1. Diseases of Beef Cattle
Intro to animal science

2. Symptoms of a healthy bovine.
Temperature – to degrees
Pulse rate beats per minute
Respiration rate breaths per minute
Chewing cud

3. Clostridium chauvoei -Blackleg
Cause: bacteria in soil absorbed through perforations in the intestinal wall
Symptoms – cattle 6 mo to 2 years are most susceptible
Lameness
Loss of appetite
Rapid breathing
Depression
High fever

4. Blackleg ( symptoms cont’d).
Swelling
develops in hip, shoulder, chest, back or neck
Small, hot, painful at first
Muscle becomes spongy and gaseous
Animal usually dies in 12 to 48 hours

5. Blackleg – Treatment There is no treatment for blackleg
Disease kills quickly and animal is usually found dead

6. Blackleg - Prevention 7 – way, blackleg plus redwater
Given at two months, weaning, then yearly
Vaccination of cow towards the end of pregnancy builds immunity in new calf

7. Clostridium perfringens – Enterotoxemia Type C and D
Cause
Increased grain consumption causes proliferation of bacteria in the digestive tract
Causes lesions in the digestive tract
Bacteria produces toxins
Commonly called “overeating disease”

8. Enterotoxemia symptoms/treatment
Bloody diarrhea
Sudden death
Treatment
No treatment; toxins do not react to antibiotics

9. Enterotoxemia - Prevention
7 – way, blackleg plus redwater
Given at two months, weaning, then yearly
Vaccination of cow towards the end of pregnancy builds immunity in new calf

10. Clostridium septicum – Malignant Edema
Causes: Similar to blackleg
Caused by bacteria in the soil
Enters through injection sites, castration site, lacerations on rams from fighting, through lacerations in the vulva at parturition
Usually occurs in animals under two years old

11. Malignant Edema - symptoms
Death
Swelling – decomposition of tissue (similar to blackleg) on autopsy, muscle is dark brown to black; no buildup of gasses

12. Malignant Edema - Treatment
Antibiotics may be helpful if edema is caught early.
Usually no treatment

13. Malignant Edema prevention
7 – way, blackleg plus redwater
Given at two months, weaning, then yearly
Vaccination of cow towards the end of pregnancy builds immunity in new calf

14. Clostridium novyi; C. Sordelli – Black Disease – Infectious Necrotic Hepatitis
Causes
Bacteria in the soil
Consumed and proliferates in the liver
In the presence of liver flukes (worms) causes legions

15. Black Disease – symptoms/treatment
Decreased ability to move
Unsteady gait and collapse
Increased body temperature
Treatment
None
Bacteria creates toxins that do not respond to antibiotics

16. Black Disease- prevention
7 – way, blackleg plus redwater
Given at two months, weaning, then yearly
Vaccination of cow towards the end of pregnancy builds immunity in new calf

17. Clostridium haemolyticum Redwater
Causes
Bacteria found in alkaline soils(pH of 8 or higher)
Warm season and marshy pastures – common in western states
Cattle older than one year are at highest risk
Carried in water, soil, and feces

18. Redwater – Symptoms/treatment
death
Rapid breathing
High fever
Weakness
Anemia
Lack of energy
Dark, red, foamy urine-60% of red blodd cells are destroyed
(thus the name redwater)
Treatment
none

19. Redwater Prevention 7 – way, blackleg plus redwater
Given at two months, weaning, then yearly
Vaccination of cow towards the end of pregnancy builds immunity in new calf

20. IBR – Infectious bovine rhinotracheitis
Cause
Bovine Herpesvirus-1
Highly contagious
Stress can cause reactivation in animals that have “recovered”
Symptoms
Abortion
Respiratory tract infections (crusty nose)
Conjunctivitis
Genital infections
Brain infections (encephalitis)
Generalized infections in new born calves

21. IBR – Treatment/Prevention
Virus cannot be treated
Secondary infections cantrolled
Prevention
Quarantine of new cattle
Obtain a health certificate for new purchases
vaccination

22. PI3 – Para-Influenza 3 Causes Symptoms 24-36 hour incubation period
Pyrexia (elevated temperature)
Cough
serous nasal and lacrimal (glands around eye) discharge
increased breath sounds

23. PI3 – Treatment/Prevention
Virus itself cannot be treated
Bacterial (conjunctivitis, pneumonia, etc.) infections can
Fatalities are not common
Prevention
Vaccination usually in combination with IBR

