The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: FiB on December 28, 2012, 01:14:17 pm
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Seem to be perpetually battling fleece loss - usually positively ID'd by vet as biting lice. Crovected through Autumn, and just got in to treat with spot on this morning.... previous thread responses may point to rain scald .....my concern is as the weather stays misearble (but at least not very cold) - should I put the worst one inside (with or without a companion?) or is it OK outside once the spot on has dried and sunk in - keeping in this afternoon at least so that that can happen). Only one manky one at a time usually, but it has lost a bit of condition. Any thoughts greatfully recieved as always, F xx
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PICTURES ???? Spot -on needs 2 hrs to absorb into the skin and get into the bloodstream . Better two sheep together than one on its own.
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Do you know why you keep getting lice? Do you have sheep neighbours?
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I may have the same problem, just one hogg effected just now.
I have treated all hoggs in the park with dectomax and a spot of clik on the back of the neck except for the balding one it got clik all the way along the back. Just treated them boxing day so its a bit early to tell how sucessfull I will be.
I will let you know how it goes.
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I assume CROFTERLOON that you have made a mistake on the product name, as CLIK only stops blowfly. Lice does not affect only one sheep in a group ,just different levels of infection and balding over a large area is not a common symptom. FOOBAR since i stopped dipping i have had lice every winter , it seems that a few lice survive treatment and the summer to increase in the autumn, always starts in the lambs.
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Do you crovect for lice post shearing and treat the lambs at the same time?
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With the weather we've been having I'd suspect rain scald. The skin becomes so denatured (especially if you had to shear late and the fleece hasn't had a chance to grow back as long as usual) that it's open to infection by dermatophilus congolensis. A few of ours were affected this summer when the weather turned relentlessly wet after they were shorn in late May. Fleece just seemed to fall out almost overnight. We sprayed the skin with antibiotic spray (made them look like a photograph of the Earth from space!) and let them have access to shelter. No further problems and all fine now.
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....if it is biting lice ,don`t forget the old fashioned louse powder is very effective .
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Do you know why you keep getting lice? Do you have sheep neighbours?
O yes!!!! :-J And I may be wrong, but I suspect they are largely untreated (for anything!!). They are welsh mountain, so may be hardier than mine and less affected by the lice. Thanks for replies all.
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No I used Clik. Crovek only last about a month Clik about 60 days, I know what it says on the product buts its cliks I used. I have been told this by a few farmers up my way.
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Do you crovect for lice post shearing and treat the lambs at the same time?
NO i treat the ewes with CLIK and the lambs have already had clik in may , blowfly is the only worry and CROVECT at the lice dose rate and application rate won't protect against blowfly, since i have to cover for ticks autumn /winter this does the lice as well . The experts all tell me that the lice can survive in the ear which is why plunge dipping worked.No I used Clik. Crovek only last about a month Clik about 60 days, I know what it says on the product buts its cliks I used. I have been told this by a few farmers up my way.
INTERESTING might be ok but the two products work in totally different ways, as said above i CLIK every thing in the summer but still get lice late autumn.
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Clik doesn't kill lice.
If you are having an annual problem with lice I would suggest that you treat with Crovect off shears (as it works best then) and treat all the lambs at the same time (at the lice rate). This is because the ewes will have passed the lice onto the lambs. I would also then move to a different field - one that has not had sheep in for 3 weeks. You must do all the sheep at the same time, otherwise it will be a waste of time.
If you have dodgy neighbours, then double fence your boundaries or talk to your neighbours and agree a treatment strategy.
