Menu

Know How / Health and welfare

Animal health is critical to all producers of dairy and beef cattle, sheep and pigs. Get advice on dealing with livestock diseases such as, bovine TB and mastitis, and conditions such as heat stress, lameness and ewe prolapse. See best practice on vaccination, medicines and reducing antibiotics.

Case studies

SHEEP

How cobalt deficiency tests led to higher lamb weights

A split trial on a Dorset farm highlighted a 3.52kg uplift in weight gain and reduced susceptibility to worms in lambs supplemented for cobalt deficiency. The result of the trial,…

CALVING

Why portable milkers can ease stress at calving

Using a portable milking machine in the calving pen is the easiest and fastest way to harvest a cow’s first colostrum and avoid having to move a newly calved cow.…

CALVING

How two herds have reduced incidence of stillbirth

Selective breeding, addressing mineral status and transition management are just some of the ways beef and dairy farmers can minimise costly stillbirths. Perinatal mortality (stillbirth) is defined as the death…

LAMBING

How colostrum and new shed helped cut lamb mortality

Meticulous colostrum feeding and a new lambing shed have helped cut mortality and eradicate cases of watery mouth in an organic March-lambing flock. Mortality has fallen from 26% to 17%…

LIVESTOCK

How feeding maize silage has cut ration cost by £10 a ewe

Switching the winter housing ration from conserved grass to maize silage was an unplanned change at Wern Ddu near Newtown in Montgomeryshire. Ten years on, and its financial and health…

SHEEP

Video: Island rallies to dip 28,500 sheep and beat scab

More than 28,000 sheep have been dipped to rid a Hebridean island of a costly and contagious parasite.  Crofters and farmers on Lewis and Harris co-ordinated time off, wagons, trailers,…

Practical advice

See all

HEALTH AND WELFARE

Lameness in beef cattle: Effect, causes and treatment

Cattle lameness is a significant welfare and economic problem facing the livestock industry. Most of the focus has been on lameness within the national dairy herd, where there is a…

POULTRY

4 tips for effective cleaning between free-range flocks

A subdued supply of free-range eggs on the market is putting poultry producers under pressure to manage tighter turnarounds between flocks. At the same time, they are having to contend…

CALVING

Why portable milkers can ease stress at calving

Using a portable milking machine in the calving pen is the easiest and fastest way to harvest a cow’s first colostrum and avoid having to move a newly calved cow.…

HEALTH AND WELFARE

5 ways to ensure a safe and successful beef calving

Understanding basic principles of animal behaviour and physiology can help farmers develop a functional and safe calving system. Rarely a year goes by without Health and Safety Executive records showing…

HOUSING AND HANDLING

A guide to giving cows grazing-level comfort indoors

Grazing-based herds may be housed for as little as two or three months a year to maximise the potential of grass intakes. As a result, they often have to make…

YOUNGSTOCK MANAGEMENT

How to make routine dairy tasks easier with a calf kitchen

Making it easy to carry out routine tasks is essential to optimise calf health, welfare and productivity. Emily Linton of Torch Farm Vets offers expert advice. I walked onto a…

Insights

PIGS

Irish trial shows benefits of microbes for piglet gut health

Feeding piglets microbes from birth to support gut health can reduce scours, lower routine antibiotics use and improve average daily gain, research carried out at a commercial pig farm in…

LIVESTOCK

Q&A: All you need to know about bluetongue disease

With bluetongue disease on the increase again in mainland Europe and with midge activity expected to gather pace as the weather warms up, Farmers Weekly spoke to Defra deputy chief…

FARM POLICY

Analysis: What a live exports ban means for farmers

A ban on the live export of animals for slaughter and fattening from Great Britain could be introduced in just a few months as part of a manifesto commitment by…

FEED AND NUTRITION

Excess copper found to impair liver function in heifers

Feeding excess copper to dairy heifer calves can compromise liver function, leading to poorer fertility and lower milk yields in first lactation. This is according to AHDB-funded research at Harper…

LIVESTOCK

Are milk fever and negative energy balance under control?

Milk fever and negative energy balance are issues for many dairy herds, despite most dairy farmers recognising the importance of the dry period to cow health and productivity. According to…

LIVESTOCK

Why simple, relevant data is focus of cow behaviour research

Business lore says that what gets measured can be managed or improved. Yet dairy farmers are at risk of being overloaded with information now that cow tracking technology can record…

LIVESTOCK

6 livestock tech developments to look out for

From driverless tractors to cameras for identifying diseases, several high-tech innovations are coming down the track. Farmers Weekly looks at six highlights. See also: NI farm transforms slurry and food…

LIVESTOCK DISEASES

How local TB programmes are ‘giving farmers back control’

Local TB programmes working in collaboration with farmers, vets and Animal and Plant Healthy Agency (Apha) staff are having a positive effect in helping farmers take control of the disease.…

POULTRY

Why avian flu vaccine rollout would cost £1.5k/shed a month

Vaccinating UK poultry flocks for avian influenza has been described as “cost prohibitive” because an EU surveillance requirement for swabbing and testing would set producers back £1,000-£1,500/month for every shed…

YOUNGSTOCK MANAGEMENT

4 ways to improve on 60-day calf mortality rate

Healthy calves can achieve growth rates of 1,080g/day, but just one day of diarrhoea reduces this by 80g. A calf with respiratory disease will lose 180g/day off its growth rate…

SHEEP

Sheep health: Government schemes and farmer priorities

Disease does not respect borders, so it is incumbent on the whole industry to take a strict stance towards protecting flock health. Sheep breeder and National Sheep Association (NSA) trustee…

YOUNGSTOCK MANAGEMENT

Calf monitoring and health plans key to future performance

Some 90% of farmers want to make changes to improve the future sustainability of their youngstock management in the next 12 months, according to a Farmers Weekly exclusive survey. Yet…

Online resources

Nadis livestock disease A-Z - Cattle

Learn more

Nadis livestock disease A-Z - Sheep

Learn more

Nadis livestock disease A-Z - Pigs

Learn more

Nadis livestock disease A-Z - Poultry

Learn more

Advertiser content

See all