24. BVD – Bovine Viral Diarrhea
Causes – BVD virus
Symptoms
Common in calves 6-24 months old
fever
lethargy
loss of appetite
ocular /nasal discharge
abortion
oral lesions
Diarrhea
decreasing milk production

25. BVD Treatment Virus cannot be treated
Symptoms may be treated with antibiotics
Prevention
Vaccination-usually in combination with BRV
Cull animals that test positive

26. BRSV – Bovine Respiratory Synctial Virus
Cause
Virus
Symptoms
watery to thick mucous discharge from the nose and eyes
increased temperatures
increased breathing rates
decreased appetites or go off feed
appear slightly depressed
Lactating cows may have a sudden drop in milk production
In pastured cattle that are not seen daily, sudden death may be the first sign of BRSV infection.

27. BRSV – treatment/prevention
No treatment for virus
Symptoms can be controlled
Prevention
Vaccination

28. BSE – Bovine spongiform encephalopathy “Mad Cow”
Cause
Prion protein
Consumption of mammal based proteins containing the prion
FDA has banned use of bone meal and suspect animal proteins since in rumninant feeds; banned all high risk materials (brain and spinal cord) in all animal feed since 2007
Symptoms
behavioral changes
coordination problems
weight loss
decreased milk production
The incubation period from time of infection until the onset of clinical signs averages three to six years.

29. BSE – Treatment/prevention
Treatment – none
Vaccination – none
Four confirmed cases, in cattle, have occurred in the U.S. (‘03, ‘05, ‘06, ‘12)
The BSE epizootic in the United Kingdom peaked in January 1993 at almost 1,000 new cases per week. Over the next 17 years, the annual numbers of BSE cases has dropped sharply; 14,562 cases in 1995, 1,443 in 2000, 225 in 2005 and 11 cases in Cumulatively, through the end of 2010, more than 184,500 cases of BSE had been confirmed in the United Kingdom alone in more than 35,000 herds.

30. Brucellosis - Brucella abortus “Bangs”
bacteria
spread from vaginal discharge of infected cow or from an aborted fetus
Can be transmitted via semen and milk
Symptoms
abortions
retained placenta
weak calves
infertility

31. Brucellosis – treatment/prevention
No treatment
Prevention
vaccination administered by a veterinarian and subsequent tagging for proof
Idaho Code requires that all intact female cattle in the state used for breeding, grazing or dairying purposes be officially vaccinated against brucellosis. ISDA requires the vaccination of all imported intact female cattle and domestic bison 4 months (120 days) and older prior to entering the state. If cattle are of Idaho origin they must be vaccinated prior to becoming 1 year of age. Cattle that are older than 1 year and are of Idaho origin may qualify to be adult vaccinated for brucellosis.
Idaho lost it’s “Brucellosis Class A Free” status in 2009 and is now “Class Free”; animals can be required to be tested coming from “hot” areas.

32. Anthrax - Bacillus anthracis
Causes
Bacteria
Spore may survive for decades in soil
Symptoms
Death - progression from a normal appearance to dead in a matter of hours
weakness, fever, excitement followed by depression, difficulty breathing, uncoordinated movements and convulsions
Bloody discharges from the natural body openings
edema in different parts of the body are sometimes observed
After death, the animal's body rapidly decomposes.

33. Anthrax Treatment Prevention
If caught before symptomatic, antibiotics may help
Prevention
vaccination programs
rapid detection and reporting, quarantine,
treatment of asymptomatic animals (post-exposure prophylaxis)
burning and burial of suspect and confirmed cases
vaccination of all grazing animals in the endemic area and by implementation of control measures during epizootics.
Vaccination should be done 2–4 wk before the season when outbreaks may be expected. Because this is a live vaccine, antibiotics should not be administered within 1 wk of vaccination.

35. Foot in Mouth Viral and highly contagious
Animals are destroyed from the whole herd
Last U.S. outbreak was 1929
Largest recent outbreak was England, 2007
The US will not import cattle from countries with a history of Foot in Mouth.

36. zoonosis
A zoonosis is a disease that can be transmitted from animals to humans
Examples:
Anthrax – wool sorters disease in humans (skin form)
Brucellosis – undulant fever in humans
Mad cow – Crutzfeld Jacobs in humans
Is this a true zoonosis?