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Stevie Hay
SUMMER 2011 ISSUE
CASE STUDY
LIVESTOCK MATTERS
10
I AN G I L L
Once uploaded onto the SAC programme, Julie contacts
her organic certification office and they can then log in
as a 'read only' user to view the lab results and grant
permission for treatment.
The programme also provides information on
the average performance of all herds on the
system, and the top-performing 25%. This data
can be further analysed by, for example, breed
or calving period. Regional, and even county,
breakdowns are available too, and Julie
compares her herd against others in Scotland.
‘It's also useful to have all the test results in one
place. Test results are added onto the online
programme by the Thrums practice. Not only
can I see the results straight away, but Ian and
Graeme can include comments on the results
advising me what to do next.’
Julie's cows are vaccinated for BVD, and the
calves for pneumonia, and all animals are
vaccinated against clostridial disease. The
programme marks forward on a calendar as
to when the next vaccinations will be due
allowing Julie time to prepare. She checks
the programme on a monthly basis.
Ian Gill has over 40 clients using the
programme and is a keen advocate of it.
He says: ‘A year on year record allows
farmers to review what happened and make
plans to improve, or to follow the same
practice to maintain good performance. The
information is always current, and having it
online prevents data getting lost over time. It's
also flexible - so if cows were mated a month
earlier than normal, it would automatically
adjust the dates for vaccination.’
With the organic status of Julie's herd, test
results are needed before medicines can be
administered. Once uploaded onto the SAC
programme, Julie contacts her organic
certification office and they can then log in as
a 'read only' user to view the lab results and
grant permission for treatment. ‘It's quick and
easy and saves the paper trail,’ explains Julie.
Linsay Eaglesham adds: ‘The SAC programme
has been especially useful for those who
previously were not recording performance at
all. It also provides a cost-effective way for
farmers to work with their vet - with information
uploaded, it then allows quality time to stand
back and review flock and herd performance
based on a common set of data.
‘As the data is held on-line, and fully
backed-up and kept up to date, nothing is
lost, it's all there. But time and care are needed
in the first year of the scheme to enter the
baseline data. The adage - “rubbish in,
rubbish out” holds true. So new users must
appreciate the time required to start it up.
But thereafter, the information can be copied
forward, and the reward is a comprehensive
record of health and performance for the farm
which can be benchmarked against industry
standards or farms in the same region or
of similar enterprise.’
I N S UMMARY
The Scottish Animal Health planning
programmes - for sheep flocks and suckler
herds are available to XLVets clients through
their local XLVets practice.