Make the most of your time with cattle in the chute this fall. Many producers plan to deworm when they check for pregnancy. But also check those calves – with less mature immune systems, calves less than a year old are more susceptible to worm loads compared to older cattle. If left untreated, the calves don’t perform as well (even if you can’t tell by simply looking at them).

Pasture management is another important part of the deworming equation. Avoid overcrowding to keep animals away from manure where larvae congregate. Larvae also tend to stay close to the ground, so overgrazing your herd is another way they might pick up more of the larvae.