INDICATIONS OF BVD DISEASE IN YOUR HERD
In cows BVD causes reproductive failure, abortion, abnormal calves and the birth of PI’s (persistently infected carriers of BVD virus). In calves BVD causes scouring, ill thrift and death. When exposed to this virus, cattle’s immunity is weakened increasing the risk of other diseases penetrating your herd’s health.
BVD can go undetected by farmers, and the disease is maintained by persistently infected (PI) carrier cattle. It’s estimated that this disease costs New Zealand $120 Million annually.
Bovine Viral Diarrhoea (BVD) affects most dairy herds at some time and about 15% of NZ herds will be actively infected today. The cost of BVD has been calculated at between $35 and $87 per cow in infected herds.
About 65% of NZ’s beef breeding herds are actively infected with BVD and the average impact in those herds is a 4.7% decrease in final pregnancy rates compared to uninfected herds. Prevalence of BVD in beef herds is usually higher as less calves are culled from the herd annually.
The key to preventing BVD is to prevent PI’s.
