management guide - Mole Valley Farmers

Transcription

sheep
management guide
2014 Edition
Health & welfare of your flock
Improved feed
management
Dr Chris Bartram
Lamb health
& vigour
John Lawrence
Our sheep
farming system
Phil & Pat Hutton
Feed block
Intestimonial
this issue
John Dallyn
www.molevalleyfarmers.com
1
2014 Edition
l
3
Optimism for
sheep farmers
4
Market trends
5 Improved feed
management
Mole Valley Farmers
ewe feed compounds
7
Feeding ewes for lamb health and vigour
8
Mole Valley Farmers buckets and blocks range
9
Feed blocks testimonial (John Dallyn)
10 Lamb milk replacers
11 Mole Valley Farmers
lamb compounds
12 Multi Lamb testimonial
(Graham Perkins)
13 Lameness in sheep
14 Sheep nutritional
supplements
15 Molecare information about MoleEcto
16 Lamb diseases
17 Faecal egg counting
& liver fluke testing
18 Itchy sheep - is is scab?
19 Farmer focus
(Phil & Pat Hutton)
20 Preparation for tupping
21 Grassland management and root crops
22 Mole Valley
Forage Services
23 Feeding organic sheep
24 Sheep quarantine
25 Issues at housing for ewes and lambs
26 Sheep handling systems
27 Ear tags, sheep handling and weigh systems
2
Nothing ever goes to plan and a
combination of bad weather, late spring,
unwelcome imports from our Antipodean
fellow farmers and changes in currency
exchange rates, resulted in a year of mixed
fortunes for many flock masters. Yet official
Defra statistics show a small increase in
the National flock, indicating there is still
confidence in the industry.
Looking at the broader picture, the world
sheep population is in decline, with dairy
and beef cattle taking up more grassland,
particularly in New Zealand and Ireland.
This is likely to create a tighter supply for
a stable demand which would indicate
better prices for British lamb both in the
UK and EU. Although there is very little we
can do to influence currency exchange
rates, the EU consumer has an appetite for
lamb meat and the UK is one of the few
countries which can fulfil it.
It is interesting to note how different
farmers are changing their systems to
cope with the challenges referred to above.
Many upland farmers delayed putting the
tups with the ewes last autumn to avoid a
repeat of the losses caused by the heavy
snow of 2013. Whilst some lowland are
embracing the practice of multiple birthing
and recording scanned ewe predictions in
excess of 210%. These are examples of
how farmers adjust to the conditions on
their individual farms.
The key to success, whatever the system
chosen, is attention to detail and the
management skills of the flockmaster
in choosing the right breeding stock,
managing the nutrition correctly through
each stage of the breeding calendar and
pitching the finished lambs at the right
market and to the desired specification.
For farmers who sell their lambs beyond
the seasonal summer drop off, feeding
creep pellets to lambs will only be justified
in the early weeks, as grass alone will
provide ample nutrition from June onwards.
However, those who aim to catch the early
season high prices, creeping is essential
as rapid growth throughout, assisted
by a quality compound will be a good
investment.
Grass is the most important element in
the sheep’s diet and any supplementation
should be strictly targeted at key times
during the year. Providing a good quality
sward throughout the year requires a
combination of having the right grass /
clover leys which have received the correct
fertiliser at the right time. Maintaining a
healthy soil and avoiding compaction
will minimise the amount of conventional
fertiliser needed to help maintain
production and boost profits.
Many of these issues are covered in
this Sheep Management Guide, with
contributions from our expert nutritionists
and sheep specialists as well as examples
of good practical farmers who have
developed their management systems to
complement their circumstances. There
is also an article written by Mole Valley
Farmers Director and Exmoor farmer
Peter Delbridge, who gives his take on the
industry’s wellbeing.
Whatever your style of farming sheep, we
are available to supply advice and products
to assist you in your business. Please
contact us through the branches, on the
helpline numbers listed on the back page
or visit www.molevalleyfarmers.com.
Peter
Delbridge
Mole Valley
Farmers director
& sheep farmer
Peter and his wife Carol farm 1000
breeding ewes and 40 single suckler
cows, 1200 ft up on Exmoor.
Peter is a director of Mole Valley
Farmers and a past Regional Chairman
of NSA.
2013 was a year of two metrological halves
and despite having the best summer for
a few years, it will still be one most sheep
keepers will be glad to see the back of.
The economic ramifications of it could take
some time to fully get over.
help to put things in place for a better
2014.
It didn’t get off to the best of starts, with
many ewes in average condition, or worse,
and being fed below par forage made in
the previous wet summer. The increased
concentrate consumption was both very
necessary and costly, with compound
feed values at record levels this impacted
directly on the bottom line of most sheep
enterprises. The spring that followed
gave little respite with sub zero day time
temperatures lasting well into April when
we saw the water emptied out of mothering
pen buckets at breakfast being frozen
by lunchtime, you quickly realized grass
growth was always going to be a struggle
and with hindsight the rams should have
been put in a fortnight later. Faced with
poor grass growth, feeding even more
concentrates to keep ewes milking was
the only option for many, but even this is
a poor substitute for early spring grass.
No surprise then that lamb growth rates
were below expectations and performance
ended up to two or three weeks behind
normal.
With many sheep enterprises under
pressure from the increases in input costs
and the cumulative effect of the previous
eighteen months, one had hoped that the
retailers and their dedicated processors
might just take the long term view to look
after their future supply chain by offering a
price that reflected increased feed costs,
and boost morale. Early season trade was
good but sadly this only lasted until Royal
Welsh show week when the deadweight
price dropped 70p/kg in five days when
significant numbers finally started to come
out. Since then the trade has remained
stubbornly flat, with the likes of Tesco
importing Kiwi lamb as early as September.
It looked like they had a strategy to not
leave the UK market short, therefore
manipulating our farm gate prices. At
the same time, unbelievably, Tesco’s
consumers were told that UK lamb was out
of season! They seem to have conveniently
forgotten that they had pledged to
maximise supplies from the UK in response
to ‘horse gate’, when they, along with
associated processors, were caught with
their pants well and truly down. Is it any
wonder there is still a deep seated mistrust
within the food supply chain?
However, once the warm midsummer sun
hit the backs of sheep and shepherds alike
the transformation was quite remarkable.
Grass for once had sugar and goodness
in it and was consumed at night whilst the
sheep spent days lying in the shade putting
on weight. Quality fodder was easily
gathered, although not in great volumes
and quite quickly the world seemed a
better place. Whilst the summer and
autumn will not correct the shortcomings
of the previous 18 months it will hopefully
Another major gripe amongst sheep
farmers recently surrounds the future
implementation of EID and losing the ability
to send lambs to slaughter in 2015 using
a 10p non electronic tag. Instead we will
be forced to insert a pair of individually
numbered tags costing around 70p, with
no apparent benefit, as most abattoirs
are reluctant to read individual tags and
return that information to producers.
One of our flocks is fully electronically
recorded whilst the larger crossbred flock
2014 Edition
6
Having been in the doldrums for too many
years, sheep farmers across the country
were beginning to enjoy better returns
for the products they sold, with finished
lambs and cull ewes making record prices
and even wool making more than the cost
of shearing. It seemed the sector could
expect a more stable future. However, in
2013, several influences combined to cast
a shadow.
l
Mole Valley Farmers sheep management guide
2Introduction
Optimism for sheep farmers
Introduction
Contents
is not and I really resent the extra £400
we shall have to spend to comply if we
don’t get anything useful in return. As
our representative bodies were unable
or unwilling to prevent this, the extra
expense we will incur should as a minimum
guarantee useful management information
in return. Producers could then make some
informed judgements on such matters as
genetics and selection, if they wanted to,
then the situation might become a little
more bearable. Who knows, we might
even find out where that 15kg carcass
we all get from time to time really comes
from! In the coming months it’s up to the
NSA and the NFU to work together to
turn a negative into a positive by ensuring
sensible tolerances are put in place so
sheep keepers would not run the risk of
single farm payment penalties for genuine
mistakes, including equipment failure,
forcing abattoirs to record and return
individual lamb slaughter data as a matter
of course and since all sheep will then have
individual EID they could justifiably demand
the removal of the six day standstill!
I guess 2013 will have made
most sheep farmers pretty
cautious about the future with
very few expanding.
Indeed many are keeping fewer ewes but
are trying to keep them cheaper, some
have gone out of them altogether, hence
the patchy breeding ewe trade this autumn.
Where the sheep sector will be in twelve
months time will very much depend on
profit levels and the associated feel good
factor, with the weather having an impact
on both.
3
Improved feed management
Article by Dr Chris Bartram, Mole Valley Farmers
DW finished lamb prices:
580
p per kg carcase
2012
2013
480
430
380
330
F
J
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
weeks
supply situation. It could also mean that
the midsummer price drop may be deeper
as more lambs are brought to market
However, this effect could be negated
as New Zealand’s tightening supply is
expected to continue for much of the 2014
season. ‘Beef and Lamb New Zealand’
estimates a drop of almost seven per cent
UK Breeding flock trends:
UK lamb slaughterings:
Breeding
flock
Y-o-Y%
change
2008
13.8m
-6.8%
2009
13.84m
n/c
20
19
18
17
16
2010
13.86m
n/c
2011
14.21m
+2.5%
2012
14.27m
+0.4%
2013 f
14.27m
n/c
17
16
million head
21
million head
in the lamb kill, to 4.1 million heads for
the three months of the season (Oct-Dec),
thus import volumes from New Zealand are
expected to be much lower, which should
result in a greater share of market for UK
produced lambs.
15
15
14.1 14.1
14
13.1
13
12
14
16.0
13.2 13.2
'00
'01
'02
'03
'04
'05
'06
'07
'08
'09
The continued strong growth in
volumes sent to Hong Kong and a
better than expected performance in
the more traditional European markets
have resulted in an upward projection
in exports. There are still concerns
over the economic situation in some
European countries, however the
current position is encouraging. With
volumes from New Zealand expected to
be tight this may result in a number of
markets turning to the UK for supplies,
although volatile currency exchange
'10
'11
'12
'13
13.2
12.0
12.5
11.9
12.3 12.3
11.2
10
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014
f
f
rates may affect producer prices.
Overall supplies of sheep meat are
expected to be tight for the 2014 season.
While UK production has been forecast
upwards for the first half of 2014, the
increased exports and lower imports are
expected to result in availability being
lower than previously expected. As many
farmers will view this potentially positive
supply versus demand working in their
favour, maybe 2014 will be a good year
for them, weather permitting!
Lowland Breeding Flock Financial
Performance 2012/13 (£ per ewe):
Average
Top Third
Total output
105
118
Variable and
replacement
cost
41
40
Total
concentrates
10
10
Gross
margin
64
77
Fixed costs
77
59
Labour and
machinery
36
27
Net margin
-13
18
14.4
13.6
11
13
Information from EBLEX (see below)
provides an interesting comparison
between the average and top third of
lowland breeding flocks in 2012/13.
