Diseases and Parasites of Cattle

1. Diseases and Parasites of Cattle

2. Vital Signs of Beef Cattle • Temp. 100.4-102.8 avg. 101.5 • Pulse 60-70 BPM • Respiration 10-30 breaths per minute

3. Anthrax • Caused by bacteria that may remain in the soil for 40 years or longer • Bacteria only become active under certain conditions. • Infection results from grazing infected pastures. • Bacteria enter through the mouth, nose or open wounds. • Biting insects may spread the disease from one animal to another

4. The Anthrax Cycle

5. Symptoms • Sudden death-usually within a few hours of symptoms • Less acute symptoms • High fever • Sudden staggering • Hard breathing • Trembling • Collapse

6. What to Do • Carcasses should be burned or buried at least 6’ deep and covered with quicklime • Take care not to bury the animal near wells or streams.

7. Prevention • Vaccination • In problem areas vaccination should occur yearly • Where it is not common, vaccinate on the recommendation of a vet.

8. Anthrax

9. Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) • Chronic, degenerative disease • Affects the central nervous system • 1 of several brain disease called Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy's (TSE’s) • Other TSE’s • Chronic Wasting Disease in deer and elk • Feline Spongiform Encephalopathy • Transmissible Mink Encephalopathy • Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD- ID in the 1920’s) • New variant CJD (nvCJD ID in 1995) • Gertsmann-Straussler-Scheinker Syndrome • Kuru

10. BSE in the United States and the World • Rare • 3 cases in the United States • First diagnosed in Great Britain in 1986 • The US has not imported any beef from Great Britain since 1985 • USDA and the APHIS maintain constant surveillance and enforce import restrictions.

11. Symptoms • Nervousness or aggression • Muscle twitching • Abnormal posture • Loss of body weight • Decrease in milk production • Difficulty in rising after lying down • Eventual death

12. Causes of BSE • Not fully known • Related to a prion • Prion- a microscopic protein particle that is similar to a virus but lacks nucleic acid • May be contracted by ingesting protein in feed that came from an animal source that was contaminated • Believed to have been caused by feeding cattle renderings from Scrapie infected sheep • 1997 the FDA banned using ANY mammal derived protein in cattle feed in the US

13. Incubation of and Testing for BSE • Ranges from 2-8 years • Death occurs within 2 weeks to 6 months after clinical symptoms appear • No test to determine if live cattle are infected • Only a postmortem microscopic examination of the brain can determine if the animal had BSE • Brain tissue in infected animals has a spongy appearance when examined under a microscope • There is no treatment for BSE

14. BSE

15. Bovine Virus Diarrhea (BVD) • Common throughout the United States • May appear in mild, acute & chronic forms • Spreads by contact

16. Mild BVD • Often no symptoms • If they are present: • Fever • Coughing • Discharge from the nose • Slow gains • Rapid breathing • Mild diarrhea • Animals that have had the mild form of the disease are immune to further infection.

17. Acute BVD • Fever • Difficult breathing • Discharges from the nose and mouth • Possible lameness • Dehydration • Weight loss • Diarrhea after 3-7 days • Pregnant animals may abort if contracted with in the first 2 months of pregnancy • Fetus’s may mummify if contracted from the 90-120th day of pregnancy • Fetus may also suffer brain damage, hairlessness and underdeveloped lungs in later stages of pregnancy

18. Chronic BVD • All the same symptoms as the acute plus • Slow gains • Rough hair coat • Lameness

19. Prevention • Modified live virus vaccine • Vaccinate calves between 1 day of age and 3 weeks before weaning • May be vaccinated upon arrival in the feedlot • They should not be vaccinated if they were vaccinated as calves • Pregnant cattle should not be vaccinated • Adult cattle should only be vaccinated • After calving • At least 3 weeks before breeding • Replacement heifers should be vaccinated between 9 & 12 months of age but not during the last 3 weeks before breeding • No cure

20. Brucellosis • Caused by microorganisms • Results in heavy economic losses • Less common due to state and federal eradication programs—all states are now free of brucellosis in domestic cattle herds • Dangerous to humans

21. Symptoms • Abortion during the last ½ of pregnancy • Retaining of afterbirth (placenta) • Sterility in cows and bulls • Reduced milk flow • Enlarged testicles • Weak calves (if born from infected cows)

22. Brucellosis Spreads By… • Bringing infected cattle into the herd • Fence line contact with infected animals • Aborted fetus’s that carry the Brucella organism being carried to other farms by dogs and other carnivorous animals • Calves being infected by their mothers • Cattle coming in contact with feed or water where the organism is present • Sniffing or licking an aborted fetus or calf from a cow that has the disease

