As sure as Spring is here, Summer will not be far behind and with that will come the flies. Horn flies that decrease production and face flies that carry the bacteria that causes Pinkeye. Now is the time to start planning the yearly battle against these pests. Horn flies causes cattle to have decreased weight gains and overall production in the herd is decreased. The horn flies cause these losses by biting through the skin of the cattle and sucking fluids from underneath the skin.
Face flies irritate the cattles' eyes by using rasp-like mouth parts to stimulate tear production.
The face flies feed off of these excess tears. More importantly, the face flies carry the causative agent of Pinkeye, Moraxella bovis. So, one of the primary goals of face fly control is the prevention of Pinkeye. Both face flies and horn flies develop resistance to insecticides over time. For maximum prevention, it is advisable to switch the class of drug you use each year or two.