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SUNRISE VETerinary SERVICES
CATTLE Producer NEWSLETTERS
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CURRENT INFORMATION THAT YOU CAN USE
TO MAKE INFORMED DECISIONS REGARDING YOUR HERD'S HEALTH AND WELL-BEING. |
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SUNRISE VETerinary SERVICES
Sunrise Vet Services September 2019 Producer Newsletter
Well, Dr. Vacation has returned from his worldwide travels! To say he's rested may be a bit of an understatement; however, he has not forgotten what a cow is! FYI, John did not kill Rudolph, so Christmas is saved. Also, please don’t feed John any Mountain House Dehydrated Southwest Breakfast Hash. He reports that it’s not just hot going in, but ya… plus not quite so good smelling on its return. TMI?
During John’s trip to Australia, he had the pleasure of visiting Parnell Veterinary Pharmaceuticals in Sydney. They manufacture EstroPLAN and GONABreed. He got the whole tour and was extremely impressed with the entire procedure. Do you realize how long it takes to get approved by the USDA to be an approved manufacturer? Approx. 3 years, with multiple inspections. If you thought John’s truck was clean, you should see this place! With four different levels of cleanliness, the final one being where the products are made and bottled, John was almost at a loss of words to describe how exceptional this place was. The workers in the final stage are in complete space suits to be 100% sterile. The quality control is phenomenal with sampling every four hours and thousands of bottles sampled and tested to ensure the highest quality. John can say with great confidence that every bottle that comes out of Parnell is of the highest standard and quality.
So September is right around the corner and even though corn was late getting put in, the time to chop is rapidly approaching. When is the best time to chop? John says it is the Goldilock period- not too hot, not too cold, not too wet, not too dry, but when the corn is just right! Feel free to take some corn into the co-op when they have their chipper days. Talk with your feed consultant, and get your equipment ready now for silage time. You get one chance to make great first crop hay, and one chance to make great corn silage. Be it in an upright silo (60-65 % moisture), silage bag (60-70% moisture), or bunker/ pile (65-70%moisture), each unique storage has input variables. Can you make too much corn silage? John suspects not, but some may disagree with him. When in doubt, chop more! Based on the reports we’re getting from area farmers, feed inventories are short this year for hay & haylage. Ideally corn silage is in storage for 4 months before feeding to maximise feed fermentation and quality. When chopping the silage, make sure the knives are sharp and the length of cut is properly set. Quick covering of the bunker is essential to maintaining feed quality. Pack, pack, pack & pack more when in bunkers; however, make sure you are continuing to add more silage as you pack to completely fill the bunker.
Fall processing time has arrived. Okay it’s the beginning of September and still quite warm, but no one likes to do those processing jobs when the weather is freezing. (-20 even John doesn’t sweat.) Feel free to call in to set up times. Having your cattle processed more than 30 days prior to going to the sale barn allows the vaccines to stimulate the immune system and create protective levels of antibodies. We strongly recommend two shots of tetanus vaccine to any animals getting band castration.
John started looking at feeder prices just to give producers some updates.
From Bloomington Livestock website:
Steers
600 wt=$1.60 x 600= $960
700 wt=$1.60 x 700= $1050
800 wt=$1.60 x 800= $1120
Heifers
600 wt $1.45 x 600= $870
600 wt $1.45 x 700= $945
600 wt $1.45 x 800= $1000
As you can see, keeping your feeders right now pays if you have the feed and space. If it costs you more than $100 to add an additional 100 lbs of body weight on your animals, then do not retain them longer. In addition, cattle that have been well cared for (shots, weaned >30 days, & clean) bring a premium versus those who are bellowing for mom, have manure packed armor plating on their sides, and no vaccines. If you’re keeping your heifers as feeders and they are big enough, we strongly suggest giving them prostaglandin to abort them.
Dr.Jim recently attended a meeting discussing the use of beef semen on dairy animals and selling those calves after being born. Some AI companies are concentrating on producing all black calves (not even white socks) which is what most buyers want. Also, buyers are expressing the most interest when groups of 5 or more of similar weights are brought in. Another option would be keeping them up to feeder size (350-500 lbs) and selling them in groups then. There are good options when dealing with colored cattle coming out of dairy cattle. If you are keeping them as feeders, make sure you implant them (Synovex C or S) to increase their rate of gain.
Recently, John had a lengthy discussion with a client about hitchhikers. In all of John’s travels, he rarely sees hitchhikers out and about; however, this client happened to see one in the Rock Springs area. Our client mentioned that this particular hitchhiker was quite wild haired and rangy looking. He made sure he could reach the large crescent wrench under the truck seat when he pulled up next to the “wildman”. The questionable person stated that he was "a vet with Sunrise Vet Services”; however, the client told the guy, “Hey, I work with the vets from Sunrise and you sure don’t look like anyone I know from there.” Now the flim flam person trying to hitch a ride came up with some wild story about his truck battery running low as he was doing some work while listening to the radio, and his cell phone battery was also dead.
During John’s trip to Australia, he had the pleasure of visiting Parnell Veterinary Pharmaceuticals in Sydney. They manufacture EstroPLAN and GONABreed. He got the whole tour and was extremely impressed with the entire procedure. Do you realize how long it takes to get approved by the USDA to be an approved manufacturer? Approx. 3 years, with multiple inspections. If you thought John’s truck was clean, you should see this place! With four different levels of cleanliness, the final one being where the products are made and bottled, John was almost at a loss of words to describe how exceptional this place was. The workers in the final stage are in complete space suits to be 100% sterile. The quality control is phenomenal with sampling every four hours and thousands of bottles sampled and tested to ensure the highest quality. John can say with great confidence that every bottle that comes out of Parnell is of the highest standard and quality.
So September is right around the corner and even though corn was late getting put in, the time to chop is rapidly approaching. When is the best time to chop? John says it is the Goldilock period- not too hot, not too cold, not too wet, not too dry, but when the corn is just right! Feel free to take some corn into the co-op when they have their chipper days. Talk with your feed consultant, and get your equipment ready now for silage time. You get one chance to make great first crop hay, and one chance to make great corn silage. Be it in an upright silo (60-65 % moisture), silage bag (60-70% moisture), or bunker/ pile (65-70%moisture), each unique storage has input variables. Can you make too much corn silage? John suspects not, but some may disagree with him. When in doubt, chop more! Based on the reports we’re getting from area farmers, feed inventories are short this year for hay & haylage. Ideally corn silage is in storage for 4 months before feeding to maximise feed fermentation and quality. When chopping the silage, make sure the knives are sharp and the length of cut is properly set. Quick covering of the bunker is essential to maintaining feed quality. Pack, pack, pack & pack more when in bunkers; however, make sure you are continuing to add more silage as you pack to completely fill the bunker.
Fall processing time has arrived. Okay it’s the beginning of September and still quite warm, but no one likes to do those processing jobs when the weather is freezing. (-20 even John doesn’t sweat.) Feel free to call in to set up times. Having your cattle processed more than 30 days prior to going to the sale barn allows the vaccines to stimulate the immune system and create protective levels of antibodies. We strongly recommend two shots of tetanus vaccine to any animals getting band castration.
John started looking at feeder prices just to give producers some updates.
From Bloomington Livestock website:
Steers
600 wt=$1.60 x 600= $960
700 wt=$1.60 x 700= $1050
800 wt=$1.60 x 800= $1120
Heifers
600 wt $1.45 x 600= $870
600 wt $1.45 x 700= $945
600 wt $1.45 x 800= $1000
As you can see, keeping your feeders right now pays if you have the feed and space. If it costs you more than $100 to add an additional 100 lbs of body weight on your animals, then do not retain them longer. In addition, cattle that have been well cared for (shots, weaned >30 days, & clean) bring a premium versus those who are bellowing for mom, have manure packed armor plating on their sides, and no vaccines. If you’re keeping your heifers as feeders and they are big enough, we strongly suggest giving them prostaglandin to abort them.
Dr.Jim recently attended a meeting discussing the use of beef semen on dairy animals and selling those calves after being born. Some AI companies are concentrating on producing all black calves (not even white socks) which is what most buyers want. Also, buyers are expressing the most interest when groups of 5 or more of similar weights are brought in. Another option would be keeping them up to feeder size (350-500 lbs) and selling them in groups then. There are good options when dealing with colored cattle coming out of dairy cattle. If you are keeping them as feeders, make sure you implant them (Synovex C or S) to increase their rate of gain.
Recently, John had a lengthy discussion with a client about hitchhikers. In all of John’s travels, he rarely sees hitchhikers out and about; however, this client happened to see one in the Rock Springs area. Our client mentioned that this particular hitchhiker was quite wild haired and rangy looking. He made sure he could reach the large crescent wrench under the truck seat when he pulled up next to the “wildman”. The questionable person stated that he was "a vet with Sunrise Vet Services”; however, the client told the guy, “Hey, I work with the vets from Sunrise and you sure don’t look like anyone I know from there.” Now the flim flam person trying to hitch a ride came up with some wild story about his truck battery running low as he was doing some work while listening to the radio, and his cell phone battery was also dead.
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At this point, the story was sounding really fishy, as the farmer pointed out. The guy was like “No really... I work with those cool vets.” So the farmer reluctantly opened the door and let the not so good smelling supposed vet into his truck. After a somewhat scary drive with the slightly crazy guy rambling on about battery life and how hot it was, they pull up a driveway and see a Sunrise vet truck parked. Now the farmer is a little worried the bad smelling, rangy, rambling, wild haired guy maybe stole this truck and is pretending to be a vet, but the guy does seem to know a bit of stuff about cows. After some battery jumper cables were put to good use, the “vet guy” says thanks a bunch of times and hops into the vet truck to drive off. At this time, Sunrise Vet Services is offering a reward for locating this “vet guy” driving around in a Sunrise Vet truck. If you have any info, please contact authorities here at SVS.
