Vet's advice saving me a few quid.

[Longlowdog]

Until this year my vet has given me Draxxin or Zactran to administer myself or came out and given Mycotil for mastitis in ewes. This year however I was advised to give a dose of Oxytet' L.A and two days later repeat the same size of dose. It works.
I haven't had to treat a 'black bag' but hot lumpy udders have ceased to worsen and gone cool to the touch.
I don't think anything can repair an udder but at least the ewes will be able to join the cull queue relatively quickly and there will be no need to shoot anything that drops 'the works' out into the fresh air as I had to do (to my shame) once before when I started sheep keeping and missed the initial signs.
I appreciate that for some folk a single if expensive jag of drugs may be the only reasonable way to deal with large numbers of ewes over a large area but if you have the opportunity it works out cheaper to use Oxytet'.
P.s before anyone thinks that's the be-all and end-all of treatment I always dose them with Metacam till the udder returns to a normal cool temperature.

 

[Woolless]

Used alamycin on a cull ewe with mastitis that I wanted to get away promptly. It worked but it wasn't a severe case. One of the treatment indications on the bottle is for mastitis.

 

[Longlowdog]

Part of the reason it came as a pleasant surprise is the fact that I, like so many of the farmers I meet, continue to use what the vet prescribed last time as we don't actually know the ins and outs of what each type of antibiotics targets and what group of infections/diseases/problems fall into what category. I know our vets know this but I'd love a layman's guide to antibiotics, their use and limitations. I often feel really dumb when yet again I have to get in effect a free consult' over the phone when trying to treat something new. Asking how much, S.C or I.M, for how many days gets a bit tiresome.
My vets are great, they will give a single dose or send me away with just enough for a course of treatment but I appreciate that it is a two way trade and more often than not I seem to come away with the better side of the deal.

 

[simmy_bull]

+1 I would like a good laymans guide too.

 

[bovine]

They are prescribed drugs for a reason. It's a massive subject that I sometimes wonder how well some vets understand it all. Much better speaking to your vet and getting the right product for the job. Keep the conversation going. It's much more complex than X treats Y.

I would urge great caution with oxytet for black bag/gangrenous mastitis. Will be just fine for mild mastitis but if sheep sick and udder cold you need something better.

 

[Longlowdog]

Bovine. I always welcome your input. I have not had a black bag since my first horrendous mistake. When I say I treat with Metacam till the udder is cool I mean back to normal from its hot inflamed state.
Working on a fair number of farms over the years I have seen a number of rather unpleasant cases, mostly after lambing and before weaning. In your professional opinion should these animals be humanely dispatched or is there a course of treatment that a considerate person could humanely undertake to allow the ewe to join the cull queue? Personally I'm inclined towards humane dispatch as the sight of this condition makes me very uneasy.
If this subject is not within parameters that you are prepared to publicly discuss I'll understand.

 

[bovine]

I've had the best results with the macrolides - Micotil/Draxxin/Zactran/Zuprevo. along with anti inflammatories. The key seems to be early diagnosis and prompt treatment.

If not responding in 24 hours then I think dispatch. Despite them often losing the 1/4 and it can hang down and smell, the ewe doesn't generally seem bothered by it.

The ones farmers have been DIY treating and then seek advice later in the course of disease do less well. I don't know if that is because their treatment was not good enough or these are the worse cases and the one that comes along after was never going to be as bad.