Care of Livestock during March

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 94, Issue 2, 15 February 1957, Page 178

Care of Livestock during March

Contributed by the Animal Research Division

FEED HAY TO CALVES

ALVES should have access to good hay at all times. It is particularly valuable after the first autumn rains and will greatly assist in preventing the severe scouring

which sometimes occurs after the grazing of lush, rapidly growing pasture. Calves must be rotated through the paddocks at

intervals of a few days. Set stocking at this time of the year is bound to result in scouring, unthriftiness, and some deaths.

LENGTH OF LACTATION IS IMPORTANT

If dairy cows are well fed, they do not need more than 60 days’ rest between lactations. Dairy Board statistics show that the average length of lacta-

tion in New Zealand is only 248 days. Production could be materially increased by milking cows longer. A good rule is to continue milking a cow

while she is giving more than 101 b. of fat per month, unless she is within 60 days of calving.

CULLING OF EMPTY COWS

A cow should never be culled for sterility without being examined for pregnancy by a veterinary surgeon. Many cows thought to be empty have proved to be in calf when slaughtered at the works. The

presence or absence of heat is not. an infallible guide in diagnosing pregnancy.

Good producers which are empty may he worth keeping, as about 80 per cent, of such cows hold when mated in the following season.

SLEEPY SICKNESS IN EWES

Sleepy sickness, which in some seasons causes severe losses in pregnant ewes, is due to a sudden drop in the food supply just before lambing. On many farms the

only feasible way of avoiding this is by shutting up pasture in autumn for grazing by the ewes for 3 weeks before lambing. Short-

rotation ryegrass is particularly valuable for this purpose, as it continues to grow during winter even in Southland.

Many cattle die from lead poisoning each year. Common sources of lead on the farm are old paint tins.

LEAD POISONING IN CATTLE

discarded scraps of metallic lead, and old batteries. These

should be buried or disposed of in such a way as to prevent cattle from having access to them. Calves

ncqucjiLiv dlillCl num icati piVlOVlling through licking painted surfaces, and care should be taken to prevent this.

BLOWFLY STRIKE ■ IN SHEEP

Blowfly strike is likely to occur in showery autumn weather when the humid conditions do not allow rapid drying of the fleece. Constant supervision is necessary to ensure that all cases are treated

in the early stages. Shear the wool to leave a clean margin all

round the strike. Watch carefully for narrow tracks leading to areas some distance from the original strike. Treat the affected parts with a good non-irritant dressing and be careful to collect and destroy the maggots, because if these are allowed to fall to the ground, they are capable of hatching into flies.

Jetting with preparations containing DDT, BHC, dieldrin, or aldrin will protect sheep against blowfly strike for several weeks. An article giving detailed advice for preventing blowfly strike appeared in the October 1956 issue of the Journal.

PULPY KIDNEY VACCINATION OF EWES

If losses from pulpy kidney are usually experienced in lambs under 6 weeks of age, they can be prevented only by the ewes being vaccinated. If ewes have not been

vaccinated in previous years, the first dose should be injected when they are crutched before tupping, and another dose should be injected just

before lambing. Ewes which have been vaccinated in previous years require only the prelambing injection.

Vaccination should be done in temporary yards. Syringes should be boiled before use and needles should be kept in methylated spirit and wiped and changed each time the syringe is filled. Vaccination of ewes will not be effective in preventing losses in lambs over 6 weeks of age. Where such losses occur it is necessary to vaccinate the lambs themselves.