/Timeline

Sign up to parasite alerts

2019-03-25T10:02:17+01:00

Farmers can sign up to parasite alerts at NADIS animal health skills.

NADIS publishes a monthly Parasite Forecast for farmers and vets based on detailed Met office data and the forecast. The Parasite Forecast outlines the parasitic challenge facing cattle and sheep in the different regions of the UK.

The Parasite Forecast is used to promote SCOPS and COWS recommendations in a seasonal context and underlines the importance of parasite control being part of a veterinary health plan. To see the latest forecast, please visit: https://nadis.org.uk/parasite-forecast/

Farmers can sign up to SCOPS – Sustainable Control of Parasites for disease and parasite forecast, please visit: https://www.scops.org.uk/forecasts/

Sign up to parasite alerts 2019-03-25T10:02:17+01:00

Liver Fluke Post Mortem

2019-03-28T15:58:11+01:00

Video and photos resources taken from the Liverfluke post mortem evening at Bainbridge Vets, Leyburn, with Davinia Hinde

Following the meeting that took place with Yorkshire Farmers in January, participants discussed feedback from their abattoirs, those that were able to get feedback had been ok so far. Farmers received the AHDB Beef and Lamb information booklets that give guidance on likely causes of damage to liver and other organs.

Three farmers in the group had done their own post-mortem on sheep that had died, to look for evidence of fluke in the liver and bile-ducts.

The Yorkshire farmers were very keen to learn more about this and arranged  a  workshop with Davinia Hinde, Bainbridge Vets, Leyburn, was arranged to show them how to do it, enabling them to monitor the presence of fluke if sheep died over lambing time.

The video and photos below are available as resources taken from the post mortem evening.

Above is a video of flukes emerging from the bile ducts.

****It is important to wear gloves and overalls when preforming this on farm, and always wash your hands thoroughly afterwards****

Image 1

Image 1, Davinia opened up the dead ewe which was from a local farm, the group were shown where to make the incision and how to cut out the liver, the incision was made just below the rib cage on the right-hand side of the ewe  – if you make a smaller incision it is easy to tie the wool up together so the rest of the insides don’t all come out which makes it is easier for the knacker man to collect.

She brought out part of the liver to inspect for signs of liver fluke; the liver had begun to decompose from this ewe, however no signs of fluke were found, the bile ducts were clear and the liver looked fine.

Image 2

Image 2, For the second ewe that was opened up (which was also from another local farm) was also free from fluke and had no signs of scaring from previous infestations. The bile ducts were clear as well, notice the red dark pink healthy look of this liver.

Image 3
Image 4

Image 4, There was some calcification (circled in red) in the liver of this ewe which is a sign of a diet in balance, but again no fluke or signs of previous liver fluke damage. Red arrows pointing to the bile ducts, where adult fluke live.

Image 5, Slice open the liver in a cross section to inspect the bile ducts.
Image 6, There was a lot of fat around the abdomen of this in lamb mule hogg which has wintered off the farm in Lancashire.
Image 7, Again there was no liver fluke or signs of previous infestations. A healthy liver.
Image 8, Where the liver sits in the abdomen.
Image 9, Condemned livers/lungs (pluck) from local abattoir.
Image 10, Signs of fluke in this liver, the colour is brown /pinky, a liver fluke is present coming from the bile duct (black arrow). It looks spongey and soft.
Image 11, An infested liver the colour is very pale and spongey with the liver fluke in the centre of the picture (black arrow).
Image 12, Large adult liver fluke found in the bile duct (approximately 3-4 cm long) you can see the dark veins with in the fluke.
Image 13, Here you can see the damage to the liver caused by fluke and how it has scarred. It was hard and very pale in colour (black arrow), the rest of the liver was healthy (at the bottom of the photo).
Image 14, Here you can see the pale soft liver where there has been liver fluke. It broke up very easily, this is a sign of previous infestation.
Image 15, This is polyps left by dog tape worm (red circles, approximately 1 cm diameter) and the effects it has on the liver above and below.
Image 16, Large liver fluke in the centre of the picture (black arrow), approximately 3cm long.
Liver Fluke Post Mortem 2019-03-28T15:58:11+01:00

Yorkshire and Cumbria farmer meetings in January

2019-03-28T15:55:19+01:00

Eight farmers in Yorkshire and six in Cumbria met to discuss their experience with sheep health last year, their progress with the treatments App and findings from tests for the presence of liver fluke in their flocks.

No-one had seen any signs of liver fluke in lambs last summer and over the autumn. The dry year had reduced numbers.

Testing for liver fluke eggs

Farmers had been offered a free test for presence of fluke eggs in faecal samples in June and/ or August before doing routine fluke treatments in the autumn. Most samples had not had enough fluke eggs present in the August samples to warrant doing a second test to measure the efficacy of triclabendazole.

The end of January/ early February 2019 is a good time to check again for the presence of fluke, before routine treatments at scanning (especially if not treated for fluke since early December). The project can offer free tests for the presence of an antibody to fluke – which may be sooner and more reliable then looking for fluke eggs in the sample. By doing another sample from the same sheep 2 weeks after treatment, the test can be used to get an indication if treatment by triclabendazole has been effective (not fully accurate).