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Sunrise Vet Services August 2019 Producer Newsletter
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(As you read this, please imagine Dr.John talking this way with an Australian accent as that’s where he is right now)... G’day mates, Dr. John here from down under in Australia. No more treating cows for me. I’m the newest and best kangaroo vet ever seen! I’ve decided to do a walkabout in these parts: First Melbourne and then Sydney. Crikey, they love me down here! And as they say, “No wukka’s before I hit the frog and toad.” All joking aside, we’d like to take a moment to congratulate all the young people who worked so hard to get an animal shown at either the Sauk County Fair or the Juneau County Livestock Expo. It takes a lot of dedication to work with an animal, get it trained, clipped, fed, washed, and everything else that goes into getting an animal onto the show grounds and into a show ring. They |
Pictured here from left to right is Mackenzie Klemm (Champion Beef Carcass), Sarah Albers (Champion Dairy Beef Carcass), Sophie Larson (Champion Lamb Carcass), Evan Thompson (Champion Goat Carcass), and Addison Strunz (Champion Pork Carcass).
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did a great job and it’s so encouraging to see the future of the agricultural world showing such a strong work ethic and responsibility.
Sunrise would especially like to congratulate the winners of the Annual Ultrasound Carcass show we sponsor. Cattle, swine, goats, and sheep can all get an ultrasound done on the first day of the fair. We then get those ultrasounds evaluated by our expert, Dr. Gary Onan, Professor and Chair of Animal Food Science at the University of Wisconsin, River Falls. We follow that up with a pot luck dinner with an educational presentation by Dr. Onan a couple weeks later. At that gathering, we had a great turnout and learned more about the meat industry, meat evaluation, & they got the ultrasound results.
Again, CONGRATULATIONS!!! This year’s trophy winners were:
Well, pinkeye season has arrived with a vengeance! What does this mean for you? Fly control is very important. Pour on products like StandGuard (beef use) or Cylence or UltraBoss (dairy use) are what we recommend. We continue to take samples from the pinkeye we see on your farms. Pinkeye is a moving target, but each new sample we take works to improve our autogenous vaccine!
We are happy to announce that in cooperation with BI & Newport Labs who manufacture our vaccine, we will be having a Pinkeye Producer Meeting this coming February. For all of you who have issues with pinkeye, (summer, winter, anytime!) we would love to have you attend this meeting. They will be explaining many different aspects of pinkeye. This should help us to get a better handle on this nasty problem. Even if you were at the last Pinkeye meeting, this disease changes so fast that coming again will still be worth your while. Stay tuned for more info.
Again, just a quick reminder that bills need to be caught up by the end of the year to continue to receive services from Sunrise. Call us if you have any further questions.
It’s been really hot the last few weeks of June. How hot was it? It was John sweating gallons every minute kind of hot! If you have cows programed to be bred or if you see a cow in heat, should you breed her? John can’t speak for the other vets when he says this, but he can say that he’s never seen divine conception in a cow. A cow has to get semen in her in order to get pregnant. But does that mean you should be using the very best semen on every cow when the heat index is +100 degrees? Probably not. Should you maybe use some high conception bull or less expensive beef semen instead? We would love to talk with you about what choices you might want to make when it gets this hot. Please ask.
Speaking of hot, is your heat abatement program in full swing?
It’s hard to think about it when we’re talking about heat abatement and you’re wiping the sweat off your brow, but fall processing is only a month or two away at most. When is a good day to process? Any day that ends in “y” is what Dr. John says, or more likely, any day John is on vacation! We are happy to set up times and dates that will work with your schedule.
Hint Hint! With Dr. John out of the picture for a bit while he is “down under”, this would be a great time to treat the Sunrise Staff to any special concoction you might want to bake up. We might actually get a taste for a change now that John isn’t here to gobble it all up himself. 😄
Sunrise would especially like to congratulate the winners of the Annual Ultrasound Carcass show we sponsor. Cattle, swine, goats, and sheep can all get an ultrasound done on the first day of the fair. We then get those ultrasounds evaluated by our expert, Dr. Gary Onan, Professor and Chair of Animal Food Science at the University of Wisconsin, River Falls. We follow that up with a pot luck dinner with an educational presentation by Dr. Onan a couple weeks later. At that gathering, we had a great turnout and learned more about the meat industry, meat evaluation, & they got the ultrasound results.
Again, CONGRATULATIONS!!! This year’s trophy winners were:
- Mackenzie Klemm (Champion Beef Carcass)
- Sarah Albers (Champion Dairy Beef Carcass)
- Sophie Larson (Champion Lamb Carcass)
- Evan Thompson (Champion Goat Carcass)
- Addison Strunz (Champion Pork Carcass)
Well, pinkeye season has arrived with a vengeance! What does this mean for you? Fly control is very important. Pour on products like StandGuard (beef use) or Cylence or UltraBoss (dairy use) are what we recommend. We continue to take samples from the pinkeye we see on your farms. Pinkeye is a moving target, but each new sample we take works to improve our autogenous vaccine!
We are happy to announce that in cooperation with BI & Newport Labs who manufacture our vaccine, we will be having a Pinkeye Producer Meeting this coming February. For all of you who have issues with pinkeye, (summer, winter, anytime!) we would love to have you attend this meeting. They will be explaining many different aspects of pinkeye. This should help us to get a better handle on this nasty problem. Even if you were at the last Pinkeye meeting, this disease changes so fast that coming again will still be worth your while. Stay tuned for more info.
Again, just a quick reminder that bills need to be caught up by the end of the year to continue to receive services from Sunrise. Call us if you have any further questions.
It’s been really hot the last few weeks of June. How hot was it? It was John sweating gallons every minute kind of hot! If you have cows programed to be bred or if you see a cow in heat, should you breed her? John can’t speak for the other vets when he says this, but he can say that he’s never seen divine conception in a cow. A cow has to get semen in her in order to get pregnant. But does that mean you should be using the very best semen on every cow when the heat index is +100 degrees? Probably not. Should you maybe use some high conception bull or less expensive beef semen instead? We would love to talk with you about what choices you might want to make when it gets this hot. Please ask.
Speaking of hot, is your heat abatement program in full swing?
- Are your fans all running with tight belts and pulleys?
- Are fan blades clean of debris and dust so that they are moving air efficiently?
- Have you kept the freestall replenished and full of sand as the cows stand in there and dig them out?
- Are all your sprinklers running with all the nozzles working properly and with enough water pressure?
- Do the cows have enough access to clean fresh water?
- When was the last time you cleaned and disinfected your stock tank to get rid of all that algae that grows so rampantly in this hot weather?
- Is the access by the stock tanks limited so as to prevent cattle from standing inside the tanks?
- Are your fresh cows getting 20-30 gallons of water after they freshen? With this hot weather, they need more than normal.
- What about your calves and youngstock? Don’t forget about them.
- And especially don’t forget your dry cows. The dry cow is the most neglected adult on most farms and she needs heat abatement just as much as the milking cow does.
It’s hard to think about it when we’re talking about heat abatement and you’re wiping the sweat off your brow, but fall processing is only a month or two away at most. When is a good day to process? Any day that ends in “y” is what Dr. John says, or more likely, any day John is on vacation! We are happy to set up times and dates that will work with your schedule.
Hint Hint! With Dr. John out of the picture for a bit while he is “down under”, this would be a great time to treat the Sunrise Staff to any special concoction you might want to bake up. We might actually get a taste for a change now that John isn’t here to gobble it all up himself. 😄
Sunrise Vet Services July 2019 Producer Newsletter
Guess what Dr. John sees when he looks over his left shoulder? No, not a large amount of hair flowing down his back. Instead, he sees that half of 2019 is gone! Great googly moogly! Only 6 months until 2020! The good news is that it’s only 3 months until the heat goes away and Dr. John can enjoy being outside again. Hopefully everyone has gotten some hay cut and your corn is in the ground. Knee high by the 4th of July might be challenging for Dr. John’s corn this year, even though it was planted with a red tractor!
Well, it’s that time of year. With all the heat and rain it must be time for the Sauk County Fair! It runs from July 8-14 at the fairgrounds in Baraboo. With a FREE walk-in gate, this is a great deal and may be a great way for you to spend a day! Come on down, take a walk around, and enjoy the hard work of the 4-H and FFA students. Also, there are the open entry classes with interesting entries all the way from baking to photography, and more to check out. And don’t forget that if you happen to see Dr. John sitting around the fair, he really really likes deep fried Oreos:) If he’s asleep, please wake him up to share with him! So come on down to the fair and enjoy!
In addition, a local group called the Farmer Angel Network is sponsoring an Ice Cream Social at the fair from 1-4 PM on Sunday July 14th at Progress Hall to say thank you to all the hard working farmers in the area. Come over and enjoy some ice cream and from all of us here at Sunrise, THANK YOU FOR ALL THAT YOU DO!
PRODUCT UPDATES:
Finally some good news to deliver to you. Aspirin Boluses and Magnalax are now available also. If you need these products, please stop by and we can help restock your shelves. Polyflex is coming back too. We only have a very limited supply on hand right now, but as they ramp up production, we should have a decent supply starting in Aug.
In December of 2017, we started to carry a new product called Tri-Shield for calves. It was labeled for Rota, Corona virus, and E. Coli protection. Great product, but sadly it went onto back order about a month later! Good news!... We can get it again! This is the only USDA licensed product that covers all three bugs. We highly recommend this product, as it has been proven to earn it’s label claim. It does need to be given within the first 12 hours of the calf’s life, and it does need to be stored in the fridge until used.
Thankfully the flies have not been too bad this year yet, but there’s lots of summer left. For those of you who have had lots of flies in the past, have you sprayed your premises down? Evergreen Pro 60-6 Pyrethrin Fly Spray can be used in buildings and/or directly on cattle. It uses Pyrethrin, a natural derivative of Chrysanthemums, as the active ingredient. In talking with our local representative, he has seen people using it that have had very impressive results. For pour ons, we recommend Standguard for beef cattle, and UltraBoss or Cylence for dairy cattle.