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Clik does not kill lice but it does discourage lice scab etc, I think the Dectomax does the killing
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Clik does not kill lice but it does discourage lice scab etc, I think the Dectomax does the killing
DECTOMAX will kill sheep scab but not biting lice in sheep, it will kill sucking lice in cattle and pigs
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PIc for you Shep53 - this area occupies about a third of one side. Have now 'belt and braces'-ed for parasites ( I think) as vet suggested dectomaxing this weekend (I went in to ask should they come out to do a skin scrape and they said 'it wouldnt be the wrong thing to do ' to treat with Dectomax.) So I have. Thye all have free access to an open fronted barn where there hay rack is - so I'm hoping she will take shelter when it turns cold next week... or should I not trust that and pen her with a coupl of others? I read this article and am now worried about hypothermia!!!
http://livestocknw.co.uk/factsheets/sheep_scab_or_lice_can_you_afford_to_guess_lnw_factsheet (http://livestocknw.co.uk/factsheets/sheep_scab_or_lice_can_you_afford_to_guess_lnw_factsheet)
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Not nice, my thought would be scab, but she could have lice as well , a skin scraping would have confirmed or not, but you have covered lice/scab with your treatments, hope you treated every sheep with both. Since you say they can take shelter, so long as she is comfortable coming in and lying down she should be okay. In a day or two oil or cream may help the skin to heal, you can buy a cover for sheep , used to keep clean when showing, if you want to bring her in then yes give her company. Hope you are now on top of the problem :relief:
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Looks like scab to me, FiB.
You did treat all your sheep with the Dectomax?
I think you've said that you have shared boundaries with (an)other sheepkeeper(s)? You must tell your neighbours what's happened, and if your ewe gets better with the Dectomax that it looks as though it was scab.
Unfortunately, both scab mites and chewing lice can survive away from the sheep for 17 days, so your fence posts can remain infective to your neighbours' sheep for that long. And, if not treated soon, your neighbours' sheep will be able to reinfect your sheep once the Dectomax has left their system. Withdrawal period for sheep is 63 days, so you want your neighbours all treating their sheep within the next month, really.
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Is Scab not notifyable?
Thanks for posting the picture, I have never seen anything like this on my sheep (yet!), so it gves a good idea to look what to look out for. For broken skin on my goats I have been using an AloeVera gel that you can get in the horsey section, and it has healed in no time.
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Looks like scab to me, FiB.
You did treat all your sheep with the Dectomax?
I think you've said that you have shared boundaries with (an)other sheepkeeper(s)? You must tell your neighbours what's happened, and if your ewe gets better with the Dectomax that it looks as though it was scab.
Unfortunately, both scab mites and chewing lice can survive away from the sheep for 17 days, so your fence posts can remain infective to your neighbours' sheep for that long. And, if not treated soon, your neighbours' sheep will be able to reinfect your sheep once the Dectomax has left their system. Withdrawal period for sheep is 63 days, so you want your neighbours all treating their sheep within the next month, really.
I think this is the cause of the ongoing problems!! Many vets have never seen scab so would not think of it ::) So i think you need to get together with your neighbours and discuss an action plan....
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Looks like scab to me, FiB.
You did treat all your sheep with the Dectomax?
I think you've said that you have shared boundaries with (an)other sheepkeeper(s)? You must tell your neighbours what's happened, and if your ewe gets better with the Dectomax that it looks as though it was scab.
Unfortunately, both scab mites and chewing lice can survive away from the sheep for 17 days, so your fence posts can remain infective to your neighbours' sheep for that long. And, if not treated soon, your neighbours' sheep will be able to reinfect your sheep once the Dectomax has left their system. Withdrawal period for sheep is 63 days, so you want your neighbours all treating their sheep within the next month, really.
I think this is the cause of the ongoing problems!! Many vets have never seen scab so would not think of it ::) So i think you need to get together with your neighbours and discuss an action plan....
I will try :fc: :fc: but am surrounded by a couple of rogues (one got prosecuted last year for dumping one of his dead sheep in someones wheely bin - gives you an idea - but even that is achange from norm (which is let them rot in field)) Animal health, police etc are on case. I agree that this is probably source of my ongoing (Autumn Winter) problem. We are thinking of putting up another fencline and hedging to make a bigger buffer.
Yes, all sheep done for everything now. Will try some aloe vera on scraggy (as she is now called, poor girl).
Thaks all again xxxx
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Is Scab not notifyable?
Just in Scotland, Anke.
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Is Scab not notifyable?
Just in Scotland, Anke.
Aaaah, thank you. That's where we are. Not had scab (YET)... :relief: