June 2006
Edited
by:
Dennis Scott BVSc MACVSc
Ethical
Agents Ltd 54 Hobill Ave Wiri PO Box 97-110
SAMC
Ph 09-262-1388
Fax 09-262-1411 Freephone
0800 800-624
email eage@xtra.co.nz website
www.ethicalagents.co.nz
Inside this issue:
The old southern saying during winter is that “after the shortest day the days get longer and the weather gets stronger.”
If that is the case the country is in for a pretty tough winter considering some of the temperatures of mid June.
The satellite photo on the right is of the South Island on Monday June 12, when the big dump occurred. (This is the same day as the big power black out in Auckland, no lattes for 3 hours!)
Mercifully the weather in Godzone never gets much stronger than this but it means that it has already been a harsh winter in some quarters and a brighter spring is required for stock health.
Condition score will suffer and, as nutrition plays a big part in metabolic disease, some areas are in for greater problems than usual if the spring weather does not come early.
This of course is the big unknown and so making provision for increased animal health
Compliance is a major issue in cardiac therapy.
There can be no all purpose panacea in metabolic disease therapy
Diagnose and treat—it pays!
sales on the basis of a rough June can be dangerous.
Forewarned however is forearmed.
With all the marketing regarding energy levels in oral calcium products it is important to realise that all oral calcium products depress energy intake.
Work many years ago showed that the calcium ion appeared to depress food intake but, thanks
to the energy contained in the short change fatty acids, (13MJ) this energy loss was negated when Calol was used. Any other oral calcium energy claim is a red herring. They first have to supply enough (certainly more than 3 MJ) to overcome lower food intake.
Common sense says treat the hypocalcaemia as a first line therapy and be prepared to supplement energy in a more efficient manner if necessary.
Ref: O Aaes; Reduced feed intake in cows after per oral calcium supplements, XVI World Buiatrics Congress 1990
