It’s getting to be peak season for ectoparasites and the Beef Cattle Research Council (BCRC) has a number of resources that can help. Ectoparasite is just a $10 word for lice, flies, ticks and other external parasites.
The research council’s web resource zeros in on lice (both the sucking and chewing varieties with four species of particular concern), chorioptic mites that cause mange, ticks (three long-time problem ones and two newcomers), and three types of flies (horn, stable and house).
Along with identification info, the BCRC has advice on using insecticides and common types/brands. It can be found at the ‘Parasites – External’ web page at beefresearch.ca.
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