Remember if you are having Pinkeye in your cattle, please let us come out to sample it for our autogenous vaccine. The more samples we get, the better the vaccine. We DO NOT charge for this service!
A reminder of our new policy: Beginning January 2020, all service bills must be paid by the following month in order for a client to continue to receive services from Sunrise Vet Services. If you have any questions, feel free to call and ask us about it.
Are you composting cows on your farm? We are looking for someone that might be willing to host a cow composting “show and tell” on their farm. Does that sound like something you might be able to do for your fellow producers? If so, we’d love to talk to you about that. Please call the office and talk to Jill or bring it up with one of our vets when you see them.
And in case you haven’t heard… In answer to the need for another place that could be called to pick up dead stock, C & K Stock Removal out of Montello is available and can be reached at 608-697-7108 or 608-697-9578.
Guess what Dr. John sees when he looks over his left shoulder? No, not a large amount of hair flowing down his back. Instead, he sees that half of 2019 is gone! Great googly moogly! Only 6 months until 2020! The good news is that it’s only 3 months until the heat goes away and Dr. John can enjoy being outside again. Hopefully everyone has gotten some hay cut and your corn is in the ground. Knee high by the 4th of July might be challenging for Dr. John’s corn this year, even though it was planted with a red tractor!
Well, it’s that time of year. With all the heat and rain it must be time for the Sauk County Fair! It runs from July 8-14 at the fairgrounds in Baraboo. With a FREE walk-in gate, this is a great deal and may be a great way for you to spend a day! Come on down, take a walk around, and enjoy the hard work of the 4-H and FFA students. Also, there are the open entry classes with interesting entries all the way from baking to photography, and more to check out. And don’t forget that if you happen to see Dr. John sitting around the fair, he really really likes deep fried Oreos:) If he’s asleep, please wake him up to share with him! So come on down to the fair and enjoy!
In addition, a local group called the Farmer Angel Network is sponsoring an Ice Cream Social at the fair from 1-4 PM on Sunday July 14th at Progress Hall to say thank you to all the hard working farmers in the area. Come over and enjoy some ice cream and from all of us here at Sunrise, THANK YOU FOR ALL THAT YOU DO!
PRODUCT UPDATES:
Finally some good news to deliver to you. Aspirin Boluses and Magnalax are now available also. If you need these products, please stop by and we can help restock your shelves. Polyflex is coming back too. We only have a very limited supply on hand right now, but as they ramp up production, we should have a decent supply starting in Aug.
In December of 2017, we started to carry a new product called Tri-Shield for calves. It was labeled for Rota, Corona virus, and E. Coli protection. Great product, but sadly it went onto back order about a month later! Good news!... We can get it again! This is the only USDA licensed product that covers all three bugs. We highly recommend this product, as it has been proven to earn it’s label claim. It does need to be given within the first 12 hours of the calf’s life, and it does need to be stored in the fridge until used.
Thankfully the flies have not been too bad this year yet, but there’s lots of summer left. For those of you who have had lots of flies in the past, have you sprayed your premises down? Evergreen Pro 60-6 Pyrethrin Fly Spray can be used in buildings and/or directly on cattle. It uses Pyrethrin, a natural derivative of Chrysanthemums, as the active ingredient. In talking with our local representative, he has seen people using it that have had very impressive results. For pour ons, we recommend Standguard for beef cattle, and UltraBoss or Cylence for dairy cattle.
Remember if you are having Pinkeye in your cattle, please let us come out to sample it for our autogenous vaccine. The more samples we get, the better the vaccine. We DO NOT charge for this service!
A reminder of our new policy: Beginning January 2020, all service bills must be paid by the following month in order for a client to continue to receive services from Sunrise Vet Services. If you have any questions, feel free to call and ask us about it.
Are you composting cows on your farm? We are looking for someone that might be willing to host a cow composting “show and tell” on their farm. Does that sound like something you might be able to do for your fellow producers? If so, we’d love to talk to you about that. Please call the office and talk to Jill or bring it up with one of our vets when you see them.
And in case you haven’t heard… In answer to the need for another place that could be called to pick up dead stock, C & K Stock Removal out of Montello is available and can be reached at 608-697-7108 or 608-697-9578.
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GOT TOO MANY CATS? Now is the time to call to get your barn cats fixed with our AUGUST FARM CAT SPECIAL. Male Neuter = $30.00, Female Spay = $45.00 |
Too many cats!
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This offer is good for the month of August. You will need to call to schedule a day for fixing the cats before you capture them.
Here are a few stipulations for the Farm Cat Special , but please call the office to get more details.
★Note: Bring in 3 or more cats on the same day & receive an additional discount of 10% off your cat's surgical bill.
Keep cool out there. We are right there with ya!
PS... Dr. John recommends shaving your head to deter heat retention and encourage evaporation out the top!
Here are a few stipulations for the Farm Cat Special , but please call the office to get more details.
- This special is for our SVS farm clients only!
- A surgical appointment is required to be set up so we can save you a spot.
- All cats must be in a carrier or live trap.
- Any fleas or internal parasites noted at the time of the procedure will be treated at an additional cost to the owner. (Approximately $17/cat)
- To keep costs low, no pain medications will be included in the price of surgery. Owners may elect to have their cats receive pain meds at an additional cost based on the cat’s weight.
- Proof of Rabies Vaccine needs to be provided. If no vaccination has been performed, the cat will receive a Rabies Vaccine on the day of surgery at a reduced cost of $5.
- A $10 Distemper Vaccine can also be administered to your cats on the day of surgery if you choose. If this is their first vaccination, a 2nd distemper booster should be given 3-4 weeks later. The booster vaccine can be dispensed to you for you to administer at home.
- To receive this special pricing, payment for these services is required on the day of surgery.
★Note: Bring in 3 or more cats on the same day & receive an additional discount of 10% off your cat's surgical bill.
Keep cool out there. We are right there with ya!
PS... Dr. John recommends shaving your head to deter heat retention and encourage evaporation out the top!
Sunrise Vet Services June 2019 Producer Newsletter
With the continuation of rain falling from the sky, Dr. John has started a new project. An ark. Yep, John the carpenter has started building THE ARK. He is gladly accepting wood donations to help in the construction. Dr. John would prefer extremely high quality oak timbers and planking for the main structure with teak wood for the deck planking. He will be in search of 2 large bronze propellers. Power will of course be provided by his 2 mighty red tractors in the belly of the ark. Pallets, scrap wood, and treetops will not be accepted as donations as this will likely not be a tax exempt project; therefore, no tax write off donations! Any volunteers assisting with the construction of the ark will be added to Dr. John’s Ark Priority Boarding List (APBL); however, please be aware that he has indicated that this will in no way be a guarantee of an available spot on board!
With all the rain that has fallen, people ask us, “What is going on?”. Global warming? Climate change? Alien weather influences? Nope! Dr.Darren has been taking some vacation. This is the sole reason for rain coming down the ways it has... same as every time Dr. Darren takes vacation! For those of you upset with the weather, talk with Dr. Darren; the cursed vacation rainmaker.
LongRange, Fly Tags, and Pinkeye:
Now is the time to use LongRange on pasture cattle. With up to 150 days of duration of activity on a wide range of parasites, this is a product that we endorse with enthusiasm! Providing protection for dung beetles, manure piles are broken down in the pastures. The short story of LongRange is it makes your cattle (both cows and calves) have more pounds in the fall, it increases the pregancy rate in cows , it reduces the parasite load on your pastures, and it makes you money. We recommend treating all animals on pasture, but the animals that you get the biggest bang for your buck on are yearlings as they are actively growing and hopefully becoming pregnant. When you use LongRange, you get a great ROI!
In addition to LongRange, now is the time to start putting in fly tags and injecting 2 doses of SVS pinkeye vaccine. Warrior fly tags are this year’s fly tag of choice. Just so you are aware… Once you put fly tags in they start losing their effectiveness. The ideal time to put them in would be when fly pressure is the highest, which would be in late July / August. However, most people really don’t want to run cattle through a chute at that time of year. Surprising? So we recommend vaccines and fly tags at turn out as it's the most practical time to process cattle.
Bull Semen Collection: Why, When, Where, & How:
Why semen test bulls? What does it cost if you have a bull that doesn’t get your cows pregnant? Depending on the number of cows, it could cost thousands of dollars. Beef cows must get pregnant and wean a calf every year.
When to test? At least one month prior to turn out. If the bull fails we can retest it, however, we prefer to retest several weeks after the first test.
Where to test? We can do it on the farm in a cattle chute where the bull is properly restrained. We must have access to the back end and also the belly of the bull to be able to do a penis exam and collect the semen when it’s produced.
How to test? Call us up to set up an appointment.
Helpful Hints: We are asking clients to minimize the stress and excitement the bulls get subjected to prior to us coming to collect them. Please don’t move them to a new area, put them in with new animals, or have given them some shots the few days prior to being tested. We have had to fail/retest several bulls that were too worked up the day we came to test them. Cool, calm and relaxed... That’s how we like the bulls to be at test time to optimize their performance & results.
Announcement from the CDC:
A disease epidemic diagnosed in WI. “Heifer Hoarding” has been found on most WI dairy farms!
