Don’t Run Out Of Puff This Winter.

Bovine respiratory disease (BRD) costs the UK industry £50 million per year with an average treatment cost reaching a whopping £80 per animal. It comes as no surprise that it is worth investing both time and money into preventing BRD and pneumonia from hitting your herd at housing.

What are the main culprits? According to the All-Ireland Animal Disease Surveillance Report, over half of all respiratory related deaths are caused by bacterial disease – this includes Pasteurella type infections such as M. haemolytica, P. multocida and H. somni. The other half of deaths are shared between viral infections including Respiratory Syncytial virus (RSV) and Parainfluenza virus (Pi3), and also parasitic infection of Lungworm.

What can you do to stop this happening to your herd? Prepare, Protect and Prevent.

Prepare your housing with appropriate ventilation for the number of cattle in the shed. Good air flow into and out of the shed is vital in preventing stale, wet air building up. This is the main contributing factor causing bacterial respiratory infections. An easy way to visualise air flow is by using smoke bombs, this will show you where recycled air is being harboured and indicates areas where the shed needs improvement. The veterinary services team at Fane Valley are happy to help perform smoke bombing tests and provide advice on how to make simple, yet cost-effective changes to your sheds.

Protect the herd by vaccinating for the main causal pathogens of BRD pre-housing. This is crucial in protecting your herd from bacterial and viral infection during the winter period. There are a vast of array of products on the market which protect against viral and bacterial pneumonia pathogens. If you require herd-specific advice to formulate a vaccination plan, then speak with the veterinary team at Fane Valley about our advisory service.

Autumn time comes with its challenges relating to Lungworm – make sure you can recognise the signs – persistent coughing and respiratory distress with an outstretched neck. Levamisole based products are the safest treatment option if you are suspicious of lungworm in the herd. Contact any of our Fane Valley Stores to speak with one of our Registered Animal Medicines Advisors for advice on this.

With an appropriate focus on preparing housing and using vaccination pre-housing, you’ll be better equipped to not run out of puff this winter and prevent BRD hitting your herd.

Fane Valley has an in-house veterinary team providing farm-specific veterinary consultancy regarding preventative herd health. To chat with one of the team or to find out more please contact 028 9261 0485.