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Two decades of dedication

Georgette (also known fondly as ‘George’ or ‘G’) came to Southland from the Netherlands, after a stint in south Taranaki. She was looking at a few jobs down here, and I remember ringing her boss, Hoppy, in Hāwera (who I knew) and quietly asking him if she was worth employing. “Bloody hell, grab her as soon as you can,” he said, which was all I needed to hear – and the rest, as they say, is history.Hoppy was right. No sooner had George arrived in Winton than she got down to busines...

Ionophore toxicity risks for dogs

Ionophore coccidiostats are a class of compounds commonly used in livestock feeds, particularly calf rearing meals, to improve growth rates and prevent certain diseases such as coccidiosis. Dogs are particularly susceptible to ionophore toxicity because their bodies lack the special digestive systems and metabolic pathways that help ruminants break down and detoxify these compounds. As a result, even small amounts of ionophores can cause severe, and sometimes fatal, health effects in dogs, incl...

Learning from lamb losses – the value of post-mortems

Often, this is put down to the storm that inevitably comes through in the middle of lambing every year, but are there other areas where we have some more control over this wastage? By performing simple post-mortems on 10-20 lambs – collected across the lambing period (and stored appropriately) – that were either born dead or died soon after birth, you might find there are some levers you can pull to reduce this. In many cases, lamb deaths are multifactorial, but understanding the main driver...

Dental care, alpaca style

Not something our vets see every day; our South Otago team polished up a herd of alpaca’s dental health!Just like many other species, dentals are an important aspect of routine care for alpacas. They have continuously growing teeth that can develop sharp points or uneven wear over time. These dental abnormalities can make chewing uncomfortable and affect an alpaca's ability to eat properly and keep weight on. So, their teeth are not to be overlooked.Signs that an alpaca may have teeth issues i...

Trace elements ahead of calving

While most dairy farmers have a trace element supplementation routine, as we reset for another season it’s worth asking: are you supplementing the right trace elements at the right time?Trace element deficiencies can affect fertility, immunity, milk production, and overall performance and wellbeing. However, without testing, supplementation is a guessing game. Some herds may be being silently impacted by deficiencies, while others could be receiving minerals they don’t need (draining your wa...

From data to decisions: Using wearables to guide transition management

During the 2025-26 season, one of VetSouth’s Southland dairy farms used data derived from their wearables and the CowSmart service to monitor transition performance, cow recovery, and reproductive outcomes.Regular reviews of rumination, activity, and heat data enabled farmer and vet to work together to assess cow nutrition, evaluate transition performance, plan for mating, and monitor overall herd performance.A key focus for the farm was rumination recovery following calving. Trends in ruminat...

Give your calves a great start

Good care in the first few months sets calves up for strong growth, disease resistance, and long term performance.Give them the best start at birth by ensuring each calf gets a minimum of 10% of their body weight in high quality (>22% on a Brix refractometer) gold colostrum – ideally within the first two to six hours of life.Take good care of navels to prevent infection, including spraying them with iodine and keeping pens clean and bedding fresh and dry. It’s also important to ma...

Hill country tech

Kaizen – a Japanese philosphy focusing on continuous improvement – and a desire for efficiency is driving sheep and beef farmers Nick and Alexis Wadworth to embrace technology on their farm in the Hokonui Hills. Having first got a drone back in 2018 to help reduce labour during lambing, the couple have since upgraded their model to one with a zoom camera and are about to head into their first spring using Halter collars on their Hereford breeding cows. ...

Repro results round-up

The highlight of these events was sharing the strong reproductive results achieved by our farms this season.The average 3-week in-calf rate across all VetSouth farms was 50%, against an industry target of 53% (which is what the best herds in New Zealand are expected to achieve)....

The case of a locked leg

I was recently on-farm for a routine visit, when the farmer mentioned that he had an odd lame cow that hadn’t yet responded to any treatment.When we looked at her, she was dramatically lame, with a back leg that swung to the side wildly as she walked. The lameness seemed so serious, it nearly caused the farmer to euthanise her rather than getting a veterinary exam – but luckily I was already coming out to the farm for another job.On physical examination, I found that the kneecap was locked ...

Are summer crops reducing worm burdens?

We’ve seen plenty of lamb fattening crops planted across Southland this season, often driven by the need for ‘cleaner’ feed with lower parasite contamination, increased feed value and a desire for better lamb yields. For some farms, they’ve also been used to help lift ewe performance. Below are three sets of 10 individual faecal egg count (FEC) results. They are from lambs that have been grazing crop (kale and clo...

Pre-lambing management strategies

Lots of you will be scanning soon, which is an ideal time to check on your ewes’ condition and trace element status, and make a plan for spreading them out later in the season. Some of the main opportunities at this time include: ...

All bark, sore bite!

These hard-working animals will often appear ‘normal’ despite having advanced disease processes.Working dogs are at risk of damage to the teeth, whether it be from working with livestock, vehicle accidents, or just wear and tear from gnawing bones and other chewing behaviours. Some of the most common injuries we see are excessive wear of the teeth from chewing, and ‘slab fractures’, where part of a large part of the back tooth breaks away.A tooth root abscess can form when the sensitive ...

