Livestock Vaccination Guideline

Vaccinations are one of the most important ways to keep your livestock healthy. Depending on the your heard health, location and other factors, you will want to come up with a vaccination schedule to keep your cows, sheep, and livestock protected. Steve Regan has a wide range of vaccines that will work for almost any livestock producer. Read on to learn about the best vaccines for raising livestock in the Intermountain West.

Vaccination Tips

Depending on the type of vaccine you are administering, it may need to be administered into the muscle, under the skin, or in the nasal passage. Doses are usually administered in milliliters (ml) or cubic centimeters (cc). Try to keep the animals as stress free as possible before, during, and after the vaccine so the vaccine will be more effective. Follow all instructions for handling vaccines including keeping them at the proper temperature. Invest in a good syringe so that you can properly administer the vaccines. 

Common Viruses 

While there are many viruses cattle and sheep can get, there are a few diseases that are the most common that you need to treat for in your livestock. These includes viruses that cause respiratory issues, pneumonia, bacterial viruses, and clostridia viruses.

Respiratory Diseases -  These diseases are especially hard on your calves and sometimes the herd. Common viral diseases include IBR, BVD, BRSV, PI3, Roto & Corona Viruses. Give shots when working calves at branding and weaning.

Clostridial Diseases -  There are eight Clostridial diseases that cause harm in cattle and sheep. The major clostridial diseases are tetanus, botulism, blackleg, clostridial hepatitis, overeating disease, malignant edema, and acute cervical edema. Clostridium bacteria can result in rapid death of otherwise healthy animals. 

Bacterial Diseases  -  These include Brucellosis, H Somni, Lepto, Vibrio, and Pasturella/Mannheimia. Lepto is caused by Leptospira bacteria such as hardjo, and Pomona. Unsanitary conditions such as dirty water and rodents can make this abortion causing disease more prevalent. You will want to give your cattle (including the bulls) shots that cover Vibrio and Lepto before breeding.

Scours -  Scours, or calf diarrhea, is a common result of bacterial and viral infections in the lining of calves’ intestines. Common viruses that cause scours include Coronavirus, Rotavirus, and E. Coli. Watch for a watery stool and sunken eyes as signs of scours which will cause dehydration and loss of electrolytes.

Pinkeye - Pinkeye affects millions of calves every year and can wreak havoc on your herd. It is caused by the bacterium Moraxella bovis and outbreaks are most common in the summer and fall when flies are more pervasive. 

Pneumonia - Pasteurellosis is a common result from the stress of moving calves which is why it's often called shipping fever. This disease comes from the Mannheimia haemolytica and Pasteurella multocida pathogens. Vaccinate calves at weaning and branding. 

Tetanus - Tetanus is caused by clostridium tetani bacterium. Goats and sheep are more susceptible to this disease and can be treated with a CD/T vaccine which will also provide protection against overeating disease. Give this vaccine to pregnant ewes, and then you will give the lambs a shot and booster after they are a few weeks old.

Worms -  Cattle can get parasites including roundworms, tapeworms, and flukes that can reduce appetite and weight gain. Flies, lice, and ticks can also make your livestock sick, and these can all be treated with a good dewormer when you are working your cattle. 

Vaccination Schedule

One of the trickiest parts of vaccinating your herd is knowing what shots to give and when to give them to your livestock. When you're working calves they will need vaccines for clostridials, Respiratory diseases, and Mannheimia. Many producers do the first shots at branding and a booster at weaning. Cattle generally need these same boosters that include a vaccine for Lepto and Vibrio diseases. Follow this chart to stay on top of your vaccines for livestock. Many vaccines will need to have a booster given later on so it's important to stay on top of your vaccine schedule.

Vaccination Tools

We recommend using a 1-inch, 16-gauge needle for vaccinating cattle. This is long enough to get under the skin and strong enough that it won't bend. For older sheep and goats use a half-inch, 20-gauge needle and three-quarter-inch or five-eighths-inch needles for younger sheep vaccines. Common Syringes to use for vaccinations include a 12cc Luer Lock syringe, the Prima Shot Repeater Syringe, and the bottle mount syringes.

Protecting Your Livestock

Preventing diseases is essential to keeping your livestock healthy and productive. This is crucial for any livestock producer and allows them to operate profitably and efficiently. If you aren't sure what vaccine your cattle or other livestock need, speak with one of our Animal Health specialists at Steve Regan. We can help you decide what is the best vaccination plan for your herd so you can get the best results out of your operation.