With the great weather conditions witnessed across the country, calves are getting turned out to grass and parasite control is crucially important ahead of their grazing season.

Calves are born free of parasites and they pick up infection while grazing pastures harbouring the infective stages of these parasites.

The calves turnout to grazing marks the start of exposure to parasites on pasture, such as stomach worms; gut worms; lungworms; mange mites and sucking lice.

Moxodex LA 100mg/ml kills lungworm, gut and stomach worms, lice and mites and offers season-long parasite control with a single injection.

The active ingredients are 100mg/ml moxidectin and under the class of clear wormers (3-ML) and should be injected under the loose skin on the hairy side of the ear.

This long acting anthelmintic is effective against both internal and external parasites and can be administered at turnout to cover the whole grazing season.

Clinic director at Lakeside Veterinary hospital, Pat Murphy said that they have nine vet surgeons at their clinic with expert care for large and small animals in which they have been getting great usage of the latest parasite product from Chanelle.

Animal Veterinary surgeon and dairy farmer from North Tipperary, Jack Sheehy spoke about using Moxodex LA for the last few years.

The vet surgeon and dairy farmer spoke about the parasite control and said: "It's very convenient as it covers lungworm, stomach worms and lice for four months, depending on the parasite species."

Pat mentioned that the residual activity lasts up to 120 days which is very important for herd health and production.

The drug should be administered when calves reach a minimum of 100kg of bodyweight and so the injection may be best suited for autumn calvers at this stage.

Jack mentioned that for spring calved calves that are not quite at 100kg, he encouraged farmers to turn the calves out to grass for three to four weeks before administering a single shot of Moxodex LA for season long protection.

Moxodex LA reduces the time, handling and stress of multiple treatments while reducing pasture contamination with targeted parasites.

The withdrawal period for meat is 108 days and it is not permitted for use in lactating animals producing milk for human consumption or within 80 days of expected parturition.

For beef animals, the product is safe to use at or near calving, but for dairy cows, the product should not be used within 80 days.

The highest risk for Parasitic Gastroenteritis and lungworm is young stock in their first grazing season and Moxodex LA single injection will given you season long peace of mind.

Parasitic Gastroenteritis reduces growth by up to 30% which leads to a delay in reaching slaughter weight for beef cattle and a major delay in first service or poorly grown pregnant heifers in dairy herds.

Maiden heifers not reaching their target weight at mating start date can seriously affect conception rates and the heifers fertility and future production.

Likewise, heifers that are underweight at calving can run into metabolic issues as they calve down and their lifetime production, fertility and health can be negatively impacted.

Lungworm outbreaks can cost in the region of of €60-€120 per animal, not bearing in mind its impact on performance and production.

Vet surgeon, Jack said that the products benefits go beyond parasite control as he said "it reduces the need for multiple treatments, less handling of cattle and less stress on animals and farmers."

The vet surgeon highlighted that by minimising stress, it allows for steady weight gain and reduced set-backs in performance.

He also added that there is less time spent gathering and dosing cattle which improves farm efficiency and reduces labour costs on the farm and it is ideal for farmers with out farms with no handling facilities.

Pat Murphy felt that the product is an ideal choice for the Irish climate and the Irish farmer as it covers the whole grazing season while cattle remain productive, healthy and profitable.

The clinic director at Lakeside Veterinary hospital said that this sustained protection through Moxodectin LA "offers a viable and practical solution for farmers" in pursuit of parasite control all while maximising production and herd health.