Pinkeye outbreaks tend to flare-up over the warmer months, as grass seeds, dust and flies play their part in aggravating and spreading the disease. Flies are attracted to the infected eyes, feeding on the secretions before moving from animal to animal spreading the disease. As a result, cattle producers may need to pull out all the tricks in their bag to break the chain and manage flies this summer.
Key Points
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Flies play a major role in spreading pinkeye
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FlyBye user experience in line with trial results
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BoviPro-FlyBye: Dual Purpose Supplement
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BoviPro-FlyBye supports natural immunity and digestibility of dry feed while assisting to reducing fly pressure
To answer the call, ANP developed and commercially launched BoviPro-FlyBye in 2024. BoviPro-FlyBye is specifically designed to increase the digestibility and utilisation of poor-quality dry feed and reduce insect pressure at times when flies can cause stress to cattle.
Ongoing research and trials by AusFarm Nutrition Products (ANP), over the past five years culminated in the creation of FlyBye, a specifically formulated combination of several organic and inorganic ingredients that have been shown to reduce fly pressure on cattle. An independent study involving one of the individual components of FlyBye saw a reduction of pest-fly coverage on beef cattle by 47% and a reduction of observed defensive behaviours by cattle of 41% (Durunna and Lardner, 2021).
What do ANP customers say?
Reports from local customers using FlyBye have been very positive. ANP dairy customers have been using FlyBye in their macros for five years now, and reports from all customers are very much in line with what we have seen in the data. Although there are flies present in the dairy and around the cattle while grazing, FlyBye helps to deter the flies from landing on the cows. Users of the product also reported a reduction in defensive behaviours including tail whipping, stamping of the feet and most notably a large reduction of animals huddling together while grazing in the paddock, which is common in dairy operations during summer.
Beef customers trialling BoviPro-FlyBye for the first time in 2024 reported a similar experience. Cattle were noticeably calmer in the yards and from a quantitative perspective, producers noted a large reduction in pinkeye compared to previous years, albeit the summer of 2024/25 being a particularly heavy season for flies. It was also noted that a reduction in yarding the cattle for pinkeye treatment may have also played a role in reducing transmission throughout the herd.
BoviPro-FlyBye: Dual Purpose Supplement
BoviPro-FlyBye is specifically designed increase the digestibility and utilisation of poor quality dry feed, support natural immunity and aid in a reduction of fly pressure on cattle.
From a production perspective, BoviPro-FlyBye is designed to support maintenance in dry cows on straw and native pasture and assist in production of other classes of cattle on dry feed when fed good quality silage or hay.
On top of aiding in the reduction of fly pressure on cattle, BoviPro-FlyBye provides a proprietary blend of essential minerals, vitamins and trace elements to assist in supporting general health and immunity of cattle and aid protecting them from disease challenge (Palomares 2022). With a disease such as pink eye, that is quickly transferred throughout the herd, the immune status of the cattle can play a large role in reducing infection.
For more information about BoviPro-FlyBye or our large range of cattle supplements contact the team at AusFarm Nutrition Products today on 0412 048 055 or contact your closest distributor.
References
- Durunna O, Lardner H (2021) Impact of garlic-infused salt supplement on fly abundance, salt intake, and defensive behaviors in grazing beef cows. Sustain Agric Res 10:54. 10.5539/sar.v10n1p54
- Palomares RA (2022) Trace Minerals Supplementation with Great Impact on Beef Cattle Immunity and Health. Animals (Basel) 12(20):2839. doi: 10.3390/ani12202839. PMID: 36290225; PMCID: PMC9597739.
