Pre-lambing is a critical time point in the annual calendar of a sheep operation. It is important that your sheep farmers implement a comprehensive pre-lambing ewe animal health program, in order to protect their ewes, as well as their lambs, and help get more lambs through to marking.
Ewe vaccination pre-lambing is really important in order to ensure ewes have maximum immune protection at the point of lambing, but also to ensure that lambs are given the best kick-start in life, with strong colostral antibody protection passed from ewe to lamb in the first milk (colostrum). Minimising parasite load in ewes pre-lambing is also critical to ensure optimal performance from both ewes and lambs.
Vaccinations for Pre-Lamb:
- Glanvac 6SB12 or Glanvac 6B12
- Best Practice Vaccine – to provide clostridial disease + cheesy gland protection. Ewe booster benefits ewe, + provides maternal antibody transfer to lamb
- Cheesy Gland is endemic to Australian sheep and has ramifications for production and abattoir trim – costs the Australian sheep industry >$30M annually
- Cheesy Gland infected sheep have been shown to have 4-7% reduction in clean wool cut in the first year of infection
- B12 – very important to stimulate appetite and increase energy production in both the ewe & growing lamb in utero
- Eryvac
- Vaccinate the ewe to protect the lamb from early infection with Erysipelas Arthritis
- Breakeven point is less than 1% of lambs with a clinical/visual infection of arthritis (10 in 1000)
Printed with Permission from Zoetis.