Microsoft word - smart farmer sept 2013.docx

Time to pay Attention to Internal Parasites
Now is the time to consider your control methods for internal parasites. Moisture is essentional for worm survival and with some areas receiving recent rains it will provide the ideal environment for them to multiple and infest your livestock. Round worms (nematodes) and flat worms (platyhelminthes) are the main two types of worms you will encounter. The major action of nematodes is in the stomach or small intestine where they attack the gut wall, consuming blood, causing anemia and reducing the nutrient absorptive capacity of the tissues resulting in further debilitation through nutrient deprivation. The life cycle of a parasite is approximately three weeks so very high populations can build up over three or four breeding cycles. SYMPTOMS: Left unchecked they can cause serious and dangerous effects on the
animal’s performance. Young cattle, older cattle and working bulls are particularly
susceptible and can suffer from loss of condition, anaemia, bottle jaw, dehydration,
scours, rough coat and in severe infestations death. Calf deaths can occur 10 to 12
weeks after initial infestation, especially if animals are stressed or underfed. Immunity
develops with age and exposure, taking between one and two years to fully develop.
TREATMENT: Good internal parasite control programmes offer a highly cost
effective and sustainable means of increasing production. There are a number of ways
to control these parasites and by the far the easiest for small numbers is to use pour-
ons. Most of the pour-ons are broad spectrum controlling a whole range of
gastrointestinal worms as well as lice, mites and ticks. Liver fluke is quite specific to
certain areas so check with your vet, DPI or neighbours to see if your area is prone. It
is a good idea to ensure that all products used are dung beetle friendly.
Methods of application can include oral and injectable drenches.
◦ Pour-on drenches (i.e. Ivermectin & Moxidectin based drenches)
◦ Injection Products (i.e. Ivermectin, Moxidectin & Abamectin)
◦ Oral drenches (i.e. Levamisole
◦ Vaccines
We treat all our calves every three months after birth to one year of age. We do not
drench our senior cows unless there seems to be a specific problem affecting them
such as poor nutrition due to drought or old age.
CONTROL: There are a range of strategies that can reduce the use of chemicals
including pasture management and good nutrition. This is in the long term prevents
chemical resistance. Properties that are under stocked seldom need to drench for
worms. Re-infestation can be prevented by regularly resting your paddocks, which
helps prevent the emerging larvae to be eaten by grazing cattle. Also once cattle have
been wormed move them to a clean paddock to reduce the chance of re-infestation.
Changing the active ingredient used also aids in resistance build up.
Worm egg counting is one of the most useful management tools a producer can use. Faecal egg counts can be undertaken by most veterinary laboratories and private veterinarians. Private companies such stopwatchlab.com.au and wormboss.com.au offer an excellent service. TIP: remember when applying pour-ons and drenches to check the Withholding
Period (WHP) and Export Slaughter Intervals (ESI). The WHP is the period
following treatment when cattle are not allowed to be processed for domestic
consumption. The ESI is the period following treatment when cattle are unsuitable for
export processing. Failure to comply could incur significant fines if residues are
detected in an animal at an abattoir

Source: http://auslinecattle.com.au/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/How-to-Treat-Worms.pdf