News, Articles & Resources
Here you'll keep up to-date with the latest news and events in the dairy Veterinarian scene, plus find various articles and resources to grow your knowledge.
Mastitis – Culling Decisions
Culling is a key strategy in managing mastitis on farm as it is the only way to eliminate some infections. It is, however, expensive so
Johne’s Testing
Request a Johne’s test on your next herd test if you have not already done so! It is that time in the season that is
Return Interval Analysis and Non-Returns
NNR The non return rate (NNR) is the percentage of inseminations that occur early in the AB period where the cow did not return to
2023 Repro Seminar
Here’s a reminder of what we covered at the 2023 Repro Night 2023 Repro seminar final
Managing Calf Scours
Towards the end of August scouring calves become more common. It is likely that this is because the pathogen load in the calf pens has
Preparation of Dairy Cows for Transport
The end of another season is approaching and with that comes the movement of cows. MPI have informed us that they have been seeing a significant number of down cows arriving at meat processing plants. This article has some useful information to help you prepare cattle for transport to ensure that their welfare is protected. This is particularly important for lactating cows. Contact Dairy Vet Services if you need further advice.
A New Product for Drenching Young Cattle
DECTOMAX V® combines the trusted performance of doramectin with the added strength of levamisole to provide unsurpassed efficacy against key parasites, including those often resistant
Leptospirosis
LeptospirosisLeptospirosis is a common and important infectious disease in New Zealand. Infected animals can pass it on to humans through their urine or any urine
Youngstock Focus: New Drench Products
Well most of you are done with the first 3 weeks of mating, which seems for most to have gone exceptionally well this year! If you have not quite reached 90% of you herd submitted now is the time to weigh up the options you have to get cows mated ASAP. Please give us a call if you would like to talk it through.
Calves are now at various stages of weaning. Dairy NZ have some good resources on when to wean: the take homes for me are weigh your calves and measure how much they are eating (no guesswork!). Remember we have technicians, weigh platforms and wand on standby to give you a hand!
Calf Series: Hygiene
Hopefully you have all had some time to recharge the batteries before the mayhem of calving …here are some common tips to aim for when collecting calves and getting them to their calf pens this calving period:
BVD and what it means to dairy farmers
Bovine viral diarrhoea occurs throughout NZ and the impact is a huge costs: studies show approx.. $140/cow/year for an infected herd. The biggest cost to farmers relates to early pregnancy losses.
Nitrate toxicity
As we are now well into dry-off season, many cows will have begun transition onto winter crops. If these crops are brassicas (kale, swedes, triticale) we have to be thinking about nitrate poising and ways to reduce the risk of this occurring.
