MSD Ruminants GB

31/10/2026

Last month, we asked you what your favourite native sheep breed was.

We can exclusively reveal you voted for North Country Cheviot!

Good choice!

So, this month it’s the turn of you beef producers (and anyone else who wants to take part!).

This month we’re asking, what’s your favourite native UK beef breed?

Vote below, and if you want to tell us why you love that breed, or think we should have included others, leave us a comment!

30/10/2026

Calf colostrum survey shows encouraging results!

We surveyed more than 300 dairy farmers, beef producers, and calf-rearers on colostrum use.

The survey revealed:
- A higher proportion of dairy farmers now quality test their colostrum
- More dairy farmers extend colostrum feeding after birth

Here’s Dr Kat Baxter-Smith, MSD Animal Health Veterinary Advisor, with a summary.

27/10/2026

Borderway Agri Expo here we come!

Join the MSD Animal Health GB Ruminants team at the Borderway Agri Expo – a fantastic celebration of Great British livestock!

Held at Borderway Mart, Carlisle, we’ll be providing advice on livestock vaccination protocols, as well as other preventative healthcare strategies.

We’ll also be joined by our colleagues from our livestock monitoring system, SenseHub, and the Allflex team who are experts in ID and EID.

Borderway Agri Expo is one of the UK’s leading events for pedigree and commercial livestock and hosts a number of national shows for cattle and sheep – particularly youngstock.

It also celebrates the people behind the livestock industry with the annual David Thomlinson Lifetime Achievement Award.

The event takes place on Friday 30 October and you’ll find us on stand 23.

Looking forward to seeing everyone there, so don’t forget to drop by our stand for a chat!

24/10/2026

Lameness costs the UK sheep industry millions of pounds every year and is a barrier to sustainable production*.

But what practical steps can farmers take to manage it?

We joined forces with Farmers Guardian to find out.

Our comprehensive webinar, ‘Practical ways to tackle sheep lameness on farm’ takes a comprehensive look at the options, including vaccination and the 5 Point Plan.

It features MSD Animal Health Veterinary Advisor Dr Kat Baxter-Smith and Independent Vet Ruth Clements, who cover veterinary perspectives on lameness and vaccination and practical advice on implementing the 5 Point Plan.

Sheep farmers Bryan and Liz Griffiths then discuss their experiences following the plan on their farm.

To watch the webinar, click here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjFJQ3V-A3Q

You can skip through the different sections using the links in the video description.

*Source: FAI Farms (2016) The Five Point Plan for Tackling Sheep Lameness. Available at:https://www.faifarms.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/5-Point-Plan-Sheep-Lameness.pdf (Accessed: 8 September 2026).

Sheep lameness, caused mainly by infectious conditions such as foot...

21/10/2026

We’re always giving our Veterinary Advisor Dr Kat Baxter-Smith a shoutout on our socials.

Kat is at the heart of our animal health research and speaks at numerous conferences and events for us.

So, we thought it was time to properly introduce her.

Or better still, let her introduce herself.

So, here’s Kat, telling you a bit more about herself and her career!

17/10/2026

Bovine coronavirus is just the start…

A BRD screening service revealed almost 70% of calves on British farms tested positive for coronavirus antibodies [1].

The MSD Animal Health study – carried out between 2022 and 2026 – also found coronavirus-positive groups were more likely to show evidence of other respiratory pathogens, particularly [1]:
- Bovine parainfluenza virus type 3 (PI3)
- 𝘔𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘢 𝘩𝘢𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘭𝘺𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘢 – the bacteria that causes shipping fever

This means controlling coronavirus is vital for preventing other damaging forms of BRD.

Swipe our slides for details on how to do this.

1. MSD Animal Health BRD Screen data, 2022–2026.

14/10/2026

The 2026 FlockCheck results are in… and they don’t make for great reading.

The scheme has revealed high levels of exposure to the two main infectious causes of sheep abortion on British farms.

If you’re a sheep farmer, swipe our slides for vital information.

12/10/2026

Earlier this year, we hosted a webinar entitled ‘Making cryptosporidiosis vaccine work on-farm’.

If you missed it, don’t worry. We’ve serialised it and will be posting excerpts from the session over the coming weeks.

Full of useful, practical information, the webinar explores the impact of cryptosporidiosis, what’s driving the problem, and how vaccination and good management can help prevent the condition.

In this first excerpt, Dr Kat Baxter-Smith, Veterinary Advisor for MSD Animal Health, provides an overview of scour and discusses the impact of cryptosporidiosis.

Look out for future instalments which will include vaccination and other approaches to disease prevention, and we’ll hear from one Pembrokeshire farmer and her vet on how they overcame the condition on farm.



This information was brought to you by MSD Animal Health makers of Bovilis Cryptium® and Bovilis® Rotavec® Corona.

Bovilis Cryptium® contains 𝘊𝘳𝘺𝘱𝘵𝘰𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘶𝘮 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘷𝘶𝘮 Gp40. 𝗣𝗢𝗠-𝗩.

Bovilis® Rotavec® Corona contains inactivated rotavirus, coronavirus and 𝘌. 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘪 strain CN7985 serotype O101:K99:F41 𝗣𝗢𝗠-𝗩𝗣𝗦.

Further information is available from the SPC, datasheet or package leaflets.

MSD Animal Health UK Limited. Registered office Walton Manor, Walton, Milton Keynes MK7 7AJ, UK. Registered in England & Wales no. 946942. Advice should be sought from the medicine prescriber.

Prescription decisions are for the person issuing the prescription alone.

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© 2026 MSD Animal Health UK Limited. All Rights Reserved.

10/10/2026

Combat sheep abortion with our landmark webinar.

MSD Animal Health and Farmers Guardian have teamed up to present a webinar on reducing the risk of sheep abortion.

Why Abortion Prevention Starts Before Tupping is free to join and takes place at 7pm on Tuesday, 25 August.

Hear from expert speakers Jane Lindop (Wales Veterinary Science Centre) and Sara Robson (Regional Veterinary Adviser, MSD Animal Health) on topics including:
- Key findings from the 2026 Flock Check results
- The impact of abortion on flock productivity and profitability
- Practical steps to help manage the risks of toxoplasmosis and enzootic abortion

To reserve your place, click here https://incisivemedia.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN__d9GIQU2T3iHUrTCMWA7dw?_x_zm_rtaid=BzB75EBSSkuOU4aXkOQ7zQ.1786551174521.8c2857e5dd4ab25b109895012dbbc631&_x_zm_rhtaid=767 #/registration