APRIL 2017

RALGRO ON BACKORDER

Many of you use Ralgro implants in your beef calves before turning out to grass. They are a nice implant because you can use the same implant in steers or heifers and the implant is small and easier to get in soft calf ears. Implanting sucking calves will result in a higher weaning weight.

Right now, the Ralgro is on backorder from all our suppliers. We do not know when it will be available again. As a replacement, we are carrying and recommending Synovex C implants. These implants are designed for use in suckling calves weighing less than 400 lbs and at least 45 days old.

Implanting your suckling calves is a great way to gain at least 20 more lbs at weaning with no adverse effects on carcass quality or future performance. Synovex C can be used in both steers and heifers and will not adversely affect breeding potential of the heifers. These implants require a different gun than the Ralgro implants. They are packaged in 10 implant cartridges.

Please talk to Sally if you have any questions about what implants would work in your herd. You have lots of options for stocker and feedlot cattle, including the new 200 day Synovex One implant.
 

GOAT QUESTIONS?

Sally recently attended a seminar at the University of Minnesota all about goats. The sessions were designed for both vets and producers, so the speakers presented lots of practical information and answered real life questions. She has new information on the “Big Three” goat diseases”Johne’s, caseous lymphadenitis and caprine encephalitis”and how to test and prevent them. Also, some interesting options for creating prolonged lactations in goats so that you don’t have a long period with no milk income.

Please call if you have any goat questions or if you would like Sally to come out and help you solve some goat problems.

SAVE THE DATE!

Our annual Client Appreciation Party will be on Friday July 28 from 3-8 pm. We will have food and fun and door prizes and lots of things for kids to do. We are planning on having food and activities in a tent on the south lawn, so everything will be easy to find. Of course, you are welcome to tour the clinic and see the new tile in the kennel and the exam room improvements. We may even have some special visitors from the Humane Society!
 

DOG PARK TAKING SHAPE

We hope you have noticed the new changes in the grass area north of the clinic building. The space between the big pine trees and the pond by Cnty A is where the new dog park will be. Park department workers from the city recently removed the old fence on the east side.

Cari has been working hard with the city on the funding for the development and maintenance of the dog park. The goal is to get it fenced and the pathways created and some of the landscaping done this spring. This park is an on-going project that people will be working on for years to come. We hope you enjoy it. Any suggestions or donations would be welcome.

EGG MCMASTER FECAL TEST

We have been pleased with the Egg McMaster fecal test that we have been doing on large animal fecals in addition to the float and direst tests. The Egg McMaster is the test that determines the number of eggs per gram (epg) of feces in a given sample.

Who cares about epg? The number of eggs per gram (epg) tells us how badly your animals are infested with parasites and how well a given treatment is working. This test is the one that companies use when they are testing a new anthelmintic (dewormer) drug or if they are trying to determine if worms are developing resistance to a particular drug.

Once we have the epg from a sample, we can compare that value to the same animal after treatment or moving to a clean pasture or to a different group treated with the same dewormer. Then we can track if the epg value is being affected by changes in management.

The most important thing to remember is that we are not necessarily trying to have parasite free animals, but animals that are healthy and not being set back by a heavy parasite load.
 

TICKS ARE TERRIBLE THIS SPRING

We have been hearing lots of complaints and seeing LOTS of ticks on animals at the clinic. People are also finding ticks on themselves after being out in the woods for only a short time.

The Seresto flea and tick collars for dogs and cats work great to kill and repel both fleas and ticks. These collars contain compounds that are released slowly over 8 months. You can get a $15 mail-in rebate on a collar if you buy it from us. The Seresto collars cost only $60 for any size. If you buy more than one, the price is only $55. Plus you can get the $15 rebate. What a deal!

We also have a pour-on product that works to repel and kill ticks on horses. We have been seeing a lot of ticks on horses this spring. Horses can get diseases from ticks, such as Lyme disease and anaplasmosis. Ticks that suck blood from your horse will also bite you, so wear protective clothing and check yourself after being in the woods.
 

LOTS OF WATERY EYES ALREADY

If you have been noticing a lot of wet faces and watery eyes in your calves, you are not alone. Think about these ideas for treatment and prevention of pinkeye.

• Make use of fly control products, such as feed additives, ear tags, oilers and rubbers
• Vaccinate with a commercial product. Booster as required.
• Consider using the new Moraxella bovoculi (winter pinkeye) vaccine or have an autogenous one made
• Use a fly control/treatment mineral salt block
• Avoid feeding moldy or dusty feeds
• Keep pastures mowed to prevent irritation from tall, dry grass
• Treat affected animals at the first signs of watery eye. Don’t wait!

Please call if you have questions or need help with figuring out what to do with a group.
 

HAPPY PLANTING! BE SAFE!