Animal Health Support

Animal Health Support for

Sustainable Livestock Farming

 
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Joan Lloyd Consulting offers animal health support services for sustainable livestock farming.

With 38 years in the animal health industry, I bring broad livestock health experience and networks, creative thinking and passion for the health and welfare of animals to all of my work.

 

About Me

My core belief is that when we use animals for our benefit, we have a moral responsibility to ensure they are healthy and well-cared for.

Since establishing my consulting business in 2008, I have developed a reputation for providing well-thought-out animal health support to the livestock industries.

The health and wellbeing of my clients’ animals are important to me, as is my clients’ trust in the advice I provide. I pride myself on providing a high quality, professional service backed by my years of experience and expertise.

 

Contact

Services I Provide

Consulting

I have 16 years’ consulting experience providing animal health and welfare science support services and technical advice in veterinary infectious diseases and control options.

My clients have included the pharmaceutical industry, government, the agricultural research and development corporations, veterinarians, and farmers.

The advice I have provided to my clients includes national and farm level disease control programs; food safety aspects of farm animal diseases, including risk assessment and antimicrobial stewardship; best practice for common farm animal husbandry practices; and the efficacy and safety of veterinary drugs.

My consulting services include small ruminant (sheep and goat) disease investigations, supported by my in-house laboratory.

Mentoring, Training & Presentations

My broad mentoring and training experience includes teaching and training veterinary students, veterinary nursing students, farm industry personnel, abattoir personnel and veterinarians.

I have delivered numerous presentations at scientific conferences, workshops, field days and online.

Presentation topics have included best practice animal husbandry, animal health plans and infectious diseases of cattle, sheep and goats.

I recently developed and delivered training in Emergency Animal Disease Response to the Australian Red Meat Processing Industry. The online training modules for the training are now available on the Australian Meat Processor Corporation website.

Research & Writing

I have more than 30 years experience conducting and managing research projects and programs on an extensive range of infectious diseases of farm animals, including viral, bacterial and parasitic diseases.

Other research projects have included analgesia for common sheep husbandry procedures and development of nonsurgical alternatives.

I can help you design and implement your next animal health or welfare research project.

I am skilled at managing complex research projects across multiple organizations and can help you manage large, multi-faceted research programs across several research institutions.

I can also help prepare technical publications, from content through to design.

Recent News & Updates

News
New Research Publication on Ovine Respiratory Syncytial Virus
New Research Publication on Ovine Respiratory Syncytial Virus

I am pleased to announce that a paper on my research on the ovine strain of Respiratory Syncytial Virus was published in the October 2023 issue of the Canadian Journal of Veterinary Research. The paper describes the results from my recent abattoir survey of sheep pneumonia pathogens circulating in sheep flocks in southern Australia.

Pneumonia in sheep is common in Australia. As part of the abattoir survey, I collected bronchial swabs from 1095 sets of lungs representing 253 abattoir lots of sheep and lambs.

The bronchial swabs were tested for ovine Respiratory Syncytial Virus using an in-house qPCR based on the F gene sequence of the virus, with 2.4% testing positive.

Sample Collection for Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae in Sheep
Sample Collection for Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae in Sheep

I am frequently asked the best sample to collect to test sheep for Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae infection.

The answer to this question can be found in the early research on Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae conducted by the Australian Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO).

Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae in Goats
Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae in Goats

Detection of Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae in goats is becoming increasingly common in Australia. So, what is Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae, how does is cause disease and what can goat owners do to find out if their goats are infected or, more importantly, prevent their goats becoming infected.

Mycoplasmas are a type of bacteria. Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae infects the lungs of goats.

PCR to Identify Gastrointestinal Nematodes in Sheep and Goats
PCR to Identify Gastrointestinal Nematodes in Sheep and Goats

Parasitism with gastrointestinal nematodes (worms) is common in sheep and goats.

Most grazing sheep and goats are infected with several different types of gastrointestinal worms, with different pathogenic effects.

I have recently introduced PCR testing for two parasitic gastrointestinal nematodes of sheep and goats to my laboratory, including Haemonchus spp. (Barber's Pole worm) and Trichostrongylus spp. (Black Scour worm).