Cattle
Two Rivers Vets offers a full range of services for dairy and beef herds. Our experienced vets are keen to help with the health and welfare of all cattle leading to efficient production and a profitable business. All our vets attend regular training to keep up to date with current diseases and best management practices that we can implement on farm. Below are a few examples of the services we can provide for cattle. For more information on emergency work in cattle see our farm emergencies page.
Herd Health Planning
All farm clients are invited to complete a health plan questionnaire, which is followed up by a meeting with one of our vets on farm or at the practice.
During this time farm records, laboratory reports and target areas for improvement can be discussed. An individual health plan, tailored to your farm is then created which can be updated on an annual or bi-annual basis.
Premium Cattle Health Scheme (SRUC) and HiHealth Herdcare (Biobest)
Enrolment in one of the herd health schemes can led to improved herd health and increased saleability of stock for both pedigree and commercial farms. Testing and management programmes are available for the control of the major infectious diseases BVD, Johne’s Disease, IBR, Leptospirosis and Neospora. If you would like to discuss whether health scheme membership may be of benefit to your farm, please contact the either surgery to chat with one of our vets or email Trevor Black.
Reproductive work and fertility
Our vets routinely carry out fertility work on farm and the practice is equipped with ultrasound scanners to facilitate this.
For beef units reproductive efficiency is key to profitability. We can help achieve this with:
Pre-breeding checks performed 1 - 3 weeks after the end of calving season to ensure cows are clean (free from uterine infection) and cycling
Pregnancy scanning, ideally six weeks after the bull is removed, to give accurate calving dates and detect empty cows at the earliest opportunity. More empty cows at scanning than expected could highlight issues with bull fertility or indicate the presence of infectious disease such as Leptospirosis, BVD, IBR or Neospora
Synchronisation programmes to tighten calving patterns and introduce new genetics via artificial insemination
Pelvic Scoring – to aid heifer selection
For dairy units:
Routine fertility visits where cows are presented for pregnancy diagnosis, post calving checks and infertility
Having the vet on farm regularly provides an ideal opportunity to discuss any other problems or queries you may have
Bull Fertility
We advise fertility assessment of all bulls is carried out prior to the breeding season each year. Bulls can also be tested and certified prior to sale.
The practice has invested in specialist equipment to enable us to provide this service and two of our vets have undergone additional training in this field.
Routine work
Our vets are happy to provide on farm routine visits to aid in the production of your herd. This may include visits for routine dehorning or to castrate a batch of calves. We can also provide advice on youngstock management at these visits with respect to conditions such as calf scour or pneumonia and more. We ensure the practice has a registered Official Veterinarian (OV) which means we are able to provide your routine TB testing, Private testing for export or agricultural shows can also be accommodated.
Emergency work
Have a look at our farm emergencies page for more information regarding non-routine visits such as calvings, prolapses and sick animals.