Barry Dan O’Sullivan, a practising vet in Co. Kerry and Kerry senior footballer visits Mike Fitzgerald’s sheep flock just outside Dingle in Co. Kerry to discuss mid-season lamb worm control. 

Mike runs a 270-ewe flock, with the main breeds being Texel and Mule crosses. He runs an indoor lambing system, lambing form St. Patrick's Day onwards.

In early June, on recommendation from Barry Dan, Mike carried out a faecal egg count to establish if there was a need to dose his lambs for worms.

Results came back showing a high worm burden. Barry Dan and Mike considered this information, coupled with general lamb thrive and decided that a worm dose was warranted.

Barry Dan established that Mike has dosed earlier in April for nematodirus using Albex 2.5% (white dose) and factoring in these elements, Barry Dan recommended Moxodex Oral as an effective second worm dose for Mike’s lambs. 

Barry Dan based this recommendation on a number of factors;

Increased lamb thrive - Lamb thrive is essential to Mike as he aware that a heavy worm burden can reduce lamb average daily gain by as much as 40%. Taking a target  weekly weight gain of 1.5kg/lamb and conservative price per kilo of €3.50 live weight, this could result in a loss of €2.10 in lamb thrive per week. In a flock of upwards of 400 lambs, this could add up to €840 loss per week in overall lamb thrive. Using Moxodex Oral allows Mike’s lambs to progress with no setback from a heavy worm burden. 
Eight-week dosing interval - Moxodex 1mg/ml oral drench has a persistent action of up to five weeks against Telodorsagia and Haemonchus, allowing for an eight-week dosing schedule. This minimises handling of lambs, reduces stress on both the farmer and the animals and reduces the risk of injuries during handling/gathering;
14-day withdrawal period - Moxodex Oral has a significantly shorter withdrawal period than other wormer groups. Mike can draft lambs that are fit for the factory just 14 days post-dosing, targeting better market prices;
Reduced pasture contamination - Moxodex Oral, with the active ingredient moxidectin, is the only wormer that persists long enough to suppress egg output for enough time to reduce the risk of pasture contamination and potentially reduce the need for multiple worm treatments. This could save Mike time and money, and reduce the number of worming doses used on a farm.

Ultimately gastrointestinal roundworms in lambs costs growth through reduced feed intake and decreased gut absorption and if left unchecked in severe cases can lead to permanent gut damage. 

Therefore, Barry Dan recommends timely appropriate worm control as a priority to reduce the impact that stomach worms may have on lamb performance and profit margin.

Moxodex Oral - when used appropriately in conjunction with faecal egg counts and good pasture management - can improve lamb health and welfare, and maximise lamb thrive, leading to a shorter lamb finishing period and increased profits.