Protecting Your Flock Starts at the Gate – Act Now on Lice with Flexolt
Practical Steps to Strengthen Lice Biosecurity
Sheep lice cost Australian wool producers millions annually, reducing fleece value by up to $22.45 per head by reducing clean fleece weight by 0.2–0.9 kg, and yield by 2.6–6%.
Research shows 73% of producers buy in sheep — mostly rams (81%) — yet only 31% treat introduced animals for lice. That means roughly 7 in 10 farms are leaving the door wide open for infestation.
Making matters worse, 70% of properties fail to eradicate lice in a single treatment attempt due to incomplete treatment, split shearing, lambs at foot, and biosecurity failures. This means a new lice infestation this year can impact a flock for several years despite efforts to eradicate.
Five steps to tighten your biosecurity:
- Assume every introduced sheep is lousy — new infestations take 3–6 months to become evident.
- Quarantine and treat on arrival — among producers who quarantine, 8 in 10 isolate for 30 days or less. Hold sheep separately, treat for lice, then quarantine again post-treatment.
- Inspect thoroughly and repeatedly — check at least 10 sheep with 10 wool partings per side.
- Maintain stock-proof fencing — 85% of producers have neighbours with sheep, only 37% of producers have a biosecurity and actions plan in place for when strays are found.
- Never mix treated and untreated sheep.
With Flexolt, you can treat introduced sheep immediately — regardless of wool length — without needing to shear. Prevention through strong biosecurity is overwhelmingly the better investment.