Th e effective control of liver fluke in sheep will be the focus of the next Lochaber monitor farm meeting on Thursday November 1.
Chris and Malcolm Cameron run the 1,200-hectare Strone Farm, Lochaber’s monitor farm, near Fort William. They have seen liver fluke in their sheep for many years and, like many farmers in the area, are keen to minimise its affects in their flock of 550 North Cheviot ewes. At the meeting, Matthew Colston, a ruminant technical consultant from ELANCO Animal Health, will give an overview of the problems liver fluke can cause in sheep and highlight practical steps farmers can take to minimise production losses from the parasite.
Mr Colston will also lead a discussion on the various fluke treatments available for both chronic and acute fluke infections in sheep and will be joined by Mairi Thom from Crown Vets, who will explain how sheep farmers can test for fluke in their own flocks. The main aim of the meeting is to focus the group on the benefits of strategic fluke testing which will ultimately result in better decision making.