How cows respond to social networking 1 Oct 2014 Richard Gard has been in discussions about how cows relate to one another and how the social structure of groups is being measured, showing the varying relationships which exist between them...
Seminar urges vets to focus on the critical period 1 Sep 2014 Veterinary Practice reports from the ninth annual Large Herd Seminar
Education needed to help control BVD 1 Sep 2014 Michelle Doherty describes a very common and troublesome disease and reports on the introduction of a testing service, soon to be followed by a test that can look for nine diseases from one sample.
Students strong on farm animal welfare 1 Sep 2014 Graham Duncanson had a lively time with students at the Nottingham veterinary school and was impressed both by their knowledge of the welfare needs of farm animals – and their concerns.
Aiming for 'best practice' on dairy enterprises 1 Sep 2014 Richard Gard spent a day on a Cornish farm to hear about some of the many research projects currently under way on production, welfare and disease problems on dairy farms
The Farm Animal Welfare Award 2015 1 Aug 2014 Dr Tony Andrews highlights an award scheme that recognises and rewards the unsung heroes of farm animal welfare and which is now open for nominations.
Sustainable growth, tagging and farm skills in focus 1 Aug 2014 Richard Gard reports on the Livestock Event held at the NEC last month, at which DEFRA launched a new plan for the British dairy industry.
Goats, TB, and other concerns 1 Jul 2014 Richard Gard reports on the latest meeting of the Goat Veterinary Society
Mud, clouds and the Minister 1 Jul 2014 THE Farming Minister, Owen Paterson – more correctly titled as Secretary of State at DEFRA – arrived for breakfast with The Country Landowners Association on the first day of the Devon County Show, he…
The immunological basis of mastitis 1 Jun 2014 Susan McKay concludes her reports from the ‘immunity science symposium’ with a look at the impact the health of the innate immune system can have on the welfare of the transition cow
Combating clinical mastitis in Africa 1 Jun 2014 Peter Edmondson reports on his work in Zimbabwe to help farmers with mastitis and milk quality issues as well as other important aspects of preventive medicine and fertility
Mastitis: some lessons from the past 1 Jun 2014 Richard Gard traces the development of efforts to control mastitis but finds that there is still a long way to go...
Effective measures needed to minimise cattle lameness 1 Jun 2014 Richard Gard attended the 2014 cattle lameness conference last month and found there is still very much more to be unravelled about issues to do with the bovine hoof
Floods: much still to be cleared up 1 May 2014 Richard Gard sees and hears how vets and farmers are working together to restore ‘order’ in parts of Somerset – with problems for some people escalating
Immunity: innate v. adaptive responses in the transition cow 1 May 2014 Susan McKay presents the second of three reports on an ‘immunity science symposium’ in which speakers described the latest advances in understanding the immune system of dairy cows
Students learn the ropes of farm work 1 May 2014 Graham Duncanson attended a student congress in Bristol on farm animal work and found it to be ‘a marvellous step forward for the profession’ with enormous enthusiasm shown by more than 140 undergradu…
Endoscopy: a promising diagnostic and treatment tool 1 May 2014 Sotirios Karvountzis discusses the use of endoscopy in cattle and reviews the more popular applications which include LDA and RDA corrections, exploratory laparoscopy and thoracoscopy
The rise and treatment of rumen fluke 1 May 2014 Steve Glanvill describes the history, diagnosis, treatment and outcome of a case on a large fattening unit served by his practice where rumen fluke was found to be the cause of ill thrift
Summaries of recent papers on bovine medicine and surgery 1 May 2014 Eliminating chorioptic mange from a dairy herd without milk withdrawal Aurora Villarroel and Megan Halliburton, Oregon State University Many antiparasitic drugs require lengthy withdrawal times which…
Communicating ‘a desire to do better’ 1 Apr 2014 Veterinary Practice hears the new professor of animal welfare at Bristol spell out his view that communication is one of the main barriers to improving conditions