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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

BEEF

How a vaccine transformed crypto control for one beef system

A new vaccine for cryptosporidium has markedly improved calf health and eased labour demand on a Perthshire beef farm – but it relies on excellent colostrum management to be effective.…

LIVESTOCK DISEASES

Orf disease: Two ways sheep farmers are tackling the virus

Orf is the more common name for contagious pustular dermatitis, and is considered endemic in the UK, and prevalent on most sheep farms. A recent study by the Royal Veterinary…

DAIRY

How smart ear tags are improving calf health and saving time

Smart ear tags are saving a Kelso dairy about two hours a day manually checking every calf. The technology is allowing the team at KSH Farms to focus on the…

DAIRY

How teamwork got dairy herd’s mastitis spike under control

When mastitis rates unexpectedly surged in Steve and Emma Furnival’s spring-calving herd, it put pressure on every part of their business — from cow health and profitability to team morale.…

LIVESTOCK DISEASES

How Johne’s management cut disease to less than 2% of herd

Consistent efforts to prevent Johne’s disease in a high-yielding Wiltshire dairy herd have resulted in cases falling from a high of 25% (cows identified as Johne’s positive or high risk)…

HEALTH AND WELFARE

How targeted mastitis treatment drove down vet and med costs

A concerted effort to tackle high incidences of clinical mastitis and repeat cases in high-yielding cows is helping a 200-cow Lancashire dairy farm save on vet fees and reduce milk…

Practical advice

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LAMBING

Advice on treatment for vaginal prolapse in ewes

Fitting a harness and administering anti-inflammatories is the best way to treat a very mild case of vaginal prolapse in a ewe. Compared with spoons or sutures, this treatment is…

SHEEP

Practical advice on reducing lamb losses from joint ill

Washing hands, wearing gloves, and sterilising tubes and taggers are simple steps in maintaining excellent standards of hygiene at lambing. And they could go a long way to protecting flocks…

DAIRY

Advice on dairy biosecurity to minimise endemic disease risk

Assessing risk, asking the right questions and designing an ongoing, farm-specific management strategy are the foundations of good biosecurity when buying in stock. According to vets, buying in animals remains…

FOOT HEALTH

Pros and cons of lameness data analysis for cattle mobility

Hoof health data from mobility scoring and trimming records can be a powerful tool for identifying lameness patterns and guiding management decisions on dairy farms. But how can the practical…

BEEF

How to make sure suckler cows produce top-quality colostrum

Ensuring suckler cows have at least 14% crude protein in their diet before calving will help antibody production and improve colostrum quality. But the drought in 2025 means that forage…

PARASITIC DISEASES

Advice on an integrated approach to endoparasite management

Managing endoparasites, including worms, fluke, and coccidia, remains a persistent challenge for UK farms that directly affects animal welfare and profitability. As resistance to anthelmintics – and understanding of their…

Insights

ASSESSING PERFORMANCE

How even tiny losses in body condition impact dairy fertility

Small changes in body condition score – invisible to the human eye – can have a detrimental impact on fertility in the next lactation, a commercial study has shown. See…

HEALTH AND WELFARE

Calf toys: What’s on offer and are they worth it?

Introducing toys into the calf pen can enhance the development and wellbeing of youngstock, helping them thrive and become resilient animals in adulthood. However, these should not be at the…

BOVINE TB

Bovine TB: Badger vaccination faces its defining test

Defra’s decision to expand badger vaccination and wind down intensive culling marks one of the most significant shifts in bovine TB policy for a decade. Beginning early next year, a…

DAIRY

GB Calf Strategy to focus on unweaned dairy beef calf welfare

Dairy beef is no longer seen as a by-product of the milk industry, but a suitable co-product to replace beef imports, as a result of the GB Calf Strategy’s work.…

LIVESTOCK DISEASES

Why pneumonia is hitting more young grazing suckled calves

Vets are urging farmers to put in place mitigation strategies to curtail a surprising increase in respiratory disease linked to immunosuppression in young, suckled, grazing calves. The rise in cases…

HEALTH AND WELFARE

Why planting more trees could protect milk yields

New data show the impact on dairy cows of heat stress induced by an absence of shade during hot weather. It resulted in a milk yield loss of 117.3kg a…

LIVESTOCK DISEASES

Low vaccination rate leaves livestock exposed to bluetongue

With bluetongue disease knocking on the door, and with less than 3% of the nation’s ruminant livestock vaccinated, government and private vets are urging a much more rapid uptake of…

MEDICINES

Why don’t more farmers use pain relief for sick calves?

Concern over managing the use of antimicrobials on-farm and a lack of understanding around the effectiveness of non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) are preventing use of these drugs as standard in treating…

BROILERS

Benefits of increasing water oxygen content for broilers

Technology to intensify water’s dissolved oxygen content has been shown to reduce mortality and improve performance in broiler systems. A Ross 308 broiler trial, which involved 840 birds, showed 37.3%…

HEALTH AND WELFARE

How herd's mastitis rate dropped 37% after water treatment

Improving water hygiene on a 260-cow herd led to a 37% drop in the mastitis rate. Bulk tank cell count and Bactoscan numbers also fell below thresholds that trigger financial…

HEALTH AND WELFARE

Dairy winter housing upgrade helps cut new infection rates

Taking time to evaluate low mastitis rates but high spring cell counts in their 250-cow spring-calving herd prompted Emmie Bland and her husband Johnny to reconsider winter housing arrangements. The…

SHEEP

Sheep vaccination protocols prove their worth in farm trial

A structured approach to preventative vaccination in sheep has driven significant improvements in flock health, antibiotics use and cost efficiency – cutting lameness levels by 66%, among other benefits. This…

Online resources

Nadis livestock disease A-Z - Cattle

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Nadis livestock disease A-Z - Sheep

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Nadis livestock disease A-Z - Pigs

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Nadis livestock disease A-Z - Poultry

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