The top third producers achieved a £30 per
ewe higher net margin than the average,
with higher output accounting for 37% of
the difference. It is interesting that total
concentrate costs were the same. In fact,
the top third of producers who invested
an extra £18 per tonne, actually fed less
concentrate per ewe. Lower fixed costs
accounted for a staggering 57% of the
net margin difference, primarily due to
differences in labour cost. Is it possible that
some systems are too complicated?
reduction in total feed costs.
A focus on supplementary feeding is very
important. Amount and type of energy
supply is crucial. For ewes expecting twins
offered moderate quality forage, increasing
the energy density of the compound has
massive consequences on ewe body
weight changes, lamb birth weight and
milk supply. In order to optimize rumen
function, diets must be formulated to a
specific level of starch and digestible fibre.
Overfeeding starch, a possible issue this
year, particularly in late pregnancy when
forage intakes are low, can lead to acidosis
and potentially serious consequences on
the subsequent health and performance of
the ewe.
The correct amount and type of protein is
also vital. Trials have shown the need to
provide sufficient protein to ewes during
late pregnancy and early lactation. The key
is in the type of protein fed. Supplementary
feeds must be formulated to specific levels
of digestible undegradable protein. High
performance feed will result in increases
in lamb birth weights, milk protein content
and stronger, faster growing lambs. Recent
work is beginning to unravel the link
between protein nutrition and the immune
system. The ability to understand the
effect of different types of protein on the
susceptibility of the ewe to disease is a
fascinating area.
Detailed trials have provided evidence that
ewes fed additional vitamin E produced
lambs that were more vigorous at birth
and had faster growth rates. However,
surprisingly not all feeds on the market
include the enhanced amount and
producers are advised to check levels
carefully.
Recent research has also considered the
importance of biotin in ewe nutrition. Biotin
is a vitamin involved in energy metabolism.
The studies indicate a significant
improvement in the weaning weight of
lambs from ewes fed biotin.
2014 Edition
280
There is some expectation that the
marketing pattern of lambs may be moving
later this year, as some producers chose
to tup later in the hope of avoiding any
bad weather, following the difficulties of
last year. This is likely to mean the new
season is fairly slow to start which will
perhaps exacerbate the expected tight
4
Sheep numbers for 2013
show a modest 5%
increase year on year in
UK lamb slaughterings,
to 12.5 million head.
This is encouraging
news, as it was thought
the disastrous weather
conditions in early 2013
would have resulted in a
decrease.
2011
530
There are a number of new challenges
for the sheep sector in 2014. A review
of performance data published recently
highlights several crucial feed related
issues for progressive sheep producers.
It is clear that decisions on the type and
amount of supplementary feed have
a major impact on the profitability of
the enterprise. In many cases a better
understanding of the importance of
nutrition is required. Also, the ability to
measure performance will be increasingly
important in the future.
l
l
2014 Edition
Source: EBLEX/AHDB Market
Intelligence
Market trends
The new research clearly
illustrates that it is critical
to use the appropriate feed
and mineral supplements,
according to the requirements
of the system adopted on
the farm.
It must be remembered that an extra
investment of £25 per tonne in concentrate
feed only equates to an additional cost
of only £1.00 per ewe in a typical lowland
system. More importantly, the potential
extra income from improved performance
is significant.
The benefit of ensuring an adequate supply
of vitamin E is now widely documented.
Forage is a crucial part of most systems.
Forage quality is in general very good this
year. The values for energy content and
intake potential are better than last year.
Sheep producers must analyse forage and
design an appropriate feed plan to achieve
the production target. This approach
can result in a significant increase in
performance and in many situations a
5
Products are formulated to several unique components:
A combination of sound
experience, understanding
the market and recent
developments in ewe and
lamb feeding has resulted in
an improved range of Mole
Valley Feed Solutions sheep
feeds for the new season.
Whilst there are many different systems
of keeping sheep, be it lowland grazing in
Kent, folded grazing of roots in Hampshire
or halfway up a mountain in Wales, in most
cases the objective will be to produce one
crop of lambs each year. We have one
chance to maximise the opportunities this
crop presents.
Key Feature
Product Type
Selected ingredients
All sheep feeds
Fixed formulation
All sheep feeds
Excellent palatability
All sheep feeds
Optimum mineral balance
All sheep feeds
Very high vitamin E (155 iu/kg)
Ewe feeds
High selenium (0.6 mg/kg)
Ewe feeds
Copper antagonist
Lamb feeds and specialist ewe
Ammonium chloride
Lamb feeds
Extra Investment
per Ewe
Feed Cost per Ewe
(£ per Tonne)
25 kg
feed
50 kg
feed
£200.00
£5.00
£10.00
£5.00
12.5p
25p
£225.00
£5.62
£11.25
£10.00
25p
50p
Feed Price
Feed Price
(£ per Tonne)
25 kg
feed
50 kg
feed
£250.00
£6.25
£12.50
£15.00
37p
75p
£275.00
£6.87
£13.75
£20.00
50p
100p
£300.00
£7.50
£15.00
£25.00
62.5p
125p
Weeks before lambing
After lambing
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
1
2
3
Straw kg/day
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.6
0.8
1
1.2
1.3
1.5
1.5
1.3
70
Hay kg/day
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.7
0.9
1.1
1.3
1.3
1.1
55
Silage kg/day
-
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.6
0.8
1
1.2
1.2
1.1
50
The ewe feed range:
Form
Protein
Champion
Ewe
Nut and
Roll
18
Super Ewe
Nut
18
Premier
Ewe
Nut and
Roll
18 & 20
Prestige
Plus
Nut
20
Multimix
Sheep
Pellet
30
System
Key Feature
Product
Bulk
Bags
Low cost
Champion Ewe 18 nuts
Yes
Yes
Optimised
nutrition
Champion Ewe 18 rolls
Yes
Yes
Sugar beet,
wheat and soya
Premier Ewe 18 nuts
Yes
Yes
Indoor, high
performance
Biotin, ProPass
or prairie,
Megalac
Premier Ewe 18 rolls
Yes
Yes
Home mix
Mineral content
Super Ewe 18 nuts
Yes
Yes
Premier Ewe 20 nuts
Yes
No
Traditional
lowland
High
performance
lowland
High
performance
lowland
Product selection and exact feed rates will depend on
breed, body condition, forage quality and quantity and
the target level of performance.
Yes
No
Multimix Sheep 30 pellets
Yes
Yes
These two essential elements are
responsible for effective immune system
function and as with zinc play a key role
in prevention and recovery from infection,
such as mastitis in the ewe. Both are
essential for lamb vigour and protection
against hypothermia. Research has shown
that vitamin E should be supplied at 100iu
per head per day for optimal results.
Increased vitamin E for ewes in late
pregnancy has shown:
•
•
•
Increased lamb plasma vitamin E at
birth with lambs standing earlier
Lambs suckled earlier
Colostrum with higher vitamin E
content
Lambs gained extra live weight per
day to weaning
Selenium works in conjunction with
vitamin E: Short term leys, perennial ryegrasses
and improved grassland management,
whilst producing improved yields, have
however further depressed already low
forage mineral status availability. Because
of this, the mineral requirements of the
in-lamb ewe are very similar whether they
are housed or not. The main difference is
that longer term housed (6-8 weeks) ewes
should not be fed too much magnesium.
This should only be introduced when
they are turned out (or preferably the day
before).
The most important elements for the ewe
and her unborn lamb include: cobalt, zinc,
iodine, selenium and vitamin E, however
the levels of these elements supplied by
grass or conserved forages are well below
the requirement of the ewe.
Cobalt
Prestige Plus Ewe 20 + Biotin
Vitamin E and Selenium
•
Total
kg
8
Product
It is therefore important to provide the
pregnant ewe with an adequate supply
of essential minerals, vitamins and trace
elements. It is likely that the ration fed
to in-lamb ewes will be predominantly
based around grazed grass or conserved
winter forages, which can be a very poor
source of essential micronutrients. Correct
supplementation will help improve ewe
health, lamb survivability and vigour.
Zinc, together with selenium and vitamin E,
is responsible for immune system function
which helps guard against mastitis and
other infections, helps cleanse, speeds
tissue repair and recovery from infection
caused to the birth canal at lambing. Zinc
will help to reduce lameness or aid hoof
repair. There are many sources of zinc, but
protected sources of zinc (often referred to
as chelates) can be particularly beneficial.
Research work has demonstrated how
lambs stand and suckle earlier when
adequate levels of cobalt are supplied.
•
Extra selenium supplementation for
ewes has been shown to significantly
increase vitamin E levels in milk
Organic sources of selenium such as
Sel-Plex are much more available to the
ewe, see product options below.
Nutri-LINK GP Sheep mineral is now
stocked as standard in all our retail
stores and is also available for direct
delivery to farm. This product is a good
all round mineral for ewes, both pre and
post lambing. With good levels of cobalt,
zinc, iodine, selenium and vitamin E and
containing vitamin B12.
Nutri-LINK Elite Ewe minerals are
available for direct to farm delivery
(minimum ½ tonne drop) and provide
excellent levels of cobalt, zinc, iodine and
selenium and contain vitamin B12. When
fed at 30g per head per day will also
provide the target 100iu vitamin E
per head.
2014 Edition
The value of quality
ewe feed
The number one objective is to do
everything we can to ensure that each
lamb is born healthy and with good vigour
which will grow into a viable replacement
or finished lamb.
Zinc
l
l
2014 Edition
Article by John Lawrence, Mole Valley Farmers
Potential cost of poor
quality feed:
1 lost ewe = £60.00
1 lost lamb = £80.00
6
Feeding ewes for lamb health and vigour
Mole Valley Farmers ewe compounds
Nutri-LINK Housed Ewe minerals are
formulated for ewes which are housed for
the longer term. These are also available
for direct to farm delivery (minimum ½
tonne drop) and provide excellent levels
of cobalt, zinc, iodine and selenium and
contain vitamin B12. When fed at 30g per
head per day will also provide the target
100iu vitamin E per head.
All Nutri-Link sheep minerals in the range
are weatherproofed and suitable for free
use or can be incorporated with feed.
Options:
Also available on both the Nutri-LINK Elite
Ewe and Nutri-LINK Housed Ewe minerals
(detailed above) containing protected zinc
and Sel-Plex selenium (minimum ½
tonne drop).
If you require further guidance or advice
on our sheep mineral supplement
product range, please contact the
mineral helpline on: 01278 420481 or
email: [email protected]
Iodine
Involved in the production of thyroxine
hormone, helps guard against hypothermia
at lambing. Also linked to selenium.
Vitamin B12
Critically important to ewe and lamb
performance, helping enhance energy
metabolism. B12 deficiency results in poor
feed utilisation.
Product information:
The Mole Valley Farmers Nutri-LINK
range now includes 3 minerals specially
formulated to meet the requirements of
sheep on our farms today.
7
Like us, sheep need energy, protein, fibre,
vitamins, minerals and trace elements
in the correct proportions to make up a
balanced and healthy diet. As a whole, the
nutritional requirements of the ewe can be
determined by the stage of the breeding
cycle i.e. tupping, mid-pregnancy, latepregnancy and lactation.
