by Sandy Stuttgen

“Going once, twice — sold!” As the gavel falls on your cattle purchase, do you really know what you bought?

What is their health history? What diseases have they tested negative for? When were they last vaccinated or dewormed, and what products were used?

Herd additions have inherent risk. Every movement of cattle onto your cow-calf operation — be they cows, heifers, calves or bulls — brings biosecurity risks to your farm. Prior to transport, animals can appear normal and healthy, but they may be incubating or carrying diseases. They are likely to break with disease following the stress of transportation and adjusting to their unfamiliar environment. It is critical to isolate new additions so any sickness they break with is not shared with your home herd.

Isolation means eliminating nose-to-nose contact between the incoming cattle and the farm’s resident cattle for 30 days, and feeding and caring for new additions after the home animals to reduce disease spread. Clean and disinfect feeding and handling equipment and your footwear before and after handling new additions.

Ask for test results before purchasing animals and/or test new additions for diseases that could jeopardize the herd.

Common diseases. Require and be willing to value negative test results for persistently infected bovine viral diarrhea (BVD-PI), bovine leukosis virus (BLV), brucellosis and Johne’s disease.

Venereal diseases. To protect your herd from venereal diseases that may be carried by new additions, purchase virgin bulls and heifers from herds with documented strategies for preventing trichomoniasis and vibriosis. In addition, negotiate non-virgin bulls and female cattle purchases to be contingent upon testing negative for trich and vibrio. If possible, avoid having new bulls run with the herd. Artificially inseminate purchased cows and heifers, or if naturally breeding, keep them in a separate group for at least one season.

Hairy heel warts. Inspect the hooves of animals you are considering purchasing for hairy heel warts and ask about their prior exposure to it.

Worms. Use fecal egg counts to test incoming animals’ worm status.

You need veterinary involvement. Some areas have fewer veterinarians, which means you may have to search for a vet who will work with your operation. Develop your veterinarian-client-patient relationship, and leverage that relationship to evaluate your herd’s disease resistance. Together, you can design the vaccination and nutrition program to boost herd immunity; identify the facility’s contribution to health from ventilation, bedding and protection from weather extremes; and evaluate the potential for spreading disease throughout your operation.

Lastly, as the sound of the gavel hitting the auction block fades, do not forget about tire and trailer biosecurity risks. All transport trucks and trailers should follow a designated path within your operation to loading and unloading areas. Hardy pathogens will ride on tires and trailers between auctions and operations.

Stuttgen is a veterinarian and the University of Wisconsin Extension agriculture educator in Taylor County.