Weanlings and young cattle are very susceptible to worms and fluke. Lungworm can continue to be an issue, and with cold and wet weather, pneumonia can occur rapidly. Where calves are coughing, pay close attention to them in the days after treatment. Calves that are coughing up worms can become stressed quickly and this can lead to a high temperature.

Where calves or weanlings have been housed on stubble ground, on kale or rape for more than eight weeks, they can receive a fluke dose. Most of the fluke should be at an adult stage and a high kill rate should be obtained.

Remember that brassicas are high in protein, but low in dry matter and minerals and cattle need to be supplemented. Take care where feeding animals outside that you don’t run into cross-compliance issues with poaching and try to move feeders and troughs regularly to avoid penalties. Remember, an animal (1 LU) must have access to 1ha of land at all times when being out-wintered.

In most cases, ad-lib access to good quality silage plus 3kg to 4kg of a balanced ration is adequate. Avoid feeding rolled barley on its own as this could increase the incidence of feet problems. Make sure the bull receives all doses and vaccinations that the herd gets. If outwintered or housed separately, they can often be forgotten about.

Many vets now offer a fertility testing service and there are many specialised fertility testing services around the country. It costs between €50 and €70 and could prove a good spend if your stock bull has become infertile for some reason. Discounts may be obtained by testing a number of bulls in the same area.

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Beef managment: pneumonia issues

Beef managment: stock bulls