•
•
Feed buckets provide major minerals,
trace elements and vitamins with
energy and protein to help balance
shortfalls in the diet
Feed blocks can replace compound
feeds or be fed in conjunction with
forages to provide the animal with a
balanced diet
Mineral Buckets
Sheep General Purpose
Size: 20kg / 100kg
Contains a full complement of minerals,
vitamins and trace elements, suitable as an
all year round mineral supplement for most
types of sheep.
Sheep Hi Mag
Size: 20kg / 100kg
Contains high levels of sugars to
encourage palatability along with a highly
available source of magnesium to help
reduce the risk of grass tetany (staggers).
Fully fortified with minerals, vitamins and
trace elements for sheep.
Feet & Fertility
Size: 20kg / 100kg
Contains essential minerals and vitamins
required to optimise hoof health. High
phosphorus, protected zinc, protected
selenium (Sel-Plex), high vitamin E, fish oils,
sulphur and biotin. Don’t compromise, give
your sheep the best!
Feed Buckets
Super Energy 16 + Fish Oil
Size: 22.5kg / 100kg
The ultimate sheep energy bucket utilising
high levels of soya. High in bypass protein
to aid colostrum/milk production. Nutrient
loaded with extra high levels of energy,
protein, vitamin E, omega 3 fish oils,
8
Feed Buckets
Feed Blocks
Daily Intake
(g/head/day)
Daily Intake
(g/head/day)
Daily Intake
(g/head/day)
15 - 30
50 - 150
150 - 300
eight weeks before lambing, continuing
through to 2-3 weeks post-lambing to
ensure feed intakes are maintained.
John Dallyn
photo
Ready Reckoner
Mineral Buckets
Feed Buckets
Feed Blocks
No of buckets required /
100 head / month
No of buckets required /
100 head / month
No of blocks
required / 100 head /
month
3-5
7 - 20
protected selenium (Sel-Plex), protected
zinc, B vitamins and protected protein to
complement forage deficiencies.
Extra Energy
Size: 22.5kg / 100kg
A lower intake protein and energy bucket
based on wheat distillers dark grains and
soya. Fully fortified with minerals, vitamins
and trace elements. Megalac (a high
quality bypass energy source), fish oils
and protected zinc are included to further
enhance performance. Suited to animals on
poorer quality forages, due to the inclusion
of urea and Active-S (Sulphur).
“Feeding Mole Valley Farmer’s Extra
Energy & Protein plus Fish Oil Feed
Blocks helps ease management and acts
as an essential forage improver”, believes
sheep farmer John Dallyn.
20 - 40
Feed blocks form a key part of John’s
feeding system by providing the right level
of energy and protein at the crucial stages,
just before and after lambing.
combined with fish oils, megalac and
premium vitamins, mineral and trace
element package. Particularly suitable for
animals on poorer quality forage due to the
inclusion of urea and Active-S (Sulphur).
Most of his 1,500 ewe flock of Texel
and Suffolk cross mules are provided
with blocks 5-6 weeks prior to lambing.
However, they may be fed to some ewes
which are on poorer quality grazing from
1
1
Feed Blocks
ckets,
Mineral Bu
ks
Feed Bloc k
Super Energy + Fish Oil
Size: 22.5kg
The ultimate high performance feed block
containing high quality wheat distillers dark
grains as the main ingredient. Super high
energy and all quality protein combined
with fish oils, Megalac protected energy,
Sel-Plex and a premium vitamin, mineral
and trace element package. Feed pre and
post lambing to multiple bearing ewes or
as a pre tupping energy boost. Does not
contain urea.
More information on the full range
of Mole Valley Farmers mineral
buckets and blocks can be found
online at:
www.molevalleyfarmers.com.
Extra Energy & Protein + Fish Oil
Size: 22.5kg
The all round feedblock of choice utilising
wheat distillers dark grains as the main
ingredient. High protein and energy
Alternatively if you have any
queries or to order a free copy of
our latest brochure please
call: 01566 780261 or email:
[email protected].
ets &
Feed Buck
nerals for
Quality Mi
estoc
Quality Liv
Mineral B
kets & Fe uckets,
ed Block
s
r Quali
Feed Buc
Quality M
inerals fo
ty Livesto
ck
“The energy and protein in
Mole Valley Farmers’ blocks is
just right, it’s got Megalac plus
fish oil in it which helps with
milk production to give lambs
a good start,” explains John.
“The energy and protein in Mole Valley
Farmers’ blocks is just right, it’s got
megalac plus fish oil in it which helps with
milk production to give lambs a good
start,” explains John. With the flock split
across several farms around Chepstow in
Monmouthshire, feeding blocks instead
of concentrates also helps reduce labour
requirements. “The sheep can be scattered
around on grass keep, so feeding blocks is
much easier than having to go out and feed
cake every day. It provides a constant feed
source 24 hours a day.
The sheep are much more content as they
are not in the habit of chasing the pickup
around expecting to be fed cake. With
the ewes lambing outside, feeding blocks
rather than cake also means the ewes
are more settled and less likely to mismother. I do still feed some concentrate,
where necessary, but I have introduced
more blocks because I see them as being
more efficient in terms labour and the
contentedness of the ewes,” he says.
The blocks are used as a forage improver
every winter, however they proved
particularly useful during last year’s
horrendous weather. “In a normal year we
usually use about 5.5-6t of blocks, but last
year we used 11 tonnes because of poor
forage quality. The delayed spring meant
ewes would have been unable to get all
their energy requirements from grazed
grass. Consequently the blocks provided
an essential boost”.
2014 Edition
•
Mineral Buckets
Mineral buckets provides major
minerals, trace elements and vitamins
Customer Review
Testimonial - John Dallyn, Sheep Farmer.
Recommended Intake Levels
l
l
Feed blocks help ease management and
supplement poor quality forage
2014 Edition
Mineral buckets, Feed buckets and
Feed blocks
The blocks have also been useful when
grazing ewes on fodder beet. “If you
went in with cake it would be chaos. It
would leave the sheep and shepherd, not
to mention the field in a right mess. The
blocks mean the sheep are more content
and make the most of the crop,”
says John.
Mole Valley Farmers’ Extra
Energy & Protein plus Fish
Oil Feed Blocks utilise wheat
distillers dark grains as the
main ingredient. The block
contains high protein and
energy combined with fish oils,
megalac and premium vitamin,
mineral and trace elements.
They are particularly suitable
for cattle or sheep on poorer
quality forage due to the
inclusion of urea and Active-S
(Sulphur).
For full details call the
Buckets and blocks
line on: 01566 780261
9
2014 Edition
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Mole Valley Farmers lamb compounds
Molecare
Lamb Colostrum
All Mole Valley Feed Solutions lamb
feeds are formulated to several unique
features.
The products are designed to encourage
early dry feed intake, achieve target daily
liveweight gain and maximise the gross
margin for a particular production system.
Made using
British Milk
Benefit
Research base specification
Increase growth rate
Selected ingredients
Increase intake
Fixed formulation
Consistent product
Excellent palatability
Increase intake
Optimum mineral balance
Increase growth rate
Minimise copper toxicity
problems
Minimise urinary calculi
Copper antagonist
Ammonium chloride
Information on the new range of lamb feeds is summarised in the table below.
•
Mole Valley Farmers Lamlac is the
number one tried and trusted ewe
milk replacer.
•
Made using British milk. The powder
is easy to mix and fully formulated
to provide all the nutrients required
by the lamb.
•
Highly digestible and with natural
health protection
•
Mole Valley Farmers Lamlac has
been proven in trials to result in
outstanding growth rates.
“Each year substantial numbers of new born lambs die within
the first week of life.” John Ovenell, Animal Health Specialist.
The first feed is a critical part of a lamb’s
life, with good quality colostrum required
within the first 6 hours after birth. Molecare
colostrum supplement contains specially
selected nutrients to help give lambs a
productive start to drive healthy growth and
performance.
•
•
Harvested colostrum – Provides
resistance to help fight disease until
immunity develops naturally.
Fast and slow release energy –
Support growth and help maintain
body temperature.
•
High fat – Replenishes reserves and
insulates from the cold.
•
Active egg proteins – Protect the gut
from damaging bacteria.
•
Gut conditioners – Effectively colonise
and stabilise the active gut.
•
Antioxidants – Support effective
immune function to help fight disease.
•
Vitamins and minerals – Nutrients
important to health, growth and
condition.
•
Disease free colostrum source - IBR,
EBL and Johnes free.
The ewe’s supply of colostrum to their
lambs can vary dramatically depending on
factors including nutrient supply to the ewe,
ewe condition or number of multiple births
in the flock. All of these limit the quality or
quantity of colostrum received at the teat.
Combined with external factors from the
environment and the varying disease status
of a flock it is important that lambs receive
enough essential nutrients via colostrum to
aid survival from the cold and disease.
Available in resealable easy store pouches
with easy dose scoop.
Dose Size - 25g (mixes to 100ml)
Available packs - 500g (20 dose)
1000g (40 dose)
Form
Protein
System
Multi Lamb Creep
Pellet
18
Ad-lib start to finish
Actisaf yeast
Rapid Lamb Creep
Pellet
18
Traditional creep
Sugar beet and wheat
Fast Lamb Finisher
Nut
16
Ad-lib high performance
Starch
Prime Lamb Finisher
Nut
16
Store semi-intensive
Barley and sugar beet
2014 Edition
Product
Molecare colostrum contains:
10
Key Feature
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The No.1 tried & tested ewe
milk replacer with outstanding
growth rates
Lamb milk replacers
Mole Valley
Farmers Lamlac®
Key Feature
Analysis of the lamb price and feed price is very important. Despite higher feed
costs the excellent lamb price still justifies an investment in high quality lamb feed.
The minimal impact of a higher priced lamb feed on feed cost per lamb is
illustrated below.
Feed price (£/T)
£225
£250
£275
Feed level (kg/head)
12.5
25
50
12.5
25
50
12.5
25
50
Feed cost (£/lamb)
2.8
5.6
11.2
3.1
6.25
12.5
3.4
6.9
13.8
Based on a lamb value of approximately £80 per head,
the impact of the higher feed price at the various levels of
concentrate input can be considered as minimal. For example,
at a feed level of 25kg per lamb, an extra investment of £50 per
tonne equates to a cost of only £1.30 per lamb!
There is a good argument that creep feeding early season
lambs is financially justifiable. If you look at the last three years
the lamb price takes a natural curve to peak around June
before it drops off as it get closer to the autumn. This drop in
price can be as much as £30 per lamb from the peak to the
bottom. If it costs on average £12 per lamb to creep feed,
you could be up to £10 or more better off. Therefore, with a
financial benefit there is a strong argument for getting them
away quicker.
There are also quite a few other advantages. More available
grazing for other stock is a great benefit if we have a dry
year! Also, there is no risk of trying to finish them off grass in
a summer and autumn like the ones we’ve had recently. In
addition, it is likely that the killing out percentage will be better
and there is no need for any more concern about how to
market them as the year progresses.
11
Since moving on to Mole Valley Farmer’s
Multi Lamb creep feed, Devon sheep
farmer Graham Perkins has been able to
reduce finishing times and take advantage
of higher early market prices.
2014 Edition
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“We changed on to Multi Lamb pellets
three years ago mostly because of the
density of the product and high feed
quality,” says Graham. “A lamb’s intestine
is so small, they can only eat a small
amount so by having a heavier feed they’re
getting more from every bite.”