Hidden dangers around the sheds

Recently, we treated a working dog who had a lucky escape after suspected slug bait ingestion. Her owner noticed she was shaking uncontrollably and rushed her into the clinic, suspecting she had accessed slug bait stored in the shed. She arrived with a dangerously high temperature and severe muscle tremors caused by metaldehyde (the toxic ingredient found in many slug pellets).The dog required intensive treatment, including repeated doses of muscle relaxants, active cooling, intravenous fluids, ...

How a pre-surgery blood test saved Rocky

Gorgeous Ragdoll kitten, Rocky, came into our Invercargill clinic last year for what should have been a routine desexing procedure. As part of his admission paperwork, his owner opted for a pre-anaesthetic blood test.It’s a simple step we strongly recommend before surgery, as it helps identify hidden health issues that could affect how a pet handles anaesthetic drugs and recovery. In Rocky’s case, that decision may well have saved his life.Prior to this test, everyone thought Rocky was a per...

Salmonella in dairy cattle on the rise

There are around 2600 strains of Salmonella identified worldwide. The most common strains seen in cattle in New Zealand are S. Typhimurium, S. Give, S. Bovismorbificans (primarily affects the gut) and S. Brandenburg (primarily causes abortions).In spring 2025, numerous outbreaks due to these serotypes were seen on both the South Island and the North Island. Last year, MPI reported the most cases of Salmonella in cattle ever recorded in New Zealand (see Figure 1 below)....

Bull sales: Key considerations before you buy

Here are a few things to consider to help you select the right bulls for your herd and ensure they’re in top health:  The bull sale catalogues will be in mailboxes and online now. Take your time to read up about the stud breeder you’re looking at and make sure they are focused on the same things you need from your cows. It’s a good time to give them a call to discuss their philosophy and how they go about running their stock. &nbs...

Protect your pack: Essential vaccinations for working dogs

Keeping your team healthy, happy, and ready for the job is a top priority. Following a simple vaccination programme is one of the most effective and straightforward ways to prevent serious diseases that can sideline your best animals.  There are two key vaccines that we recommend your team stays up to date with. These are what we call the ‘core’ vaccine and canine cough.    ...

Improving milk quality

You’ll be hoping that the Dry Cow and/or teat seal you put in is going to do its job over the dry period and they’ll come back all cleaned up of any infections.However, as much as we’d like to think that will happen, it’s not always the case. Wishful thinking doesn’t amount to much when it comes to mastitis! So, if you want to have less mastitis to deal with and better results next season, now is a great time to make a plan.Improving milk quality does not have to be complicated or expe...

What the FEC: Testing up 38%

This year (July 2025 - April 2026), we have done 663 FEC tests through our Parasight machines across our clinics. That is a 38% increase on the 2024-25 year and covers both individual samples and composite tests for sheep, beef and dairy animals.Testing is an important part of an effective parasite management programme and we are happy to see more farmers checking on the status of their stock instead of just blanket drenching.As well as helping to prevent drench resistance, testing can be benefi...

Prepping ewes for the winter

So much of the farming year is about preparing stock to winter well.We work on crops, supplementary feed and body condition in almost every month of the year to help ensure they can handle whatever the southern winter throws at them....

Analysing phantom cow results

Across all the regions we service, we’re seeing a big increase in dairy farmers wanting to do phantom scanning.In our East and South Otago hubs (which includes our Gore, Tapanui, and Balclutha clinics), we had 18 farms do at least one phantom scan this season – and several did up to four scans to catch as many phantoms as possible!The outcomes from these scans:...

What the FEC: A mixed bag of results

Some samples coming through from drench checks have been very good, but only a handful. The majority are showing some leakage, through to high egg counts after drenching. This means looking at the drenching procedure, checking drench guns and further investigation on drench effectiveness.We’re also seeing a wide range in 28-day FECs. Some lambs on crop still need drenching, while others don’t. Meanwhile, those on permanent pasture are also showing a mixed bag of results. It’s great to see ...

New Crypto vaccine for the toolbox

Calf scours are one of the most frustrating problems on-farm to manage. Not only do they result in reduced growth rates and more calf deaths, they also increase the workload of calf rearers and can be disheartening.There are many infectious causes of scours in calves.  The most common one down here in the South, which most farmers will have experienced, is Rotavirus. Another nasty one that can crop up is Cryptosporidium parvum (Crypto), a gastrointestinal paras...

Baleage wrap: A cautionary tale of two cows

Please note, this article contains medical photographs taken during post-mortem examination.A short while ago, I was asked to carry out a post-mortem exam on a cow that had bloated and died earlier in the day.This was a cow that I had seen before for a severe pinkeye infection, and she was quite blind in both eyes. However, she was not expected to die from that! She had been pregnancy scanned the day before, so I also had to consider the possibility of a perforated rectum.When I opened the abdom...