Galedin Veterinary- Livestock Services

Interesting article, nice to read our client Fiona Skeen’s thoughts.

Galedin farm vets (east) Calving Cup Awards 2018. Well done to Katie for winning the Caesarean Cup, Sam for the Calving Cup & Alison for the most lambings 👏🏆🥇

Don't forget about the Liver Fluke meeting tonight......hope to see you there.

SUSTAINABLE CONTROL OF PARASITES IN SHEEP AND CONTROL OF CATTLE PARASITES SUSTAINABLY PRESS RELEASE Tuesday 16th October 2018 Latest liver fluke warning urges sheep and cattle farmers to ‘keep on your guard’
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Saturday Night saw Galedin staff in full party mode at Conundrum Farm, Berwick, celebrating a plethora of long service awards. Topping the lists were Julie Gray (vet nurse) and Stella Harkins (practice manager), who have now been with the practice for more than 30 years. Many thanks to Nigel Dudgeon and his staff for their hospitality and tolerance.

*NEWS UPDATE*
Bluetongue virus has been detected and dealt with in four imported sheep
The UK’s Chief Veterinary Officer has urged sheep farmers to remain vigilant for bluetongue virus after the disease was picked up and dealt with in a consignment of four sheep imported from France.
... The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) and the Pirbright Institute identified the disease when the sheep were brought to Lancashire as a part of routine post-import testing. Four sheep have been humanely culled as a result.
No threat to human health or food safety
Action is being taken to ensure the spread of the disease is prevented, with movement restrictions at the affected premises. This follows similar action taken for two affected cattle last month.
Strict rules on the movement of livestock from regions affected by bluetongue are already in place. However, sheep farmers are strongly reminded to:
1. Discuss their needs with a private veterinary surgeon and consider the risks and the health status of animals when sourcing stock from regions affected by Bluetongue virus, such as France.
2. Consider what additional guarantees the seller can provide as to the animal’s vaccination status before purchasing (for example – by requesting that a pre-export test is carried out to prove immunity to BTV)
3. Ensure that imported animals are accompanied by the original health certificates and are kept by the person who ordered the consignment.
4. Prevent the disease spreading by practising good biosecurity on the farm premises.
5. Stay alert to any signs of the disease, such as mouth ulcers and drooling from the mouth and nose, and report to APHA immediately.
Following the successful interception of the affected consignment, the UK remains officially bluetongue-free.
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PLEASE COME ALONG TO OUR FARM CLIENT MEETING
REDUCING LOSSES FROM LIVER FLUKE IN CATTLE & SHEEP
... GALEDIN FARM TEAM WITH DOUGLAS PALMER - NORBROOK
THURSDAY 1ST NOVEMBER CROSSKEYS KELSO 7.30PM
REFRESHMENTS COURTESY OF NORBROOK Please let us know on 01573 224496 if you can come
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VETERINARY NURSE - SCOTTISH BORDERS (Galashiels) Fixed Term Contract
We are looking to recruit an experienced RVN, to join our friendly and supportive multi-centre at our well-equipped modern practice on a fixed term contract covering maternity leave.
Based at our Galashiels surgery, you will join our 8 - nurse team. We have 7 Vets supported by a friendly, experienced and enthusiastic team with a focus on client care and clinical excellence. We offer a busy, varied role where... our nurses are valued and encouraged to progress their portfolio.
- Competitive remuneration package, including 2 full days funded CPD, 31 days holiday, with 1:6 OOH and 1:6 Saturday mornings commitments, employee assistance programme, income protection and life insurance benefits are also included.
If you are interested in this exciting opportunity, please send your CV and covering letter to our HR Manager, Keith Douglas-Hogg at keith.douglas-hogg@galedinvet.com
Closing date for applications is Friday 28th September 2018. Interviews will take place week commencing Monday 1st October 2018.
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Quarantine Treatments for Purchased Sheep
The objective of quarantine treatments is to minimise the chance of introducing resistant worms (and sheep scab) into your flock. Quarantine measures should be applied to ALL incoming sheep, male and female. We appreciate that some farms who breed their own female replacements may need only to quarantine and quarantine treat small numbers of animals, such as a handful of tups purchased annually. Because many of the treatments which we... would recommend to use come only in large volumes, it can be an expensive procedure to follow the advice given on quarantine treatments.
Our best practice advice, and following the SCOPS guidelines, we recommend dosing with monepantel (ZOLVIX) and injecting with long-acting moxidectin (CYDECTIN LA 2%). By using these two products together, the risk of taking scab mites and resistant worms into your flock.
Here at Galedin we would like to facilitate good quarantine practice for your purchased tups for Kelso Tup Sales on Friday 14th September.
Tups should be taken home after purchase and isolated indoors for the weekend. On Monday September 17th/Tuesday September 18th, we will visit your farm and treat any purchased tups with Zolvix and Cydectin LA 2%. There will be no charge for the visit.
There will be a set price per head for treatments along the lines of: 1-3 tups treated: £12/ head Additional tups: £6/head
If you have already purchased or plan to purchase other sheep for your flock, it may become worth you purchasing your own Zolvix and Cydectin LA, as everything new will require to be treated.
We need to know in advance if you would like to participate in this scheme. We don’t need the exact number of tups to be treated but a rough idea of numbers would be useful to allow planning of drug quantities.
So, please CALL US now and register your interest. We will also have a Galedin Vet stand in the Exhibition Hall at the Kelso Sale, so alternatively, come and speak to us there.
Thank you, The Galedin Livestock Team. September 2018
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SUSTAINABLE CONTROL OF PARASITES IN SHEEP (SCOPS) and CONTROL OF CATTLE PARASITES SUSTAINABLY JOINT PRESS RELEASE
Thursday 6th September 2018
... Sheep and cattle farmers warned dry summer may not have killed off liver fluke The Sustainable Control of Parasites in Sheep (SCOPS) and Control of Cattle Parasites Sustainably (COWS) groups are urging sheep and cattle farmers to not be complacent about liver fluke this autumn. It would be wrong for producers, the groups say, to assume the dry summer has killed all the liver fluke parasite and the mud snails that are part of its complex life cycle.
Speaking on behalf of SCOPS, sheep consultant Lesley Stubbings says: “This summer has been the hottest and driest on record in many parts of the UK. This means that, overall, the burden of liver fluke on pasture will be much lower than last season – but it is dangerous to assume this applies to all farms or even in all areas on a farm. “Early diagnostic reports from labs and abattoir feedback in some areas suggest we must be careful. In a dry year, the infective stages of liver fluke will be concentrated around permanently wet patches, such as drinking points where there is moisture for snails, which of course is where animals congregate too.”
Experts from SCOPS and COWS say, in a dry year, it is even more important that each farm does its own liver fluke risk assessment and carries out monitoring and testing to avoid getting caught out. There will be huge variation between regions and farms. Tools available include specific blood tests, copro (dung) antigen tests and faecal egg detection tests. Both the SCOPS and COWS websites have details on when it is best to use these tests, and vets can advise on how to use them most effectively.
A spokesperson for COWS says: “Taking action now and using these tools will avoid losses due to fluke in high risk situations. Remember, on many farms where animals would normally be routinely treated, testing could help to avoid unnecessary treatments of animals that do not harbour liver fluke. This saves money and time and helps us protect the few medicines we have available to combat this parasite.”
Watch out for regular updates from SCOPS and COWS as the autumn and winter progresses – and find more at www.scops.org.uk and www.cattleparasites.org.uk.
www.scops.org.uk
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Trace element deficiencies in sheep Deficiency of essential trace elements may lead to significant economic losses within affected sheep flocks; however diagnosis can be tricky as clinical signs are frequently mild and insidious in onset, such as poor growth rates, weak neonatal lambs, non-specific ill thrift or reduced feed intake. Problems tend to affect the whole group rather than individual animals and are frequently recurrent on a farm. Diagnosis requires careful differe...
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GALEDIN SHEEP LAMENESS MEETINGS
Many thanks to those of you who were able to make it along to one of the 2 Lameness workshop meetings which we held last week.
Meetings were kindly sponsored by MSD and held by kind permission of George and Robert Morris at Fawside Farm, and Stewart Wight of Gainslaw Hill.
... We covered the identification of the main infectious causes of lameness in sheep - Scald, Footrot and CODD, the approach to treatment of these conditions, and how to control and prevent future problems in your flock.
MSD Animal Health, with their "Stamp Out Lameness" project are focused on the "Five Point Plan" approach to addressing lameness in sheep flocks. Incorporation of all 5 elements has been proven to significantly reduce lameness in many flocks.
The five points are:
1.Treat 2.Avoid 3.Cull 4.Quarantine 5. Vaccinate
Weaning time is the ideal time for being pro-active with lameness, so for further information or discussion on how to plan the approach in your flock, please contact one of the farm team at your local Galedin practice......do it today!
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Thank-you to all our clients who made it along to our successful "Lameness control in Sheep" meetings this week. We realised that with harvest in full swing it was hard for all folks to come along. A big thanks to our host farmers at Fawside and Gainslaw Hill for having us along. Our appreciation to vet Bridget Girvan of MSD Animal Health for all her support as well as vets Kath Dun and Emily Reeves from Galedin.

