kenny thomas
Well-known member
Have been told by several people(including drug rep and a vet) that I should be giving 7-way shots to the cows. Anyone doing this and what are the advantages?
Blackleg shots to cows.
- Thread starter kenny thomas
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rockridgecattle
Well-known member
our vet recommends black leg shots to the cows every couple or three years for two reasons.
1. It keeps the antibodies up in the colostrum providing better immunity for the calves
2. Keeps the cows immunity up to prevent the risk of black leg infection...ounce of prevention...
1. It keeps the antibodies up in the colostrum providing better immunity for the calves
2. Keeps the cows immunity up to prevent the risk of black leg infection...ounce of prevention...
jerry27150
Well-known member
cows are supposed to build an immuity to it by 2 years of age & don't you vaccinate your calves anyway.
Workinonit Farm
Well-known member
rockridgecattle":1a1ths69 said:
Mine get the Ultrabac-7 at least every other year, sometimes each year. I have talked to my vet about this and he said pretty much the same thing as what rockridge posted.
Where I work, they get it every year. Calves get the initial shot then a booster 3 to 4 weeks later, then any "keepers" get an annual booster.
About 5 years ago they had 3 of 4 newly purchased bulls die from Blackleg. The bulls had been vaccinated, but apparently not for the particular strain that killed them.
Katherine
rockridgecattle
Well-known member
jerry27150":3hhzrayt said:
Yes the calves get vaccinated, however not until they are older. You really need that passive transfer to be complete at birth so they are protected until the vaccinations kick in.
As for the cows, the best way i can verbally describe the reason why is like us and tetanus shots. We get them when we are younger, but it is recommended we get boostered every 10 years due to the vaccine wearing off. Best example i could think of at 1:20 in the morning after dealing with cows all day
kenny thomas
Well-known member
The colostrum immunity is the reason's I am given for doing the cows also. Not just for blackleg but for other things also. Guess since I can use blackleg and pinkeye combined for about $1.60 per cow I will try it.
Workinonit Farm
Well-known member
kenny thomas":3hyai8fb said:
Cheap insurance is how I look at it.
I know a few folks who never, and I mean never vaccinate against anything, de-worm, provide salt or minerals and feed some of the crappiest hay I've ever seen. A couple of those folks don't ever seem to have any health issues or any other problems with their animals, and the others always seem to have one thing or another going on....poor-doing cows, dead calves, dead cows, sick cows, sick calves etc. When I think about the couple of folks who never seem to have any problems I think to myself "now that's a low-to-no input situation" even in their calf crops aren't the best, they certainly haven't got alot of $$ in them.
Katherine
kenny thomas
Well-known member
My dad's motto was they leave here like they are born. Never saw him give anything a shot, cut or dehorn. Gave them good hay in the winter and maybe some salt once a month. His calves usually grew about as good as mine though and he had very little in them.
Guess they could have been all natural. :lol:
Guess they could have been all natural. :lol:
Workinonit Farm
Well-known member
kenny thomas":1t4dnmrn said:
Probably could be considered organic as well. :lol: Now those would be some high-dollar calves.
Katherine
Lucky_P
Well-known member
I used to be of the opinion that if a calf got at least one blackleg/malignant edema shot sometime after they were 3-4 months of age, they were 'good for life'. But, over the years, I've seen enough adult cows with a good history of calfhood vaccination dead of blackleg, that I spend the small amount of $$ to re-vaccinate my adult cow herd every couple of years. It's cheap insurance.
KT, my dad & uncle never vaccinated anything when I was a kid - but one year we lost about half the calf crop to blackleg - and we never missed vaccinating after that. It's too costly to stick to the 'old ways' on that point. I had to tell a producer yesterday - "Just because you've been doing it that way all your life, doesn't mean it's the right thing to do."
KT, my dad & uncle never vaccinated anything when I was a kid - but one year we lost about half the calf crop to blackleg - and we never missed vaccinating after that. It's too costly to stick to the 'old ways' on that point. I had to tell a producer yesterday - "Just because you've been doing it that way all your life, doesn't mean it's the right thing to do."
TexasBred
Well-known member
30-35 cents a head plus a cheap throw away syringe is pretty darn cheap insurance indeed. But I'd probably drink more beer than that just running them thru the chute. ;-)
kenny thomas
Well-known member
Can I deduct the cost of the beer as a working expense? 
