[cubathy]

We just sent 3 lambs and a cull ewe to the abattoir - first time sending sheep to slaughter. One whole carcass was rejected by the abbatoir with reason 'odema'. We suspect it was the ewe as we had been concerned about her for a while - unable to diagnose anything but seemed to slow down in recent months.

Looking for further information on odema I've found various conflicting advice. Any more information or thoughts on what we should do to prevent further cases?

Thanks!

[shep53]

Nothing you can do ,oedema  is swelling or fluid retention and from your description the ewe may have had liver ? or heart damage ? which was slowly killing her . Ascites maybe from liver damage may have caused fluid build up in the abdomen  ??

[cubathy]

Thanks for the response. I think some of my confusion came from reading about malignant oedema but looking at it a bit more this seems very unlikely, while heart/liver issues seem to fit the bill.

[shep53]

Any history of fluke ? do you treat ?

[cubathy]

No history and we don't treat for fluke. They've only been with us a year but I believe previous owner also did not. I spoke to the vet at the abattoir who was not particularly helpful but implied that any obvious liver issues like fluke would have been mentioned in the paperwork.

[Possum]

It would have been useful if the abattoir had said where the oedema was found. As Shep53 has already said oedema just means swelling due to fluid retention. It can happen in many different parts of the body and has a variety of causes. Without knowing where it was found it is impossible to work out what had caused it.


Very disappointing that the vet could not give you more detail. Makes you wonder about their record keeping......................

[Rosemary]

I don't know where you are, but you maybe need to have a word with your vet about liver fluke. There's not many places that could be considered "fluke free" now.

[harmony]

You don't confirm whether it was the cull ewe that was condemned? If it was and you were concerned about her did your vet attend?


Abattoir vets are generally from Europe and their English isn't always great so you might be better to ask the abattoir for the vet check information.


The vast majority of sheep culled have been into contact with fluke at some time and some areas are worse than others. Our abattoir told me that. Generally, only the liver is condemned .


As Rosemary says check with your vet about fluke levels in your area and about a health plan for your sheep.