What? Dairy farmers are keeping too many heifers? Dr. John never thought this was possible! All kidding aside, raising heifers is done at an enormous expense. The cost of raising a replacement heifer is estimated to be from $1200-$1800 per animal. Multiply that by 50 heifers per year and you have an expense of $60,000 - $90,000 per year. Wow! That is a huge amount of money! Do you need every replacement that is born? If you answered yes, please stop reading now, but know you are burying your head in the sand. We are proposing that you DO NOT need every heifer replacement that is born on your farm. Why? Do you have to get rid of an older cow to make room for that first calf heifer? Will that heifer make as much or more milk this lactation as that older cow you just sold? Will she breed back as well as the cull cow you are sending down the road? Or do you have a mastitis issue with that older cow that could be handled with better protocols in place? The seven most expensive words in business are “We have always done it that way.” If you have always retained 100% of all heifers born and raised them to enter the milking herd, maybe today is the day to rethink that philosophy. A profitable bottom line requires you to raise the correct number of the right heifers to use as replacements. How many do you need as replacements? Ask us and we’ll be happy to work with you to figure it out. How do you decide which ones to keep and which ones to ship? We would strongly suggest genomic testing. Having done it with his own beef heifers, Dr. John now knows which ones rank in the top 25% and which were in the bottom 25%. And guess where those bottom 25% went?... On a truck to be sold as feeders. No way was he having them stay on his farm!
Please bare with us this summer and fall!
As many of you know, Dr. John has the nickname of “Dr. Vacation” and he’s certainly earned this title! And to prove it, Dr. John will be gone quite a bit in the month of August traveling to Alaska & Australia. In addition, Dr. Marla is getting married in August & Dr. Natalie is expecting a baby in September. What does this all mean? John will have a great tan in September & Dr. Natalie will be off for a while after her baby is born. In fact, all the doctors work very hard and they all deserve some time to themselves. We’ll be asking for your patience & some flexibility with the schedule this fall. For a short time, we may ask to move some herd healths to a different day or ask you to let us switch it to a different doctor. We’ll be doing our very best to get to your farms in the best and most efficient way we can. Though feel free to tell John, “Enough vacation already!”
Announcement of SVS’s New Payment Policy
(Effective beginning Jan. 2020)
As everyone is aware, change is the only constant in this world. And a change is in the wind in order for SVS to be able to continue offering our farm services. As of January 1st 2020, SVS will be requiring all farm account balances to be paid up in full. And moving forward in 2020 all service bills must be paid by the following month in order for a client to continue to receive services from Sunrise. For example: All work done during Jan. 1-30 will be on the billing statement you’ll receive at the beginning of February. That bill must then be paid in full by the end of February. If the bill is not paid, Sunrise Vet Services will not provide any further veterinary services until the bill is paid in full. No exceptions. In addition to the disruption in service, finance charges will be applied the end of the month.
The good news is we are not eliminating the 2% discount you receive if you pay within 7 days of receiving your statement. Over the course of a year, this could add up to real savings. The other good news is that you have the rest of 2019 to get caught up if you aren’t already. For most of our clients, we truly appreciate that you’ve been paying your bills right away, so this new policy will have no effect on you. For those of you that have found yourself slipping behind, we hope that you’ll use the next several months to get back on track so as to avoid any interruption in service from SVS. We sincerely want to thank you for using Sunrise Veterinary Services and we look forward to continuing to be your veterinarians in the years to come.
With the continuation of rain falling from the sky, Dr. John has started a new project. An ark. Yep, John the carpenter has started building THE ARK. He is gladly accepting wood donations to help in the construction. Dr. John would prefer extremely high quality oak timbers and planking for the main structure with teak wood for the deck planking. He will be in search of 2 large bronze propellers. Power will of course be provided by his 2 mighty red tractors in the belly of the ark. Pallets, scrap wood, and treetops will not be accepted as donations as this will likely not be a tax exempt project; therefore, no tax write off donations! Any volunteers assisting with the construction of the ark will be added to Dr. John’s Ark Priority Boarding List (APBL); however, please be aware that he has indicated that this will in no way be a guarantee of an available spot on board!
With all the rain that has fallen, people ask us, “What is going on?”. Global warming? Climate change? Alien weather influences? Nope! Dr.Darren has been taking some vacation. This is the sole reason for rain coming down the ways it has... same as every time Dr. Darren takes vacation! For those of you upset with the weather, talk with Dr. Darren; the cursed vacation rainmaker.
LongRange, Fly Tags, and Pinkeye:
Now is the time to use LongRange on pasture cattle. With up to 150 days of duration of activity on a wide range of parasites, this is a product that we endorse with enthusiasm! Providing protection for dung beetles, manure piles are broken down in the pastures. The short story of LongRange is it makes your cattle (both cows and calves) have more pounds in the fall, it increases the pregancy rate in cows , it reduces the parasite load on your pastures, and it makes you money. We recommend treating all animals on pasture, but the animals that you get the biggest bang for your buck on are yearlings as they are actively growing and hopefully becoming pregnant. When you use LongRange, you get a great ROI!
In addition to LongRange, now is the time to start putting in fly tags and injecting 2 doses of SVS pinkeye vaccine. Warrior fly tags are this year’s fly tag of choice. Just so you are aware… Once you put fly tags in they start losing their effectiveness. The ideal time to put them in would be when fly pressure is the highest, which would be in late July / August. However, most people really don’t want to run cattle through a chute at that time of year. Surprising? So we recommend vaccines and fly tags at turn out as it's the most practical time to process cattle.
Bull Semen Collection: Why, When, Where, & How:
Why semen test bulls? What does it cost if you have a bull that doesn’t get your cows pregnant? Depending on the number of cows, it could cost thousands of dollars. Beef cows must get pregnant and wean a calf every year.
When to test? At least one month prior to turn out. If the bull fails we can retest it, however, we prefer to retest several weeks after the first test.
Where to test? We can do it on the farm in a cattle chute where the bull is properly restrained. We must have access to the back end and also the belly of the bull to be able to do a penis exam and collect the semen when it’s produced.
How to test? Call us up to set up an appointment.
Helpful Hints: We are asking clients to minimize the stress and excitement the bulls get subjected to prior to us coming to collect them. Please don’t move them to a new area, put them in with new animals, or have given them some shots the few days prior to being tested. We have had to fail/retest several bulls that were too worked up the day we came to test them. Cool, calm and relaxed... That’s how we like the bulls to be at test time to optimize their performance & results.
Announcement from the CDC:
A disease epidemic diagnosed in WI. “Heifer Hoarding” has been found on most WI dairy farms!
What? Dairy farmers are keeping too many heifers? Dr. John never thought this was possible! All kidding aside, raising heifers is done at an enormous expense. The cost of raising a replacement heifer is estimated to be from $1200-$1800 per animal. Multiply that by 50 heifers per year and you have an expense of $60,000 - $90,000 per year. Wow! That is a huge amount of money! Do you need every replacement that is born? If you answered yes, please stop reading now, but know you are burying your head in the sand. We are proposing that you DO NOT need every heifer replacement that is born on your farm. Why? Do you have to get rid of an older cow to make room for that first calf heifer? Will that heifer make as much or more milk this lactation as that older cow you just sold? Will she breed back as well as the cull cow you are sending down the road? Or do you have a mastitis issue with that older cow that could be handled with better protocols in place? The seven most expensive words in business are “We have always done it that way.” If you have always retained 100% of all heifers born and raised them to enter the milking herd, maybe today is the day to rethink that philosophy. A profitable bottom line requires you to raise the correct number of the right heifers to use as replacements. How many do you need as replacements? Ask us and we’ll be happy to work with you to figure it out. How do you decide which ones to keep and which ones to ship? We would strongly suggest genomic testing. Having done it with his own beef heifers, Dr. John now knows which ones rank in the top 25% and which were in the bottom 25%. And guess where those bottom 25% went?... On a truck to be sold as feeders. No way was he having them stay on his farm!
Please bare with us this summer and fall!
As many of you know, Dr. John has the nickname of “Dr. Vacation” and he’s certainly earned this title! And to prove it, Dr. John will be gone quite a bit in the month of August traveling to Alaska & Australia. In addition, Dr. Marla is getting married in August & Dr. Natalie is expecting a baby in September. What does this all mean? John will have a great tan in September & Dr. Natalie will be off for a while after her baby is born. In fact, all the doctors work very hard and they all deserve some time to themselves. We’ll be asking for your patience & some flexibility with the schedule this fall. For a short time, we may ask to move some herd healths to a different day or ask you to let us switch it to a different doctor. We’ll be doing our very best to get to your farms in the best and most efficient way we can. Though feel free to tell John, “Enough vacation already!”
Announcement of SVS’s New Payment Policy
(Effective beginning Jan. 2020)
As everyone is aware, change is the only constant in this world. And a change is in the wind in order for SVS to be able to continue offering our farm services. As of January 1st 2020, SVS will be requiring all farm account balances to be paid up in full. And moving forward in 2020 all service bills must be paid by the following month in order for a client to continue to receive services from Sunrise. For example: All work done during Jan. 1-30 will be on the billing statement you’ll receive at the beginning of February. That bill must then be paid in full by the end of February. If the bill is not paid, Sunrise Vet Services will not provide any further veterinary services until the bill is paid in full. No exceptions. In addition to the disruption in service, finance charges will be applied the end of the month.
The good news is we are not eliminating the 2% discount you receive if you pay within 7 days of receiving your statement. Over the course of a year, this could add up to real savings. The other good news is that you have the rest of 2019 to get caught up if you aren’t already. For most of our clients, we truly appreciate that you’ve been paying your bills right away, so this new policy will have no effect on you. For those of you that have found yourself slipping behind, we hope that you’ll use the next several months to get back on track so as to avoid any interruption in service from SVS. We sincerely want to thank you for using Sunrise Veterinary Services and we look forward to continuing to be your veterinarians in the years to come.
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And please stop by the office and get your free cheese stick in celebration of June Dairy Month! |
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Sunrise Vet Services May 2019 Producer Newsletter
Oh yes! Dr. John may have been the first farmer to have his corn planter in the ground this year! March 31st at 8 am that planter was solidly in the ground ready to go to work! Granted the flat tire helped a lot with the solidly on the ground part and the ground was inside the shed, but that’s just minor details. The red tractor nearby was ready to go pull it at top speed! By the way… John says that the little bit of oil that blows off his red tractor is to help cover up the green paint on other tractors in the area!
