Cattle wormer

[tcolvin]

What do you think of Dectomax wormer? It looks like it kills more than the normal wormers in cows. I'm still trying to find out if it is safe for pregnant cows. I want to give the yearly wormer and pinkeye vaccines in the next couple weeks if not before. What are your ideas on wormers. My vet said he worms his once a year but I forgot to ask what he uses. I know it's injectable but don't know what brand. I also spray for flies when I feed them in the pens. Thanks for your help and guidance.

 

[kenny thomas]

Decomax is good but i like Cydectin better. No.reason why. Both are safe for pregnant cows.

 

[Mark Reynolds]

With any wormer, its a good practice to not use the same wormer/active ingredient repetitively, year after year. Mix it up. This helps prevent the worms from developing a resistance to a particular wormer or wormers like sheep and goat producers now have to routinely deal with. Resistance and ineffective wormers is fairly common for them.

 

[kenny thomas]

With any wormer, its a good practice to not use the same wormer/active ingredient repetitively, year after year. Mix it up. This helps prevent the worms from developing a resistance to a particular wormer or wormers like sheep and goat producers now have to routinely deal with. Resistance and ineffective wormers is fairly common for them.

I disagree and would like to hear the vets opinion . I have been taught to use one wormer until its not effective and then change. Changing often leads to resistance of all.

 

[farmerjan]

I also do not switch wormers around... that said, we do not routinely worm. Calves will get wormed when weaned IF they look unthrifty... We do worm all BOUGHT animals that come here due to not knowing what/where they came from. We buy a number of bull calves to steer, and make up groups to sell.
Cows seldom get wormed unless they are going through the chute and look a bit thin or rough hair coat or something. If they are consistent problems, they get shipped. We try to have cattle that have a more natural resistance to worms and can thrive and produce without constant interference. We will do a routine worming of 1st calf heifers as they often seem to be the ones more likely to have worm problems and they are still growing and are bred back and can use to have a "clean gut tract"...
I have had several manure samples from cows, all different ones from fat shiny cows, to thinner or rough coated animals, run through for fecal samples for worms over the years. After awhile you get a feel for who might have a problem... and we do not spend a fortune on constant regular worming. It also helps to prevent the resistance build up if you do not use it often....

Every farmer has a protocol and you have to do what works for you. We used to give pinkeye vaccines and over quite a few years found no more and no less incidences of pinkeye and a couple of years seemed to have more cases... So we quit doing that also. And we have no more cases of pinkeye in the hereford and her x cattle than in the straight black ones. Some people swear it is the only way to go. One thing, we have found that home raised heifers out of cows that have been here a long time or raised here also, tend to have few problems with pinkeye and we cull more calves out of pinkeye problem cows... Bought cows mostly always have pinkeye problems before our own do and I attribute that to ours having an innate increased resistance to pinkeye, and all the "bugs" that are natural to our place. Natural immunity and resistance; it is like they tell you don't drink the water in Mexico, but the locals are well acclimated to it and whatever is in it...

Not saying that you shouldn't worm or use pinkeye vaccine... I believe that @TCRanch has a pinkeye vaccine that the vet has made up that is autonomous to her own farm and animals....

 

[Mark Reynolds]

I disagree and would like to hear the vets opinion . I have been taught to use one wormer until its not effective and then change. Changing often leads to resistance of all.

Kenny, I just checked. I had based my comment on information I have regularly heard from extension about sheep. However after just looking it up, it appears we both are wrong. Check out this web site and pay particular attention to #4.

Best Deworming Practices for Cattle | University of Maryland Extension

Many producers are aware that gastrointestinal parasites can reduce cattle performance, and accordingly, take measures to protect their animals. This article outlines several steps to follow in order to establish a judicious and effective deworming program.

extension.umd.edu

 

[Mountaintown Creek Ranch]

What do you think of Dectomax wormer? It looks like it kills more than the normal wormers in cows. I'm still trying to find out if it is safe for pregnant cows. I want to give the yearly wormer and pinkeye vaccines in the next couple weeks if not before. What are your ideas on wormers. My vet said he worms his once a year but I forgot to ask what he uses. I know it's injectable but don't know what brand. I also spray for flies when I feed them in the pens. Thanks for your help and guidance.

We used Dectomax injectable and safeguard paste both at the same time. We change products every year.
Yes Dectomax is safe pregnant cow. We do not give pinkeye vacs.

 

[TCRanch]

Not saying that you shouldn't worm or use pinkeye vaccine... I believe that @TCRanch has a pinkeye vaccine that the vet has made up that is autonomous to her own farm and animals....

I do. It's an autogenous that targets moxarella bovis, moxarella bovoculi and mycoplasma bovoculi.

