News Update
Dec. 15, 2008

Prevent coccidiosis this winter

Coccidia are so common in the United States that they can be found in beef and dairy calves from operations of all sizes and in all seasons, including cold winter weather.1 This means almost all calves are vulnerable to the damaging effects of coccidiosis, especially when the stress of changing weather creates a higher risk for disease. 

“It’s a costly disease,” says Joe Dedrickson, associate director, Merial Veterinary Services. “Across the beef and dairy industries, coccidiosis causes more than $100 million in losses every year.2 This is why producers need to have a prevention program in place for winter — to help stop the loss before it starts.”

Dedrickson says it is important producers understand the following 10 concepts to better combat this difficult disease:

• Calves from all environments and operations are at risk of developing coccidiosis.1,2
  
• The prevalence of coccidiosis infection is usually high, with reports of 100% in calves.3
  
• Coccidiosis is a stress-induced disease. Stressors included weaning, shipping, putting animals into large groups, changing rations and — the most common — changing weather.1
  
• In addition to causing stress, cold weather causes animals to group together, multiplying the risk of infection.1
  
• Diagnosis of coccidiosis is difficult, and visible signs don’t occur until three to eight weeks after the initial infection. By then, much of the economic damage is already done.4
  
• Diagnosis by fecal exam may not always be effective because the passage of oocysts, the infective form of coccidia, lags even behind the onset of clinical signs.4
  
• Prevention must be twofold:
       — Use good animal husbandry measures to prevent ingestion of oocysts by cattle.2
       — Use a coccidiostat with a prevention and treatment label to combat the disease before it starts.
  
• Pay careful attention to maintaining preventive levels for periods long enough to affect the life cycle of coccidia.2
  
• If treatment is needed, use a coccidiostat solution product at the first signs of the disease — such as diarrhea and dehydration. Producers should consider treating on a herd basis. Once a calf shows signs of the disease, it is likely the rest of the group has been exposed.2
  
• Because of the difficulty of identifying the disease before the damage is done, prevention methods are best to help avoid subclinical and clinical incidences of coccidiosis.

Representing Merial, Dedrickson recommends CORID® (amprolium) as a prevention or treatment regimen.

“CORID is effective as an aid in preventing coccidiosis because coccidia grow in the cells that line the intestine and CORID stops them at a critical stage while they’re in the host’s small intestine,” Dedrickson says. “This helps to prevent more damaging cases of clinical coccidiosis from occurring in the large intestine.”

It also is effective as an aid in a treatment regimen, he says, so producers can use it when they see an outbreak. The product is available in several sizes and formulations and offers a choice of administration routes — as a feed or water additive, or as a drench.

“Coccidiosis can rob cattle producers of their returns,” Dedrickson says, emphasizing the importance of preventing the disease during stressful weather. “It’s a very common, costly, and mostly unseen, threat.”

Footnotes: CORID should be used for a period of 21 days5 and carries a 24-hour harvest withdrawal time. It is not to be used in calves to be processed for veal.
1Jolley, W.R., Bardsley, K.D. Veterinary Clinics Food Animal Practice. New York: Elsevier, 2006:613-621.
2Kirkpatrick, J.G., et al. Coccidiosis in cattle. Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service Fact Sheet F-9129.
3Daugschies, A., Najdrowski, M. Eimeriosis in cattle: current understanding. J Vet Med B 2005; 52:417-427.
4Kvasnicka, B. Coccidiosis in beef cattle. Cattle Producer’s Library CL685. University of Nevada Extension Beef Cattle Resource Committee.
5CORID product label.

— adapted from an article provided by Merial.

High Plains Irrigation Conference
Jan. 14

With declines in water tables and increases in fuel costs, pumping water is taking a larger share of agricultural production budgets, according to a Texas AgriLife Extension Service specialist.

Producers can attend the annual High Plains Irrigation Conference and Trade Show Jan. 14 at the Amarillo Civic Center, 401 S. Buchanan St., to get the latest information needed to help them maximizethe irrigation water they pump, said Nich Kenny, AgriLife Extension irrigation specialist.

