Clinical

Figure 4. Early and accurate diagnosis of bovine respiratory disease is key to treatment success.

Bovine respiratory disease — challenges and opportunities

Accurate and early diagnosis of BRD is a critical facet of any therapeutic programme. All too frequently there are delays in identifying animals requiring treatment or an acceptance of a low level of...

Figure 1. Increased capacity for milk yield has a negative impact on reproductive success.

Milk production, fertility and the modern dairy cow

Energy balance describes the ability of the cow to meet the energy demands required to maintain her physiological status. Energy balance is reliant on the amount of energy she can draw from what she...

Figure 3. Ewe and 48-hour-old lambs in a ‘nursery’ pen.

Case report: failure of passive transfer and neonatal infections in a cohort of lambs

Over a 2-day period, in the first week of lambing, four 4–5-day-old lambs presented with weakness and unresponsiveness. A total of 10 out of 150 lambs died in this first week. The lambs were treated...

Figure 2. Clinical signs associated with watery mouth disease; a) and b) two lambs with signs of increased salivation around the mouth; c) a lamb with right-sided abdominal distension associated with abdominal tympany.

Watery mouth disease in neonatal lambs: a systematic literature review

Due to the small numbers of research papers published on WM, a broad, systematic approach was used to try to identify as many peripheral studies, letters and reports as possible (Figure 1). Three...

Figure 1. The structure of influenza virus, including the surface proteins haemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA), and the RNA genome.

The impact of swine influenza and how to control it on farm

Swine influenza is caused by influenza A virus which is an orthomyxovirus 80–120 nm in diameter, comprising eight pieces of segmented RNA coding for 12 proteins, including haemagglutinin (HA),...

Figure 2. Mobility scoring is not required to find mobility score 3 cows, such as this one which is obviously lame in her back left foot (reluctance to bear weight). However, this herd had an overall lameness prevalence of 28%, predominantly mobility score 2, and this could only be ascertained by carefully observing all of the cows walking on a firm surface.

Perceptions of lameness in dairy herds

Around 30–32% of all adult dairy cows are lame at any one time (Atkinson and Fisher, 2013; Griffiths et al, 2018; Randall et al, 2019). That equates to 560 000 cows in GB being lame and therefore in...

Figure 6. Above the frost line in an AI tank temperatures will rise above -196°C giving semen straws the opportunity to thaw. The arrow indicates the level of the frost line in this tank

Investigating cattle artificial insemination technique on farm

When investigating an individual's on-farm conception rate, semen handling is a crucial area to focus on. The number of viable sperm in each straw can be affected by an individual's skills, knowledge...

Figure 5. Outside loafing space for dry cows.

Cattle self assessment: January–February 2020

Follow up in this herd focused on the dry period new infection rate after the August and September 2019 milk recordings. This was below target at the start of 2019, with only 4 out of 41 (9.8%) cows...

Figure 1. Sheep will have poor absorption of trace elements from feet and skin.

Trace elements in sheep — are they really a cure all?

Copper is an essential part of many enzymes in the body and without it, the body is unable to properly function (Table 2). There are approximately 300 copper-binding proteins that exist in animals....

Figure 4. Pooled faeces sampling using the sock method ensuring that all areas of the farm are sampled.

Salmonella spp. in pigs: an update on diagnostics and control

Sampling on farm is important to determine the areas of the unit which have high environmental Salmonella spp. contamination. The most common samples include individual pig faeces, pooled faeces...

Figure 2. Classic pose of Marek's disease in a young chicken. Photo Grant Brereton.

How to navigate through the regulations and medications for backyard and pet poultry

The major problem with chicken vaccines is that the majority are only effective if young birds are given a primary course. For those vaccines it is not effective to vaccinate adult chickens that have...

Figure 1. Shortening the length of the dry period is just one approach to improving energy balance.

The dry period in dairy cows: Effective dry cow management

Effective dry cow management is a crucial part of maximising dairy cow welfare and productivity. It has an impact on calving problems, early lactation metabolic disease, fertility, overall lactation...