Now on to issues that you might care more about… “Minimizing Your Deads”
Dr. Matt Boyle from Zoetis had another point from his client talk that he gave for Sunrise clients that we would like to touch on; Dead cattle make no money. “Really John? You don’t think farmers know this?” Well, how can we minimize death loss on farms? Early diagnosis of problems is essential and it all starts with good record keeping. Noting a cause of death is very important. If most of the deads are from injury, how and why are they getting hurt? Or maybe it’s from a bunch of toxic mastitis? Are cows getting vaccinated properly for mastitis? Has the milking equipment been looked at lately? Are proper milking procedures being followed? Again, early diagnosis of problems is key to lowering your “deads” number.
Also, a thermometer is a cheap investment that can provide a lot of information. If an animal is running a fever (>102.5℉), what is causing it? What is the appropriate treatment for the problem? What are the meat and milk holds for treatment? Sunrise tries to use the short meat hold products. (Ex: Naxcel or Excenel that have only a 5 day meat hold) Short meat holds will give us options to ship the animal if necessary. Or… Should you actually even treat the animal? Sometimes we recommend shipping the animal instead of treatment. Why would we do this? If we feel the chances of treatment success are minimal and you have the chance of getting some money for this cow, then we would recommend that you go with that option. What it comes down to is you want to ship out cattle if you can to get some money for them versus having them die on the farm.
Speaking of dead cattle; as many of you know, Bailey Farms is no longer answering their phone or even in business to remove dead stock. What does this mean for you? Well, rendering companies have been able to charge what the market will bear, and you have not been able to do anything about it. We are suggesting that you do have a valid alternative to calling a rendering truck. Composting dead animals is a great way to ensure you can manage where your dead stock goes to. Here are the 5 easy steps to composting:
http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/engineer/facts/10-063.htm
https://wood.extension.wisc.edu/files/2010/05/CompostingFactsheet.pdf
https://wpt4.org/wpt-video/university-place/university-place-composting-animal-carcasses/
https://fyi.extension.wisc.edu/smallfarms/2015/01/08/composting-mortalities/
https://dnr.wi.gov/topic/Recycling/Farms.html
We did receive info on someone else doing dead stock removal and we’ll have their contact info at the office. Also, Jill is trying to work on putting together a composting on the farm demo for down the road.
Oh!, guess what? Pinkeye has started to be seen! Yes, we’re seeing animals of different ages with pinkeye. Our autogenous vaccine made from our samples from last year is ready and available. Two shots of the vaccine are required each year as we alter the key components. The good news is we feel the vaccine keeps getting better each year with more samples coming in. If you have pinkeye in your cattle, either we can come out to sample it, or we can provide you with testing material to obtain samples that we can send in. Now’s the time to get the vaccine into the animals before the pinkeye pressure gets too bad.
For those of you in search of breeding bulls for the upcoming season we have several people who do sell bulls and one individual who rents out bulls. Feel free to contact John for contact info.
In our March newsletter we informed you all of many items that are no longer being manufactured. One of these items was urea boluses for uterine infections. Now a few of you may be wondering what am I supposed to do with a cow who doesn’t clean or gets metritis? Should I flush the uterus? Should I put antibiotics in there? The simple & true answer no, nothing goes into the uterus.
Scientific studies have been done to determine whether uterine flushing with dilute betadine or chlorhexidine solution helps heal the uterus faster. The actual results show no difference in the resolution of metritis when comparing a flush to no treatment. How about that! You also risk dragging something in from the outside to make matters worse when putting anything into the uterus.
So what about antibiotics? There are many options out there that we use to treat metritis, BUT they are NOT meant to be infused directly INTO the uterus! Some examples would be Excenel/Excede, Oxytetracycline/LA 200, Polyflex/Ampicillin, and Penicillin. Next, we would like to point out that in the case of Excenel/Excede, we as veterinarians and farmers are bound by FDA regulations that make it ILLEGAL to use those in a route, dose or duration different than what is printed on the label. We have to follow this regulation, no exceptions. If you get caught with a residue from this, we cannot help you as we have never recommended this treatment regimen.
We also mentioned in our March newsletter some new information regarding Oxytet foot wraps for warts leading to a possible positive test on the bulk tank if you are wrapping enough feet in your herd. So say that you decided to put a tetracycline bolus into the cow’s uterus… How much of that antibiotic is going to show up in the milk? The answer is a lot more than what you put onto a heel wart. And how long until her milk is clear? We don’t know. None of these antibiotics are tested for withdrawal periods when used in this way. If you need another reason not to use this product inside a uterus, please note that tetracycline medicine is quite caustic and can cause microscopic and macroscopic damage to the lining of the uterus. Please don’t damage the inside of the uterus any further.
What about Penicillin/Ampicillin you say? Funny you should ask. Aside from that astronomical withdrawal period, Penicillin and Ampicillin are inactivated by organic matter. A uterus full of infection does not lend itself to topical treatments. We need to use the correct medicines in appropriate ways. If we haven’t answered all your questions here on uterus infusions please feel free to ask us!
Lastly, we want to talk about treatment logs. When we are on your farm treating animals, we should be asking you for a treatment log to write our notes in. If you don’t have one, tell us and we will get one for you. Every farm should have a written record of what treatments were given to what animal, how much was given, and withdrawal times for drugs used. This is your insurance policy that you are using drugs appropriately. You can use it as proof, should you ever need to.
Now… about this rain. John is volunteering to work on your ducks should you have any of those running around enjoying this weather!!!
Oh yes! Dr. John may have been the first farmer to have his corn planter in the ground this year! March 31st at 8 am that planter was solidly in the ground ready to go to work! Granted the flat tire helped a lot with the solidly on the ground part and the ground was inside the shed, but that’s just minor details. The red tractor nearby was ready to go pull it at top speed! By the way… John says that the little bit of oil that blows off his red tractor is to help cover up the green paint on other tractors in the area!
Now on to issues that you might care more about… “Minimizing Your Deads”
Dr. Matt Boyle from Zoetis had another point from his client talk that he gave for Sunrise clients that we would like to touch on; Dead cattle make no money. “Really John? You don’t think farmers know this?” Well, how can we minimize death loss on farms? Early diagnosis of problems is essential and it all starts with good record keeping. Noting a cause of death is very important. If most of the deads are from injury, how and why are they getting hurt? Or maybe it’s from a bunch of toxic mastitis? Are cows getting vaccinated properly for mastitis? Has the milking equipment been looked at lately? Are proper milking procedures being followed? Again, early diagnosis of problems is key to lowering your “deads” number.
Also, a thermometer is a cheap investment that can provide a lot of information. If an animal is running a fever (>102.5℉), what is causing it? What is the appropriate treatment for the problem? What are the meat and milk holds for treatment? Sunrise tries to use the short meat hold products. (Ex: Naxcel or Excenel that have only a 5 day meat hold) Short meat holds will give us options to ship the animal if necessary. Or… Should you actually even treat the animal? Sometimes we recommend shipping the animal instead of treatment. Why would we do this? If we feel the chances of treatment success are minimal and you have the chance of getting some money for this cow, then we would recommend that you go with that option. What it comes down to is you want to ship out cattle if you can to get some money for them versus having them die on the farm.
Speaking of dead cattle; as many of you know, Bailey Farms is no longer answering their phone or even in business to remove dead stock. What does this mean for you? Well, rendering companies have been able to charge what the market will bear, and you have not been able to do anything about it. We are suggesting that you do have a valid alternative to calling a rendering truck. Composting dead animals is a great way to ensure you can manage where your dead stock goes to. Here are the 5 easy steps to composting:
- Provide base material i.e. base material being straw, sawdust, etc.
- Place dead livestock on top of base material
- Cover with bulk material, i.e. bedding pack manure cover with at least 1-2 feet of material all the way over the carcass.
- Cover with more base type material
- Turn every few months
http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/engineer/facts/10-063.htm
https://wood.extension.wisc.edu/files/2010/05/CompostingFactsheet.pdf
https://wpt4.org/wpt-video/university-place/university-place-composting-animal-carcasses/
https://fyi.extension.wisc.edu/smallfarms/2015/01/08/composting-mortalities/
https://dnr.wi.gov/topic/Recycling/Farms.html
We did receive info on someone else doing dead stock removal and we’ll have their contact info at the office. Also, Jill is trying to work on putting together a composting on the farm demo for down the road.
Oh!, guess what? Pinkeye has started to be seen! Yes, we’re seeing animals of different ages with pinkeye. Our autogenous vaccine made from our samples from last year is ready and available. Two shots of the vaccine are required each year as we alter the key components. The good news is we feel the vaccine keeps getting better each year with more samples coming in. If you have pinkeye in your cattle, either we can come out to sample it, or we can provide you with testing material to obtain samples that we can send in. Now’s the time to get the vaccine into the animals before the pinkeye pressure gets too bad.
For those of you in search of breeding bulls for the upcoming season we have several people who do sell bulls and one individual who rents out bulls. Feel free to contact John for contact info.
In our March newsletter we informed you all of many items that are no longer being manufactured. One of these items was urea boluses for uterine infections. Now a few of you may be wondering what am I supposed to do with a cow who doesn’t clean or gets metritis? Should I flush the uterus? Should I put antibiotics in there? The simple & true answer no, nothing goes into the uterus.
Scientific studies have been done to determine whether uterine flushing with dilute betadine or chlorhexidine solution helps heal the uterus faster. The actual results show no difference in the resolution of metritis when comparing a flush to no treatment. How about that! You also risk dragging something in from the outside to make matters worse when putting anything into the uterus.
