Tasmanian Livestock Health Report – July 2024

The Tasmanian Livestock Health Monitoring report for July 2024 is now live on the Animal Health Australia (AHA) website.

The Livestock Health Monitoring program collects confidential and anonymous information on livestock diseases and conditions observed by rural service providers and abattoir data from the National Sheep Health Monitoring Project in Tasmania.  

A summary of the key findings from the July report is below.

Seasonal Disease Alerts

Campylobacter, Listeria and Toxoplasmosis abortion in sheep: Abortions/stillbirths are common this year. Talk to your vet about having up to 5 aborted lambs (with afterbirth if possible) tested at the laboratory. Blood tests on dry ewes at marking or weaning can also detect Campylobacter and Toxoplasmosis antibodies as evidence of recent infection.

Black scour worms: high egg counts are being seen. Monthly worm egg counts on weaner sheep are recommended.

Brown stomach worm: resistance to macrocyclic lactone (ML) drench family is common. Could become more dominant with warmer, dryer weather.

Drench resistance: resistance to white, clear and macrocyclic drenches is relatively common and any other drench can also fail. 

Footrot and scald: are quiet at the moment but will take off when it warms up in spring. Booster vaccination of ewes pre-lambing is a good strategy if you have a virulent strain.

Grass tetany: cows from 1 week before, to 4 weeks after calving that are on short green grass especially if fertilised with potash and/or nitrogen. Cows that are overweight and taken off feed for handling are particularly at risk. Prevent by feeding Causmag on hay.

Goitre: may be a problem in wetter areas. Lambs do not always have a large swelling in the neck. Prevent by drenching with 300 mg of potassium iodide in water per ewe pre-lambing.

Hypocalcaemia (milk fever) in ewes: don’t hold heavily pregnant ewes off feed for more than 12 hours. Also beware of ewes on cereal crops/lush feed with no dry roughage – feed some hay and/or a calcium/magnesium/salt dry lick. Have calcium injection on hand.

Pregnancy toxaemia: feed late pregnant ewes well, especially twin-bearing ewes.

Listeria: nervous signs and deaths in sheep and cattle on silage, brassica bulbs or pasture.

Liver fluke: Eggs can be present in Fluketests now, but blood tests are the best way to detect in live animals.

Lucerne red gut: seen as sudden death with a very bloated carcase on irrigated lucerne or clover. Offering roughage such as hay or straw or alternating between pasture and the lucerne/clover can help prevent cases.

Pleurisy: is showing up in abattoir reports, slowing prime lamb growth rates and resulting in trimming at the abattoir. Check MLA’s myFeedback to see if there is any data on your lambs processed this season.

Pulpy kidney: Make sure lambs get a booster if going onto rich feed such as clover or lucerne and into feedlots or droughtlots.  Make sure ewes get their pre-lamb booster to protect their lambs up to marking.

Toe abscess: can be a problem if sheep’s feet are continually wet and not trimmed recently.

Weaned lamb scours: If lambs are scouring and worm egg counts are zero or very low then coccidia, Yersinia or Campylobacter gut infection could be involved; consult with your vet on best options for diagnosis and treatment.

Body lice: in sheep will show up in winter. Now is a good time to inspect.

Chorioptic mange in cattle: is active now.

Ovine Johne’s disease (OJD): will show up from now on in 6-tooth and older ewes and wethers under stress.

Phalaris poisoning: has been seen in sheep released from containment onto fresh shoot of Phalaris.

Waterbelly in wether lambs in feedlots: make sure salt and limestone levels in feed are adequate.