This is the main category that all Ridgeway News is posted to.
Spring Grazing Deficits: Why Isn’t the Grass Growing? Across the UK, many farmers are reporting grazing deficits. This occurs when the demand for feed from pasture is greater than the amount of grass actually growing. When this happens, farmers must provide animals with extra feed to keep them healthy and maintain growth. With peak lambing season upon us, there are many extra mouths to feed in UK flocks. So why isn’t grass growing as much as expected? And what can…
Read More
Regenerative Agriculture: A Hopeful Outlook Livestock farming is both essential for the survival of our species, and yet also detrimental to the planet we live on. Raising animals for meat and dairy produces around 14.5% of all anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. Crop and animal monocultures damage biodiversity. Primary forest is cleared every day for grazing land and for more crops. Climate change and environmental degradation paint a bleak picture of our future. But what if there was a way that…
Read More
To Worm or Not to Worm: Anthelmintic Resistance in Dogs This month is National Pet Month and across the UK people are celebrating the support, love, and affection we receive from these wonderful animals. We all want to keep our pets healthy and regular worming treatment is considered part of that. But is it really the best option? Can repeated treatment of worms lead to wide-spread anthelmintic resistance in dogs as it has in livestock? Which worms can dogs catch?…
Read More
Schmallenberg Virus: What are the facts? Schmallenberg virus (SBV) was first encountered in October, 2011 in Northern Europe.1 The virus was initially isolated from a sample from the town of Schmallenberg, which is how it got its name. The virus is associated with clinical disease in ruminants, both domesticated and wild, and can cause a wide variety of clinical signs. It is transmitted by biting midges (Culicoides spp.), much like bluetongue virus, and can cause extreme problems in infected animals.…
Read More
Tick Prevention Week: What you need to know for companion animals What are ticks? Ticks are very commonly found on companion animals, but do you as an owner know how to prevent this? What are the consequences of a tick bite and what do you do if man’s best friend has a tick on him? Ticks are well known vectors of disease, and can transmit disease from animal to animal, and from animals to humans. It is not ticks themselves…
Read More
Tick Prevention Week: What you need to know for livestock What are ticks? Ticks are obligate parasites, meaning they require a host to complete their lifecycle. They are of great veterinary and medical importance as they are only inferior to mosquitos in their disease spreading potential. Tick species feed on livestock and other animals around the world and are a diverse and successful group. Tickborne agents can be mildly pathogenic, severely pathogenic and some can infect humans too. Additionally, ticks…
Read More
Toxoplasmosis What is toxoplasmosis? Toxoplasmosis is an infection caused by the protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii. While symptoms in humans are usually mild, if a pregnant woman becomes infected, it can have severe implications for both her and her baby. Infections in livestock animals such as sheep can cause abortion of lambs and lower birth weights. Infected cows , however, tend to be more resistant to the disease.1 What is the lifecycle of Toxoplasma gondii? The only definitive hosts of Toxoplasma,…
Read More
Why you should avoid lambing if you’re pregnant Lambing season is upon us and the lovely sight of new-born lambs brings a welcome spring picture after the long winter. However, lambing can pose quite a significant risk to pregnant women. There are multiple bacteria, parasites and viruses that are present in bodily fluids that can potentially cause problems in humans. This is also true for recently born lambs, ewes that have recently given birth and any contaminated material such as…
Read More
Listeriosis in sheep What is listeriosis? The bacterium Listeria monocytogenes causes listeriosis across the world. It is associated with serious disease in a wide variety of animals, including humans. Listeriosis is of major veterinary importance in cattle, sheep and goats. In the UK, it most commonly affects sheep. The gram-positive bacteria can survive in the environment for a long period of time. Grazing animals ingest the organism from pasture, with transmission of the disease via the faecal-oral route. Listeriosis is a zoonotic…
Read More
Spring Pasture: What to consider before letting your animals out to pasture With lambing season upon us, there are many things to consider when grazing animals on spring pasture. Many cattle herds and sheep flocks are housed indoors over the winter months for various reasons. Indoor housing during the winter months provides protection from the elements and cold conditions, as well as conservation of energy that would have been spent keeping warm – meaning the energy can be better put…
Read More