23. Prevention and Cure • No cure • Prevention is accomplished by good herd management

24. Blackleg • Caused by bacteria that grow only in the absence of oxygen • When exposed to air the bacteria form a spore and may live in the soil for many years • Spores enter the animal through the mouth or wounds • Young animals are more commonly affected

25. Symptoms • First sign is one or more animals suddenly die • Before death symptoms are: • Lameness • Swollen muscles • Severe depression • High fever (in early stages) • Animal may be unable to stand

26. Prevention • Vaccination • Calves are vaccinated when young (typically in the spring at branding or shortly after calving) and again at weaning (fall) • Dead animals should be burned or buried

27. Treatment • Massive doses of antibiotics • Treatment is only effective if diagnosed early • Prevention is more effective and less costly.

28. Scours • Disease complex (group of diseases) • Most common in fall, winter and spring • Affects young calves • calves over 2 months of age are seldom affected

29. Symptoms • Acute • Shock • Nose, ears and legs are cold • Diarrhea • Sudden death • Chronic • Symptoms for several days • Weight loss • Death after several days if not treated

30. Prevention • Sanitation • Clean barns and buckets for bucket calves • Calf needs colostrums (first milk) • Supplement the cows diet with Vitamin A before calving • Vaccines (most common types of scours) • Vaccinate mothers at least 30 days prior to calving

31. Treatment • Antibiotics • Sulfa drugs

32. Foot Rot • Caused by a variety of bacteria, fungi and other organisms found in feedlots • Enter the body when the skin of the foot is broken • Muddy, manure filled feedlots only increase the problem

33. Symptoms • First noticeable sign is lameness • Other symptoms • Loss of appetite • Fever • Depression • Animals may not want to stand or move around • Death may eventually result

34. Prevention • Sanitation and paved lots work best • Good drainage and mounds in the feedlot also help prevent conditions that encourage the disease. • Spreading lime and 5% blue vitriol around water tanks and feed bunks

35. Treatment • Penicillin • Wide spectrum antibiotics • Sulfa drugs

36. Lump Jaw • Chronic • Rarely causes death • Results in economic losses because the affected body part is condemned at slaughter • Affects the jaw and surrounding bony part of the head

38. Symptoms • Tumors or lumps on the jaw. • Loose teeth • Spongy jaw bone resulting in breathing problems. • Weight loss due to difficulty eating

39. Treatments and Prevention • Surgical treatment may allow the animal to remain marketable but complete recovery is usually not possible. • To prevent keep sharp objects out of the feedlot or pasture.

40. Pinkeye • Carried by insects • Affects the eye of the animal • A viral form of pink eye is associated with IBR • White faced cattle and those with pink skin pigment around the eye are more likely to be infected • Pinkeye occurs year round but is most common during periods of maximum sunlight.

41. Mild Pinkeye • Eyeball develops a pinkish color • Cornea becomes slightly clouded

42. Acute Pinkeye • Flowing of tears • Cloudiness of cornea • As the infection progresses the cloudy condition becomes worse and ulcers may develop on the eye • The eye may become so damaged that blindness results • The condition may last 3-4 weeks and if not treated will spread to the whole heard

43. Spread By • Insects • Direct Contact with infected animals • Dust • Tail switching

44. Prevention • Control flies and insects • Vacinate

45. Treatment • Isolated in a dark place • Apply Antibiotics and sulfa drugs to the eye • A cloth patch can be used on the affected eye

46. Shipping Fever (PI3 Pasteurella, Bovine Respiratory Disease) • A disease complex that affects the respiratory tract • Most common in young cattle at times of stress

47. Stresses • Moving from range to the feedlot • Extremes of heat or cold • Exhaust fumes • Hunger • Fright • Rough handling

48. Symptoms • Early on----fever • Depression • Drooping ears • Discharge from the nose • Watery eyes • Loss of appetite • Diarrhea • Weight loss • Difficult breathing • Coughing • Pneumonia • Possibly death • If the animal recovers it will be slow to gain

49. Prevention • Vaccination after 4 mo. of age • Best time is 3-4 weeks before weaning/shipping • Reducing stress and exposure • Good feedlot management and careful handling of new cattle

50. Treatment • Antibiotics • Sulfa drugs • Treatment must begin as soon as symptoms are noticed • Treatment after an animal has developed pneumonia is of little value.