mastitis in sheep!!

[liammogs]

Isit me or isit a bad year for mastitis this year? Anyone els seem to have the same problem? Ewes on good pasture plenty of grass and lambs thriving, then bang ewes seem lame with big swollen bags!!

Giving a tube of tetra delta for two days and pen and strep seem to be working touch wood!!

Any advice or just one of those things

Tia

 

[hally]

yes alot around here this year. Most people blaming it on the very bad cold weather and lack of grass certainly this is the poorest spring I can remember. Usually draxxin sorts them out if you see them early enough

 

[General-Lee]

I've had a fair few and was wondering the same!

 

[Downtrodden Dad]

Had too many here, too cold for my liking. Zactran and metacam my line of attack but they don't all survive

 

[jonny]

Had too many here, too cold for my liking. Zactran and metacam my line of attack but they don't all survive

had a few in the past 2 weeks ,5ml synolux saved the ewes but bag gone

 

[General-Lee]

had a few in the past 2 weeks ,5ml synolux saved the ewes but bag gone

So is that a single dose, I've been going out catching( I say catching they're not over nimble!) and treating with pen & strep for 4 days would be a lot easier?

 

[Downton_shep]

I only catch them the once. Betamox LA and flunixin works a treat.
Unless their bags cold then 48hrs later if still looking like sh1t they get another shot.

 

[jonny]

So is that a single dose, I've been going out catching( I say catching they're not over nimble!) and treating with pen & strep for 4 days would be a lot easier?

just one shot normally does as they start to get harder caught

 

[hubbahubba]

are people taking a lamb of the infected ewes? Whats bad I have had 10 out of 300 away at grazing and most of the 10 have been texel x's (which is the opposite way as last year). I have maybe left 4 out of 10 with both lambs which I think are cured. none have died but one is starting to swell up under belly too. Draxxin and meticam (£5 a head tho so only once) drugs of choice here. Summer grazing I have is where they are, plenty grass and still getting fed but a cold windy sort of place and that's what does the damage I think.

red button tag anything even if the just get sore scabby teats (not orf just hard and scabby) or if mastitis is cured and kill.

Normally when I catch then I can still get what looks to be proper milk out both sides although one side is starting to go hard or playdo sort of way and still can save them. Why is this? Vet just blames the wind.

 

[Cushniecattle]

I find if keeping replacements, don't take much of lambs tail so that tail lenght covers udder(comes down to Hawks) that prevents udder chill the best.
Or get some shelter belts in haha.

 

[hubbahubba]

I find if keeping replacements, don't take much of lambs tail so that tail lenght covers udder(comes down to Hawks) that prevents udder chill the best.
Or get some shelter belts in haha.

Good idea wish I hadn't rung there tails already. Thought about taking some big square bales down but my neighbour does that and sheep don't seem to shelter as them . Told the farmer they should of planted a strip of pine trees 10 years + for me. ha

 

[polk_farmer]

Yep we have had a few too many recently. A lot of our are 1st timers bought in. I do wonder if we are just buying in other peoples troubles, and if they are from mastitis case mothers? And now natural selection is taking course in the form of them being culled

 

[Yale]

When shearing the tails pre lambing I try not to touch the wool on the udder.

 

[CopperBeech]

Ive had success this year with Betamox and metacam.

 

[Jackson4]

Just to sound my broken record again... did you check their feet to see if they had any foot problems?
I had a bad do with mastitis when they were inside, mainly my own fault for being a bit shy with bedding for a while, still 80% of those with mastitis came from 10% of the flock which had been treated for footrot in the last 6 months. I presume because a) they are laying down longer and b) possibly something to do with their immune system not being 100% due to how lameness affects there nutrition? I did find a some trial work to do with immune system and feet problems but cant remember exactly what it said now.
.. i've had 5 girls needing treatment since lambing (9 weeks ago) Out of the 5, 3 were out of the 10% which have had foot treatment in the last 6 months... 2 mastitis and one had some sort of wasting disease Who knows.
Other 2 were bloat and one mastitis. All the treated girls bar 2 which are still here till i spain the lambs have all responded to treatment, but still same propensity to other problems. Directly or indirectly i feel genetics has a bigish part to play... no different to dairy cows being bred for low scc count i suppose.

Is there much evidence for this cold weather thing? You'd expect there to be much more mastitis the further north you go from the equator... is this true? I shear all my sheep out, all down there arse and legs, take all the wool off their bags (dorsets) in mid april and i dont think i'm any worse off than my neighbours for mastitis... 1% of the flock in 9 weeks out. Inside i had 2-3% but they had wool on and were protected from the wind?

 

[JamesRhys90]

Mastitis has been a real problem for me. We've had a couple go down with it. As you say, the grass is good and the lambs are growing like nobody's business and then BANG we've a ewe go downhill rapidly and lame with swollen bag.

I've never kept sheep before, so these are the first batch. Was beginning to worry I was missing something. A couple turned out to already have blocked teats as they began to come on to a milk, so not sure whether mastitis was a problem at their previous home? As you said @polk_farmer can't help but wonder if we have bought in someone else's problem?

Treated them and they've recovered thankfully but they'll be joining a few others on the cull list!

 

[Bury the Trash]

Mastitis has been a real problem for me. We've had a couple go down with it. As you say, the grass is good and the lambs are growing like nobody's business and then BANG we've a ewe go downhill rapidly and lame with swollen bag.

I've never kept sheep before, so these are the first batch. Was beginning to worry I was missing something. A couple turned out to already have blocked teats as they began to come on to a milk, so not sure whether mastitis was a problem at their previous home? As you said @polk_farmer can't help but wonder if we have bought in someone else's problem?

Treated them and they've recovered thankfully but they'll be joining a few others on the cull list!

mastitis comes from different types and mix of bugs that are around and about-that blocked teats sounds like mastitis was in the sheep previously.we have had it to greater or lesser degree no rhyme nor reason but had a few one season that got bumped udders by kale stumps we where grazing at the time.I wonder if moredun have done any research on it.

 

[JamesRhys90]

Having done a bit of reading, I guessed the blocked teats were a result of previously undiagnosed or untreated mastitis...

It would be interesting read some research on Mastitis and see if there is any genetic link between ewes having a weakness/susceptibility to suffering from Mastitis.

I guess as there are so many factors, (bugs, weather, etc) that can bring on mastitis it would be practically impossible to totally eradicate the issue from your flock by culling, etc?

 

[Jackson4]

Getting their udders bumped because of lack of milk will be one of the causes. The girl which hadn't been treated for feet before was scanned a single and had a lamb put on her, she was fat cause she wasnt milking and had a sore on one side of her teat were the lambs had been butting her to get more milk. Just got to make a judgement at the time whether you think she'll take two lambs.

 

[bruce9001]

Just out of curiosity how many people ince notice a ewe with mastitis in the field actually recover the quarter so it milks again for the lambs??

Or is it always just a case of once seen visually in field its to late and just try save tbe ewe and see how the lambs manage???