News & Advice

Working dogs are rather unique in the type of injuries they sustain, but, for the Vetlife vets who enjoy orthopaedics, they provide wonderful and rewarding challenges. Most injuries are the results of: Falls off cliffs, motorbikes, utes High-impact injuries, eg kicks, crush injuries and vehicle accidents Hanging in gates or cattle stops – most commonly […]

The removal of velvet antler from farmed stags is justifiable for both human and animal safety as well as for economic reasons, but it must be performed with all due regard for animal welfare. If a working crush is not available, then this often requires the stags to be given a chemical restraint (sedative) by […]

For as long as ruminants have been farmed in New Zealand, trace mineral deficiencies have had an impact on the ability of stock to perform at expectation. It is generally considered that there are five different trace elements which are most likely to cause deficiencies in the New Zealand setting – cobalt (B12), selenium, copper, […]

All too often I find myself having conversations on the phone with farmers regarding mastitis issues… and all too often I find myself trying to diagnose and treat the problem over the phone as well. This is not easy or a sensible way to go – mastitis, whether that be an increase in clinical cases […]

Tooth root abscesses are a relatively common occurrence in all dogs, and working dogs are no exception. Abscesses develop when a tooth or the tissues around a tooth become infected. Diseased teeth causing the abscess are usually fractured, but can also have wear, discolouration, severe periodontal disease (heavy tartar, gum recession, etc), or appear normal.The […]

Cervidae Oral, the long-awaited triple drench for deer, has arrived. Cervidae Oral is a triple combination drench containing: Moxidectin (a member of the macrocyclic lactone (ML) drench family), Oxfendazole (a member of the benzimidazole (white) drench family), and Levamisole. Because of the unique way deer process or metabolise actives in drench, Cervidae Oral has been […]

Mating season is upon us once again and it is important to set yourself up for success. Having healthy bulls in top form is important to maximise fertility and reduce the chances of mishap. The first step is to ensure that you have enough bulls for your needs. The use of synchrony programmes is often […]

Resistance to worm drenches is a well recognised issue in the sheep industry, but it is also starting to become more common amongst mobs of dairy heifer replacements in their first season’s grazing.  Unfortunately, New Zealand leads the world in the occurrence of drench resistance amongst cattle parasites.  Although there are a lot of factors […]

Ewes that undergo copper deficiency during pregnancy can give birth to offspring with swayback, a congenital nervous system disease. Lambs may appear normal at birth, and they may not express neurological disease until they are 1 week to several months of age (even though the condition is a result of deficiency of the dam) – […]

Velvet production is highly heritable, meaning that much of the velvet weight and characteristics achievable from your stags are due to their genetics – however, for them to express their genetic potential they require optimal feeding. Good feeding rewards good breeding. Of course, good feeding is important at all ages and stages to ensure target […]

Automated heat detection, real-time health monitoring, virtual fencing – technology has arrived in the dairy industry, and it is here to stay! We now have the ability to accurately monitor individual cows in real time by using this advanced equipment to observe, assess and refine our systems to achieve our goals, whatever they may be. […]

As we move through calving, our attention should start to focus on mating. While for most of us it is still six weeks away, our success depends largely on two factors: submission rates and conception rates. Often, we are preoccupied with submission rates and believe that achieving the gold standard of 90% submission rates in the first three […]