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CASE STUDY
WORKING
TOGETHER
FOR A HEALTHIER FUTURE...
11
LIVESTOCK MATTERS
Case Study
Two
The visit focused on the bull-beef enterprise
on this farm. Dairy bull calves are bought
from mixed sources in batches of 20-22
calves, at 3 weeks old. Disease, as a result
of pneumonia is frequent, and it is not
uncommon for a couple of calves per batch
to die. Problems are mainly seen when
calves are 8-9 weeks old. The single shed
houses a total of around 80 animals in four
groups at any one time, with ages ranging
from 3 weeks to 15 months. All calves are
dosed with Zactran
TM
on arrival.
In ventilation terms, this shed was found
to be extremely good. Space boarding
provides ample inlet, there are no draughts,
and the 30cm gap running almost the
full length of the ridge provides generous
outlet - the only shed of the many I have
so far assessed to do so. The pneumonia
problems here stem not from poor
ventilation, but from a variety of other
causes, the most important of which are:
Without changing the nature of the
enterprise, nothing can be done about point
one. Administering Zactran
TM
on arrival
reduces the impact of the second point,
by providing protection for two weeks.
The third problem will be reduced by
vaccination. Given the age at which
pneumonia problems are seen, the most
appropriate vaccine is one which will be
effective even when administered to very
young calves. Rispoval Intranasal can be
administered one week after arrival (not
immediately, as the stress of arrival will
interfere with how well the calf responds
to the vaccine and therefore how good
the immunity will be). It has also been
suggested that younger calves are housed
in smaller groups, for example half a dozen
per pen, as this has been shown to reduce
the risk of a variety of diseases.
Due to individual variation in any
population, it is likely that some pneumonia
will still be seen. As with Case One, a
treatment protocol has been devised.
1
Insufficient colostrum at birth
2
Stress of transport and mixing
3
Mixed ages in the same airspace
CONC L U S I ON
Since launching the Grassroots Pneumonia
campaign, I have become even more
convinced of the value to our farmers of
a co-ordinated approach to respiratory
disease. I am becoming increasingly
adept at wielding a laser-measurer and a
tape-measure (see Figures 3 a & b), and
even a calculator. I look forward to receiving
feedback from our farmers at the end of the
winter (or sooner, should problems occur) as
to what they feel has been beneficial, and
where we can improve even further.
Watch this space!
As the case studies indicate, there is a lot more
to pneumonia than a bottle of antibiotic.
Figures 3 a & b: Miranda taking
measurements during a ventilation
assessment.
Figure 3a
Figure 3b