Herd Health

Animal health vaccine usage is a confusing and misunderstood process by many cow-calf ranches throughout the U.S. With confusion comes many questions. Why have we chosen the vaccines we use in our beef cattle production systems?

Body condition score (BCS) is a visual assessment of the amount of fat in a cow’s body. Therefore, BCS is both a good indicator of the past nutritional status of the cow and a way to determine future nutritional needs.

Clostridial vaccines (often referred to as “7-way,” “8-way” or “9-way” vaccines) are some of the most frequently used products in beef cattle production today.

Properly timed and administered vaccines are a key component of any cattle producer’s disease prevention program. But vaccines can’t do the job alone.

Chelates are strange creatures. They are synthetic hybrids of metals and proteins or parts of proteins, and we can include them in cattle feeds.

Eliminating spores that cause clostridial disease from a cattle herd’s environment is virtually impossible. Successful treatment of an infected animal is rare, and the first sign is usually death. However, with proper management and vaccination, producers can prevent losses associated with clostridial diseases.