Steps you should be taking now to protect your herd
Beef
Anthelmintic treatments can be administered to calves strategically during the first half of the grazing season to counter gut worm infections. The frequency of treatment depends on the persistency of the product used – speak to your vet or SQP about this
Giving an early season de-wormer ensures that few gut worm eggs are shed up to mid-summer, by which time any overwintered gut worm larvae present, will have died
All-group treatments provide strong selection pressure for anthelmintic resistance. An alternative is to take an evidence-based approach and give anthelmintics on information obtained from growth monitoring and faecal egg count (FEC) analysis. Assess the risk with your vet
Dairy
Anthelmintic treatments can be administered to calves strategically during the first half of the grazing season to counter gut worm infections. The frequency of treatment depends on the persistency of the product used – speak to your vet or SQP about this
Graze youngstock on hay and silage aftermaths as they become available, as these fields will have a low parasite burden. Be aware of possible fluke infection if these fields are near potential mud snail habitats
Where calves are grazing infected pasture and need treatment, do not move them to new pasture immediately after treatment. Or deworm them, but leave 10% of the heaviest stock untreated
Resources
Vet, academic or researcher?
Take a look in Resources for more detailed information on all topics.