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Now is the time to be pricing around for doses, dry cow tubes, teat sealers and vaccines needed over the next few months.
Pooling all your requirements together into a big order should ensure you get a better price.
All youngstock will need worm, lice and probably fluke doses too. What to give cows will depend on previous history of worm and fluke outbreaks.
After a wet autumn the incidence of worms and fluke is probably going to be higher, so if you haven’t dosed adult cows for worms or fluke before, maybe you should take dung samples to assess prevalence in your herd.
The dry period is the most effective time to treat for these parasites, so don’t waste the opportunity and be faced with sick cows next spring.
Vaccines
As for vaccines, the salmonella vaccine should have been given to pregnant animals by now.
After that, the rotavirus scour vaccine is given in late December and the IBR vaccine should be given around then too, depending on what programme you are on.
Write up on the diary or calendar the dates you plan to give doses and vaccines. If starting to dry off some cows, make sure and clearly mark cows that are tubed, so if they get mixed up with the milkers they won’t be accidentally milked.
Some farmers will put flexible tail tape of different colours on the tails of cows calving in early/late February and March, and dry these off accordingly.
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