So what about antibiotics? There are many options out there that we use to treat metritis, BUT they are NOT meant to be infused directly INTO the uterus! Some examples would be Excenel/Excede, Oxytetracycline/LA 200, Polyflex/Ampicillin, and Penicillin. Next, we would like to point out that in the case of Excenel/Excede, we as veterinarians and farmers are bound by FDA regulations that make it ILLEGAL to use those in a route, dose or duration different than what is printed on the label. We have to follow this regulation, no exceptions. If you get caught with a residue from this, we cannot help you as we have never recommended this treatment regimen.
We also mentioned in our March newsletter some new information regarding Oxytet foot wraps for warts leading to a possible positive test on the bulk tank if you are wrapping enough feet in your herd. So say that you decided to put a tetracycline bolus into the cow’s uterus… How much of that antibiotic is going to show up in the milk? The answer is a lot more than what you put onto a heel wart. And how long until her milk is clear? We don’t know. None of these antibiotics are tested for withdrawal periods when used in this way. If you need another reason not to use this product inside a uterus, please note that tetracycline medicine is quite caustic and can cause microscopic and macroscopic damage to the lining of the uterus. Please don’t damage the inside of the uterus any further.
What about Penicillin/Ampicillin you say? Funny you should ask. Aside from that astronomical withdrawal period, Penicillin and Ampicillin are inactivated by organic matter. A uterus full of infection does not lend itself to topical treatments. We need to use the correct medicines in appropriate ways. If we haven’t answered all your questions here on uterus infusions please feel free to ask us!
Lastly, we want to talk about treatment logs. When we are on your farm treating animals, we should be asking you for a treatment log to write our notes in. If you don’t have one, tell us and we will get one for you. Every farm should have a written record of what treatments were given to what animal, how much was given, and withdrawal times for drugs used. This is your insurance policy that you are using drugs appropriately. You can use it as proof, should you ever need to.
Now… about this rain. John is volunteering to work on your ducks should you have any of those running around enjoying this weather!!!
Sunrise Vet Services April 2019 Producer Newsletter
Oh yes! Spring has sprung! The ice and snow has disappeared. John has finally washed his winter cap. (First time this year…He couldn’t work without it!) But don’t worry. John is limiting his tanning time to just working with his hat off! However, shining up the red tractors may get him a little warm in the sunshine, so he may be seen in short sleeve shirts soon! Look out May, then the shorts come out!
To know is one thing, but to understand is another. Well, with our latest dairy producer meeting sponsored by Zoetis, Dr. Matt Boyle presented several points compiled by Compeer that if done well enough, can help a dairy farm turn a profit. Although many producers may have had some of this knowledge already, Dr. Boyle hopefully made people better understand how and why these factors can have a huge impact on a dairy’s profit when added all together. Our wish is that you take a little closer look at ways you can fine tune your procedures and that you make a commitment to always staying on top of these issues. In case you weren’t there or if you need a reminder, John took notes and we’ll be covering one point at a time for each of the next several months.
Somatic Cell Count: What should your goal be? If you are above 1,000,000 count, you are likely not shipping milk to any plant, and won’t be for a while. Most plants want the SCC to be below 350,000. Do you get any premiums for having your SCC under different levels? That depends on which plant you ship to. However, even if you do not get a premium for having a low SCC, it does help substantially with total milk production. The higher the SCC, the less milk the cow produces... plain and simple. Every 100,000 decrease in SCC means 5.5 lbs more milk per cow! An extra 5.5 lbs of milk per cow per day?... This is real money on the table! How do you get your SCC to be reduced? Milking procedure is a great place to start.
With the discontinuation of urea uterine boluses, people have asked about what to use instead. Well, we are kind of up a creek without a paddle here! There are no other intra-uterine products available, and I don’t foresee any companies jumping into this market either. The options we have are Excenel or Excede. These antibiotics are labeled for metritis and must be injected per label directions.
Foot Wraps; How many could cause an issue? With hoof trimmers applying tetracycline to hairy heel warts and the ability to test milk to find even smaller levels of antibiotics, do we need to be worried about having a hot load after the hoof trimmer comes? Based on what we have looked at and discussions we have had, we are saying the answer is no. But remember if a cow has two or more feet wrapped, we suggest keeping her milk out of the tank until the wraps are off. If you have 15 cows with foot wraps, but they have only one foot wrapped, you should be fine.
Having seen several calves this spring with white muscle disease, it is a reminder that it’s very important for cows to be receiving the correct amount and correct type of minerals, and/or to give your newborn calves a shot of Multimin 1cc/100 lbs at birth. Selenium deficiency will cause white muscle disease that manifests itself as unthrifty calves that are unable to stand or nurse very early in life.
Recently we received information from the Sauk County Health Department regarding a “Partners in Health” initiative. The department has gotten a grant from Compeer to help farm employers and their workers with the recent concern over TB on dairy farms. For free, you may be able to have the health department come to your farm 3 times to consult, test, etc. Because of the nature of patient confidentiality, they assure us that worker information is safe and that participation will not put farms or workers at risk. We have information on our website, a link on facebook, letters on the doctors trucks, and letters at our front desk with many more details. Or you can contact Diane Haley, the Sauk County Public Health Nurse directly at 608) 355-4303.
Stay healthy out there!
Oh yes! Spring has sprung! The ice and snow has disappeared. John has finally washed his winter cap. (First time this year…He couldn’t work without it!) But don’t worry. John is limiting his tanning time to just working with his hat off! However, shining up the red tractors may get him a little warm in the sunshine, so he may be seen in short sleeve shirts soon! Look out May, then the shorts come out!
To know is one thing, but to understand is another. Well, with our latest dairy producer meeting sponsored by Zoetis, Dr. Matt Boyle presented several points compiled by Compeer that if done well enough, can help a dairy farm turn a profit. Although many producers may have had some of this knowledge already, Dr. Boyle hopefully made people better understand how and why these factors can have a huge impact on a dairy’s profit when added all together. Our wish is that you take a little closer look at ways you can fine tune your procedures and that you make a commitment to always staying on top of these issues. In case you weren’t there or if you need a reminder, John took notes and we’ll be covering one point at a time for each of the next several months.
Somatic Cell Count: What should your goal be? If you are above 1,000,000 count, you are likely not shipping milk to any plant, and won’t be for a while. Most plants want the SCC to be below 350,000. Do you get any premiums for having your SCC under different levels? That depends on which plant you ship to. However, even if you do not get a premium for having a low SCC, it does help substantially with total milk production. The higher the SCC, the less milk the cow produces... plain and simple. Every 100,000 decrease in SCC means 5.5 lbs more milk per cow! An extra 5.5 lbs of milk per cow per day?... This is real money on the table! How do you get your SCC to be reduced? Milking procedure is a great place to start.
- Wipe the teat to really clean it and start the clock running. Your goal is to have the milking unit on the cow in 60-90 seconds after the wipe stimulation which is causing oxytocin release.
- After the wipe, strip each teat 2-4 times to express milk onto the floor. This will cause any bacteria that was residing in the end to the treat to be put onto the floor, and allow the milker to examine the milk to see if anything is abnormal.
- Next is the pre-milking dip with a commercial dip product. Ensure the dip is on long enough.
- Finally, is the pre-milking wipe to clean off the pre-dip. You want a clean dry teat to ensure minimal chances of bacteria gaining entry into the teat. Always use a clean dry towel for the wipe.
With the discontinuation of urea uterine boluses, people have asked about what to use instead. Well, we are kind of up a creek without a paddle here! There are no other intra-uterine products available, and I don’t foresee any companies jumping into this market either. The options we have are Excenel or Excede. These antibiotics are labeled for metritis and must be injected per label directions.
- Excenel must be used at 2cc/100lbs IM or SC for 5 days with no more than 15 cc per injection site.
- Excede must be used at 1.5 cc/100 lbs and repeat dosage in opposite ear in 72 hours (3 days after first dose).
Foot Wraps; How many could cause an issue? With hoof trimmers applying tetracycline to hairy heel warts and the ability to test milk to find even smaller levels of antibiotics, do we need to be worried about having a hot load after the hoof trimmer comes? Based on what we have looked at and discussions we have had, we are saying the answer is no. But remember if a cow has two or more feet wrapped, we suggest keeping her milk out of the tank until the wraps are off. If you have 15 cows with foot wraps, but they have only one foot wrapped, you should be fine.
Having seen several calves this spring with white muscle disease, it is a reminder that it’s very important for cows to be receiving the correct amount and correct type of minerals, and/or to give your newborn calves a shot of Multimin 1cc/100 lbs at birth. Selenium deficiency will cause white muscle disease that manifests itself as unthrifty calves that are unable to stand or nurse very early in life.
Recently we received information from the Sauk County Health Department regarding a “Partners in Health” initiative. The department has gotten a grant from Compeer to help farm employers and their workers with the recent concern over TB on dairy farms. For free, you may be able to have the health department come to your farm 3 times to consult, test, etc. Because of the nature of patient confidentiality, they assure us that worker information is safe and that participation will not put farms or workers at risk. We have information on our website, a link on facebook, letters on the doctors trucks, and letters at our front desk with many more details. Or you can contact Diane Haley, the Sauk County Public Health Nurse directly at 608) 355-4303.
Stay healthy out there!
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Sunrise Vet Services March 2019 Producer Newsletter
Well, winter still has not let go of us. Snow and cold is forecasted for as far as the weather person can predict! Well, with red tractors at my disposal, I’m not really worried. Now, if they were green or orange, well, then I would be very worried! I think they are allergic to tough weather! PRODUCER MEETINGS: A big thank you to Dr. Kurt and Krysty, our sponsors at Boehringer Ingelheim, and to all those who attended our Calf Meeting held on Feb. 19 at the VFW Post hall. We covered calving and post calving management and it was great to see such a high turnout… 77 people! This just goes to show what a high interest our clients have in increasing their knowledge base! Some in the crowd appreciated John’s ability to actually demonstrate a calving. It was a worthy performance. According to John, it was, “Damned good!” Yup. Dr. Kurt had several very good points during his presentation:
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John demonstrating a normal birth presentation.
