Horn Fly
I recently began noticing sores on the ears of cows. My first thought was that a cow had gotten her ear caught on a branch, but when I saw the same scrapes on several cows, I began to pay closer attention. We recently had rains in June which caused the blood sucking, parasitic horn fly to emerge in full force. The horn fly is a nuisance that distracts cows from eating in peace. It also lays its eggs in cow cakes and then returns to feed on the cow, which causes bites to get infected. The vet recommended a pour-on solution called Ultrasaber on the back of the cows and an insecticide ear tag. I was working alone last Friday, so I only applied the pour-on and thoroughly sprayed the cows with 10% permethrin solution for immediate relief. I also treated their ears with an antibiotic ointment similar to Neosporin. After being treated, the cows seemed a lot happier without the flies buzzing around their faces.
