Menu

Know How / Livestock diseases

Expert advice on identifying and treating livestock diseases such as BVD, Johne’s disease, leptospirosis in cattle, navel ill in calves, orf in sheep, watery mouth in lambs and swine fever in pigs. See the latest thinking on controlling parasitic diseases and worms such as liver fluke and lungworm.

Advice and tips

SHEEP

How to use and go beyond worm egg counts

Gut worms are one of the most significant challenges to the health and production of grazed livestock – particularly sheep. Over the past century, drenches and injectable wormers have proved…

PIGS

How to plan and prepare for African swine fever

Pig producers are advised to double down on biosecurity and be as prepared as possible for the possibility of African swine fever crossing the Channel. The first case of African…

PIGS

The value of the dead pig: Benefit of post-mortems

Should I ever lose my phone, the finder would probably be quite concerned if they looked through my photos. Obviously, there are a few of my family and pets, but…

LIVESTOCK DISEASES

What can be done to prevent bluetongue virus?

Insecticides and repellents will not prevent cattle and sheep from being infected with bluetongue virus, scientists are warning. Bluetongue virus (BTV) is an infectious, non-contagious virus spread by Culicoides biting…

See all

Case studies

HEALTH AND WELFARE

How one farm protects flock health with ultrasound scans

Ultrasound lung scanning is being used as part of the armoury to protect flock health at one Scottish Borders farm. Rob Parrish runs a 364ha (899-acre) organic mixed enterprise in…

LIVESTOCK DISEASES

How changes to ventilation and bedding cut mastitis

For dairy farmer Pete Charles, a key driver in tackling mastitis was the effect on staff morale of constantly treating clinical cases and keeping milk out of the tank. He…

LIVESTOCK DISEASES

Closed policy yields 1.7 lambs reared for Durham flock

A string of flock health setbacks has forced a Durham family to rely on its own breeding to maintain high output in its stratified sheep outdoor lambing system.    Several iceberg…

PARASITIC DISEASES

How goat herd uses targeted parasite treatments

A Gloucestershire goat herd is successfully managing a low parasite risk with a treatment targeted at higher risk animals. The Whitehouse family’s fully housed and zero-grazed herd of 800 British…

See all

Community

LIVESTOCK

Farmer Focus: Calving difficulties cause extra work

Calving is nearing completion on our farm, with just five cows to calve at this stage. I’m ready for a break! The problems we had with difficult calvings on heifers…

See all

Insights

HEALTH AND WELFARE

Analysis: What farmers need to know about bluetongue

The current outbreak of bluetongue virus serotype 3 (BTV-3) is likely to get worse in the coming weeks before it improves, warn industry leaders. Since the first case in this…

BOVINE TB

Brian May - ‘Badgers are irrelevant in cattle TB spread’

Queen guitarist and animal rights campaigner Sir Brian May has staked his life on badgers playing no role in the bovine TB nightmare for farmers. He believes badgers do not…

LIVESTOCK DISEASES

Could the pig industry survive African swine fever?

As the largest animal disease outbreak ever recorded, African swine fever (ASF) poses a real threat to our domestic pig industry. How ready is the UK for a potential incursion?…

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…

See all

News

LIVESTOCK DISEASES

First bluetongue cases in Wales found in sheep

Bluetongue virus serotype 3 (BTV-3) has been confirmed in three sheep moved to Gwynedd, marking the first recorded case of the disease in Wales. This follows an increase in cases…

LIVESTOCK DISEASES

Livestock sector launches bluetongue survey for farmers

Livestock farmers are being urged to complete a short online survey to help monitor and combat cases of bluetongue in the UK. Almost 100 cases have been confirmed since the…

LIVESTOCK DISEASES

First new bluetongue vaccines available for use

Cattle and sheep farmers now have the option of vaccinating their animals against bluetongue after the first doses of vaccine arrived in the UK. Boehringer Ingelheim’s Bultavo 3 is among…

PARASITIC DISEASES

Marts' post-sale dipping service helps fight sheep scab

Farmers buying sheep at some Scottish marts can pay £1.20 a head to have the animals dipped to prevent scab spreading to their existing flocks. In a novel approach designed…

See all

Opinion

BOVINE TB

FW Opinion: Wider review of slurry role in bovine TB needed

Queen guitarist and animal rights campaigner Brian May has shared with Farmers Weekly in some detail how, working with vet Dick Sibley, he has helped a Devon dairy farm regain…

See all

Test and reviews

HEALTH AND WELFARE

Buyer's guide to ketone testers for dairy farmers

Simple and quick tests that measure ketone levels in dairy cows are allowing farmers to act promptly with interventions to protect milk yields and herd performance. Subclinical ketosis can’t be…

DAIRY

Buyer's guide: Teat disinfection technology

As herd sizes increase and labour sourcing continues to create challenges, more farmers are turning to automated teat disinfection technologies to ease pressure in the parlour and promote efficiencies. Although…

See all

Video

BOVINE TB

Dairy farmer who suffered bovine TB hell exits industry

A Pembrokeshire farmer has made the difficult decision to sell his dairy unit and leave farming after suffering at the hands of bovine TB. Steve Evans, a fourth-generation farmer based…

BOVINE TB

Brian May - ‘Badgers are irrelevant in cattle TB spread’

Queen guitarist and animal rights campaigner Sir Brian May has staked his life on badgers playing no role in the bovine TB nightmare for farmers. He believes badgers do not…

HEALTH AND WELFARE

Video: Farmers plunge dip a mammoth 6,300 sheep in one day

Sheep farmers and contractors have carried out a mammoth 6,300-ewe plunge dipping day as part of a new joint venture between two businesses. Neil Fell, owner of NR Fell Mobile…

LIVESTOCK DISEASES

Video: How to use orf vaccine correctly on sheep

About one in five lambs – 900,000 – are affected by the highly contagious orf virus in England’s sheep flock each year according to MSD Animal Health. Added to that…

See all