DIGGING DEEPER - AG CHATS WITH AL
Real farmers, real conversations, practical insights and inspiring stories.
Join Al Micallef and special guests to help unlock your farm's production potential.
Whether it's in relation to drought or economic shifts, this podcast is your go-to for developing resilience in agriculture.
This podcast is made possible by the Future Drought Fund Regional Drought Resilience Planning Program co-funded by the Victorian and Australian Governments.
DIGGING DEEPER - AG CHATS WITH AL
DIGGING DEEPER - Liver Fluke and Livestock Management with Chelsea Hair
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Al opens 2026 by thanking listeners for the podcast’s first full calendar year and outlining plans for more practical guests, more local producer stories, and monthly segments from Chelsea (Herd Solutions) with veterinary updates and Mor (Elders) with livestock market reports. In the first remote-recorded episode, Chelsea shares a personal update about recovering from a broken toe and managing horse handling and footwear, then explains equine Cushing’s disease as a lifelong hormone-driven condition linked to a functional brain tumor, risks around insulin dysregulation and laminitis, diagnosis via ACTH blood testing, and management with daily medication and low-sugar feeding. The discussion shifts to livestock liver fluke: its snail-dependent lifecycle, risk environments (slow-flowing water, marshy areas, irrigation), signs such as ill thrift and bottle jaw, links to black disease, and recommended strategic drenching timings, plus cautions about interpreting abattoir health codes and using resources like Wormboss and NSW DPI fact sheets.
00:00 Welcome to 2026
01:03 Remote Podcast Setup
01:42 Conference Trip Chat
02:44 Toe Injury Recovery
06:10 Horse Training Goals
08:51 Cushings Explained
12:50 Fluke Season Overview
13:47 Fluke Lifecycle and Snails
17:05 Testing and Biosecurity
20:49 Signs and Complications
24:39 Drench Strategy and Resistance
31:04 Abattoir Reports Decoded
33:46 Resources and Wrap Up
35:08 Quote and Final Thanks