Kepak’s feedlot at Dunboyne, Co Meath, was the setting for the latest in a series of animal health events being held across the country, run by AHI, in conjunction with DAFM and Teagasc.
With guidance from local vet Frank O’Sullivan, the Kepak farm has implemented a strict animal health policy that has seen its mortality rates plummet by 75% since 2012, to less than 0.3%.
Each year, 3,500 animals go through the feedlot, which has capacity for 1,800 head at any one time and produces three types of animal:
Continental breed bulls (destined for the Italian marketplace).Commercial suckler bullocks and heifers (destined for the UK and EU marketplace).Hereford-sired bullocks and heifers (including dairy-cross for the Irish and UK marketplace).
Kepak’s buy-in policy
“We have erected a dedicated quarantine shed,” Jonathan Forbes, Kepak head of procurement, told the crowd.
“It’s big and open, with a deep bed of fresh straw and ring feeders filled with haylage. We offer around 25% of the animal’s finishing ration straight away. They go there for 24 hours upon arrival, which is usually direct from a farm – the health status is higher with these than with mart-sourced animals. We don’t touch them for the first day. It’s their de-stressing, or cool-off, period. Their immune systems need time to recharge after the journey to the farm.’’
After 24 hours on the straw, cattle are vaccinated against two strains of pneumonia, clostridial disease and treated for parasites.
Sheds at the feedlot are tall, well-ventilated and well-lit – fresh air can get in easily and, importantly, stale air can get out via roof outlets.
Paradise for worms
“No frost, a warm wet winter and rotational grazing – paradise for worms,” was the next message from O’Sullivan. He warned that dosing needed to continue into the back-end of the season. However, he urged caution regarding the over-use of anthelminthics.
“The animal needs to build up some of its own residual resistance. A suckler calf should probably get his first treatment in July and then two more subsequently before housing – it can be overdone sometimes.
Both O’Sullivan and vet Eoin Ryan of UCD touched on the importance of prevention of lungworm and pneumonia.
Bad lung damage cannot be undone and will affect subsequent performance. The crowd was shown how healthy lung tissue floated in water, while pneumonia-damaged lung tissue sunk like lead.
“That damaged tissue is no good to the animal; capacity for oxygen absorption and, importantly, performance will be almost nil in this part of the organ. Remember that lung protection starts during the summer with your dose,” said Ryan.
Beef and resistance
The topic of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) was discussed at the final stop of the day. Growing trends are problematic for both animals and humans. Denis Healy of the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine told the crowd how more people are currently dying worldwide from diseases once treatable with antibiotics, than from cancer.
Healy urged farmers not to stockpile antibiotics, but instead to enlist a vet for diagnosis and guidelines regarding treatment.
However, he said that as an industry, beef farmers were relatively clean – using only a tiny amount of antimicrobial products. Indeed, from 20,000 samples taken from live and slaughtered animals last year, only 28 contained residues from antibiotics or anthelmintic products.
Liver fluke
Vet Frank O’Sullivan made the case for proper parasite control with fresh examples of infestation in livers, lungs and a rumen on show.
“While liver fluke won’t kill cattle, a mild infestation will reduce production by 3% to 5% and a bad infestation by 9%.
Although many opt to treat cattle for mature fluke six to eight weeks post-housing, O’Sullivan said that where fluke is suspected or showing up on slaughter reports, producers should send a faecal sample to their vets for analysis and think about using a product targeting immature fluke soon.
Rumen fluke
A ruminant’s main energy source comes via fatty acids absorbed through the rumen wall. The crowd was next shown a rumen infested with rumen fluke. These fluke impede the absorption of these fatty acids, as well as moving into the small intestine, damaging its integrity and causing severe scouring.
While O’Sullivan said that cases of rumen fluke were rare, he was adamant that they are growing in prevalence. He warned about blanket treating for rumen fluke – the eradication process can be extremely hard on the animal. Instead, a spot treatment regime was encouraged.
O’Sullivan said that where thrive was poor and there was a heavy scour evident, a faecal sample should be taken to help in diagnosing rumen fluke.
If left untreated, animals infected with rumen fluke can die of dehydration. Most of the drugs that kill liver fluke will not work against rumen fluke. Oxyclozanide is the only product on the Irish market that kills both mature and immature rumen fluke.
