Spring 2019 was totally different to any spring in my memory. Very many farmers had animals at grass in February as a result of the totally unusual weather. This in turn led to a much smaller build-up of infections which generally happen when animals are housed over a longer period.

We saw much less calf scours and considerably less pneumonias over the spring than in 2018. However, this was balanced by a much higher level of metabolic diseases in cows.

We saw a very high percentage of cows get milk fever both before and after calving, we saw quite a bit of grass tetany, we even had heavily in-calf cows going down with acute tetany while out on the early grass.

Many cows were outdoors on grass before calving and this led to them eating fresh highly-nutritious young grass

There was also a lot of ketosis and both left and right displacement of the abomasum.

I believe all of this was due to the differing feeding patterns which the very mild weather encouraged. Many cows were outdoors on grass before calving and this led to them eating fresh highly-nutritious young grass when ordinarily they would be eating bulkier silage.

The standard management of cows in the dry period went out the window, with those consequences.

Now that the calving period is virtually over, the next challenge is getting them back in-calf again

In the case of ketosis, treatment sometimes works very well. However, if not well managed they can relapse. Cases of left displacement of the abomasum need surgical intervention, which brings its own risks.

Now that the calving period is virtually over, the next challenge is getting them back in-calf again.

Cows that had a difficult calving or retained afterbirths and cows that had any metabolic disturbance need particular care and, by right, should get veterinary examination before being bred again.

Calves at grass at present on some farms are showing symptoms of coccidiosis (blood scour).

This condition can be very serious if not noticed early. It never appears in calves less than three weeks old, but when a calf in a group is noticed with blood in the dung, you can rest assured that several other calves in the same group are infected. Therefore, the whole group should be treated. There is no vaccine against this condition, so vigilance is essential.

It is caused by a tiny parasite which invades the cells lining the gut and can be carried by older animals without them showing symptoms.