November 2003

An Ounce Of Prevention

Beef-production success begins with an animal health preventive medicine program. Your local Southern States retailer can help.

Rodney Kleman prepares a vaccine.

As a beef producer and manager of livestock feed sales for Southern States, Mike Peacock knows what researchers and top beef producers know: Good herd health doesn't cost--it pays.

"It all starts with a good vaccination program," Peacock says. "That should be the foundation of any beef-production enterprise."

Animal health companies have done an outstanding job of developing the vaccines to enhance production potential, he adds. "But it's up to producers to take full advantage of what's available."

According to this Southern States livestock specialist, it all starts with brood cows. "Protecting herd health in a brood-cow herd should be an ongoing process," he notes.

"Some producers falsely believe that once they vaccinate the cows in their original herd, they're covered," he cautions. But even with a certified clean bull, as replacement heifers come into the herd, one untreated cow carrying an STD can infect an entire herd.

These types of viral infections are known as silent killers. They don't decimate a herd; instead they subtract potential profits, with no obvious visual signs of problems.

The losses often come in the form of repeat breeders--those that come back into heat after they're bred or bred cows that end up with no calf. These cases often indicate an aborted fetus.

Always administer vaccines subcutaneously, if labeled. Intramuscular injections damage carcass quality.

Diseases also may be robbing you, even with cows that avoid prebirth abortions. That may come in the form of weak calves--those with no stamina and high susceptibility to E. coli and salmonella.

In some cases a cow that should have a longer potential reproductive life simply quits calving, often a sign of reproductive tract infections.

"We offer a full line of animal health care products from most of the top companies," notes Steve Flora, ag product buyer for Southern States. "Our livestock fieldmen have the training and experience to recommend the right products."

Relying on advice from experts such as animal health care professionals is critical, notes Peacock. "If you use the wrong vaccine, you risk creating an abortion in cows or compounding problems when treating stressed calves," he cautions.

For calves, start with a good vaccine to protect against respiratory and viral infections. Calf vaccines are not lifelong. "When a calf is weaned, or each time it is moved, stressed or commingled, it creates a new set of challenges that often exceeds the animal's resistance level," Peacock explains. "Everything that can go wrong in his life has occurred. Strategic vaccination programs increase a calf's resistance threshold."

A good health program is most critical when calves are under stress, Peacock says.

"Calves under an ongoing vaccination program respond more favorably to adversity," he explains. "That's why many buyers seek these calves and pay premiums for them."

Peacock says the trend is for a herd health program to establish the basis of a producer's reputation.

"Our field livestock specialists work in concert with local animal health care professionals to help put a solid herd health program in place," Peacock concludes.