Information and Articles

Many compounds shown to be effective against early worm stages in laboratory studies have been generally disappointing when tested in live animals. Treatments administered orally are often broken down by microbes and enzymes in the cattle gut before they can affect worms.

Clearly, leaving animals untreated where animals are under stress from parasites and no effective organically accredited treatment is available is unacceptable from a welfare perspective.

The cheapest weed control option is obviously prevention. There are many practices that we can adopt to ensure we do not introduce weeds onto our property.  There are 6 principles of weed management:

 Most alpacas in South America are now grazing on the Altiplano which is over 3800m above sea level. It has a short growing season and 75% of precipitation falls between December and March, with a long dry period from May to October. However before the Spaniards invaded in the 16th century alpacas were found grazing over vast tracts of lowlands very similar to country of inland Australia.

 During the last couple of years there has been an upsurge in interest in using alpacas to guard flocks of sheep and goats against loss of lambs and kids. This is possibly due to the build up in fox numbers since the mouse plagues and also due to the increased commercial value of lambs and kids.

Practical advice for those who plan to purchase or develop a farm for the purpose of breeding alpaca.Although alpacas are now mainly grown in high altitudes in South America in areas unsuitable for other domestic livestock, this was not always the case. Shortly after the Spaniards invaded Peru in 1532, the Spaniards began the massacre of alpaca grazing on lands suitable for cattle and sheep. This was carried out over a long period of time before Sir Titus Salt began to develop equipment to process alpaca fibre more than three centuries later in 1852.

For the first time in 22 years producers have a new drench to control worms in sheep and Industry & Investment (I&I) NSW has advised prudent use to maintain its effectiveness.

State co-ordinator for internal parasites, I&I NSW veterinarian, Stephen Love said monepantel represents a new drench group known as amino-acetonitrile derivatives or AADs.

 With the improving season and pasture conditions across the district, Lachlan LHPA district vets are reminding landholders to think about associated animal health issues, particularly bloat.

Recent rains and green grass point to something more ominous in lush paddocks and Industry & Investment NSW has alerted graziers to watch out for worms.

I&I NSW State worm control coordinator, Stephen Love, said producers should keep an eye out for worms in sheep, goat, alpaca and young cattle, particularly in central and southern NSW.

“These animals will need good worm management during the next few months or they could run into serious problems,” Dr Love said,

 How Pinkeye Affects You?
While the incidence and severity of pinkeye may vary year on year, one thing remains constant, it’s a frustrating and time consuming disease to treat.


When an outbreak occurs your daily routine can include the hassle of: