Cows coughing.

Milked this morning and noticed a fair amount of coughing, perhaps 1 in 10, not severe but noticeable.
Is it a bad year for lungworm?
Will immunity have faded after the hot dry summer last year?
Or is it just a reinfection syndrome, cows reacting to a heavy larval challenge, but dealing with it?
Because of the coughing I'm pondering worming the milking herd, but don't want to worm unnecessarily and reduce the development of natural immunity.
 

Fergieman

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Northumberland
Local vet lab sent out a warning to watch for lungworm earlier this week as they were finding alot of it in samples delivered in. Look out for the coughing ones and take a sample from them in the parlour with a vet glove and get the vet to examine them. Fairly easy to confirm if it is lungworm. If they have it and are coughing get them wormed asap. They will cough worse after worming for a few days.
 

The Grinch

Member
Location
Staffordshire
Had the same 10 days ago one or two coughing followed by a few more later In week plus they seemed to lose a bit of condition quite quickly.Had a word with vet who said it was ideal conditions this year so we wormed the lot. All seem a lot better now. Old chap says we never used to have to worm cows only youngstock
 
Had the same 10 days ago one or two coughing followed by a few more later In week plus they seemed to lose a bit of condition quite quickly.Had a word with vet who said it was ideal conditions this year so we wormed the lot. All seem a lot better now. Old chap says we never used to have to worm cows only youngstock
So what has changed?
Did we ignore the coughing in the past, partly because no wormer was available for milkers, or are we over worming youngstock so less natural immunity is developed , or what?
 
Just to confuse me the samples came back :- "Larvae not detected" milk yields still good but coughing is increasing, not seen any looking distressed.

If we don't worm we will re sample in 10 days or so.
 

The Grinch

Member
Location
Staffordshire
You’ve done the right thing. Hopefully you’ll notice a difference in a couple of days ! Our vet said it can be because of overworming in youngstock but it’s like a lot of niggly little viruses that seem to be around now which according to the old folk were unheard of years ago.
 
Its now 3 weeks since we wormed the cows because of coughing, the coughing defiantly tailed off a lot for a week to 10 days but has increased a lot again. Starting to wonder what is going on


Failure of the treatment with wormer? Poor application?
Reinfection with lungworm?
Something else?

Will take a bulk milk sample for IBR testing in the morning, we think we are IBR free , but still vaccinate.
Will also talk to vet.

Seems ridiculous to retreat with wormer (Eprizero ) but ??
 

I thats it

Member
Its now 3 weeks since we wormed the cows because of coughing, the coughing defiantly tailed off a lot for a week to 10 days but has increased a lot again. Starting to wonder what is going on


Failure of the treatment with wormer? Poor application?
Reinfection with lungworm?
Something else?

Will take a bulk milk sample for IBR testing in the morning, we think we are IBR free , but still vaccinate.
Will also talk to vet.

Seems ridiculous to retreat with wormer (Eprizero ) but ??
Keep us informed, mine are similar, were coughing a lot so poured on and they're now coughing less but odd ones still have quite a cough
 

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