Graham immediately noticed that lambs
were eating 10% more creep which was
reflected in improved performance.
“Because they were eating more, they
were growing faster. On average they
finish about two weeks earlier than on our
previous creep feed. That time’s critical
on an early market. Once you hit the third
week in May, prices drop off. Getting them
away early is worth about £20 a lamb to
us,” Graham explains.
“We try and finish as many as we can in 12
weeks, with 90% gone in 16 weeks,” says
Graham.
Feeding, along with genetics, is
fundamental to achieving these targets.
The large stature of the Suffolk breed helps
achieve size, while ad-lib feeding from two
weeks of age helps boost daily liveweight
gains. The majority of lambs grade at U, E
3L and are sold through processor, Randall
Parker Foods. Last year all lambs sold
averaged £102.55 a head.
The flock starts lambing in mid January
with a combination of both indoor and
outdoor lambing. Those lambing inside are
put out to grass when lambs are one week
old. At two weeks old they then move onto
ad-lib Multi Lamb feed. Tame lambs remain
inside on the pellets.
“On our system, creep feeding is necessary
every year to get a quick finish,” Graham
comments.
Getting lambs off farm early also brings
grazing benefits for the farm’s suckler herd
of 130, South Devons.
“It frees up the grass, releasing extra acres
for the cows and giving us more flexibility,”
says Graham.
Chris Lavis, from Mole Valley Farmers says
by switching to Multi Lamb, Graham has
been able to achieve the lamb’s full genetic
potential due to the fixed formula and
palatability of the feed.
“Multi Lamb is highly digestible and
nutrient dense. The pellets include sugar
beet, which is very palatable for young
lambs, while there are also three sources of
starch making it a very high energy feed,”
he says.
The inclusion of the yeast, Actisaf
Sc47 also helps promote rumen health
which aids efficient digestion. The fixed
formulation also means the product will
remain consistent throughout the year,
helping achieve consistent intakes and
lamb performance.
Mole Valley Farmers Multi
Lamb is an 18% protein, high
energy lamb feed, designed to
be fed ad-lib from week one to
slaughter.
Mole Valley Farmers Feed Solutions
manufacture a broad range of sheep and
lamb feed to suit any farming operation.
Please call the FeedLine on: 01278 444829
to discuss your requirements for the
coming months.
Keeping on top of any lameness issues as
soon as they arise will help to ensure you
can get the right sheep to the right sale.
We are constantly trying to minimise
lameness in our flocks and it’s never more
important than when trying to finish lambs
or make sure that you can take the best
pen to the best sale. This summer has
already been a very challenging one for
foot problems with the damp weather
conditions leading to widespread reports
of scald issues.
Studies from University College Dublin
have shown that the three main foot
problems affecting sheep in the UK are
progressively linked with scald being a
precursor for footrot, which in turn is a
precursor for CODD (Contagious Ovine
Digital Dermatitis), each one becoming
more severe than the previous for the
sheep. It is now more important than ever
to ensure that you have a good regime
for tackling any problems as they arise.
It can be tempting to use formaldehyde
as a quick fix, but repeated footbathing
with this can lead to an over hardening of
the hooves, which will eventually crack,
leading to more problems. As a result,
when dealing with any hoof problem,
strengthening both the skin barrier at the
coronary band junction (where scald and
footrot start) with the hoof and the hoof
horn itself are key, with zinc being one
of the best and most widely available
solutions for this, but only if you can get
it to stay on the hoof to be absorbed
efficiently.
Myti Lite II
Foot rot shears
12
Kling-on Blue (KOB) sheep footbath is a
zinc sulphate alone is able to.
Don’t
let lameness standsheep
in inthe
unique patented formulation containing
Scald/mild footrot
way
of and
sales
this
autumn.....
both copper
zinc which
will stay
on the
hoof for up to 3 days once dry, following
walking sheep through it. There’s no need
to hold them in the footbath and it’s ideal
to use in combination with consistency
of KOB Hoofpaste, which is of the same
formulation and the only waterproof paste
available for more challenging conditions
following paring feet. As KOB Sheep
stays on the hoof this long, it allows five
times the amount of zinc sulphate to be
absorbed into the hoof than standing
2014 Edition
Graham believes good
palatability and high nutrient
density are the main reasons
why young lambs take to the
feed so quickly, allowing him
to take advantage of efficient
early feed conversion rates.
Graham runs 300 Suffolk cross mules at
Knowle Farm, Coryton, together with his
father Joe and brothers Raymond and
Brian. Their strategy is to “feed them, finish
them and forget them” and as such, they
place a firm emphasis on getting as many
lambs away as quickly as possible.
Article by Max Hardy MRCVS, Molecare FarmVets
l
Customer Review
Testimonial - Graham Perkins, Sheep Farmer.
Lameness in sheep
Mole Valley Farmers Multi Lamb reduces
finishing times and boosts returns
Walk the sheep through KOB footbath or
apply KOB Hoofpaste once, 7 days prior
to sale.
Footrot
Use KOB footbath or KOB Hoofpaste twice
after paring feet, 14 and 7 days prior to
sale.
CODD
Use KOB footbath and KOB Hoofpaste in
combination three times at 21, 14 and 7
days prior to sale.
When buying in sheep, ensure you’re not
introducing any further issues to your flock.
Always check feet post-purchase and
before mixing with other sheep. If in doubt,
pare and footbath as a precaution. There is
a lot of contact between sheep at markets
when several thousand can be going
through sale.
Kling-on
Blue
Terramycin 3.92%
Cutaneous Spray
Footvax
250ml
13
Make Molecare Sheep Nutritional
Supplement your natural choice to
enhance your flocks’ performance.
Ideal for use pre-tupping, pre-lambing and
for lambs at weaning (from 5 weeks of age)
Molecare Sheep Nutritional Supplement is a
unique formulation of liquid minerals, vitamins
and chelated trace elements exclusive to
Mole Valley Farmers; designed to maximise
performance and promote growth and fertility.
Total volume /
sheep (ml)
Max doses per 5l
pack
Bodyweight (kg)
Dose (ml)
Max doses per 5l
pack
Up to 10
5
1000
Up to 20
5
1000
Key benefits for lambs
11-20
10
500
21 to 40
10
500
21-40
20
250
•
•
•
•
•
•
41 to 60
15
333
Supplement lambs at 5 weeks.
41-60
30
166
Over 60
20
250
Over 60
40
125
•
•
Cobalt and vitamin B12 for rumen development.
A rapid source of energy, fast absorption.
Animal weight (kg)
Maximise profits by maximising growth.
Adult sheep and lambs over 10kg: 10ml per 20kg body weight, up to a maximum of 40ml.
Increased vitality to help overcome the stress of weaning.
Lambs under 10kg: 5ml followed 3 weeks later by a 10ml application.
Natural vitamin E helps boost lambs natural immune system.
Increased levels of vitamin A to promote growth and
development.
Lambs under 10kg:
5ml
Easy
tofollowed
apply: 3 weeks later by a 10ml application.
Using a molecare sheep gun with a straight
nozzle apply as a pin-stream from the crown of
the head (avoiding the eyes) to the top of
the rump.
Zinc to aid the development of a robust immune system.
Sheep nutritional supplements
Key benefits for rams
Specifications
per litre
Amount
Boosts energy, fertility and stamina pre-tupping.
Vitamin A
2,000,000
IU
•
•
Vitamin D3
400,000
IU
Dose approximately 6 weeks before tupping season.
Vitamin E
30,000
mg
Vitamin B1
2,700
mg
Vitamin B2
1,000
mg
•
•
•
•
Vitamin B3
3,000
mg
Vitamin B5
1,200
mg
Manganese to help boost fertility.
Vitamin B6
1,250
mg
•
•
Vitamin B9
1,000
mg
•
Added natural vitamin E for its antioxidant properties.
Vitamin B12
13,000
mcg
Vitamin C
1,500
mg
Key benefits for ewes
Vitamin H
3,800
mcg
•
Vitamin K3
(MSB)
Promotes general well being, mineral balance and offers an
energy boost at critical times.
400
mg
•
Cobalt
3,000
mg
Supplement 1-4 weeks pre-tupping and pre-lambing to help
minimise unviable and still borns.
3,000
mg
Zinc
6,000
mg
•
•
Promotes increased lambing percentage and conception rates.
Manganese
Selenium
800
mg
Iodine
1,000
mg
Iron
900
mg
Currently available in 2.5L and 5L packs.
Dose rates for Lice
Dose rates for ticks
An increased intake of essential nutrients helps in maximising
conception rates.
Reduces likelihood of weight loss during the tupping season.
2014 Edition
Nutritional Information
14
Where quality
and value matter
Pour-on for Sheep
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l
2014 Edition
Molecare information about MoleEcto
Sheep nutritional supplements
5ml per 20 kg bodyweight up to a maximum of 20 ml.
Using the straight nozzle on the Pour-on Gun,
apply as a pin-stream from the shoulders to the
rump along the middle of the backline. Sheep
may be treated off-shears or at any time
during the year.
Dose rates
for Blowflies
Prevention
of blowfly
strike
Bodyweight (kg)
Dose (ml)
Max doses per 5l
pack
Up to 25
20
250
25 to 40
30
166
Over 40
40
125
Increased iodine is essential for hormone production.
Zinc and methionine to help maintain hoof structure and
overall strength.
Apply as a fan-spray to the surface
of the fleece on the back and
hindquarters of the sheep using the
Pour-on gun fitted with the fan-spray
nozzle. Half the dose should be applied
to the shoulders, back and flanks, and
half to the rump. The distance between
the nozzle and the fleece should be
approximately 20cm. Each dose will
require 2 or 3 sweeps to apply. The
product will prevent blowfly strike
only on areas covered by spray.
One application will give 6-8 weeks
protection. Re-treat as required.
Increased levels of selenium, essential for the fertilisation
process.
Essential nutrients help to optimise health, condition score,
overall production and yield.
•
Added selenium and natural vitamin E have antioxidant
properties.
•
•
B vitamins for energy and a healthy nervous system.
Vitamin D3 for a strong immune system and muscle function.
cm
20
Treatment of blowfly strike:
Apply directly to all the affected parts
at the rate of 2.5ml per 100 – 150cm2
(roughly the size of a hand). The T-bar
nozzle should be used. Most strikes will
require 5 -10ml. Ensure that all affected
parts are treated. A single application
is sufficient to ensure that larvae are
expelled and killed within a few hours.
Available to order at your local store or
online at: www.molevalleyfarmers.com
15
Sheep faecal egg counting
Article by Becca Vallis BVetMed, MRCVS, Molecare FarmVets
Overcoming resistance
to worm drenches
l
Hypothermia
Often occurs in intensive indoor lambing
systems with higher losses later in the
Lamb Dysentery
Usually seen in lambs less than 2 weeks
old leading to sporadic deaths in strong
single lambs, although can also be seen in
older lambs with a slower onset of disease
causing acute abdominal pain eventually
leading to death. The disease is caused by
bacteria known as clostridium perfringens.