John demonstrating an abnormal birth presentation.
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Next Producer Meeting: 6 Factors of Dairy Financial Success will be a lunch meeting at 12:30 on March 19th at the VFW on the east side of Reedsburg. We will review six specific dairy production factors that drive success on a dairy as measured by net farm income. This is very important information that can seriously impact your bottom line. This meeting is sponsored by Zoetis and will feature Dr. Matt Boyle as our speaker. This should be an especially great meeting for dairy producers! So we can plan for food, please call to RSVP by Friday, Mar. 15th. (Jill thanks you!)
Foot Wraps with Possible Milk Residues
Dr. Darren recently read an article where researchers examined how levels of tetracycline powder in foot wraps could potentially cause a milk residue. In Canada the allowable limit of tetracycline in milk is 100 ppb, however in the US it is 300 ppb. In this study, with two feet wrapped with 25 grams of powder, the level of tetracycline was 244 ppb, which would be a violation in Canada; however, it would not be a violation in the US. What does this mean for you? The advice we are giving at this time is: If you have a cow with 2 or more feet wrapped with tetracycline at the same time, we are recommending a hold on her milk for as long as the wraps are on.
You create a healthy wonderful product which is turned into a multitude of additional items used by both people and industry. Every load of milk is tested for antibiotics at the farm and plant. It is a very safe product. Can you have a hot load from feet wraps? If you had a cow with severe foot rot or hairy heel warts on 2 or more feet and tetracycline was used, although unlikely, it is possible.
✸It is noteworthy that treatment with tetracycline has not been effective in curing John of his toe fungus issues. Just sayin.
March Farm Cat Special: Now is the time to call to get your cats fixed. Got to many? Spay and neuter them with our Farm Cat Special for SVS clients only. Male Neuter = $30.00, Female Spay = $45.00
There are a few stipulations for the Farm Cat Special:
- All cats must be in a carrier or a "Live" trap
- Any fleas or internal parasites noted at the time of the procedure will be treated at an additional cost to the owner. (Approximately $17/cat)
- A surgical appointment is required to be made so we can save you a spot.
- To keep costs low, no pain medications will be included in the price of surgery. Owners may elect to have their cats receive pain meds at an additional cost based on the cat’s weight.
- Proof of Rabies Vaccine needs to be provided. If no vaccination has been performed, the cat will receive a Rabies Vaccine on the day of surgery at a reduced cost of $5.
- A $10 Distemper Vaccine can also be administered to your cats on the day of surgery if you choose. If this is their first vaccination, a 2nd distemper booster should be given 3-4 weeks later. The booster vaccine can be dispensed to you, for you to administer at home.
- To receive this special pricing, payment for these services is required at time of service.
BSE: What Is It and Why You Should Do It.
A BSE is a Breeding Soundness Exam that is done on breeding bulls. We can do them on either beef or dairy bulls of breeding ages >12 months old. We evaluate the bulls physical structure, feet, legs, and reproductive tract. The testicles will be measured and we collect semen to examine through a microscope. Which bulls should be tested? All of them! Young virgin bulls can fail their BSE just as a mature bull can fail. And just because a bull passed last year does not mean that it will pass this year. This is a test that should be repeated annually. Age or outward physical appearance does not correlate with passing/failing a BSE. When we test, the bull can either pass or it can fail, in which case we might suggest retesting them. If the bull does fail, although we can retest them, we’d suggest getting a fertile bull right away versus waiting to see if the one you have will improve.
How much does a BSE cost? We charge $25 per exam. That does not include our time or chute if needed. Total cost is usually about $100-150 for a single bull. Will doing a BSE give you a good return on your investment? How much does a herd of open cows cost? A cow needs to wean a calf every year at 500 lbs for $1.50 per pound = $750. Let’s say you have 6 out of 25 cows open. That’s a loss of $4,500 for this year. Spend $150 to make $4,500. Makes sense doesn’t it? Some people say it’s a bull insurance policy. However you look at it, test those bulls. Stay ahead of the game. When we come out to preg check your herd, if we find open cows, we might suggest a BSE on the breeding bull, but by then valuable time and money are already lost.
Drug Updates: Some products are on backorder and other products are not being made anymore.
On Manufacturer Backorder: Cystorelin, Penicillin, Xylazine tranquilizer, and Polyflex. We may have some of these coming in, but availability is very limited and we do not have a definite time when they will be available again. Just check in with us.
Items Not Being Made Anymore: Aspirin, Urea uterine boluses.
These are all beyond our control. We just want to try to keep you in the loop for your information.
If anyone has any thoughts regarding John and his toe fungus issue, by all means let him have it. :)
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Sunrise Vet Services February 2019 Producer Newsletter
Great googly moogly it was cold the last few days! WOW, even my head got cold while I was talking. That much hot air and I still couldn’t keep the noggin warm! I did learn several things in the ultra cold weather. 1. The mighty Chevy diesel did just fine. It just ran for 72 hours straight without being shut off… not kidding.2. I set a new personal record of -40 degrees outside temp while I worked (outside that is of course!) 3. I never knew nose and ear hair would respond to such cold weather with such explosive growth! Too bad it’s not working for the top of my head! :( |
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Hopefully everyone got through the cold blast with minimal problems, i.e. frozen pipes, equipment breakdowns, etc. If any of your cattle did get frostbite, it may take several days to a week to have the damaged tissue show up. Unfortunately there is nothing we can do to correct frozen tissue. A calf can live without ear tips or even missing some of its tail; however, they need to have 4 good feet to walk on and grow properly. If the damage is too severe, the animal should be put down to ease its suffering.
Producer Meetings Update:
BQA: Beef Quality Assurance program.
BQA promotes beef (all types beef and dairy beef) by several means. With added training, producers are making a quality product even better. Beef consistency for eating, tenderness, cuttability, and taste is being improved. Residues continue to be reduced with better record keeping. By having a better product I hope you get paid better. Several sale barns/buyers are requiring BQA certification to be on file when selling cattle. You can take classes online (BQA info: https://bqa.beeflearningcenter.org/ ) and several counties are offering in person training also. The Sauk County Ag agent is hoping to have an in person class in April. You can call the Sauk County Extension office at 355-3250 and ask for the ag agent once we get farther into spring for more info on that class. I took the class online and it didn’t take very long. Once you finish, you can print your certificate and send or FAX it along with your consignment information to your sale barns of choice.
4-H Farm & Tractor Safety Course: Do you have anyone in your family between the ages of 12 and 18? If so, you might be interested in this 4-H program being offered. For under age individuals to be able to legally drive a tractor off farm, other than immediately across the road, they must have
received tractor certification. Also, If you will be driving on the grounds of the Steam & Gas Show,
you have to be certified. So the Sauk County Extension program is offering a 4-H Farm & Tractor Safety Course which is open to anyone 12 years old and up. The classes will
be held at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 325 Mill Street, Loganville every Tuesday evening from
4:30PM to 8:30PM February 5 through March 12, with the final driving test on March 16. You must attend all classes; 24 hours of education-training is a certification requirement. To register contact the Sauk County UW Extension Office at 608-355-3250 by January 28. (Cost is $25/ person with checks written out to Sauk County 4-H & mailed to 505 Broadway, Baraboo, WI 53913.
As a thank you to just OUR farm clients, Sunrise would once again like to offer low cost spays & neuters for your barn cats on Thursdays during the months of MARCH and again in AUGUST 2019. We will not be advertising this service to the public; It will only be available to you, our dedicated clients. If you’d like to bring in a cat or cats for surgery, just give us a call at the clinic so we can get them scheduled into a surgery slot before we get booked up. Because we will continue regular business at our small animal hospital during this time and because we need to assure that all of our clientele, staff, and patients stay safe and healthy, there are a few stipulations:
Vaccine Prices for Cats Participating in the Farm Cat Surgery Special: Rabies $5.00 Cat Distemper $10.00
★Note: Bring in 3 or more cats on the same day & receive an additional discount of 10% off your cat’s surgical bill.
Thanks to all those who made and bid on items for the United Fund Radio Auction!!! My sweet tooth has been satisfied for the next several weeks. Hats off to Gavin Bros. for trying to keep up with my auctioneering skills. I thought I heard them saying something after the auction on how “special” my auction technique was. If that’s not a complement, I don’t know what is!
Producer Meetings Update:
- We have a dinner meeting set for Tues. Feb. 19th at 6pm at the VFW that will be featuring a panel of the Sunrise Vet Doctors!!! They will be discussing Calves & Calving with information that you might not be aware of but that the doctors WISH everyone knew. This meeting is sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim and will also feature Dr. Curt Vlietstra discussing the 5 "C"s of calf care as well as vaccines. This would be a great meeting for both beef producers as well as dairy folks.
- We have a late lunch meeting set for Tuesday, March 19 at 12:30 at the VFW on 6 Factors of Dairy Financial Success. We will review six specific dairy production factors that drive success on a dairy as measured by net farm income. This meeting is sponsored by Zoetis and will feature Dr. Matt Boyle as our speaker. This should be an especially great meeting for dairy producers!
- Please call to RSVP at least 2 days before each mtg so we can plan for food. (Jill thanks you!)
BQA: Beef Quality Assurance program.
BQA promotes beef (all types beef and dairy beef) by several means. With added training, producers are making a quality product even better. Beef consistency for eating, tenderness, cuttability, and taste is being improved. Residues continue to be reduced with better record keeping. By having a better product I hope you get paid better. Several sale barns/buyers are requiring BQA certification to be on file when selling cattle. You can take classes online (BQA info: https://bqa.beeflearningcenter.org/ ) and several counties are offering in person training also. The Sauk County Ag agent is hoping to have an in person class in April. You can call the Sauk County Extension office at 355-3250 and ask for the ag agent once we get farther into spring for more info on that class. I took the class online and it didn’t take very long. Once you finish, you can print your certificate and send or FAX it along with your consignment information to your sale barns of choice.
