Mock Qs

• a farmer calls you as his sheep flock has suffered an abortion storm. he has 350 ewes lambing indoors. 3 have aborted this morning which makes the total 10. what are your four differentials with your top-ranked differential listed first

  • enzoonotic abortion (chlamydophila abortus)
  • Toxoplasma gondii
  • salmonella spp.
  • listeria spp.
  • Border disease
  • Campylobacter
  • Q fever
• a farmer calls you as his sheep flock has suffered an abortion storm. he has 350 ewes lambing indoors. 3 have aborted this morning which makes the total 10. what are the important questions to ask him before you go to the farm


  • what is the vaccination status
  • is the herd open or closed? when did you last buy in? where from?
  • have you had abortions before?
  • how far away were they from their lambing date?
  • are the aborting ewes sick? how old are they?
• a farm reports issues with watery belly. list some key suggestions to combat this issue


  • clean pens between ewes and ideally use a straw in a plastic pen
  • ensure prompt after birth removal
  • measure colostrum quality
  • ensure hygienic colostrum storage
  • ensure colostrum is received within 6 hours and in a sufficient quantity
• what is watery mouth / watery mouth in lambs?

  a bacterial overgrowth and endotoxaemia in colostrum deprived lambs - commonly caused by E.coli