Clostridial vaccinations are highly effective
against preventing the disease and
therefore annual vaccination of ewes 6
weeks prior to lambing is recommended.
Navel ill
Infection travels from the environment
through the navel into the lamb. Affected
lambs show a hunched back, a hollow
flank and lose weight. Navels are moist,
swollen and painful and pus may be
present. Cases may respond to antibiotics
and anti-inflammatories depending on
extent and duration of infection.
Careful management around the lambing
period will minimise losses from the above
neonatal diseases:
•
•
Joint ill
•
Occurs in colostrum deprived lambs at
2-3 weeks of age. Lambs are found with
a sudden onset painful lameness with
heat and swelling in multiple limb joints.
Veterinary treatment can be attempted with
antibiotics and anti-inflammatories, but
outcome is usually poor.
•
A highly experienced
veterinary team with a
strong farming background
Molecare FarmVets are available to give
advice across all regions on topics such as:
• herd health planning
• medicine usage
• disease information
South Molton
Frome
24 hour contact: 01769 575618
[email protected]
24 hour contact: 01373 852360
[email protected]
Professional healthcare
for your livestock
The lambing area should be well lit
and ventilated with good access to
pens. All newborn lambs should
be carefully monitored and prompt
treatment administered if necessary.
Ensure adequate colostrum intake
within the first four hours of life. If in
doubt stomach tube with 50ml/kg of
colostrum or a high quality substitute.
Dip navels with iodine as soon as
possible after birth.
Maintain strict hygiene. All lambing
pens should be cleaned between
ewes and kept well bedded with
clean, dry bedding. Ensure good
drainage.
Resistance to worm drenches will remain a major challenge to
livestock farming. We need to use wormers at the right time in the
right animals.
What do I need to do?
• Purchase a sheep faecal egg count kit from any Molecare
medicine counter.
How do we slow resistance down?
•
The kit contains 10 gloves, 2 plastic wallets, a pre-paid
envelope, a form and full instructions.
•
Collect 10 dung samples and post them to us in the envelope
provided (or bring into store) along with the completed form.
•
•
It is important that the samples are fresh.
The basic steps are:
• Check out your resistance status.
• Do not under dose.
• Reduce dependence on wormers,
(worm egg counts help achieve this.)
• Consider a quarantine dose.
• Preserve susceptible worms on the pasture.
2014 Edition
Losses are most common when lambing
outside in wet, cold and windy conditions;
however they can also occur in indoor
lambed animals as a result of a prolonged
birth or failure to feed. Hypothermia occurs
when a lamb’s temperature decreases
below 39°C as a result of the lamb not
having enough energy reserves to maintain
their body temperature. Affected lambs
become weak, are unable to suckle and
eventually become comatosed and die. It
is important that energy levels are restored
before attempting to heat the lamb up
to 39°C. This should be either through a
colostrum feed, or if the lamb is over 5
hours old, a glucose injection – discuss this
technique with your vet as it can often save
lives.
lambing period. Lambs show lethargy,
profuse salivation and distended
abdomens in days 1-3 of life as a result
of infection due to reduced or delayed
colostrum intake. Prompt veterinary
treatment with oral dextrose, antibiotics
and anti-inflammatories may be successful,
but prognosis is guarded. Prevention of
further cases holds much more success.
l
Lambs are faced with many challenges
in their first few days and weeks of life, it
is therefore vitally important that they are
given the best possible chance of survival.
The potential diseases and the steps
that should be taken for prevention are
discussed below.
Watery Mouth
16
2014 Edition
Lamb diseases
We will discuss the results with you and allow you to make an
informed decision on worming your flock.
Liver fluke testing
Article by Mark Riggs BVetMed, MRCVS, Veterinary Services Manager
Liver Fluke Tests
Unfortunately, despite the fact that liver
fluke can have devastating consequences
to sheep flocks, there isn’t one fool proof
test for diagnosing liver fluke infections in
sheep. Unlike in cattle, where exposure
to the parasite can be reliably determined
from either blood or milk sampling
following exposure, this test has not been
validated in sheep.
The SCOPS liver fluke workshop1 clearly
sets out what tests are available. The
following information has been adapted
from this list:
•
Abattoir feedback/post-mortem
examination – as the geography of
liver fluke habitat is ever expanding,
for some farmers this may be the first
indication of liver fluke on their land.
Upon receiving the abattoir report it’s
always advisable to ask the abattoir
for further information regarding their
thoughts on the level of infection i.e
how bad the livers were and whether
the infection was active or scarring
from a past infection. Likewise, any
sudden deaths on the farm should
always be discussed with your vet and
investigated and where applicable,
suitable post mortem examinations
carried out.
•
•
Faecal egg count - this is only a
detection of the presence of liver fluke
eggs and therefore adult fluke, rather
than a count of the total number of
fluke present, by which time most of
the damage to the liver will already
have been caused.
Copro-antigen test - this test looks
for the digestive enzymes produced
by liver fluke as they digest their way
through the sheep’s liver. Only when
Liver Fluke
Test Kit
Liver fluke
test kits available
in store now!
Liver Fluke
Test Kit
Liver Fluke
Test Kit
the liver fluke approach their final
destination, namely the sheep’s bile
duct, will these digestive enzymes
be detectable in the sheep’s faeces.
Although this is not a perfect test, it
may prove in the future to be more
reliable than faecal egg counts.
Liver fluke is on the rise and creeping into
areas previously unaffected. Along with
considering the above information, it is well
worth keeping abreast of other information
available, especially the parasite forecasts
produced by NADIS2; as they say
“forewarned is forearmed”.
References:
1: http://www.scops.org.uk/content/
Proceedings-of-Liver-Fluke-WorkshopAugust-2012.pdf
2: http://www.nadis.org.uk/
For full details ask at your local store.
FAQs
How does the test work?
BIOLOGICAL SPECIMEN - URGENT
SAC Veterinary Science Division
St Mary's Industrial Estate
Dumfries
DG1 1DX
The test looks for digestive enzymes produced by the fluke that can be detected in
faeces of the host animals when late immature flukes migrate close to the bile ducts
and when adults are present in the bile duct.
The kit is designed to be used with sheep or cattle faeces.
What samples are required?
At least a tablespoon of faeces is required per animal to be tested.
Can I test a group of animals?
Dumfries
DG1 1DX
Yes – groups of animals can be tested using a pooled sample. It is very important
that exactly the same weight of faeces from each animal is mixed into one
pooled sample. As such the faeces from individual animals should be sent to the
lab in separate gloves. The lab will mix the samples and report the pooled results
accordingly. The accuracy of pooled samples are less than that of testing individual
animals. A negative pooled sample result may not mean every animal in the sample
group is negative for a fluke infection. If requiring a pooled sample please mark the
submission form carefully.
What results can I expect?
?? BARCODE ??
Dumfries
DG1 1DX
?? BARCODE ??
Liver fluke
test kit
What animals can be tested?
Results will be reported as positive or negative. A positive result indicates current active
infection with late immature or adult fluke. All positive animals should be treated with
a suitable flukicide product. In autumn/early winter negative results could occur if only
immature fluke are present in the liver. A negative result can also be reported if very
low numbers of adult fluke are present especially with pooled samples.
Can I use the test to see if I need to retreat any animals?
How the service works
Write your SURNAME, SAMPLE NAME and
the DATE on the white strip on the two
resealable plastic wallets provided.
Collect up to 10 samples - you are provided
with 10 gloves and two plastic wallets.
Follow the next seven steps for the collection
of faeces for testing.
1.
PLACE THE GLOVES WITH SAMPLES
INSIDE in the plastic wallets and seal
(5 samples per wallet).
2.
Fill in all the necessary detail inside
this leaflet.
3.
Place the sealed wallets and this leaflet
in the prepaid envelope provided.
4.
It is important to send the sample
BEFORE the LAST POST of the day,
5.
ONLY POST MONDAY TO THURSDAY to
avoid any delays.
6.
The results will be reported and
discussed over the phone, so please
provide the most accessible PHONE
NUMBER.
7.
Results will also be emailed or posted
so please tick your preference.
Collection of faeces for egg counting
1.
Collect fresh samples only (less than one hour old).
triclabendazole containing products a two week post treatment test is used to assess
treatment efficacy. For other products longer post treatment periods are required and
should be discussed with your animal health advisor or veterinary surgeon.
2.
Up to 10 individul samples can be sent.
3.
Loosely gather sheep or cattle in the corner of a field or shed for five to ten minutes,
then let them walk away.
What are the common misinterpretations?
4.
One tablespoon of faeces per sample is more than enough.
5.
Use the gloves provided, pick up a sample, turn glove inside out and tie a knot in the glove.
Yes – After treatment coproantigens disappear quickly from the faeces. For
Care should be taken to interpret the results fully. A positive result indicates the
presence of late immature/adult fluke. It doesn’t give any indication as to the number
of adult fluke or the severity of infection. A negative result may not indicate there
are no fluke present, rather the fluke may still be migrating towards the bile duct
and are too immature to be detected. Where there is a history of fluke infections on
farms especially on known fluke pastures, regular testing at 6-8 week intervals would
be recommended. Care should also be taken to interpret negative post treatment
results. A negative post treatment result doesn’t mean that reinfection hasn’t already
occurred or that further treatment will not be required.
6.
The samples should be collected separately and will be mixed in the laboratory.
7.
Bring samples to the branch or post in a prepaid envelope as soon as possible.
?? BARCODE ??
17
Farmer focus
Customer Profile
Phil & Pat Hutton, Sheep Farmers.
The most recent studies suggest that more
than 10% of British flocks experience an
outbreak of sheep scab per year. This is
worrying news and without intervention,
the statistics aren’t going to get any better.
The economic and welfare impact of an
outbreak is huge. The disease results in
loss of body condition and fleece value,
increased mortality rates, decreased
productivity and poor profitability. It’s
literally costing the sheep industry millions
each year.
The mite’s rasping mouthparts and faeces
cause an inflammatory reaction in sheep
which lead to severe irritation and fleece
loss. However, following infestation it
can be 40-50 days before any obvious
signs are seen. Therefore, by the time
the problem is diagnosed a significant
proportion of the flock are likely to be
infected.
The scab mite is highly contagious and
can survive off the sheep for up to 18 days
in the environment. Therefore, sheep will
It’s important to remember that an itchy
sheep is not necessarily a sheep with
scab. Lice infection is the other most
common diagnosis. Without appropriate
investigations, it is almost impossible to
tell the difference between sheep with the
early stages of scab infection and those
suffering from lice. In order to diagnose
the causative factor, hair plucks and skin
scrapings must be taken by a vet and the
specimens examined under a microscope.
Only then can you be sure whether lice or
mites are causing the problem.
In flocks showing signs of itchiness, a
diagnosis should be obtained as soon as
possible so the correct treatment can be
administered. There is no benefit in wasting
money and valuable time treating sheep
inappropriately for the wrong disease.
Calculations show that the cost of prompt
diagnosis and correct treatment of a scab
outbreak in a flock of 500 ewes can be as
little as £600. Compare this to estimates
of over £10,000 when taking into account
wasted labour, product and production
loss, estimated to be £20 per ewe.
