Effects of treatments with endectocide on the weight gain of grazing cattle in a warm temperate climate.

Five groups of 20 weaned beef calves were injected subcutaneously with either an ivermectin, a doramectin, an abamectin long-acting formulation, an ivermectin long-acting formulation or a saline control, at turnout and 60 and 120 days later. The animals grazed the same pasture and were sampled and weighed at turnout and 30, 60, 90, 120, 150 and 180 days later. At turnout the mean bodyweights of all the groups were similar and faecal culture showed that they had a mixed strongyle infection of Cooperia, Haemonchus, Ostertagia, Oesophagostomum and Trichostrongylus species. After 180 days, the mean bodyweight gains of each group were respectively 62.1 kg, 102.2 kg, 106.4 kg, 107.3 kg and 110.1 kg for the control, ivermectin, doramectin, ivermectin long-acting and abamectin long-acting groups. All the products significantly improved the weight gains of the cattle, and significantly reduced their faecal egg counts.