Tips for August

CATTLE

you want to rear calves this year, there should be a good selection available this month. It's best to buy calves for rearing from a farmer you trust. You want to know the calves have received four days of colostrum, good after-birth care (eg, navel's sprayed with iodine), and any relevant vaccinations (depending on age).

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If you buy from a stock sale, look for healthy-looking calves with clear eyes, dry navels, and no signs of scouring. Try to find out their background and talk to their owner if possible.

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Don't buy a sickly-looking calf if you want to rear an animal for profit – it will never catch up or be as valuable as a healthy-looking calf.

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Good hygiene prevents disease. All of the pathogens that cause scours in calves spread through the faecal-oral route (calves eat or suck on something contaminated). It's important to:

- clean out all feeding equipment and water buckets daily;

- make sure milk doesn't get contaminated; - clean pens regularly using a virucidal cleaning product (available from rural supply stores);

- have a gumboot footbath of disinfectant at the entrance to the calf-rearing area; - don't allow adult cattle or calf rearers from other properties near your calves; - maintain a 30cm thicklayer of bedding, topped up daily.

SHEEP

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If ewes haven't given birth yet, inject a '5-in-1' booster vaccine two weeks before they do (assuming they were vaccinated the year before). It's an easy, cheap way to avoid five common diseases (pulpy kidney, blackleg, malignant oedema, tetanus, and Black disease), and it gives some immunity to newborn lambs. Lambs will require another vaccination at weaning, then a booster four weeks later.

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Spray/soak newborn lambs' navels with iodine as soon after birth as you can, to avoid navel ill.

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Check twin and triplet lambs morning and night to make sure they're getting enough feed. Signs of hunger include a hunched stance with a 'hollow' torso.

You will either need to feed the lamb supplemental milk, or take it off its mother and raise it yourself.

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Ask your vet about possible iodine supplementation. In New Zealand, inland areas are most at risk from iodine deficiency (coastal rainfall is likely to supply significant iodine inputs). Sometimes you'll need to supplement, sometimes you won't, but always check as an overdose can be toxic. A high death rate in newborn lambs could be due to iodine deficiency.

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Selenium deficient soil is relatively common in NZ – check with your vet if it's an issue in your region. A selenium deficiency mostly affects lambs, with symptoms including ill thrift and diarrhoea. In adults, it also causes low milk production, low conception rates, and white muscle disease. Too much selenium can be toxic, so always work with your vet to get the correct dose.

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Lactating ewes will be drinking a lot of water. Make sure a clean source is readily available. Put a board/s or mesh over it (leave enough room for a ewe to drink), so lambs can't fall in and drown. Ensure lambs can access troughs (or use buckets) as they need water in addition to milk.

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