Treatment for lice involves dipping with an
organophosphate or using a licensed pouron product such as MoleEcto. Care should
be taken to read the instructions and apply
the product in the correct manner.
There are a range of products available
for the treatment of scab, these take the
form of organophosphate dips or injectable
macrocyclic lactones. In order for dipping
to be effective the solution must be made
up to the correct concentration and
replenished according to the datasheet.
The sheep must be fully immersed in the
dip for at least a minute, with the head
submersed twice. Injectable Doramectin,
Moxidectin and Ivermectin are all licensed
for treating scab and each comes with its
own benefits. Several factors such as cost,
required dosing regimen, withhold times,
handling facilities and the farm’s situation
must be taken into account when choosing
the best product to use for treating scab.
Whichever product is chosen the important
thing to remember is ALL sheep need to
be treated with the correct dose. Scab
is highly contagious, so it only takes one
sheep to be missed for the entire flock to
become re-infected.
2014 Edition
Sheep scab is caused by
a small mite known as
Psoroptes Ovis.
catch scab not only from other sheep,
but also from transport, fencing, handling
equipment and contractors. In order to
prevent introduction of the disease by
bought in sheep a strict quarantine plan
must be in place.
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Article by Becca Vallis BVetMed, MRCVS, Molecare FarmVets
2014 Edition
Itchy sheep - is it scab?
Producing quality lambs at low cost is the
name of the game for the Hutton family who
farm at Northlew in Devon.
With most lambs finished on-farm, selecting
the best genetics, correct nutrition and
forward planning all help produce a quality
lamb, while maximising lambing percentage
dilutes overall costs.
Such quality is crucial considering about 80%
of lambs sent to Jaspers at South Petherwin
are selected and sold through the Waitrose
West Country Lamb Group.
Injectable solution
for cattle and sheep
containing 1% w/v
Doramectin. Meat
withdrawal is 56 days.
Available from your local
branch or online at
All branches have SQP’s (Suitably Qualified Persons) to help with
your purchases of animal medicines. For guidance and advice,
please speak to one of our staff who will be pleased to assist.
18
Phil and Pat Hutton took over Croft Farm from
Pat’s parent in 1985 and have since expanded
the home farm from 120 to 180 acre, with an
additional 270 acres of rented ground. Having
started with no stock, they slowly built sheep
numbers by buying in ewe and lamb couples.
Now their flock sits at 1,000 ewes, lambing in
three batches from January onwards.
The flock of 300 North Country Mules cross
Suffolks lamb early with all lambs sold for
slaughter. This year, this flock have scanned
at 192%, with the flock of 500-600 mules
scanning at 211% and due to start lambing
from 25 March. 60 lambs from these March
lambers are kept for replacements with about
100 sold for breeding. The farm also runs 120
pure Swales which are put to a Blue Faced
Leicester to produce replacement mules.
Some mule gimmer lambs are also bought in
as replacements.
Phil explains that work to achieve lambing
percentage target of around 200% starts well
before tupping, with all ewes body condition
scored after weaning.
“Ewe body condition is one of the most
important things to make sure you get good
lambing percentages. If you haven’t got the
condition right, you’ll get a lot of empties or
singles,” he says.
“If you’ve got a good lambing percentage
you need good feed. We had 106 sets of
triplets last year – you need to provide these
ewes with good quality, high energy feed. We
are guided by Chris Lavis from Mole Valley
Farmers, but we use Mole Valley Farmers
Premier ewe feed post lambing to keep ewe
condition.”
“We condition score ewes
three weeks after weaning,
split out the thin ones and put
them on better grazing. Then
three weeks after that we’ll
condition score them again.
If they’re still not doing well,
we’ll cull them.”
Phil says the same principle of feeding a
quality product applies to lambs, with lambs
creep fed with Mole Valley Farmers
Multi Lamb.
The Huttons also only select replacement
ewe lambs from doubles or triplets to ensure
prolificacy is bred into the flock.
To produce the quality lambs they need, Phil
and Pat breed their own Suffolk rams out of a
small flock of 19 pure ewes.
“I breed rams to achieve the conformation
I want in the lambs. I like to produce my
own rams in a traditional style so they are
not forced with concentrate,” explains Phil.
“They’re on grass all the way through so their
intake capacity if better and they can cope
better when they’re working.”
Phil also believes selecting quality feed is
crucial to ensure ewes are performing at their
best and lambs get the boost they need.
“Creep feed is our biggest cost, but it’s worth
it having a high lambing percentage. We
want to get the early lambers gone by June,
otherwise they eat into profits.”
Lambs from the early lambing flock are creep
fed all the way through, with a batch going
at the start of May at three months old.
Depending on the year, lambs born from the
March lambing ewes just receive grass, with
creep fed when necessary. Lambs average
20.25kg DW, grading on average R3L to U3L.
Everything, except the Swales, lamb inside
and are grouped according to condition score
and lambs carried. All ewes are vaccinated for
clostridial diseases and scratched for orf six
weeks prior to lambing.
The lambing team is made up of Phil and Pat
and son Steven with two relief staff doing
shift work. Ewes and lambs are moved into
individual pens at lambing with each pen
thoroughly cleaned and limed after each
ewe. Lambs receive Spectam scour halt, with
copper sulphate powder applied to navels.
19
2014 Edition
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Mating Mark Ram Harness
and Crayons
Fast Lamb Finisher
Sure Sired Marker Crayons
(Plus Harness)
Article by Graham Ragg, Mole Valley Farmers
Grass is potentially the most
profitable crop on the farm,
especially on sheep farms.
As well as ensuring the best overall
flock fertility and compact lambing,
good ram preparation improves
profitability by increasing the average
productive life of each tup, reducing
the ram cost per ewe served.
EBLEX suggests focusing
on the four Ts in particular,
in the ram MOT - Teeth,
Toes, Testicles and Tone.
Producers should take into account overall
health and condition when considering
culling or possibly retaining a ram for one
more season as a backup.
Toes
Lameness seriously affects a ram’s
working ability and foot rot and other
infections reduce fertility through raised
body temperatures. Feet should be
trimmed wherever necessary, foot-bathing
employed to prevent or treat infections and
footrot treated with injectable antibiotics.
Testicles
Large, firm testicles produce 80% more
semen per day than medium sized soft
ones. The testes and scrotum should
be free from hard lumps, ulcers, injuries,
lesions or parasites and the penis sheath
should be clear of infection with no sign of
shearing damage. Infections and physical
damage need to be treated. Rams with
clear defects should be culled.
Tone
Rams need to be in good body condition
(Body Condition Score 3.5 - 4.0) at the start
of tupping as they can lose 15% of their
bodyweight during a six week breeding
season and poor condition can seriously
affect both performance and fertility. They
should be fed up to 1kg/day of a high
quality ration without added magnesium
but supplemented with other trace
elements and vitamins where necessary
for 6-8 weeks before tupping to improve
condition and semen quality.
Teaser rams
Teeth
The effect of teaser rams is to stimulate a
synchronized oestrous in ewes early in the
breeding season, an absolute requirement
is that ewes are isolated from the ram for at
least 21 days.
Rams that have lost teeth or with teeth that
have become long or thin may not be able
to put on sufficient body condition ahead
of tupping and maintain it sufficiently well
Two peaks of activity occur 18-26 days
after the teaser rams have been put out
so ensure that entire rams are out with
the ewes 18 days after introduction of the
teaser or another 17 days will pass before
these ewes will get in lamb. Please ensure
that teaser rams have been vasectomised
at least 28 days before they are required
as they will not necessarily be firing blanks
until after this time.
Assessing your ram stock before tupping
allows time to make any adjustments in
body condition or purchase replacements.
Keeping lame, infertile and unfit rams in the
flock will result in the other rams having to
work harder and possibly lead to further
losses later on. If rams vary greatly from the
optimal condition score of 3.5, a decision
will need to be made whether this can be
corrected before the animal is needed for
tupping.
At Molecare Farm Vets we are able to offer
a full breeding soundness examination of
rams as well as flock health planning to aid
ram management. This may include:
•
Physical examination and semen
analysis of rams to assess if they are
likely to be fertile.
•
Selection of rams for breeding or
purchase based on heritable traits such as lambing ease, lamb vigour and
Estimated Breeding Values (EBVs).
•
Assessment of flock records of CLA
(Caseous Lymphadenitis), MV (Maedi-visna) and Scrapie to reduce
the likelihood of bringing disease into
the flock with a purchased animal.
•
Devising a robust quarantine plan for
purchased animals to ensure they do
not bring disease or resistant parasites
into the flock.
A well-bred ram that is free from disease
and raised on a largely forage based diet
can be capable of serving 100 ewes per
year for 4 years. For the commercial flock it
makes sense to aim for this kind of animal.
It is important to assess the sward for
weed ingression, grass species and clover
content. When the perennial ryegrass
percentage falls below 50%, consider
reseeding or over seeding to boost output
and quality with a long term perennial rye
grass ley, such as Premier Leys Milk-nMeat. The addition of chicory, a forage
herb, and white clover can be beneficial
Premier Leys Lamb Finisher plus White
Clover provides a 2-3 year intensive
finishing mixture. Aim for a white clover
content at about 20% of the sward, this will
increase palatability, protein content and fix
valuable nitrogen to increase grass yield.
If there is 5% or over of docks, nettles,
thistles, buttercups or dandelions it will be
worth using a selective grassland herbicide
The best quality swards require a healthy
soil. Our approach to forage production is
focused on improving soil condition. The
unique range of Mole Valley fertilisers are
based on key specificities to correct pH,
improve soil structure and increase soil
microbial activity to release unavailable
nutrients, as well as containing root
enhancing biostimulants to stimulate root
production and increase nutrient uptake.
To be sure your soil is at its
best, test your grassland fields
on a regular 4 year cycle to
check pH, phosphate and
potash levels, to tailor fertiliser
purchases.
depending on stocking rate at the grazing
and silage yield required.
Soil compaction is common on many grass
fields and can be caused by poaching
with livestock during wet periods and
compaction due to heavy machinery. To
identify if it is an issue on your farm, dig a
hole with a spade to look at soil structure
and spot any compacted layers. Remedial
treatment with the appropriate machinery
is a cost effective operation. This will help
preserve a vibrant healthy soil bacteria and
earthworm population.
2014 Edition
It takes a minimum of four weeks for sperm
to “ripen” in the reproductive tract of the
ram before they are capable of fertilising an
egg in the ewe. Anything compromising the
health of the ram in the run-up to mating,
can reduce the ram’s fertility during tupping
so lamb producers should safeguard next
year’s flock productivity by conducting a
simple MOT on all their breeding rams.
during the breeding season to sustain their
performance.
Here it is the most important feed for the
sheep flocks throughout the year, but
particularly in early spring as the ewes and
their lambs are turned out from the lambing
shed. As grass will probably form at least
90% of the sheep’s energy and protein
intake through the year, it is therefore
important to treat your grass as you
would any other crop on the farm, making
sure the swards are in the best condition
requires careful management several
weeks before.
to control these broad leaved weeds.
