Often at this time of the year, farmers who have their cattle housed for the winter notice a resurgence in lice symptoms on their cattle, and a secondary lice treatment may be needed.
These cattle may have been treated for lice at housing, but a once-off lice treatment does not always control lice for the duration of the winter.
If cattle are showing symptoms indicating the presence of lice, a secondary control treatment will be necessary.
Some of the main symptoms of lice on cattle are as follows:
- Prolonged scratching;
- Licking;
- Tail swinging;
- Hair loss;
- Inflamed skin.
Secondary outbreaks of lice are common in cattle that are housed over the winter. Some of the causes include new cattle joining the shed after the initial treatment, and the first treatment may not have been targeted by all types of lice.
The two main types of lice that affect cattle are biting lice and sucking lice. Some treatments control both types of lice, but may not control the lice eggs that may be present on cattle.
As a general rule of thumb, injectable products for treating lice will primarily treat sucking lice, and will aid in the control of biting lice, however pour-on treatments generally treat both sucking and biting lice.
Before selecting the treatment to use, farmers should consult with their veterinary practitioner.
Approximately three weeks after the lice treatment, farmers should check to make sure their cattle are showing no signs of lice.
Before using a lice treatment on forward-type beef cattle, farmers should check the withdrawal period on the product.
Lice are an external parasite, and an outbreak in a shed of cattle can be easily controlled, but can have a major impact on livestock performance if left ignored.
