle, key issues will be biting and nuisance flies and fluke.

Speaking at the Elanco A2K event, technical consultant manager Fiona Hutchings said there was some nematodirus activity in April but May was warmer and wetter leading to a ‘trickle hatch’ in some areas and delayed mass hatch elsewhere.

Blowfly was seen in May, even in Fife, and will continue to rise exponentially now as temperatures rise. Those on south-facing farms may have had early cases. Ms Hutchings stressed the importance of treating early to reduce the overall number of flies in the season – as well as accurate application. She advised the ‘four stroke’ approach – applying the total dose a quarter at a time: from mid shoulders to middle of back; middle of back to top of tail; one side of the animal’s tail and crutch; other side of tail and crutch.

For cattle, Ms Hutchings noted the importance of environmental control for biting and nuisance flies, particularly in calf housing – including cleaning solution from automatic calf feeders. 

For fluke, adulticides should be used at turn out to break the cycle, followed by testing. Ewes should be tested now and if there are eggs, treat to prevent eggs infecting snails to break the cycle. She warned against using triclabendazole at this time of year due to resistance.

Animal health key to boosting performance 

National Sheep Association chief executive Phil Stocker pointed out the significant gap between the UK’s top and bottom performing farms – which range from £153K to £83K output for LFA grazing herds. “If you do business planning right, you can improve performance significantly,” he said. “One of the biggest impacts to address is health and disease.”

A 2005 BSAS poll suggests internal parasites cost an estimated £64 million, equating to £4/lamb, while foot rot cost £24 million, sheep scab £8m and abortions £32m.

Parasitic gastroenteritis (PGE) was found to have one of the biggest impacts on health and productivity and was the most costly in terms of the effect on growth and productivity. It is thought the problem has only got worse and more expensive since the survey as antimicrobial resistance increases.

The AHDB Fallen Stock Project revealed the top three causes of lamb losses were: 1. Pasteurella septicaemia, 2. No diagnosis, 3. PGE.

Top performing lambs had 300g/day growth – those starting at 20kg in May reach 46-47kg live weight by August, use 44 per cent less grass and yield over £5 more per lamb. Together with savings of £4/lamb on internal parasite costs, good worm control could result in savings of £8, 9 or even £10 per lamb.

Mr Stocker concluded by saying diversification will be increasingly important, especially in remote areas. The Countryside Stewardship Scheme is set to continue till at least 2024 and the government has pledged to support protected landscapes, but Mr Stocker warned against putting all your eggs in one basket. A focus on productivity will be key for sheep farmers, he added.

Shepherdess tackles worm resistance on farm

Surveys have shown 92 per cent of farmers recognise antimicrobial resistance as a problem for worm control, yet 79 per cent determine whether their control programme is working by the animals’ look and general condition – and just 24 per cent use worm counts.

Independent sheep expert Lesley Stubbings noted that while this is an improvement, resistance needs to be picked up at an earlier stage. By the time it has become visible, it could be beyond the point of no return for the farm and much will have been lost in terms of productivity. If caught early, it can be picked up when there is some resistance but still a bit of control left.

Contract shepherdess Kerry Skyes does sampling at six weeks then worms or waits to check in a week’s time. This year the farm had done zero drenching at the time of the event. 

Priorities for the 940-ewe herd are performance and getting the lambs away as soon as possible. The farm lambs in February to get the Easter spring trade but when Ms Skyes took over the farm they were starting to draw later, missing out on the cream of the market and had white wormer resistance.

The farm takes an early sample, use the wormer recommended by Ms Stubbings, retest to check it’s worked, then retest again in a few weeks’ time. Ms Skyes stressed the importance of retesting to build knowledge and confidence that the strategy is working, and should be a matter of course.

Now, clear drenches are giving a “reassuringly good performance” of around 80-90 per cent effectiveness, she said. Whilst there may not have been a dramatic cost saving on wormers, products are being used far more effectively and there has been a significant reduction in their reliance on wormers, using less than 10 litres at lambing for all sheep. 

Lamb performance is better as lambs are not going into pens to be wormed unnecessarily, taking time out of feeding and growth.

She warns that some farmers are worming too early as an insurance policy, wasting resources and time, while others are leaving it too late, when resistance has already built up.

She stressed the importance of making faecal worm egg counts part of your routine and keeping records. She acknowledged that results can be ‘hit and miss’ – sometimes returning within 24 hours and sometimes four days, which could be off-putting for some – but it’s essential for avoiding resistance developing and building a picture of the situation on your farm.

Using the wrong wormer, or using product unnecessarily is a waste of time and money, as well as helping to build resistance. 

Building knowledge of the land is also important – sheep being dirty does not always indicate a worm problem and can instead be related to fertilisers, she pointed out.