Thistles can contribute to the incidence
and increase the severity of orf. Advice on
preserving the clover content when using
grassland herbicides should be sought
from a BASIS qualified Agronomist.
l
Preparing the ram
A thorough check over at least eight weeks
before tupping will identify over 90% of the
problems that reduce ram performance.
This gives sufficient time for body condition
and health to be improved wherever
necessary. It also enables new rams to be
sourced, quarantined and acclimatised to
the farm in time to replace any that prove
beyond repair. All of which allows flock
managers to ensure all tups go into the
breeding season fully fit and fertile.
20
Grassland management
Preperation for tupping
Measure and monitor grass growth through
the season to ensure adequate grass for
grazing and silage. Remember, undergrazing is probably even more harmful to
sward composition and quality than overgrazing.
Alternating grazing and silage making
ensures any surplus grass can be shut
up and made into silage. Big bales can
be useful to make this surplus grass into
silage on predominantly sheep farms.
Grassland soils should be maintained at
6.0 to 6.5 pH. When the pH is 5.5 or below,
approximately 35% of the nutrients in the
soil applied by FYM, slurry or bought in
fertilisers are wasted.
Phosphate and potash indexes should be
at index 2 (satisfactory), using additional
bagged nitrogen to increase yield
Roots
In today’s tough environment the demand
to reduce feed costs and to deliver
improved profits continues to be the
main driver for many sheep producers.
Home grown fodder has always played
an important role on many farms and the
benefits of these crops are numerous.
They can be used to extend the grazing
season in the late autumn/winter and
are useful in the summer months when
grass growth dips. Many are quick
growing and relatively low cost per acre
to grow. Forage crops can also provide
an excellent break crop and entry back to
grass.
Average
DM Yield
t/ha
Average
Fresh
Yield t/
ha
DM %
Crude
Protein
%
ME (MJ/
kg DM)
Animals/ha for 100
days (70% of diet)
Ewes
Finishing
Lambs
Kale
8-10
60-65
14-16
16-17
10-11
107
84
Forage
Rape
3.5-4
24-35
11-12
19-20
10-11
30
30
Stubble
Turnips
3.5-5
38-45
8-9
(mainly
leaves)
11
63
49
Swedes
7-10
70-90
10-13
10-11
12.8-13.1
83
65
Hybrid
Brassica
(Swift/
Redstart)
10.5
83
12-14
18-19
10-11
63
49
17-18
Assumptions: ewes on maintenance feeding; lamb liveweight gains 200g/day.
21
2014 Edition
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Feeding organic sheep
Article by Nigel Mapstone, Mole Valley Farmers
In 2006 Mole Valley Farmers engaged
in a joint venture (JV) with the French
fertiliser company, Roullier, to provide our
members access to the widest and most
advanced range of fertilisers on the market.
The unique science based approach to
fertilisation of the Roullier Group, combined
with Mole Valley Farmers’ commitment to
creating value for our customers made a
formidable collaboration.
fertiliser products to help increase farm
profitability.
These facilities have created patented
processes and active ingredients
(specificities) that improve soil condition,
increase plant efficiency, protect the
applied nutrients to reduce losses and
mobilise more of the nutrients locked in
the soil.
As well as our unique range of enhanced
fertilisers, we produce a full range of
blended, standard fertilisers from our own
production facility at Teignmouth and we
are distributors of GrowHow fertilisers.
At the core of this research and
development are a continual programme
of field trials and a collaborated research
programme with leading Institutes around
the world.
Our team of Forage Specialists focus on
what is in the soil, the resources on your
farm and the crop requirements, before
balancing this with purchased nutrients.
Please give us a call to discuss the options
available to you.
As further evidence of the commitment to
agriculture and R&D, the Roullier Group is
investing €40m in a new research facility
in St Malo which will host the full team of
researchers dedicated to enhancing and
expanding the exciting developments
currently being made in crop nutrition.
Within Mole Valley Forage Services we are
very proud of the investment made by the
Roullier Group which means we can offer
farmers innovative, proven and unique
Start
55 years of knowledge
through research will
help you:
• improve soil condition
• increase plant efficiency
• mobilise nutrients locked
in the soil
Over time the percentage of sown
species in a ley decreases which
affects performance, output and
response to applied nutrients. Assess
the field to understand its potential.
CALL US
SOIL
We have FACTS qualified crop
nutritionists able to help you get the best
out of your soil and forage crops. They
are focused maximising your returns
from the most valuable asset on your
farm, the soil.
Soil structure will have been damaged by
the weather, therefore conduct soil tests
to determine structure, pH and nutrient
levels. Without knowing these you could
waste money on fertiliser applications.
RECOMMENDATION
Our FACTS trained staff, having
understood your needs, will put together
a comprehensive plan based on your
individual situation. The whole farm plan
will encompass nutrient requirements
as well as managing your soil health to
maximise performance.
The Mole Valley
Forage Services
approach
Call: 01769 576405
CROP REQUIREMENTS
for her to eat enough to satisfy her own
and the lambs’ energy requirement if the
forage is low energy or low dry matter. At
this stage it is too late to restrict feed to
fat ewes, internal fat will further restrict her
intakes so fat ewes are often prone to twin
lamb disease.
Range
Under organic guidelines the ewe should
be fed at least 60% forage at all times so
it is essential that the preserved forage
is analysed and the best kept for pre and
post lambing.
Protein
Rumigan Multi Rearer Pellets
17%
Rumigan 14 Nuts
14%
Rumigan Nuts16%
Rumigan Rolls17%
field ASSESSMENT
Finish
The Rumigan range of organic feeds only
contains minerals from calcium carbonate
and salt and is designed to be fed to sheep
and cattle. They are high energy, cereal
based organic compound including
sugar beet suitable for sheep pre and
post lambing.
Rumigan 18 Nuts
18%
Rumigan 33 Pellets
33%
Note; although none of the feeds has
added magnesium the Multi Rearer Pellets
for creep feeding lambs do not contain
inhibitors against urinary calculi.
Ewes should be offered compound feed
to maintain energy intake. If the ewes
have been scanned they can be divided
into groups so feed can be targeted to
ewes carrying multiples or those in poor
condition.
In these last few weeks the intake of the
ewe is so low that a high energy density is
critical to promote udder development and
better milk yields after lambing, with the
forage shortage this year supplementation
is going to be even more important. A ewe
carrying twins will have such restricted
rumen volume that it will be impossible
Guidelines
A 70 kg Lowland ewe carrying twins
requires:
15MJ of energy and 170g of protein
per day.
Pre-lambing she will have an average
intake of 1.8kg DM/day.
If the maximum compound allowed
(40%DM) this is 0.85kg nuts/day.
If the dry forage has 9.8MJ/kg DM or
better, then 0.5kg of Rumigan 18 nuts
will be enough to balance, giving 16 MJ
and 190g protein to a ewe achieving her
maximum intake.
If she is carrying triplets even at maximum
compound the forage will need to be very
high quality.
If feeding turnips or fodder beet to
pregnant ewes, remember both have good
energy levels in the dry matter but fodder
beet are over 80% water and stubble
turnips can be 90%, so they should be
avoided with ewes carrying multiples.
The Rumigan range does not have any
added trace element mineralisation, if
feeding nuts or home grown grain, mineral
supplementation can be achieved with
either Nutri-LINK Rumigan Sheep loose
minerals or the Rumigan Dual Purpose
mineral lick bucket.
2014 Edition
The Roullier Group has a presence in 42
countries and is manufacturing from 74
different facilities across the world. Their
four million tonne fertiliser production
capacity shows their reach and success.
efficiency of fertilisers whilst minimising the
impact on the environment.
l
The JV trades as ‘Mole Valley Forage
Services’ with its principal aim being to
help farmers increase their profitability
by a practical, soil health approach to
fertilisation.
The unique range of ‘Enhanced Fertilisers’
are supported by over 54 years of research,
innovation and development. The main
laboratories within the Roullier Group
have staff dedicated to finding ways of
maximising the nutrient
22
Mole Valley Forage Services
It will also be helpful to have
some milk substitute or
frozen organic milk/colostrum
ready for lambs that are
struggling and also some
creep pellets to help get lambs
growing. We can only supply
organic approved sheep
milk substitute Zelmo green
minimum 1/2 tonne.
If you would like more
information on feeding
organic sheep please
call the FeedLine on:
01278 444829.
ON-FARM RESOURCES
Slurry and FYM are routinely treated
as ‘standard’ yet animal diet and
rainfall will change its nutrient status.
By testing this valuable resource
you can maximise its value to your
system and save money on purchased
nutrients.
It is essential to understand what the
crop requires in nutrients to meet your
yield and quality expectations. If we
incorrectly feed the crop money will be
wasted or animal performance will be
compromised.
23
Issues at housing – ewes and lambs
Sheep movements present a potential
major problem of introducing new diseases
to your flock. With most farms unable to
operate a completely closed flock policy,
it is crucial to have a suitable, easy to
follow quarantine plan for all new animals
including rams, breeding females and
lambs.
Liver fluke
With ideal fluke conditions throughout the
UK over the last few years, the parasite
has become more prevalent throughout
the country. Triclabendazole (e.g. Fasinex
- Novartis) is the only drug type available
to treat early immature fluke causing acute
disease in sheep, so the reliance on this
product has increased. Currently, reports of
Triclabendazole resistance are increasing
but the true prevalence is unknown. If
your farm has land suitable for fluke it is
therefore advisable to use a different fluke
treatment as part of your quarantine plan.
These other drug types e.g. closantel
(Flukiver – Elanco) and nitroxynil (Trodax
- Merial) are not fully effective on early
immature fluke so treatment has to be
given twice, 6 weeks apart, especially
during the late summer/autumn months
when most sheep movements occur.
Infectious lameness (Footrot/CODD)
The introduction of these diseases to
your flock by new animals can have a
massive effect on productivity and welfare
and will prove very costly to treat. Your
quarantine plan should include, close
inspection and treatment of lameness
alongside regular foot-bathing over a three
week period before new sheep are mixed
with your flock. If animals show signs of
these diseases the group should be kept
separate for at least 3 weeks after all
problems are resolved. The fields grazed
during this period should then be shut
An example plan for use on fluke risk farms:
Day
Reason
Site
Lameness
Yarded
Moxidectin 1%* injection (Cydectin)
Worms/Scab
Yarded
Monepantel drench (Zolvix)
Worms/Scab
Yarded
2
Closantel drench (Flukiver)
Liver Fluke
Yarded
4
Turnout - dirty pasture (+/- fly and Lice
pour-on)
10
Check feet and footbath (zinc
sulphate/formalin)
10
Moxidectin1%* injection (Cydectin)
10
1
Treatment
Inspect feet and footbath (zinc
sulphate/Formalin)
Pasture
up for the winter and not grazed for a
minimum of 6 weeks by your own sheep.
If using Footvax in your flock, vaccination
should be given during this time, but
please note the use of Cydectin 1%
injection should then be avoided.
Hygiene
• All areas should be thoroughly cleaned
and disinfected.
- Before stock are bought in.
- Between batches.