Well that's the tent up for Duns Show. Big thanks to vets Cameron, Katie and Ryan and vet student Alanna for all their help . Please come and say hello if you are at the show tomorrow, we look forward to welcoming you at our tent.

Galedin Veterinary would like to invite you to come along to one (or both) of our farmer meetings on the subject of:
“LAMENESS IN SHEEP – CAUSES, TREAMENT AND THE APPROACH TO CONTROL IN YOUR FLOCK” A practical and informative approach to Sheep Lameness.
... MEETING 1: Tues 7th August @ 7pm. Venue: Fawside Farm, Gordon, TD3 6JZ by kind permission of George and Robert Morris. MEETING 2: Wed 8th August @ 7 pm. Venue: Gainside Hill, Berwick-up-Tweed, TD15 1SZ by kind permission of Stewart Wight.
Please contact your local practice at Kelso, Duns, Galashiels,Berwick or Coldstream by Friday August 3rd if you would like to come along. These meetings kindly sponsored and facilitated by MSD Animal Health
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Nematodirus Alert!!
We are now seeing significant amounts of Nematodirus in the practice area. The weather has been warm enough for hatching for a few weeks now and challenge to lambs 4-8 weeks old is HIGH on many farms.
These pictures taken this week on a farm in the Kelso area show the effect of Nematodirus on lambs. Some of these early April born lambs lambs had already died and a number were dehydrated and scouring badly.
... Post mortem examination revealed large numbers of Nematodirus worms in the small intestine (bundles of yellow worm on the blade of the post mortem knife) and examination of some faecal samples showed not only 2,500 eggs per gram of Nematodirus (any number of Nematodirus eggs are deemed potentially significant), but also some Strongyle-type eggs (summer worms). Usually strongyle eggs are seen in the faeces from mid to late June onwards, so we are seeing an early rise of these worms this year.
Advice to this farmer was to dose with a white wormer and then take some faecal samples in 2 weeks to check that the treatment has been effective in clearing the burden.
On going advice to all sheep farmers through the summer months, is to monitor the worm burden in your lambs by giving us faecal samples from your lambs at regular intervals, to allow us to give you best advice for worm control in your flock. Please speak to your local practice vets.
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