 

[tcolvin]

Kenny, I just checked. I had based my comment on information I have regularly heard from extension about sheep. However after just looking it up, it appears we both are wrong. Check out this web site and pay particular attention to #4.

Best Deworming Practices for Cattle | University of Maryland Extension

Many producers are aware that gastrointestinal parasites can reduce cattle performance, and accordingly, take measures to protect their animals. This article outlines several steps to follow in order to establish a judicious and effective deworming program.

extension.umd.edu

Very interesting article. Thanks

 

[tcolvin]

With any wormer, its a good practice to not use the same wormer/active ingredient repetitively, year after year. Mix it up. This helps prevent the worms from developing a resistance to a particular wormer or wormers like sheep and goat producers now have to routinely deal with. Resistance and ineffective wormers is fairly common for them.

As a general rule, I don't worm unless it looks like a need to situation. I have a couple that's fell off in weight but I thinking with these cool nights and days my grass is still not abundant plus they have a calf each on them. I am fixing to give pinkeye vaccine and worm any that appears to need it.

 

[Mark Reynolds]

As a general rule, I don't worm unless it looks like a need to situation. I have a couple that's fell off in weight but I thinking with these cool nights and days my grass is still not abundant plus they have a calf each on them. I am fixing to give pinkeye vaccine and worm any that appears to need it.

not worming unless there is 'evidence' that worms are an issue is an excellent practice. Regular or planned worming intervals mat seem like a good idea, but that apparently can result in worm resistance to treatment methods, which ends up compounding the problem if or when worms do become a problem. I'll post it again as this article has some really good recommendations.

Best Deworming Practices for Cattle | University of Maryland Extension

Many producers are aware that gastrointestinal parasites can reduce cattle performance, and accordingly, take measures to protect their animals. This article outlines several steps to follow in order to establish a judicious and effective deworming program.

extension.umd.edu

 

[Lucky_P]

That UofMD article is excellent. Well worth a read - and re-read!

Deworming adult cattle is almost - across-the-board - an unnecessary expense which adds little to a producer's 'bottom line'... and deworming every animal in the herd certainly contributes to eliminating 'refugia' and accelerating the selection of a population of resistant parasites.

 

[Lucky]

We worm every year with Dectomax or Cydectin. I also use a cheap generic from the Feed store fairly often. The best wormer we ever used was Ivomec injectable. With Ivomec the cattle seemed to slick off and look better fairly quick. I'm still not sure why they quit making it but I'm thinking of giving Ivomec pour on a try. I'd really like to stop worming all together but it's a hard decision to make.

 

[chaded]

If you can't handle your worms you can't handle working here.

 

[Mark Reynolds]

If you can't handle your worms you can't handle working here.

I guess that means no fishing then?

 

[tcolvin]

As a general rule, I don't worm unless it looks like a need to situation. I have a couple that's fell off in weight but I thinking with these cool nights and days my grass is still not abundant plus they have a calf each on them. I am fixing to give pinkeye vaccine and worm any that appears to need it.

agree

 

[mickroos65]

Kenny, I just checked. I had based my comment on information I have regularly heard from extension about sheep. However after just looking it up, it appears we both are wrong. Check out this web site and pay particular attention to #4.

Best Deworming Practices for Cattle | University of Maryland Extension

Many producers are aware that gastrointestinal parasites can reduce cattle performance, and accordingly, take measures to protect their animals. This article outlines several steps to follow in order to establish a judicious and effective deworming program.

extension.umd.edu

Good article. Thanks for posting

 

[Mountaintown Creek Ranch]

You can do a fecal egg count if you really want to know if the cattle need worming.
We did it last year.
Have not done it this year yet.

 

[tcolvin]

not worming unless there is 'evidence' that worms are an issue is an excellent practice. Regular or planned worming intervals mat seem like a good idea, but that apparently can result in worm resistance to treatment methods, which ends up compounding the problem if or when worms do become a problem. I'll post it again as this article has some really good recommendations.

Best Deworming Practices for Cattle | University of Maryland Extension

Many producers are aware that gastrointestinal parasites can reduce cattle performance, and accordingly, take measures to protect their animals. This article outlines several steps to follow in order to establish a judicious and effective deworming program.

extension.umd.edu

I thought I had replied to this article back when it was first put up. I don't see it anywhere so I doing it again 4 months later. Sorry
This is a good article and I believe to me it makes good sense. I only worm ythe ones that look like they need it. Thanks for the article.

 

[Mark Reynolds]

I thought I had replied to this article back when it was first put up. I don't see it anywhere so I doing it again 4 months later. Sorry
This is a good article and I believe to me it makes good sense. I only worm ythe ones that look like they need it. Thanks for the article.

You're welcome.