New to cattle. Vaccine ?

[drock15l]

Hey I'm new to cattle and just bought two pairs. They have not had any vaccinations other than worker because they come from a closed heard. What vaccinations should I give them. Calves are 4 month old now plan to wean at 6 months. Thanks

 

[redandblack]

The calves will need blackleg/7-way, if they are bull calves and you are going to band or cut you will want something with tetanus in it like covexin 8, also need to give them IBR, if you don't know what shot the cows have had might want to go with something like cattlemaster gold fp5. Most give shots a week or 2 before weaning then a booster after weaning. The cows will also need the IBR vaccine. I would probably worm everything with a injectable wormer while you have them up.

 

[Son of Butch]

The cows should be pregnant by now, so I would stick with an all KILLED vaccine or you might abort them.
I know CattleMaster is advertised as safe for pregnant cows, but it is a mixture of modified live and killed.
It is my belief if a cow has a latent infection a modified live can trigger an abortion. (just my opinion)
I prefer better safe than sorry and my vet likes Triangle as a killed vaccine.

For the calves either covexin 8 or alpha 7 as a clostridal in addition to an IBR BVD PI3 such as CattleMaster or
Pyramid 5 ect.

 

[bse]

Lots of different brands to do the same thing.
I use modified live, but mine are all open at vaccination time, I would use killed on them if they are bred.For me the killed would be Cattlemaster I've used alot of it with no issues but that's me. For Blackleg I use ultrachoice 7 it's only 2 cc's alpha 7 seems to make more knots for me. Everyone will have a different opinion on brands and what is needed, all will be good products, the main thing is to do it!! id check with your local place to buy the vaccines and use what they recommend and have available, places usally only have a few choices.

 

[Bright Raven]

I would give the cows and calves a Clostridial vaccine like Covexin 8. That covers 8 species of Clostridum including blackleg and tetanus.

The cows may be pregnant as Butch mentioned so you should not use a vaccine containing Modified Live Virus for IBR (infectious bovine rhinotracheitis) or BVD
(Bovine viral diarrhea). Cattlemaster Gold Fetal Protection 5 is safe for any cow, any calf at anytime. It is made by Zoetis. It is safe because the only modified live virus component is BRSV. The BVD Types 1 and 2 are the components which can cause abortions in cattle not previously exposed to a Modified Live Virus vaccine. The BVD Types 1 and 2 comes as a Killed Virus. The IBR and PI3 components are chemically altered.

 

[Bright Raven]

Another thought:

The posts above cover the basic group of infectious diseases. The Clostridials are bacteria and the fetal protection 5 are viruses.

There are other infectious organisms that might be an issue specific to your circumstances that you should consult a local vet or specialist about:

Haemophilus somnus - bacteria, respiratory
Mannheimia haemolytica - bacteria, respiratory
Pasteurella multocida - bacteria, respiratory

 

[Rafter S]

My cows go years without any vaccines, but I'd definitely vaccinate the calves for blackleg. Soon.

 

[drock15l]

This is getting confusing! Lol
Covexin 8 or aplpha 7 for cows and calves?
Cattle master gold fetal protection 5 for cows?

One other thing I do not have a chute at the moment and was thinking about running them to the vet about 30-40 days after I get them to preg check them. Can these vaccines wait until then or should I get them done asap. One calf is a bull that I will band as soon as I can so is the tetanus something I need to be concerned about right away. I know I can get the calves vaccinated right away without a chute but the cows may be a little difficult. They are only 850lb lowline cows but I'm sure they will not just stand there for me.

 

[Son of Butch]

Lots of different brands to do the same thing.
For Blackleg I use ultrachoice 7 it's only 2 cc's alpha 7 seems to make more knots for me.

Yes, Alpha 7 definitely leaves a vaccination lump more often than any other brand.

 

[farmerjan]

If they have come from a closed herd they can probably wait until you go to the vet to do them for the preg chk. I would give the calves a clostridial ( blackleg) shot as soon as possible. We only use killed virus vaccines at any point in time, but that is my preference and is not the choice of my vet. However, he says that it is my choice.
We do not vaccinate the cows for anything regularly except Lepto , because it has become a big problem here. Have started to give them a blackleg shot when they go through for the preg check also since we had a problem in one rented pasture and want to cover the bases for the calves getting a good passive immunity from the dams. It will last for 6-10 weeks on average at which time we give the calves a blackleg shot and band the bull calves if they weren't done at birth. We do give them a blackleg/tetanus combo shot when banding.

 

[boondocks]

Dunno where you are located drock, but in some areas, you should consider rabies vaccination. (We have rabies every year in our county, in foxes, bats, feral cats etc so we vaccinate for it. It's not an issue everywhere. Check with your large animal vet).

 

[JW IN VA]

While you are at the vet,it would be a good idea to ask about what you need in vaccines and wormers in your area.

 

[VirginiaCattle]

If you only have 2 pairs. Could you find a larger producer in your area and work out something to come by when they work cattle? Help them out. I usually throw away more than 2 doses at the end of the day when I work cattle. You could learn a lot and help them out.

 

[drock15l]

Thanks for the advice and input. Have it all figured out with the vet.