Other diseases
Animals should be monitored closely for
any other signs of disease during this
quarantine period and any required testing
carried out prior to mixing. orf, enzootic
abortion and caseous lymphadenitis, are
all diseases which can be easily transferred
to new flocks. Your flock vaccination
courses e.g. Heptavac/Enzovax/Footvax
should also be commenced during this
time to protect the new animals. Alongside
injectable treatment for sheep scab it is
advisable to carry out a pour-on treatment
for lice.
Your quarantine plan
As the disease status and land type of all
farms is different, individual plans must be
discussed with your vet and built in to your
overall health plan. The relative risk from
your sourcing policy i.e. markets vs single
flock should also be taken in to account.
Animals need to be housed on entry to
the farm for at least 4 days to allow initial
treatments, with any resistant worm eggs
being shed on to these areas, not pasture.
If buildings are not available outdoor hard
surface yards should be used, or electric
fenced arable land that will not be grazed.
For turnout, suitable “dirty pasture” such
as fields previously grazed by lambs
should then be used.
•
•
Individual pens must be cleaned and
dry between ewes.
This is to help avoid infections such as
foot rot and scald.
Layout
• Ewes are sociable but seek isolation
Ventilation
• Adequate circulation of air helps
•
•
•
•
Ewes can be housed loose in a barn
or individually penned.
•
Often ease of management dictates
ewes are penned individually once
lambed.
•
Pens should be 2.2m2 to house
anything up to large lowland ewe with
2 lambs.
•
•
NADIS offer a simple bulletin of likely parasites to expect on
a month by month basis with basic information of how best
to control them.
www.nadis.org.uk/parasite-forecast.aspx
15L per day.
Troughs should be high enough to
avoid lamb losses from drowning and
contamination from faeces.
Virkon S Multipurpose
Farm Disinfectant
Lambing checklist
Pre Lambing
Electrolyte
Check the warming box or heatlamps and
bulbs
Syringes, needles and sharps container
Bonding pens (allow 1 pen per 10 ewes)
Thermometer
Plastic gloves
Lubricant lambing gel
Lambing rope
Surgical scrubs
Pessaries
Lameness
Pasture
Antibiotic injections / painkiller from your Vet
Scab
Pasture
Foot shears and spray
Start flock vaccinations as required
Pasture
Disinfectant / cubicle powder
21
Sheep can be mixed (if necessary and
no diseases shown)
Pasture
Dagging shears
42
2nd Closantel Drench (Flukiver)
Pasture
Thermos
Liver fluke
•
easily accessed by all, 24hrs per
day – consider trough space and
competition.
Concentrates are often necessary in
late gestation and during lactation.
- Floor fed can reduce competition
for feed.
- A high quality nut is required to
minimise crumbling.
Clean bedding is a prerequisite
Lamb adopter pens
With all the chatter going on in the farming press regarding
cattle and sheep worms and the concerns regarding their
future control, why not keep up-to-date with parasite
forecasts from the National Animal Disease Information
Service (NADIS)?
Trough fed:
- Provide 40-50cm per ewe of feeding
space
- Require daily emptying and cleaning
- Mouldy feed can result in bacterial
growth and toxin build-up, leading to
diseases such as listeriosis and
silage eye.
Water
• An adult lactating ewe can drink up to
Feed
• Water and forage should be
when lambing.
•
reduce risk of respiratory infection.
Roof ventilation is beneficial to aid
the stacking effect – hot air rises and
escapes and is replaced by fresh air.
Maintain suitable temperature at
sheep level.
Cold draughts can lead to wasted
energy and increased feed costs.
Young lambs are susceptible to
hypothermia and draughts can
contribute to losses.
•
2014 Edition
A designated quarantine
plan, should aim not only
to minimise the risk to your
current flock but also protect
incoming animals from
diseases already present on
your farm.
may also need to be factored in to your
quarantine plan this year:
Housing stock can bring benefits – the
obvious being protection from the climate.
However, there are many important
considerations.
l
l
Article by Max Hardy BVSc MRCVS, Molecare FarmVets
The high prevalence of resistant
roundworms to certain wormer classes has
been well publicised, with the Sustainable
Control of Parasites in Sheep (SCOPS)
principles now being widely followed
amongst sheep flocks. A quarantine plan
combining the use of two wormer classes
including an injectable ML (Cydectin/
Dectomax) for the control of scab, followed
by turning sheep out to dirty pasture
has been widely adopted to prevent
introduction of resistant worms. The 2 new
classes of wormer available through your
vet could be adapted in to your quarantine
plan at this stage, to further prevent
resistance. However, there are several other
diseases spread by sheep movement that
24
2014 Edition
Sheep quarantine
After sheep have been mixed do not graze pasture for 6 weeks minimum
Lambing cards / record book
*Cydectin 1% contra-indicated with previous/intended use of footvax (substitute
Dectomax)
Calcium / magnesium solution
Animal medicines record book
Prolapse harness / restrainer
Shepherd’s crook
Post Lambing
Iodine navel dressing spray or dip
Spare teats for bottles / buckets
Feed buckets 4-6 teat
Powdered colostrum for emergencies
Colostrum syringe / stomach tube
Replacement milk powder
Pack of glucose or solution
Lamb spray / markers
Castration rings or applicator
Whisky for the shepherd
25
2014 Edition
l
In preparation for lambing
ensure your equipment is
in good condition and will
last through the season.
Featured below is a selection
of popular products which are
available at our branches. In
addition make sure you have
enough ear tags, castration
rings and veterinary products.
Standard round
sheep feeder
Ear tags, sheep handling and
weigh systems
6ft sheep
hurdle
Make sure you are ready to comply with
the new electronic tagging database due
to be launched in April 2014. At Mole
Valley Plus we are able to supply all your
sheep EID tags which will be compulsory
from January 2015 for all lambs under 12
months old in England. We have a friendly,
knowledgeable ear tag team who are ready
and waiting for your call.
Sheep hayrack 8ft
Alligator sheep handling system
Take the pens to the sheep, not the
sheep to the pens.
Investing in an Alligator mobile sheep
handling system allows sheep farmers to
take a comprehensive handling system to
their flock, wherever it may be.
The system is lightweight and can be
easily towed by a quad bike, it is quick
to set up, taking just 10 to 15 minutes
to build and making the most of chains
of hurdles which make gathering and
penning the flock even faster.
Alligator systems are made from high
quality raw materials, making them
durable, and built to last. They are also
multi-functional with many accessories to
help make the most of the trip to the field,
electronic weighing, footbaths, shearing
pens and much more.
Your Alligator can be used for sheep
26
work year round, the 5 foot hurdles make
perfect, easy to assemble, lambing pens.
Diamond gates can also be used to
enhance the layout of your lambing areas,
giving you a swinging gate where you
never had one before.
The Alligator system is available through
Mole Valley Farmers. For more information
on Alligator Mobile Sheep Handling
Systems, contact Jeremy Kivell 07891
761771. Alligator is stocked in selected
Mole Valley Farmers stores only and
available as a special in others.
The new package contains:
•
•
A rugged android smartphone.
•
A bluetooth stick reader
A simple to use smartphone app with
FarmWizard software
(These can be purchased as a package or
separately)
Mole Valley Farmers
members get a 5% discount!
for more information call:
0845 601 6926
To read your tags we can offer a range
of devices including a new low cost
The phone comes with the app already
downloaded and is paired to the stick
reader using bluetooth, this enables the
user to add new sheep to an electronic
flock book, record movement, sales and
deaths and allows for common flock
management operations such as the
recording of treatments and stock taking
of animals. Historic information about
individual sheep may be retrieved and
displayed on the farmer’s phone simply by
scanning the electronic tag. Information
Sheep handling
•
The Ritchie CombiClamp is proven to
improve farm efficiency whilst aiding your
wellbeing, with reduced levels of backache,
as well as human and animal stress. It
allows hands free operating, giving more
time to deal with drenching, vaccinating,
dagging or tagging with minimal effort
required to hold the sheep still. The clamp
is very quiet to operate reducing stress to
the animal and has a wraparound effect,
providing increased grip but less pressure
on the sheep. The unit is therefore much
kinder to in-lamb ewes and prime lambs
reducing bruising and risk of injury.
The new 2009 specification CombiClamp
includes galvanised sheet work on the
ramp and 3 way shedding gate with new
sealed timber board on the clamp unit.
The CombiClamp unit can be fitted with the
following options:
•
3 way shedding gate.
Auxiliary frame to carry drench/
injection bottles and clipping
machine unit.
•
Tru-Test electronic weighing system
(including XR3000 management
system option).
•
EID tag reader.
recorded on the phone is then available
for the farmer on the main FarmWizard
website, where it may be analysed, or
in the case of a flock book, printed out
and presented during a Ministry or Farm
Quality Assurance inspection.
The new app’s offline access ability
allows for information to be accessed
and recorded, without a data connection,
which can then be synchronised when
within 3G or Wi-Fi coverage.
2014 Edition
Sheep hayrack 4ft
We are able to offer EID tags from most
suppliers at Mole Valley Farmers with
member discounted rates, including
electronic (EID) slaughter tags for fat or
store lambs intended for slaughter within
12 months; after which lambs can be
upgraded with breeding tags, provided
they are on their first movement. Our EID
and visual breeding tags are for lambs
intended to be kept for breeding, or will
be kept over 12 months of age, but can
also be slaughtered at any time. For ease
of tagging, we offer farmers the Quick Tag
range which includes Tagfaster automatic
tags and applicator which can also tag
alternate EID then non EID tags, electronic
sheep tags and electronic slaughter tags.
solution that allows sheep farmers to use
their smartphone to communicate with a
sheep’s electronic ear tag.
l
Sheep trough 9ft
Lamb adopter
Sheep ear tags
Sheep handling systems
Farmers have an option to upgrade their
app to allow them to record and maintain
other sheep or beef data such as weights
and carcass information making it easy to
build performance information. This allows
farmers to make better buying culling or
breeding decisions when analysing the
weight gain charts and reports available to
provide a better return on cost.
Electronic tags now provide almost error
free individual identification, making
the process of managing treatments,
weights and performance recording for
the whole flock achievable without being
labour intensive. As a result, farmers are
more inclined to record animal data on
a regular basis leading to more accurate
performance monitoring of the flock.
Weigh systems
Weighing your sheep replaces guess
work with facts, making it a powerful
performance measurement tool. It
will enable you to be more accurate
when making critical decisions such
as feed levels, health treatments and
herd management. With mandatory EID
schemes coming into effect in the near
future, weigh systems enable you to track
an individual animal throughout their entire
life cycle. Other benefits include being
able to ensure livestock are sold at the
optimum weight grade, treatment waste is
minimised, reproductive performance can
be monitored and sick or lame animals can
be identified earlier.
We offer both the Cox ICONIX and Ritchey
Tru-test weigh systems with member
discounts!
For more information call our
agricultural specialist today:
0845 601 6926
27
2014 Edition
l
Sheep Specialists:
Adam May T: 07818 017116
Lachie Maclachlan T: 07818 542859
FeedLine01278 444829
Seed Line01769 576232
Fertiliser Line01769 576405
Buckets & Blocks Line
01566 780261
Mineral Line01278 420481
Mole Valley Farmers Ltd., Moorland House, Station Road, South Molton, Devon EX36 3BH
28

management guide - Mole Valley Farmers

Transcription

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