Parkside Vets - Farms and Smallholders

15/09/2025

CPD Adventures for Shannon!

Last week, Shannon—one of large animal vets—headed down to Birmingham for some Continued Professional Development (CPD).

As part of the RCVS requirements, vets must complete at least 35 hours of CPD each year to keep their skills sharp and their knowledge up to date.

While there, Shannon encountered a couple of rather unusual coos… not quite the kind she’s used to seeing around our Parkside clients 👀🐮

We’re proud of our team’s commitment to lifelong learning and delivering the best care to all creatures—great and small.

12/09/2025

🐏 Have You Booked Your Ram Yet? Time Is Running Out!

We’ve already seen a great response to our ram fertility checks—but if you haven’t booked yours yet, now’s the time!
💡 Why it matters:
• S***m production takes 6–7 weeks—so what you do now affects lambing success.
• Subfertile rams can cost you in missed pregnancies and poor lambing rates.
🧪 What we offer:
• Full breeding soundness exam
• Semen evaluation
• Nutritional advice tailored to your flock
🧂 Top Tip: Start high-zinc mineral licks and conditioning feed now to boost fertility and stamina.

📞 Call us today or message us to secure your appointment before tupping season kicks off!

10/09/2025

🐑🐓 Calling All Smallholders & Farm Clients! 🐄🐖
Whether you’ve got a few hens, a handful of sheep, or a growing herd — we’re here to support you! 🩺💚
✅ Routine health checks
✅ Vaccinations & parasite control
✅ Herd & flock health planning
✅ Advice on nutrition, housing & welfare
✅ Emergency care when you need it most
Our experienced farm team understands the needs of smallholders and hobby farmers. Friendly, practical advice — just a phone call away!
📞 Give us a ring (01382 811111) or pop in for a chat.

05/09/2025

🦠 Bluetongue Virus Update – What You Need to Know Before Buying Stock

From 21st September, new movement rules come into effect for Bluetongue Virus (BTV-3). While cooler Scottish weather may limit the virus’s lifecycle this autumn, the risk doesn’t disappear — especially if infected animals are brought onto farm.

👉 Recommendation: Only buy animals that are fully vaccinated against BTV-3.

✅ If the animal is pregnant, ideally it should have been vaccinated before conception.

📍Why it matters:

Infected animals may not show signs immediately.

They could carry the virus into next season, creating problems for your herd or flock down the line.

Let’s keep things safe and simple — vaccination is the best line of defence.

📎https://www.gov.uk/government/news/bluetongue-latest-situation

If you’re unsure about vaccination status or movement rules, please phone the large animal office on 01382 811111. . We’re here to help.

Overview of current bluetongue cases, risk level, vaccinations and restrictions.

02/09/2025

🐑 Store Lambs Arriving? 🩺

Keep your flock safe and lambs healthy with these essentials:
🔒 Quarantine – Isolate for 3–4 weeks. No contact with your main flock.
💉 Treat Early – Worm with two products, treat for scab, lice & fluke.
👣 Foot Care – Footbath regularly, check for lameness & infections.
🧪 Monitor Health – Watch for iceberg diseases, test for trace elements if growth is slow.
📋 Plan Ahead – Set up a worming & vaccination schedule with your vet.
Healthy lambs = better growth & returns. 🐏💪

29/08/2025

🐄 Cattle at Grass – Late Summer Watchlist 🌿

As grass quality dips, keep an eye on:

🔍 Parasites – Worm burdens can spike. Faecal egg counts help guide treatment.
🌾 Nutrition – Supplement if growth slows. Monitor weight gains.
🧪 Health – Watch for signs of pneumonia, scours, and joint issues.
📋 Biosecurity – Review herd health plans and disease contingency protocols.

Work with your vet to stay ahead of seasonal risks. Healthy pasture, healthy cattle! 💪

28/08/2025

🪶 Do You Keep Chickens in Scotland? 🐔

Whether you have a backyard flock or run a commercial poultry operation, you must register your birds on the Scottish Kept Bird Register.

This is a legal requirement introduced to help monitor and protect Scotland’s bird population—especially during outbreaks of avian diseases like bird flu. Registration is free, quick, and easy, and applies to all types of kept birds, including chickens, ducks, geese, racing pigeons, and more.

📍 For more information:- https://keptbirdregister.service.gov.scot

Let’s keep Scotland’s birds safe and healthy! 🐣

26/08/2025

Ewe Fertility

As we know ewes are short day breeders – they need it to be dark in the afternoons for the reproductive hormones to do their job. However, did you know there are a few things we can do to manipulate these hormones in order to advance the breeding season, or to synchronise your ewes.

From using teasers, to melatonin implants, or progesterone releasing devices (such as CIDR or sponges) - there are lots of different protocols that can help tighten up your lambing period or bring the breeding season forward.

If you are interested in how we influence fertility, please contact the office on 01382 811111 or email [email protected]

22/08/2025

Are your tups working for you?

Did you know we can test your tups’ fertility to ensure come scanning time there’s no nasty surprises?! This involves a full health check and then we use electro-ejaculation to produce a semen sample for evaluation – we know it sounds extreme, but tups tolerate this well and there are no welfare concerns in this process!

If you are interested in getting your tups tested, or if you want to know more about the process, please give the office a call on 01382 811111 or email [email protected]

20/08/2025

Don’t be a tease!

A reminder that if you are planning on using teasers this year then give the office a call to get the vasectomies booked in plenty of time – remember these can be done on farm, or save yourself the visit fee and bring your boys into the practice! Dundee or Ladybank.

If you aren’t using teasers but want to know more, please give the office a call on 01382 811111 – they can help to tighten up your lambing period, ensuring all the ewes are ready for action when the tups go out🐑

15/08/2025

📍Combines have been out, dust is in the air, trailers on the move, and cattle quietly getting on with things in the background — it must be harvest time.🚜

📍We know it’s flat out just now, and catching a vet for a chat might be low on the list (somewhere between fixing the grain dryer and finding that missing spanner).

📍But if something’s niggling — a lame cow, a fly problem that’s flaring up, or a mineral question you’ve been meaning to ask — we’re here when you need us.

📞 01382 811111