Understanding how best to manage worming programmes on farms, tackling lameness in sheep and learning how to create and utilise woodland on sheep farms were all topics focused on at the recent Farm Advisory Service (FAS) workshop.

The practical event, ‘Building Resilience in your sheep flock’, was held at Shandford Farm near Brechin, earlier this week and featured various speakers from SAC Consulting and Glasgow University.

The talks were all designed with an aim of improving efficiency and productivity in sheep farms, helping farmers and crofters to understand best health management practices for common conditions as well as looking at which practices can be implemented to help cut costs or introduce additional income on farms.

Worming programmes

Discussing the benefits of effective worm management to both sheep and farmers, SAC Consulting vet Heather Stevenson looked at the effects various anthelmintic groups have on lamb weights, the differing properties of them as well as the ways in which farmers can save money – such as ensuring the correct dosage is given.

Heather said: “It is important to find out whether your wormer is working or not and by counting worm eggs in dung in the lab to see if wormers aren’t working.

“If you have 100 lambs, for an average, sample about 10 lambs and if you can, sample those same 10 lambs again after treatment.

“If effective, it should reduce egg counts by 95% - it would be unrealistic to expect 100% of them to be killed off.”

Clean grazing was highlighted as a way in which to help decrease egg counts as well as calibrating dosing guns to ensure the dosage is accurate and discovering which type of wormer is best suited to the flock.

Heather detailed a study carried out on weaned lambs on a farm in the east of Scotland which utilised all five anthelmintic groups and examined the effects of each on egg counts and lamb weights two weeks after dosing.

Group One are the BZ white group and Group Five are 5-Sl Purple group. Following the two week period lambs in Group One were found to have gained an average of 112g while those in Group Five had gained 798g each day.

Heather notes that while the weights of each group were not ideal, there was still a clear difference.

These differences in weights also correspond to the profits gained per kilogram later on.

Effects of short grass and importance of protein

With the recent weeks of sunshine and long periods of dry weather making much of the grass across the country considerably shorter than normal, Heather explained that in a few weeks farmers may see the numbers of sheep with higher egg counts increase.

She said: “With very short grass, lamb nutrition won’t be as good so they will eat closer to the dung.

“And larvae stay at the bottom couple of centimetres of grass and when grass is short there’s a higher density of stock eating much closer to the ground and the larvae.”

It takes around three weeks from the larvae in the grass being eaten before the eggs are present in the dung and so the effects of the dry weather, may be seen a little after the heat has passed.

Having enough protein in their diets is also important for helping sheep to control worms. When producing milk, ewes may not be able to control worms as well, as their protein is being utilised in their milk.

Heather noted that feeding ewes extra protein such as in the form of soya may help to reduce worm counts.

She also explained that worming ewes pre-tupping may not be necessary, provided the ewes are in good condition. This would help farmers to save money and would also help to cut back on blanket treatment which can contribute to resistance in worms.

Tackling lameness in sheep

At the workshop, Valentina Busin of Glasgow University discussed the effects of lameness in sheep and how best to treat it.

With an average of around 5% of sheep lame across the UK at any one time, the effects of lameness can include loss of condition, poor quality wool, ill thrift and muscle wastage.

“Welfare and pain to the sheep is also an issue to consider and something we should remember,” said Valentina.

Non-contagious causes of lameness include shelly hoof and toe abscesses.

Various contagious reasons for lameness include footrot (FR), scald (or Interdigital dermatitis (ID)) and Contagious Ovine Digital Dermatitis (CODD). However, Valentina discussed that as footrot and scald conditions can be difficult to separate, they are often considered to be the same problem and are best treated with an injection of antibiotics.

In order to prevent such contagious conditions a foot bath can be suitable, however Valentina urged farmers to ensure it is done properly which is labour intensive but will help to avoid the spread of bacteria.

Valentina also urged farmers to keep a record of lameness and to talk to their regular vet in order to get specific advice for their farm.

Farmers were also encouraged to avoid blanket treating with vaccinations. “There is no justification for just treating everything. There’s a place to treat a single animal, not the whole lot,” said Valentina.

Utilising woodland to build resilience in flocks

Malcolm Young a forestry consultant with SAC Consulting was also on hand at the workshop discussing how farmers and crofters can utilise woodland to improve their businesses.

In addition to bringing an additional income stream to the farm, woodland can provide livestock shelter, add extra nutrition into the soil and can utilise wet fluke-prone areas of land.

Malcolm noted that introducing additional shelter on land can also improve lamb survival by around 50% as well as cutting ewe mortality after shearing by 12%.

Additionally, as the sheep require less energy to keep themselves warm, other benefits will include improved weight gain and reduced feed costs which can be around 20% less.