Farmers Get the Message on Anthelmintic Resistance

Farmers have been getting the message about anthelmintic resistance in a series of workshops organised by a veterinary practice and Novartis Animal Health.

Iwan Parry, senior partner at Tudor, Lawson, Dallimore & Parry, in Dolgellau, North Wales, said the workshops had proved to be an effective way of informing farmers about resistance to sheep wormers.

"We held three workshops, each attended by 15 farmers who had all been specifically invited because they might be affected by anthelmintic resistance.

The workshop structure was very simple but extremely effective. The farmers not only enjoyed it but came away with real knowledge about the issues," said Mr Parry.

"I sometime feel that we vets talk at the wrong level to farmers. I believe that significant numbers of them are not aware of SCOPS practice, and vets have an important part to play in getting this across," he said.

SCOPS (Sustainable Control of Parasites in Sheep) was formed to develop strategies for parasite control in sheep and to oversee the delivery of recommendations to the industry.

"This is about the transfer of knowledge, and the workshops are the way forward," said Mr Parry.

Anthelmintic resistance is an ongoing issue for the sheep farming industry, and there is real concern among animal health experts that the problem will worsen if products are not used correctly by farmers.

Kensa Berry, Veterinary Account Manager with Novartis Animal Health, who helped to organise the workshops, said: "This was a different approach to previous meetings we have held in that the participants were all invited, and then actively participated in the session."

"The farmers split into three groups, each group including a vet or a Novartis employee. We started with some icebreaking exercises and then each group discussed topics relating to worm resistance management and on farm productivity, including a practical session." she said.

"It was a very simple grounded discussion, with the vast majority of farmers coming to the same conclusion. Every single farmer participating said it was very helpful sharing their experiences," she said.

"We spoke for about an hour-and-a-half about resistance, with some information at the end about how Zolvix would fit into their worm control strategy," she said.

"Zolvix has an important role to play in managing the problem of anthelmintic resistance. Because of its zero-resistance status, its use in general worm control programs in lambs and during quarantine drenching is recommended," she said.

"We would like to see more of these workshops taking place across the country because they are an extremely effective way of tackling the problem of anthelmintic resistance," she said.