News

Herd health planning can be incredibly useful - it allows farm staff and vets the opportunity to review the past year, find potential issues and  implement a plan to try and improve welfare, productivity and in turn profitability.  

Bovine Tuberculosis update for you from The George Farm Vets as well as details on upcoming meetings and launching our inaugural Cow Convention.

We discuss the many changes dairy cattle go through from the day of drying off to reaching peak yield in the following lactation post-calving. 

Reducing the fly population through the spring and summer can be a time-consuming headache and the consequences of Summer Mastitis and New Forest Eye are expensive, and frustrating.

On paper, getting a cow in calf is a  simple three step process; bulling (estrus), service and conception. In practice, a multitude of factors commonly result in a frustrating barren cow.   

A recent study suggested that only 5% of UK flocks routinely test for iceberg diseases and therefore a staggering 95% of flocks are not optimising productivity!

Have you ever considered how much water a cow requires?

Yearling heifers - breeding the best. Heifers are a fundamental component of any breeding plan; they represent both the genetic foundation of future breeding stock and a significant investment in terms of rearing costs. 

The recent dry weather has brought with it a large variation in day and night temperatures and many still days; both of which can be a challenge to calf health.  

Awareness, resilience and how to find help in our latest edition of the George Farm Vets newsletter                                  

Feeding cattle indoors is a fine art and it is often discussed that there 3 possible diets a cow might be eating.

Are you coming along? We are joined this year by 4 speakers and a host of companies from the industry.  

Sudden death in cattle is a distressing event and always a cause of concern on farm.  

Following a consultation in 2018, DEFRA announced that default 6 monthly TB surveillance testing of cattle herds with Official Tuberculosis Free status (OTF) would replace annual testing in the High Risk Area (HRA) of England.

I imagine that most of you would have had a conversation about shed ventilation with us at some point.  

You have counted up your lambs, and down your ewes. Now you have the pleasure of seeing the lambs out at grass looking strong.  

This month we are looking at Health Plans and why it is could be short-sighted to view them as another cost

A fully loaded newsletter this month with all our training and Zoom events listed too.

We continue to deliver regular farm meetings via Zoom as we navigate our way out of lockdown

Many of you will be aware that we often take blood samples of young adult cattle within your herds to get an idea of which diseases are circulating.

Suckler herds are calving and most of our sheep flocks are preparing for lambing (except for those keen ones that have finished already!) 

Abortion in sheep is a major cause of loss in flocks around the UK, with serious welfare and financial implications.  

Chris recently pulled together the data from caesareans done over the last 3 years to analyse which cases went on to do the best post-surgery.

The George Farm Vets have the necessary qualified vets to provide expertise and advice for all types of export to the EU and worldwide.  

It is vitally important that during the long winter months your stock is provided with an optimum environment in which to live, thrive and perform. 

Significant gains have been made in reducing the new infection rate of herds with regards to TB.

Tour de France cyclist vs high yielding dairy cow - this month we look at the comparative requirements and efforts of each to produce optimum performance.  

There is a plethora of options when it comes to grazing, from what you offer your stock to graze, to the way in which you rotate them around your land.  

Flies! We look at the most common and the ways to control their numbers and the impact on your cattle

There is a relatively new blood test for cattle called the Enferplex test. It also looks for the antibody immune response to TB and it picks up more cows  

Unfortunately, with the lockdown there are some milk processors asking farms to reduce their milk production. 

If buying in replacement ewes, or bringing store lambs onto your ground, you do not want to risk buying in problems

Viruses - how they do what they do

These are certainly difficult and uncertain times for us all.  

We would like to reassure everyone that The George Farm Vets will continue to provide the best possible care for you and your livestock in the coming months. 

We discuss the pre breeding checks we can offer in order to make sure you retain the most fertile heifers for your breeding herd 

Discussing the different types of roundworm that affect sheep, and advice for treatment of ewes and lambs. 

We currently have just 2 more spaces available for this AI course with Cathy Morris at Kemble Farm.

Calf pneumonia or Bovine Respiratory Disease (BRD) is the most common reason for poor performance and death in growing calves.  

Our Youngstock Convention is back for 2020 following the success of 2019. Find out more in our dedicated newsletter.

Key Performance indicators (KPIs) are the main figures used to assess the factors that are important for the success of a suckler enterprise.  

Mindful of the shift in weather there are a few challenges ahead to discuss.

It is impossible to ignore the subject of mental health at the moment. The media in general and increasingly the farming media report the ever-heightening incidence of anxiety, depression and suicide.  

Winter is coming! This month Kat Hart discusses 4 topics: Sustainability, Youngstock Convention 2020, Muddy Mouldy Maize and a new approach to Pneumonia.

Around 30- 32% of all adult cattle are lame at any one time, equating to over half a million cows at an estimated cost of £450 million per year.

The idea behind 'Sheep Signals' is to use everyday observations to your advantage in order to spot problems early. 

One significant disease which rears its ugly head at this time of year is Summer Mastitis. 

We remember with fondness and love our colleague and friend Tim Hirst BVM&S CertCHP MRCVS who passed away in July.   

