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Know How / Husbandry

Animal husbandry covers a broad range of topics around livestock management throughout its lifetime. Including video guides on best practice, these articles look at the elements key to optimising stockmanship at the various stages of livestock production.

Case studies

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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…

HOUSING AND HANDLING

What's in your Livestock Shed? visits £115k lambing shed

Investing in a lambing shed might seem extravagant for a sheep farmer renting all their ground, but Annie Carr of The Brays in Herefordshire has costed the expense down to…

BEEF

How pelvic scoring has helped improve suckler herd health

A decision to keep a heifer that looked “the best of the bunch”, despite her borderline pelvic score, taught Stuart Gowling a valuable lesson. The heifer went on to need…

DAIRY

What is the secret to a smooth calving period?

Anything that can be done to make an intensive block-calving period run as smoothly as possible will be advantageous for a busy farm team. It stems from preparing staff, processes…

SHEEP

Highs and lows of lambing season for award-winning farmer

Annie Carr is counting the cost of a dog attack on her ewe lambs just days before their due date. Out of 50 ewe lambs tupped, 10 had dead lambs…

YOUNGSTOCK MANAGEMENT

How spring block calver uses nurse cows to rear replacements

Ease of management is the driver for a family farm in east Devon to leave the job of rearing heifer replacements to the cows themselves. Tim Wall, who runs a…

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…

LAMBING

How to minimise bacteria build-up in the lambing shed

A clean, dry floor in the lambing shed is a simple, essential step for a successful lambing season – and is best achieved when it is not left until the…

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…

LAMBING

Why early weaning should be the exception, not the rule

Weaning lambs early may be a useful tool to manage poor ewe body condition, but it should be seen as an exception – not an annual event. It risks setbacks…

LAMBING

How recording lamb losses led to better flock performance

Inspiring farmers to record lamb survival rates and benchmark performance was the aim of the game when Synergy Farm Health first launched its lamb survival survey. Now in its eleventh…

DAIRY

Why planning and proper kit are key to treating downer cows

Time is crucial for the downer cow: the first 30 minutes after she falls make all the difference between a full recovery and exiting the herd. But instead of panic…

Insights

CALVING

Causes of calving caesareans and how to reduce interventions

A vet audit of more than 600 caesarean sections performed on cattle showed that the majority – 77% – took place in suckler herds. And in 62% of all cases,…

LAMBING

Poor colostrum handling risks lamb survival, research shows

Poor standards of hygiene when handling supplementary colostrum are leaving many lambs susceptible to disease and death. Scottish research has shown that instead of giving them a better start, farmers…

LIVESTOCK

Why a congenital defect could cause calf losses

Ask a dairy or beef farmer if they have ever had a calf born with atresia, a condition commonly known as “waterbelly”, and the chances are they will say no.…

YOUNGSTOCK MANAGEMENT

How a ‘big squeeze’ could help dummy calves to suck

Neonatal maladjustment syndrome in calves – also known as “dummy calf” syndrome – can be a challenge for dairy farmers to manage, often requiring extra labour to tube-feed youngstock. Typically,…

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…

HEALTH AND WELFARE

How scanning can detect early pneumonia in calves

Subclinical pneumonia, where there are no obvious signs of the disease, in young calves is going undetected on farms, a Scottish study has found. Calves are more likely to succumb…

HEALTH AND WELFARE

Study shows financial impact of crypto in beef herd

Cryptosporidiosis in young calves causes significant long-term weight loss and incurs huge economic costs, according to a study carried out in Scotland. The study, at Moredun Research Institute and The…

FEED AND NUTRITION

Study shows how calcium can affect dry cow fertility

Increasing calcium in pre-calving diets can improve postpartum uterine health and fertility, a recent study has revealed. The study, which took place at the University of Illinois, examined feeding dry…

FEED AND NUTRITION

Trial shows high iodine cow diet can hinder colostrum uptake

A survey of iodine supplementation in beef herds has revealed that over supplementation pre-calving can negatively affect calves’ ability to absorb colostrum. A collaborative research project between Moredun Research Institute,…

LIVESTOCK

4 sheep recording methods compared: which one is best?

Carmarthenshire sheep farmer and Aberystwyth University graduate Huw Williams completed a HCC scholarship in 2015 looking at how extensive systems in New Zealand and Australia were recording parentage. Talking about…

SHEEP

Research shows value of monitoring ewe body condition

New research has shown just how valuable it is to record and monitor body condition in commercial ewe flocks and keep it consistent year-round.   Independent sheep consultant Lesley Stubbings…