05/14/2026
One of the questions we get asked A LOT is whether or not we vaccinate our cattle — and whether cattle receive mRNA vaccines — so we wanted to talk a little about what we actually use and why.
The short answer is yes, we do vaccinate our cattle. Preventative herd health is a major part of raising cattle responsibly and humanely. Vaccines help reduce illness, stress, suffering, and in many cases death loss within a herd.
Some of the vaccines commonly used in cattle help protect against diseases such as:
1️⃣ Clostridial diseases (“7-way” or “blackleg vaccines”)
These diseases are caused by naturally occurring bacteria found in soil and the environment. Many are extremely aggressive and often fatal with very little warning.
Examples include:
• Blackleg — sudden death and severe muscle damage
• Malignant edema — severe swelling and tissue infection
• Black disease — severe liver damage
• Enterotoxemia (“overeating disease”) — rapid toxin buildup that can quickly kill growing calves
2️⃣ Respiratory diseases (IBR, BVD, PI3, BRSV, Mannheimia)
Respiratory illness is one of the most common health issues in cattle and can cause pneumonia, fever, poor growth, chronic lung damage, and death in severe cases.
Good herd health is about more than one shot or one product. It’s nutrition, minerals, clean water, pasture management, low-stress handling, observation, and preventative veterinary care all working together.
And because we get asked this often too: there are currently no commercially available mRNA vaccines approved for use in beef cattle in the United States.
At the end of the day, our goal is healthy cattle raised responsibly and humanely because sick animals suffer — and no producer wants that.