This month's newsletter is about non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS). Controlling pain in animals is paramount to safeguarding welfare.

Bovine TB is probably the biggest issue currently facing the cattle farming industry. Here's Ben's newsletter in answer to some of the most common questions faced by our vets.

External parasites are a year-round issue for all ages of stock. 

In this month's newsletter Will Sommerville discusses cattle worming, strategies and types of wormer available.

Our biggest dairy farm won a CEVA Welfare award in April. This is a national award and James Griffiths won the "Farm Educator" category.  

We are holding a beef and sheep specific medicine handing course on the 16th April 2019 starting at 10.30am.

There is a lot of talk in the farming press about genomic testing and as vets we have certainly been asked a lot of questions about it recently. 

With over 160 delegates we held our youngstock convention at Eastwood Park in March. Were you there?

As lambing gets underway, measures to ensure lambs have a good start in life are essential.   

Two important topics in this month's newsletter: After vet visits and lame cow follow-ups

Book your place for Thursday 21st February for this 3 hour course run by Sarah.

A new initiative for 2019 and already over 100 confirmed as coming, open to vets, farmers, producers and industry suppliers.

Join us at a meeting to discuss prevention strategies for watery mouth disease and options for control. 

This practical event, run by AHDB & THE GEORGE FARM VETS, allows you to handle live animals and make your assessment of fat cover and conformation using the EUROP grid.    

We're excited to invite you to join us on 6th March at our inaugural Youngstock Convention, bringing together farmers, producers, vets and industry suppliers.

The New Year is a great time to try and do some of those little jobs which might get forgotten.

We often get called out to attend a 'down cow', but there is a subtle difference between the presentation of the acute down cow and of the cow suffering from 'downer cow syndrome'. 

There is a wealth of evidence that shows that calving your heifers at 24 months is more economically efficient than calving at 36 months.  

Although for most of you the tups have only just gone in, it is time to start thinking about how you are going to manage and feed the ewes through to lambing.  

With margins in the agricultural sector always under pressure, having a handle on costings is key.  

A reflection on summer and what may slight be wise to consider from vet Ben Sellick

The nights are drawing in and tupping time is approaching once again - some early lambers may even have already put the rams in.  

We present a summary of results for Gloucestershire in the year to March 31st 2018

As the weather looks to be staying hot for a few more weeks yet, now is the time to get on top of hygiene.

The weather has been really hotting up lately, which is good news for getting your silage in, but not such good news for your cows, particularly in dairy herds. 

Mastitis in ewes can be a significant cost to a flock, both economically and in terms of animal welfare. 

We are delighted to be the first farm practice awarded with the new NMR Johne's Control award.

You may have seen my newsletter a couple of years ago, in which I discussed the importance of responsible use of antimicrobials.

Digital dermatitis is an extremely contagious, erosive infection of cattle skin caused by Treponeme bacteria.

In light of the recent conditions we've been suffering and with lambing either underway or looming Ben talks survival tactics for the lambs, ewes and maybe for some of you at this tricky time of year! 

The Alta Dairy Manager School is coming to Tortworth Court with one of the most thought provoking speakers in our industry, Dr. Steve Eicker. 

IfA's livestock team will be on-hand to explain to you, in plain terms, what antibiotic resistance actually means and why there is a demand on the industry to reduce the use of antibiotics in livestock. 

A few weeks ago, Ian was lucky enough to visit the U.S.A as part of an Advanced Dairy Vet Group.

Sunday 25th March 2018: 10am - 2pm. In aid of Wiltshire Air Ambulance and Wiltshire Young Farmers 

The definition of a 'down' cow varies but perhaps the simplest one is "a cow that is recumbent (lying down) and unable to stand". 

Dates for the diary : Beef Meeting, Medicine Handling Course, Calf Course and Lambing Course

The first of 6 featurettes aired on the BBC's Countryfile last Sunday. 

Mastitis is a wide-ranging disease that all dairy farmers will experience at some point.  

The MilkSure initiative is for British dairy farmers. Its mission is to safeguard the production of wholesome milk which is free of veterinary medicine residues. 

There are any number of reasons for a ewe to be in poor condition. Some may be related to the demands of production, some due to old age and some due to disease. 

Kat came back from maternity leave recently; she reflects on the changes she's noticed in her time off. 

October's focus for the newsletter from the Farm Vets is Hypocalcemia (Milk Fever).

Most of you will have seen us performing LDA or RDA operations at some point but you may not be aware of what is going on while our arm is inside the cow. 

Research is being undertaken into a new and emerging disease in dairy cattle, Ischaemic Teat Necrosis (ITN).  

Two topics - Cow value and summer mastitis, covered by Vet Ian Cardiff. 

Achieving the correct Body Condition Score (BCS) at the appropriate stage of the cow's production cycle is vital to maximize both the health and profitability of your beef or dairy cows.  

Store Lambs' margins are always very tight, small changes can be the difference between profit and loss. 

May's newsletter from the Farm Vets looks at the incidence of twins

Chris Warren addresses the importance of biosecurity on farm and where the greatest threats lie.