Kepak’s feedlot at Dunboyne, Co Meath, was the setting for the latest in a series of animal health events being held across the country, run by AHI, in conjunction with DAFM and Teagasc.
With guidance from local vet Frank O’Sullivan, the Kepak farm has implemented a strict animal health policy that has seen its mortality rates plummet by 75% since 2012, to less than 0.3%.
Each year, 3,500 animals go through the feedlot, which has capacity for 1,800 head at any one time and produces three types of animal:
Continental breed bulls (destined for the Italian marketplace).Commercial suckler bullocks and heifers (destined for the UK and EU marketplace).Hereford-sired bullocks and heifers (including dairy-cross for the Irish and UK marketplace).
Kepak’s buy-in policy
“We have erected a dedicated quarantine shed,” Jonathan Forbes, Kepak head of procurement, told the crowd.
“It’s big and open, with a deep bed of fresh straw and ring feeders filled with haylage. We offer around 25% of the animal’s finishing ration straight away. They go there for 24 hours upon arrival, which is usually direct from a farm – the health status is higher with these than with mart-sourced animals. We don’t touch them for the first day. It’s their de-stressing, or cool-off, period. Their immune systems need time to recharge after the journey to the farm.’’
After 24 hours on the straw, cattle are vaccinated against two strains of pneumonia, clostridial disease and treated for parasites.
Sheds at the feedlot are tall, well-ventilated and well-lit – fresh air can get in easily and, importantly, stale air can get out via roof outlets.
Paradise for worms
“No frost, a warm wet winter and rotational grazing – paradise for worms,” was the next message from O’Sullivan. He warned that dosing needed to continue into the back-end of the season. However, he urged caution regarding the over-use of anthelminthics.
“The animal needs to build up some of its own residual resistance. A suckler calf should probably get his first treatment in July and then two more subsequently before housing – it can be overdone sometimes.
Both O’Sullivan and vet Eoin Ryan of UCD touched on the importance of prevention of lungworm and pneumonia.
Bad lung damage cannot be undone and will affect subsequent performance. The crowd was shown how healthy lung tissue floated in water, while pneumonia-damaged lung tissue sunk like lead.
“That damaged tissue is no good to the animal; capacity for oxygen absorption and, importantly, performance will be almost nil in this part of the organ. Remember that lung protection starts during the summer with your dose,” said Ryan.
Beef and resistance
The topic of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) was discussed at the final stop of the day. Growing trends are problematic for both animals and humans. Denis Healy of the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine told the crowd how more people are currently dying worldwide from diseases once treatable with antibiotics, than from cancer.
Healy urged farmers not to stockpile antibiotics, but instead to enlist a vet for diagnosis and guidelines regarding treatment.
However, he said that as an industry, beef farmers were relatively clean – using only a tiny amount of antimicrobial products. Indeed, from 20,000 samples taken from live and slaughtered animals last year, only 28 contained residues from antibiotics or anthelmintic products.
Liver fluke
Vet Frank O’Sullivan made the case for proper parasite control with fresh examples of infestation in livers, lungs and a rumen on show.
“While liver fluke won’t kill cattle, a mild infestation will reduce production by 3% to 5% and a bad infestation by 9%.
Although many opt to treat cattle for mature fluke six to eight weeks post-housing, O’Sullivan said that where fluke is suspected or showing up on slaughter reports, producers should send a faecal sample to their vets for analysis and think about using a product targeting immature fluke soon.
Rumen fluke
A ruminant’s main energy source comes via fatty acids absorbed through the rumen wall. The crowd was next shown a rumen infested with rumen fluke. These fluke impede the absorption of these fatty acids, as well as moving into the small intestine, damaging its integrity and causing severe scouring.
While O’Sullivan said that cases of rumen fluke were rare, he was adamant that they are growing in prevalence. He warned about blanket treating for rumen fluke – the eradication process can be extremely hard on the animal. Instead, a spot treatment regime was encouraged.
O’Sullivan said that where thrive was poor and there was a heavy scour evident, a faecal sample should be taken to help in diagnosing rumen fluke.
If left untreated, animals infected with rumen fluke can die of dehydration. Most of the drugs that kill liver fluke will not work against rumen fluke. Oxyclozanide is the only product on the Irish market that kills both mature and immature rumen fluke.
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