The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: Cjnewton82 on August 16, 2013, 03:21:48 pm
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First time sheep owner here. I'm going to treat preventively against fly strike I only have 12 sheep so how much should I buy 0.8L 2.2L or 5L. Does Crovect keep if so for how long???
Thanks all just keep it straight forward. Lol
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0.8l.
3 months.
:)
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3 months.
Crikey, I've used much older Crovect than that :o
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So have I ;D and it has stayed perfectly effective. If you are concerned by use-by dates, then you might be best to buy just enough for your 12 to have a single dose this year - your vet may well be happy to decant you 12 doses. Then next year you can buy a larger pot which will last the whole season, from first spray of lambs in May through to the last dose in Oct.
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0.8
Was just about to post as Rosemary says. I've only kept sheep for a few years but local shepherds have told me that it will stay viable for much longer .... okay used the following year.
I suppose that it is like all things and to be certain you'd have to follow the instructions precisely. :-\
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Crikey, I've used much older Crovect than that :)
Yes me too. I actually had it in my head that it was 28 days from opening, but Noah says 3 months.
I suspect that the "preventative" element of the chemicals starts to degrade after that time, but I suspect that the "maggot killing" bit of it works for considerably longer.
Also note the "store < 25 degrees C" warning. I looked at the bottle I opened in April this month ... in April it was blue, this month it is almost clear. With the weather we've had there have been several days where it was well above 25deg, so I suspect that is the reason for that. I used it ... but I'm not relying on it to work :) .
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I only have 14 sheep & swear by Clik - it is slightly more expensive than Crovext, but lasts for 16 weeks, so it actually works out cheaper in he long run. Although I see blowfly eggs on the sheep, they never hatch & having used Clik post shearing for the last 2 years, I have never had fly strike on any on my sheep post shearing. Because of the action of Clik it protects the whole body by binding with the grease in the wool & skin, so it works differently to other products on the market. See http://www.farmanimalhealth.co.uk/sheep-clik (http://www.farmanimalhealth.co.uk/sheep-clik)
However, I did use Crovect prior to shearing this year as it only last 6-8 weeks, but found fly strike in 4 of my sheep, 3-4 weeks after treatment. One lamb was struck underneath in its udder area & I discovered it when we turned it to check its feet, so its not just the upper areas of the sheep prone to fly strike. Next year I will use Clikzin for the 6-8 weeks prior to shearing as I need something more effective & I feel 100% confident that my sheep are protected. Even if caught early, like mine were, fly strike is nasty & very unpleasant for the sheep.
I bought a 0.8l bottle of Clik last year with a long expiry date & having stored it properly, I have used the rest of the bottle this year & it appears to have worked well - eggs seen, but not hatched!