Post mortems

Those who could get feedback from their abattoirs had been ok so far. Three farmers had done their own post-mortem on sheep that had died, to look for evidence of fluke in the liver and bile-ducts. The Yorkshire farmers were very keen to learn more about this and arranged a workshop with one of the farm vets to show them how to do it.

Targeted treatments and the life stages of liver fluke

A proven way to reduce the incidence of liver fluke is to target dosing with different products at different times of year, to target the most likely life stages, and avoid over-use of triclabendazole when it is most likely to be only adult fluke in the sheep. Targeted treatments for adult fluke currently (usually late winter and spring) are likely to reduce the shedding of eggs onto pasture. One farmer had done this regularly (4 treatments a year) for a few years and noticed reduced incidence of fluke, and now only needed 3 treatments per year.

Farmers can reduce infection rates by grazing more susceptible animals in less risky areas. Treating according to the conditions may mean that treatment patterns need to change every year. Copies of the life-cycle of the liver fluke and its stages along with the latest version of the AHDB Beef and Lamb parasite Control Guide were distributed.

Phone application feedback

The use of the treatment App was discussed, and some farmers had recently updated the information on it. One farmer mentioned that it would be valuable to know which flock (moor sheep or mules) had had which treatments. This is to be added to the App.

Parasite alerts

Use of the National Animal Disease Information Service parasite alerts was discussed and 3 farmers in the group look at it regularly, especially for Nematodirus in spring. They find it is worth registering for email updates: http://www.nadis.org.uk/

Yorkshire and Cumbria farmer meetings in January 2019-03-28T15:55:19+01:00

A busy time of year

2018-12-19T14:09:11+01:00

It’s a busy time of year for our participating farmers. In September and October breeding and store sheep are sold and bought at sheep sales all over the north every week. This year, because of low rainfall and Brexit uncertainty, sale prices have been low and feed costs are high.

A busy time of year 2018-12-19T14:09:11+01:00

Composite faecal egg count reduction tests

2018-12-19T14:34:09+01:00

In August and September, farmers sent faecal samples from their flocks in to Liverpool University for the standardised composite faecal egg count reduction tests (FECRT). This test detects the level of efficacy of the flukicide Triclabendazole (TBZ). The dry season reduced the incidence of liver fluke and there were low numbers or no fluke eggs in the samples. This made it  impossible to determine the efficacy of the flukicide most of the flocks, but the reduced level of fluke has improved sheep health. This may change as the year progresses, but the FECRT will not be able to be repeated until February or August 2019.

Composite faecal egg count reduction tests 2018-12-19T14:34:09+01:00

Farmer meetings in Cumbria and Yorkshre

2018-12-17T11:20:44+01:00

Farmer Meetings took place in August at Braithwaite and September in Leyburn to go through the phone application, data collation, how to interpret the dashboard and review flock health plans. It was a chance to talk to the project members about the next steps for the year. 

Farmer meetings in Cumbria and Yorkshre 2018-12-17T11:20:44+01:00

Liver Fluke talk presented by Iain Richards, Veterinary Ecologist at this year’s 160th Great Yorkshire Show

2018-07-19T15:00:37+01:00

Iain Richards MRCVS, Veterinary Ecologist, Cumbria joined by Joanne Briggs, Communications Manager and Policy Manager for England, National Sheep Association and Dr Amanda Carson from APHA to speak directly to farmers about an environmental approach to controlling Liver fluke.

Attendees included UK and European farmers with an congregation from Hungary who suffer similar issues.

You can download Iain Richard’s presentation here: Faciolosis GYS 2018

If you would like to learn more about the project, please click here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Liver Fluke talk presented by Iain Richards, Veterinary Ecologist at this year’s 160th Great Yorkshire Show 2018-07-19T15:00:37+01:00

Event to showcase EIP-Agri across Europe

2018-05-14T16:39:49+01:00

14th May 2018

Kate Gascoyne, Carol Moffat (The Farmer Network) and Holly Jones (YAS) will present at the EIP-Agri event in York on the 20th and 21st June. The aim of the event is to:

  • Build on recent announcements that the Government wants to help farmers deliver sustainable food production and to enhance our environment.
  • Showcase examples of model farmers
  • Highlight the support there is available to assist farmers wanting to use innovation to grow their business.

Additionally, it will:

  • Provide an update on EIP-Agri England projects and opportunities
  • Bring Operational Groups together, to share knowledge and to provide sign-posting for them as to other resources available
  • Provide an update from the European Commission on programmes, funding and knowledge transfer and legacy.
Event to showcase EIP-Agri across Europe 2018-05-14T16:39:49+01:00

Phone application to track Liver Fluke disease launched

2018-05-14T12:50:58+01:00

8th May 2018

The initial phone application which will support the data gathering process for Liver Fluke disease has now been developed and installed. The phone application will be rolled out farmers to begin data recording. It has been tested on latest iPhone and Android mobile devices. The app can support data recording without the need for internet access. Users are able to synchronise when online later. Captured data can be exported into excel for project analysis.

 

 

Phone application to track Liver Fluke disease launched 2018-05-14T12:50:58+01:00
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