Agri Vehicles Insurance from Greenlands

Author Topic: Underweight lambs  (Read 3264 times)

Ermingtrude

  • Joined Mar 2017
Re: Underweight lambs
« Reply #15 on: January 11, 2020, 09:04:04 pm »
I greatly appreciate your input and information Shep53, you ( and others ) have been incredibly helpful.

I did have some Cydectin from last Septembers treatment, but on measuring it out, not enough for all 13 sheep to be dosed, and it had a BB date of the end of this month, so I opted to get a new one, and it was simply that the Vets didn't have a small bottle of it, that it was suggested to try the Fasimec for the same effect. Use of it on already liver-damaged sheep wasn't mentioned, just the effectiveness of the wormer on all ages/stages of fluke, which some of the others don't have. I haven't heard of Closantel, so will be looking that one up, as I don't remember the vet mentioning it either as an option. Their reasoning behind the daily FECs on the 3 sheep was to check for other worms that may not have shown in other FEC's due to low level, and to see if any fluke is visible once they had been treated, to check for resistance, given they got treated in September. Having read your replies, and the scary amount of info on the internet, it seems a little pointless, given that treating today isn't going to seemingly stop them getting re-infected in a weeks time from the fields, and what you say about the time from laying to appearance in samples.  I have asked about things I can do to stop reinfestation, but apparently that is more a *weekday* question, and not one I am going to get a reply to on a weekend.  The sheep themselves are looking pretty chipper again, eating well, looking bright and alert, and dosing them was a struggle, which compared to taking the blood samples a few days ago, which was much easier, I am taking to be a good sign, so I have fingers crossed for them.
Thank you so much for your continued help in this.

shep53

  • Joined Jan 2011
  • Dumfries & Galloway
Re: Underweight lambs
« Reply #16 on: January 11, 2020, 09:22:02 pm »
Fluke need mud snails to complete their life cycle and the snails need damp , so fence off any open ditches or water filled hollows and use troughs for water instead , keep areas around water troughs dry ( also good for feet ). Improve drainage so you have no standing water for long periods . Ducks or geese will eat the snails

Ermingtrude

  • Joined Mar 2017
Re: Underweight lambs
« Reply #17 on: January 11, 2020, 09:45:53 pm »
There is one field with a long deep ditch on one long border, gravel bottom, no greenery in it, not ever seen sheep in it, as there is water in troughs in that ( and all ) fields for the sheep and the horses, but that could well be the source. But given I am in South West Wales, wet pasture and slightly sloshy fields are fairly normal, even though I am well over 1000 feet, and on good draining land. I can move the fence to put the ditch outside the field, and I rotate the fields so nowhere gets muddy to the point you need wellies rather than decent shoes - maybe rotating the fields too often ? Nowhere has actual standing water ( ok, the yard does, but that just helps wash the dog's paws ) but I do see a lot of slugs, not sure I have seen snails, but they don't seem so obvious, and a lot smaller according to internet.

I continue to be very appreciative of your help and advice.

Backinwellies

  • Global Moderator
  • Joined Sep 2012
  • Llandeilo Carmarthenshire
    • Nantygroes
    • Facebook
Re: Underweight lambs
« Reply #18 on: January 12, 2020, 06:33:07 pm »
I'm amazed vet didn't suggest an alternative flukicide  ……  any Triclabendazole flukicide should be alternated with another type 9same as wormers) ….  I should know I lost 5 well grown  ewe lambs  to fluke (after treating with only Triclabendazole) 

You seem to be spending a fortune on testing …. hope it's worth it.
Linda

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Ermingtrude

  • Joined Mar 2017
Re: Underweight lambs
« Reply #19 on: January 12, 2020, 09:59:03 pm »
They did say about rotating types of wormer, but also talked about the fact that as they got dosed in September, the time span and likely re-infestation, and something about resistance not happening that quickly in just a few generations ( no, I didn't follow that one either ) which would mean they would recommend one that did all the life stages, rather than one that just did some, and it was more likely the older part of the worm cycle was causing the issue, not the eggs/babies.  It seemed to make sense, and although I am not new to FEC's and worming regimes / resistance etc, having had horses for more years than I would like to admit to, sheep are still new to me, along with their various worm hosts and the such. Spent 2 hours yesterday looking for snails !

The blood tests themselves are not cheap ( is anything, at the vets ! ) , but I take them myself and drop them to the vet surgery, so that saves a visit and time fee. Same for the FEC's, I have sent in several over the last few years, including 2 in the last week, but other than that, I do them myself, so nothing more than my own time.

I am sorry to hear you lost some to the same thing - I am hoping my 3 will recover, and live happy lives as pet lawnmowers, and will hopefully come up with a more effective way of managing fluke issues in the future. I am just north of Carmarthen, so not that far from you, but the vets only mentioned coccidia as a local *issue*, and on high ground, I didn't think of fluke as an issue as it wasn't low level flood plain type ground, and nothing showed in FECs Live and learn, and I hope I am learning.

 

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