At this stage in winter, cattle have generally been housed for a number of weeks and we don’t expect to be talking about lungworm. However, every day we are seeing animals coughing.
Lungworm is one of the most common causes of coughing in cattle, particularly towards the end of the grazing season. This year has been particularly warm and moist, which are excellent conditions for lungworm to develop and infect cattle.
A good parasite control plan is key to preventing disease as a result of lungworm and housing time is one of the key intervention windows to controlling lungworm and other parasites. There are several products available and many points to consider when choosing the most appropriate one for your situation.
Among these are duration of activity, efficacy, other parasites covered, method of administration and milk and meat withdrawal periods.
One should also bear in mind that there are several other causes of coughing, including bacteria and viruses, and many management factors that impact on the severity of symptoms.
Coughing can be a symptom of clinical pneumonia, but is often a precursor to the actual disease.
Pneumonia is rarely caused by one simple agent, but usually by interaction between a number of agents, a susceptible animal and the environment in which they live.
It is probably the single-biggest cause of economic loss in the Irish beef industry. Control plans can include management changes, vaccinations, early diagnostic indicators and treatment options.
The design of farm buildings is key to controlling pneumonia in cattle. Unfortunately, there have been many expensive sheds built in recent years that do not measure up to the required ventilation standards.
When designing sheds, air inlets and outlets are important and are influenced by shed size, the number and type of cattle to be housed and the prevailing weather conditions and wind direction.
Donal Lynch owns and runs Donal Lynch Veterinary, Tullamore, Co Offaly, part of XLVets. Visit www.xlvets.ie.
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