WORMING IN SHEEP AND COWS

Hi All,

Sorry for the late post- Since I've gone back to school, chemistry has rather snowed me under! 

This week I am going to be writing about my experiences with worming and the importance of doing so in sheep and cows. 

Recently, I helped to round up some sheep in order to have them de-wormed. They were to be sold at Bakewell market, and all live stock must be wormed before they can be sold. 'Worms' are intestinal parasites and can also be referred to as Endoparasites,Nematodes- Roundworms (EG// gut worms and lung worms) or Trematodes – flat worms (EG// liver fluke, tapeworms).  

Internal parasites are the most common health problem in sheep, especially young lambs. Out of these, stomach worms are the most common and can cause many symptoms in sheep and lambs, which can eventually result in death if undetected. The 'Barber worm', or the 'wire worm' (Haemonchus contorts) tends to cause the most fatalities in flocks. This pierces the lining of the sheep's stomach and causes anaemia. It can also lead to a condition called "Bottle jaw", which is an accumulation of fluid underneath the sheep's jaw.

When I was worming the sheep I had to wear a back-pack containing the wormer. Vets tend to use treatments called Anthelmintics and Wormers. I then had to get a sheep and hold its head whilst squirting the wormer into its mouth. Sometimes the sheep spit it out, but the remnants will work effectively.

                       

 A few weeks later, I helped to clip the dairy cows. This helps to keep them clean and tidy, and also prevents hairs getting in the way during milking when in the parlour. Whilst they were in the crush I wormed them. Worming dairy cows is different to sheep as you have to squirt the liquid down their spine, so that it seeps into their skin, rather than their mouths. This is due to their lactation, and the fact that we consume the milk they produce- we wouldn't want the wormer to get into their system, as it would make the milk inedible. Worms can have different affects on cows and the symptoms to look out for are; Diarrhoea, weight loss, loss of appetite, reduced fertility and persistent coughing. The symptom will vary depending on the type of worm present. It is important to keep the cows topped up with wormer as the loss of a cow, and especially a herd, can mean a big loss of money for the farmer, as well as being a very unpleasant experience for the cows to go through.

I really enjoyed learning about worming and taking part in helping out. I hope this has been informative! I'll be back next week with an insight to foot trimming.

Bye for now!