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Lower respiratory tract disease in horses – more than just a ‘cough’

Respiratory diseases are second only to problems affecting the musculoskeletal system when it comes to limiting the ability of a horse to perform to its maximum potential.The respiratory system supplies oxygen to red blood cells and removes carbon dioxide from the blood. Without adequate oxygenation, working muscles and organs enter a state of anaerobic metabolism, resulting in a build-up of lactic acid that will ultimately limit performance.Horses can only breathe through their nose and can onl...

Tackling internal parasites in horses and donkeys

Ensure that you are ahead of the game and get your horse’s level of parasitism assessed by performing a faecal egg count (FEC).Spring has arrived, the days are getting longer and are slowly warming up and overnight temperatures are increasing. While this is the perfect recipe for grass growth, warmer, moist conditions are also the ideal environment for equine parasites to continue their lifecycle.Both large and small strongyles (cyathostominae or red worms) along with ascarids (the large spagh...

Gastric ulcers and the benefits of gastroscopy

Equine Gastric Ulcer Syndrome (EGUS) is an increasingly recognised condition in our equine population as a cause of behavioural issues and poor performance.It is thought that between 60-90% of performance horses (sport and racehorses) suffer from gastric ulcers. The higher the intensity of work, the more likely a horse is to be affected.If your horse displays any or all of these symptoms, gastric ulcers should be considered a differential diagnosis:Poor appetiteDullnessAttitude changes or change...

Staying on top of your game during calving/lambing

Working day and night to bring your future herds and flocks into the world safely can take its toll. It is important to remember to look after yourself too!Farmers are being pulled in a lot of different directions during the calving/lambing season and it can be mentally and physically challenging.You have long, tiring days, and the potential loss of stock to deal with, despite best efforts. There’s a lot of leg work, often poor weather to contend with, and an endless to-do list.Aside from calv...

Your Lifestyle Team

Our Lifestyle Run is back for 2022, and we have caught up with the team who will be on the road, visiting your block:...

Rumination recovery after calving and it's impact on mating

The transition period (the three weeks before and after calving) is probably the most important time in a cow’s lactation.There are a lot of changes happening all around the same time - changes in diet, environment, energy demands and metabolics, not to mention giving birth. Getting this period right can set your herd up for a great season, but getting it wrong can lead to many issues - excessive body condition loss, more diseases (such as RFMs, metritis, mastitis, milk fever, ketosis) an...

Successful reproduction takes a team approach

Keeping a dairy mating programme in high gear requires a daily commitment to following protocols and investing the necessary time to make it work.Establishing a pregnancy is a step-by-step process that begins in the previous lactation. Fresh cows are uniquely challenged by the stress of calving and a suppressed immune system at a time in which their energy intake cannot keep up with demands. The result is a negative energy balance and a greater risk of metabolic and reproductive diseases such as...

Meet the 2022 new grads

Meet our new large animal vets, who have made the big move to Southland all the way from the UK.Keeping up with the demands of the farming calendar and ensuring we provide a quality service all year round means we are always looking for fresh talent. It is a real asset to have such breadth of experience and knowledge across our veterinarians, which comes from their varied backgrounds....

Antimicrobial usage at VetSouth – what's the trend?

Antimicrobial Usage (AMU) and Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) have been buzzwords in the industry for a number of years. We have all felt the effects of pressure from the public, government and media to justify, reduce and be held accountable for which antibiotics we use and when.In 2015, the Vet Association set the goal that “by 2030 New Zealand Inc will not need antimicrobials for the maintenance of animal health and wellness”. The 3 main goals for reducing the onset of antibiotic resistanc...

Cow alerts, help!

Having real-time data from rumination ‘technology’ collars/tags available on farm is great. It can give us more insight into herd performance and also more information for individual cows.This extra pair of eyes will also give you an alert if it detects a health issue with a single cow. However, this can be a little bit overwhelming when you have lots of alerts going off. These technologies work by comparing an individual cow’s behaviour to the rest of the herd and to her own behaviou...