The meeting and trade show will begin with registration at 8 a.m. and close at 4 p.m. with thedistribution of continuing education units. The trade show, sponsored by the Texas Agriculture Irrigation Association and featuring the latest technology, will stay open until 4:30 p.m.

The first educational session will be a technical look at the Ogallala Aquifer. Judy Reeves, Cirrus Associates LLC hydrogeologist, will present the history. Ken Rainwater, Texas Tech University’s Water Resources Center director, and Kevin Mulligan, Center for Geospatial Technology director, will give updates on the current situation. Robert Mace, Texas Water Development Board director of groundwater resources will discuss modeling the future.

The second session will look at issues affecting irrigation finances, with Kenny addressing pumping plant analysis and Steve Amosson, AgriLife Extension economist, talking about maximizing profits using limited water resources.

U.S. Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS) scientists Paul Colaizzi, Steve Evett and Susan O’Shaughnessy will talk about remote sensing for water management, soil water management for irrigation and automation of sprinkler systems in the third session.

The final session will include two topics of regional interest: virus effects on crop water use by Jacob Price, Texas AgriLife Research associate researcher, and the impact of dairies in the Texas High Plains by Todd Bilby, AgriLife Extension dairy specialist in Stephenville.

This year’s conference is a part of the Irrigation Training Program, six programs being held around the state by the Texas Water Resources Institute to help farmers and others learn about efficient tools and techniques of irrigation management.

Two general continuing education units will be offered for pesticide applicators and five certified crop advisor credits will be given in soil and water management. The Irrigation Association has approved 4.5 continuing education units also. A $15 registration fee will be charged at the door and will cover lunch. For more information contact Kenny or Ronda Fisher at 806-677-5600.

— provided by Texas AgriLife Extension

Commercial Manure Application Training

Commercial manure applicators can attend three hours of annual training to meet commercial manure applicator certification requirements Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2009. Iowa State University (ISU) Extension and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will conduct a Commercial Manure Applicator Satellite uplink from 9 a.m. to noon. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m. There is no fee for the workshop but applicators must register with the ISU Extension county office where they plan to attend.

Certified commercial manure applicators should receive a copy of the program registration brochure containing workshop locations in the mail in early December. If you do not receive a copy, please contact your local ISU Extension county office or download a copy off the web at:  http://www.agronext.iastate.edu/immag/certification/SP278CommApplCert2008.pdf. In addition to the training offered  Jan. 7, ISU Extension will also offer five dry manure workshops for commercial manure applicators in February 2009. Information regarding these workshops and locations is also contained in the link to the brochure listed above.

Commercial manure applicators wishing to recertify and those wanting to certify for the first time should attend. The workshop will provide the required three hours of annual training and will cover applicator rules, recordkeeping requirements, hydrogen sulfide safety issues, road and equipment safety issues, economics of hauling manure and management practices for winter application of manure. 

All currently certified commercial manure applicator licenses will expire on March 1, 2009. Those wanting to renew must complete training requirements and submit forms and fees to the DNR prior to March 1, 2009, to avoid paying late fees. If an applicator attended training for the first time in fall 2008, they should make plans to attend training again in January 2009 to meet the annual requirements.

Those unable to attend the program Jan. 7 need to schedule time with their ISU Extension county office to watch the training videotape. Please note that training videotapes may not be available until mid-February so applicators should make every effort to attend the satellite program Jan. 7. Due to scheduling conflicts, many Extension offices will no longer accept walk-in appointments to watch these tapes. If attending the satellite program or watching the three-hour tape is not convenient, commercial applicators may contact their local DNR field office to schedule an appointment to take the certification exam to meet certification requirements.

Applicators who want to take the exam may wish to access a copy of the study guide manual to help prepare for the exam. The study guide is available at the following web address: https://www.extension.iastate.edu/store/ListItems.aspx?Keyword=PM%201778
If you have questions about the satellite downlink program, contact your ISU Extension county office or on the web at: http://extension.agron.iastate.edu/immag/mac.html.

— provided by Iowa State University Extension.

— Compiled by Crystal Albers, associate editor, Angus Productions Inc.