The first calf scour vaccine in the market with a prevention claim has launched today by Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health.
The German multinational firm's new vaccine, Fencovis, aims to protect calves from calf diarrhoea, also known as calf scour.
Calves are born without circulating antibodies and are reliant on those they absorb from colostrum in the first few hours after birth for protection against infection early in life.
Vaccinating cows against key scour pathogens boosts the level of antibodies in the colostrum to help ensure that calves are optimally protected against the disease.
A 2021 German study reported the incidence of diarrhoea to be 18.5% and the most common disease observed in almost 14,000 neonatal calves examined on 731 dairy herds.
Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health says Fencovis is the first calf scour vaccine with a prevention claim against E. coli F5 and bovine rotavirus,
In calves fed with colostrum and milk from vaccinated cows, these antibodies have been demonstrated to prevent diarrhoea caused by rotavirus and E. coli F5 (K99) adhesin and reduce the incidence and severity of diarrhoea caused by coronavirus.
Viral shedding in calves infected by rotavirus and coronavirus was also reduced by Fencovis, Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health explains.
Gerald Behrens, global head of ruminants at the company, says: “We are excited to launch the first calf scour vaccine in the market with a prevention claim.
"Fencovis, together with our lean management training for vets, supports excellence in calf management, particularly around the vital feeding of colostrum to calves.
"Boehringer Ingelheim will provide guidance to veterinarians for the use of lean management tools to maximise the impact of Fencovis on farm and help farmers produce healthier and more productive calves.”
Fencovis will be available in certain markets within the European Union and in the United Kingdom and Ireland before the end of the year.
