Keeping Your Herd STD Free

Keeping Your Herd STD Free

A disease that can impact ranchers bottom line is Bovine Trichomoniasis — that if a herd is infected can reduce calf crops by more than 50 percent. Boehringer Ingelheim Senior Professional Services Veterinarian Dr. John Davidson says it is critical to Trich test your bulls both pre and post breeding season.

Davidson: "So the management approach for dealing with Trichomiasis is ongoing surveillance. Bulls ought to be tested during the breeding soundness exam. It is very simple for a veterinarian to collect a Trich sample while they are performing the pre-breeding breeding soundness examine on bulls. Then the other component is a vaccine that you can vaccinate cattle. The basic takeaway is two doses of the TrichGuard vaccine are placed into the heifers and cows before bull turn out. With the second dose being thirty days before exposure. When that happens you've got a greater likelihood of the calf hitting the ground rather than losing it to abortion."

Another element to remember is when cattle jump fences into the neighbor's place.

Davidson: "So what I tell ranchers and their veterinarians when discussing Trichomoniasis is that any breach in biosecurity should be taken with upmost priority. So if you have your cattle — cows or bulls — crossing fence lines and getting into neighboring ranching operations that is a reason to be concerned."

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