Sheep

Our Sheep Services at a Quick Glance:

24/7 care with full after hours cover
Surgical services
Artificial Insemination & Reproduction Management
Pregnancy Scanning
Vaccination Programmes
Drench Resistance Programmes
Disease Controls Plans
Animal Health & Feed Planning
Seminars and Staff Training

Sheep production and medicine has come a long way in the past 50 years. Vet Services is proud to have been part of nearly every advance made in practical on-farm management:

Introduction of vaccination programmes with vaccination against diseases such as clostridial infection (blood poisoning), salmonella, campylobacteriosis, toxoplasmosis.
Introduction of anthelmintic and combination drenches as well as mineralised drenches.
Disease control programmes such as earlier brucellosis vaccination of rams are now replaced by brucellosis monitoring and eradication programmes.
Some of the first cases of drench resistance were reported by our veterinarians, in both sheep and in goats.
Introduction of a large-scale sheep pregnancy scanning service with accurate and cost-effective run-through machines operated by our vets and technicians.
Involvement in some very large artificial breeding programmes with both the release of exotic sheep breeds (such as the Finnish Landrace, the Texel, the Awassi and the East Friesian), as well as work with individual breeders with AI/ET programmes for advancement of superior genetics.
Trial work for many drug companies, investigating efficacies and safety of many of the vaccines, drenches and dips available. This is very precise work but gives us an insight into how well certain products work and gives us the confidence to include them into Animal Health Programmes.
Involved in small locally important on-farm trials as well as a large funded study in 2000/2001 investigating the causes of vaginal prolapse (bearings) in ewes that involved 300,000 ewes.
Regular involvement in public programmes such as Meat and Wool Monitor farms, locally run field days and other national farmer field days.
Regular attendance of Sheep Vet Conferences both within NZ and abroad. With our intense involvement in our local sheep industry, our vets often present papers at these conferences.
Development of Animal Health Plans to ensure the correct timing and use of all animal health products, as well as incorporating management and husbandry procedures for efficient and effective farming.

Sheep are the cornerstone of pastoral farming in the lower North Island and one of the main reasons that the Farmers Vet Club came into being. Vet Services vets are passionate about sheep and sheep production.

Our Sheep Services at a Quick Glance:

OUR ANIMALS, OUR COMMUNITY.

Beef

Deer

Dairy

Working Dogs

Lifestyle

Our Locations

Dannevirke

Napier

Hastings

Waipukurau