4-H Farm & Tractor Safety Course: Do you have anyone in your family between the ages of 12 and 18? If so, you might be interested in this 4-H program being offered. For under age individuals to be able to legally drive a tractor off farm, other than immediately across the road, they must have
received tractor certification. Also, If you will be driving on the grounds of the Steam & Gas Show,
you have to be certified. So the Sauk County Extension program is offering a 4-H Farm & Tractor Safety Course which is open to anyone 12 years old and up. The classes will
be held at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 325 Mill Street, Loganville every Tuesday evening from
4:30PM to 8:30PM February 5 through March 12, with the final driving test on March 16. You must attend all classes; 24 hours of education-training is a certification requirement. To register contact the Sauk County UW Extension Office at 608-355-3250 by January 28. (Cost is $25/ person with checks written out to Sauk County 4-H & mailed to 505 Broadway, Baraboo, WI 53913.
As a thank you to just OUR farm clients, Sunrise would once again like to offer low cost spays & neuters for your barn cats on Thursdays during the months of MARCH and again in AUGUST 2019. We will not be advertising this service to the public; It will only be available to you, our dedicated clients. If you’d like to bring in a cat or cats for surgery, just give us a call at the clinic so we can get them scheduled into a surgery slot before we get booked up. Because we will continue regular business at our small animal hospital during this time and because we need to assure that all of our clientele, staff, and patients stay safe and healthy, there are a few stipulations:
- All cats must be in a carrier. Live traps are acceptable.
- Any fleas or internal parasites noted at the time of the procedure will be treated at an additional cost to the owner. (Approximately $17/cat)
- A surgical appointment is required to be made so we can save you a spot.
- To keep costs low, no pain medications will be included in the price of surgery. Owners may elect to have their cats receive pain meds at an additional cost based on the cat’s weight.
- Proof of Rabies Vaccine needs to be provided. If no vaccination has been performed, the cat will receive a Rabies Vaccine on the day of surgery at a reduced cost as part of this promotion. (See prices below)
- If you choose, a Distemper Vaccine can also be administered to your cats on the day of surgery. If this is their first vaccination, a 2nd booster vaccine should be given 3-4 weeks later. The booster vaccine can be dispensed to you, for administration at home.
- To receive this special pricing, payment for these services is required at time of service.
Vaccine Prices for Cats Participating in the Farm Cat Surgery Special: Rabies $5.00 Cat Distemper $10.00
★Note: Bring in 3 or more cats on the same day & receive an additional discount of 10% off your cat’s surgical bill.
Thanks to all those who made and bid on items for the United Fund Radio Auction!!! My sweet tooth has been satisfied for the next several weeks. Hats off to Gavin Bros. for trying to keep up with my auctioneering skills. I thought I heard them saying something after the auction on how “special” my auction technique was. If that’s not a complement, I don’t know what is!
Sunrise Vet Services January 2019 Producer Newsletter
Alas, 2018 has come and gone. Well, what did I learn during this past year?
Lesson 1: Boy, I am just too damn good at the naked rain dance. I think I may be in a
league above “Supreme Professional” based on my results!
Lesson 2: When it rains for 6 weeks in the fall, it’s darn tough to make corn silage.
Lesson 3: 2018 was a tough year for everything in agriculture; dairy, beef, corn, beans, even for picking rocks it was a down year!
Lesson 4: In my many visits with farmers, no one is sad to see 2018 go into the history books.
Lesson 5: We lost some good people and farms this year, but we also met new people and gained some fantastic farms, and we’ve enjoyed new babies coming into this world.
Producer Meetings Update:
We are currently trying to nail down dates on two meetings, but this is what we are tentatively looking at:
Just a Reminder:
As of Jan. 1st, we need to have all pet services paid for at the time of service in the clinic. If seen on the farm, you will receive an invoice right away that needs to be paid for separately from your farm invoice that is sent at the end of the month.
Farm Transition Planning: Get started now! Don’t delay! I recently had a talk with a client about this. Her parents are both in their early 90’s and have been living on the home farm. The elderly wife had to go to a nursing home because of health reasons. Their out of pocket cost is $9,000 per month. Yes that is $108,000 per year! In talking with her dad, he said, “I wish we had done something 5 years ago to help prepare for this.” I believe nursing homes also have the right/ability to go back for up to 5 years to garnish your money that you have to pay for your stay at the nursing home. Your farm is the largest asset you will have in your lifetime. It is well worth spending time with a lawyer and accountant to set up a plan for what will happen with the farm, equipment, cattle, etc. If it costs you $1,000 for their time, but you save $30,000-$100,000 in the long run, then that is a fantastic return on investment. Please take the time to set everything up the way you want. Once you’re gone, if you did not have your wishes written down and legally recorded, no one will be able to read your thoughts and fulfill your wishes.
Even with the weather acting the way it has, pneumonia has not raised it ugly head lately. However, remember that your cattle live outside 24/7, and if they live on a bedding pack, the warmer the weather, the more the pack will break down and create ammonia. And the presence of ammonia leads to pneumonia. Clean, dry, and fresh air helps keep the vet away. Manage your curtains daily to help control moisture levels in your buildings. It hasn’t been terribly cold this winter yet, so keep moving those curtains up and down as the temperatures change.
By the way, we will soon be launching our “Sunrise Attire Photo Contest” on Facebook so we encourage you to use your imagination and to post some interesting poses in some interesting settings while showing off your Sunrise Veterinary Services articles of clothing. Ham it up… Funny is good... And the winner will receive a free Kwik Trip dinner on John! (P.S. Don’t get too excited. It’s not an “all you can eat” dinner after all.)
Oh, by the way; No one got me anything from my Christmas list, but I was lucky enough to get a lump of coal from everyone at the office. I told them that with enough heat and pressure, I am going to turn that coal into a diamond! I’m thinking it will be about 12.75 carats when I am done with it. So if you see me sitting in my truck with a serious look of concentration on my face, please don’t interrupt me as I am probably busy applying pressure and heat to my lump of coal! After all, everyone knows that I am but an unpolished diamond on the inside, right?
Alas, 2018 has come and gone. Well, what did I learn during this past year?
Lesson 1: Boy, I am just too damn good at the naked rain dance. I think I may be in a
league above “Supreme Professional” based on my results!
Lesson 2: When it rains for 6 weeks in the fall, it’s darn tough to make corn silage.
Lesson 3: 2018 was a tough year for everything in agriculture; dairy, beef, corn, beans, even for picking rocks it was a down year!
Lesson 4: In my many visits with farmers, no one is sad to see 2018 go into the history books.
Lesson 5: We lost some good people and farms this year, but we also met new people and gained some fantastic farms, and we’ve enjoyed new babies coming into this world.
Producer Meetings Update:
We are currently trying to nail down dates on two meetings, but this is what we are tentatively looking at:
- Thursday Feb. 28: Dinner Mtg on Calving: What We Wish You Knew & the 5 C's of Calf Care. From labor signs to watch for to delivery and afterwards. Sponsored by BI: Speakers will be Dr. John and Dr. Kurt Vliestra.
- Tues. Mar. 12: Noon Mtg on Financial Benchmarks and Management Strategies of a Successful Farming Enterprise Sponsored by Zoetis: Speaker will be Kevin Boyle.
Just a Reminder:
As of Jan. 1st, we need to have all pet services paid for at the time of service in the clinic. If seen on the farm, you will receive an invoice right away that needs to be paid for separately from your farm invoice that is sent at the end of the month.
Farm Transition Planning: Get started now! Don’t delay! I recently had a talk with a client about this. Her parents are both in their early 90’s and have been living on the home farm. The elderly wife had to go to a nursing home because of health reasons. Their out of pocket cost is $9,000 per month. Yes that is $108,000 per year! In talking with her dad, he said, “I wish we had done something 5 years ago to help prepare for this.” I believe nursing homes also have the right/ability to go back for up to 5 years to garnish your money that you have to pay for your stay at the nursing home. Your farm is the largest asset you will have in your lifetime. It is well worth spending time with a lawyer and accountant to set up a plan for what will happen with the farm, equipment, cattle, etc. If it costs you $1,000 for their time, but you save $30,000-$100,000 in the long run, then that is a fantastic return on investment. Please take the time to set everything up the way you want. Once you’re gone, if you did not have your wishes written down and legally recorded, no one will be able to read your thoughts and fulfill your wishes.
Even with the weather acting the way it has, pneumonia has not raised it ugly head lately. However, remember that your cattle live outside 24/7, and if they live on a bedding pack, the warmer the weather, the more the pack will break down and create ammonia. And the presence of ammonia leads to pneumonia. Clean, dry, and fresh air helps keep the vet away. Manage your curtains daily to help control moisture levels in your buildings. It hasn’t been terribly cold this winter yet, so keep moving those curtains up and down as the temperatures change.
By the way, we will soon be launching our “Sunrise Attire Photo Contest” on Facebook so we encourage you to use your imagination and to post some interesting poses in some interesting settings while showing off your Sunrise Veterinary Services articles of clothing. Ham it up… Funny is good... And the winner will receive a free Kwik Trip dinner on John! (P.S. Don’t get too excited. It’s not an “all you can eat” dinner after all.)
Oh, by the way; No one got me anything from my Christmas list, but I was lucky enough to get a lump of coal from everyone at the office. I told them that with enough heat and pressure, I am going to turn that coal into a diamond! I’m thinking it will be about 12.75 carats when I am done with it. So if you see me sitting in my truck with a serious look of concentration on my face, please don’t interrupt me as I am probably busy applying pressure and heat to my lump of coal! After all, everyone knows that I am but an unpolished diamond on the inside, right?