Abamectin withholding coming into force

Abamectin residues are being detected in UHT milk products, which has prompted the Ministry for Primary Industries to mandate a new 35-day milk withholding period (WHP) for all single-active abamectin pour-on products. The new rules, expected to come into effect from September, will affect pre-mating treatments and potentially pre-calving for late calving cows this year. If an Abamectin is used in lactating cows, the following milk WHP applies: “Milk intended for sale for human consumption mus...

Meet the equine team: Nikaitla

I enjoy all aspects of equine medicine but have a special interest in equine reproduction and intensive care cases. Working with a team that shares the same passion for equine medicine and ensuring that patients receive the best care possible is something I thoroughly enjoy about working at VetSouth - Equine....

Why vaccinate for Rotavec Corona?

The Fletchers back Rotavec Corona to prevent rotavirus scours outbreak....

Improving milk quality with a pre-calving Multimin injection

New research has shown the benefits of trace element support precalving and its impact on milk quality....

Five takeaways from the 2022 NZVA Conference for dairy farmers

In June some of our vets attended the 2022 NZVA Conference in Hamilton - Dairy Cattle Veterinarians stream. After an amazing few days, with some incredible speakers our vet Bianca has put together some of her key learnings that really captured her attention from the conference....

Refractometer brings results

We all know that when calf rearing, colostrum is worth its weight in gold. But why is colostrum so important? Providing the right amount of good quality colostrum as early as possible to newborn calves is essential as colostrum is full of antibodies which the calf requires in the first 24 hours of its life. As they are born with no immune system, getting this colostrum early allows their gut to absorb all the good stuff. If you hear us talking about Failure of Passive Transfer, it is when t...

Tech Talk: Get ready for calving!

Our techs spend a lot of time in the sheds, many of them have been calf rearing before joining our vet tech team, and have some key points they focus on for a healthy shed.Calving creeps around quicker and quicker each year and although we feel like the cows have only just been dried off it’s time to start thinking about those calf sheds and how to make them the most comfortable and hygienic....

Improving outcomes for masititis with Metacam 40

Metacam 40 mg/ml gives you the convenience of a low dose injection volume in a highly concentrated Meloxicam solution, making Metacam 40 the right choice for pain relief in cattle.Managing pain and inflammation from routine husbandry procedures and other conditions can support an improved recovery. This is a key component of efficient herd management and productivity. Metacam 40 makes managing health and wellbeing a whole lot easier.72 hour duration of effect in cattle.Lowest volume per treatmen...

Dairy technology: What Is It?

VetSouth are here to help you with all your on-farm technology systems. You’ve probably all driven past a paddock of cows and wondered what those collar things round their necks are or the funny extra tags in their ears, they seem to be everywhere! If you don’t know what they are, they are individual cow technology monitors, which are rapidly gaining in popularity across many of our dairy farms. There are many different types available, including AllFlex collars and CowManager ear tags. All ...

Assisted calvings: 2021 stats

With spring on our doorstep, we are looking back at last season’s assisted calvings....

"Just one more mob"

A joke that our techs are used to hearing, except this time it was true....

Lamb mortality and clostridial deaths

To provide information on the level and timing of lamb loss that occurs during the first year of life on hill country sheep and beef farms in New Zealand.To determine how much of that loss can be prevented through vaccination against the five main clostridial diseases, using a commercially available multivalent clostridial vaccine (Ultravac® 5 in 1 vaccine, Zoetis New Zealand Limited).To determine the return on investment (ROI) from vaccinating lambs with Ultravac 5 in 1....

Choosing the right clostridial vaccine

There are a lot of different clostridial vaccines available. When choosing which clostridial vaccine to use on your ewes or lambs there are a number of factors you need to consider:...

Meet the equine team: Rhiannon

Rhiannon has recently joined the Vetsouth family as an equine tech in Invercargill, we caught up with Rhiannon to find out a little bit more about her and her new role. ...

Winter tips for pets

The seasons have changed, and the togs have been replaced with jackets and hats. Not only do we feel the change, but so too do our pets. During this time please consider what you can do to keep your pets happy and healthy. ...