Livestock

SHIPPING FEVER
SHIPPING FEVER 1280 720 Kingsley Emmanuel Bentum

Photo Credit: @2020 All rights observed by Orissa

Shipping Fever also known as Bovine Respiratory Disease Complex is a bacterial disease of cattle usually associated with stress involved in movement. The disease affects the upper respiratory system and is presented with signs such as laboured or rapid breathing, nasal discharges, coughing, anorexia and depression. 

Stress factors associated with movement of animals such as long journeys with little or no rest, starvation, overheating due to poor ventilation in trucks, dust and harsh weather conditions weaken the immune systems of the cattle, and predispose the animals to this disease. Shipping fever is caused by the bacterium Mannheimia haemolytica. It is often complicated by other bacteria; Pasteurella multocida and Histophilus somni.  Already sick or weak animals  and recently weaned calves have a higher chance of contracting the disease due to their compromised and fragile immune systems. While Shipping Fever is usually not fatal, it affects productivity greatly as several animals come down with the infection within a short time.

Elimination of all possible stressors  is the first step for recovery in cattle. Provision of adequate water, open space with fresh air and food are few examples to take note of. Some antibiotics may be prescribed by your veterinarian depending on the implicating bacterium. Vitamin and mineral supplements may be added to the therapy as animals may be weak and would not have enough energy to move about.

Preventive measures for Shipping Fever should include providing resting periods for animals being transported especially during long journeys. The rest period should include provision of food and water for animals. Trucks transporting animals should not be overloaded and must be roomy enough to allow them to breathe and move. It is not advisable to keep sick and healthy animals in the same truck. Calves should be weaned at least 2-3 weeks before transportation. At various animal markets, shelters should be created to protect them from the harsh environmental conditions.

Vaccines for Shipping Fever are available and should be given at least 2–3 weeks prior to transportation.  Vaccination can be repeated when animals are introduced into feedlot.

PREGNANCY TOXAEMIA / KETOSIS
PREGNANCY TOXAEMIA / KETOSIS 1280 720 Kingsley Emmanuel Bentum

Pregnant animals require extra care and attention due to how vulnerable they are when they get to this stage. Healthy animals lead to increased productivity and ultimately income generation. Today’s article focuses on one of the major conditions which affects ewes and does during their last stages of pregnancy. This condition is even more severe when there is twinning. The condition known as pregnancy toxaemia is not bound by geographical location or by season and once it occurs, it is almost always fatal and death normally occurs 2-10 days after onset of disease

CAUSAL FACTORS

This is a metabolic disease which occurs when the nutrition provided cannot meet the demands of the growing foetus. The body tries to compensate for this resulting in the abnormal breakdown of carbohydrates. This process leads to the production of some by-products which when accumulated are harmful to the animal and developing foetus.  Major contributing factors to this condition are:

  1. Poor nutrition
  2. Obese ewes/does
  3. Hormonal imbalance
  4. Heavy worm load
  5. Harsh weather conditions

SIGNS

  1. Loss of appetite
  2. Depression
  3. Lethargy
  4. Convulsions
  5. Recumbency

CONTROL  AND PREVENTION

It is necessary to pay close attention to the diet and body condition score of animals especially during pregnancy. Ewes and Does must be kept in very good body condition and must be fed with high quality roughage  especially during the last 6 weeks of pregnancy.

TREATMENT

Early detection is important for a successful therapy. Treatment is aimed at increasing the blood glucose level. This is done either by oral or intravenous administration of glucose. The glucose requirement of the ewe/doe can be reduced by inducing parturition. However, especially if it is a first time pregnancy, there could be difficulties with delivery and surgery would be the way out to save the young ones.

INTERDIGITAL DERMATITIS
INTERDIGITAL DERMATITIS 1280 720 Kingsley Emmanuel Bentum

Picture Credit: Wikivet

Interdigital dermatitis is a condition that leads to lameness in sheep and goats and is often a predisposing factor to footrot. It is sometimes referred to as Benign Footrot. It is a mixed bacterial infection however, Dichelobacter nodosus has been recognized as the major cause of this condition. Other causal factors of this disease include wet weather, muddy pens, and damp pastures. Diagnosis is based on clinical signs and laboratory testing.

CLINICAL SIGNS

The interdigital skin is red and swollen and may be seen as covered with a thin layer of white exudate. The hoof capsule may be shed in very severe cases. Chronic infections can lead to lameness and formation of misshapen hooves.

TREATMENT, PREVENTION AND CONTROL

The use of topical aerosol antibiotic sprays have proven to be very effective. In farm herds where large numbers have been affected, the whole flock can be treated with 10% Zinc Sulphate solution or 3% formalin in a footbath. High concentrations of formalin greater than 5% can cause irritations. Sheep must be made to stand in a dry area for the formalin or the zinc sulphate to dry on the feet. Footbaths  must be repeated (after a week or two). There is no need to attempt foot trimming.

DIARRHOEA IN NEWLY BORN RUMINANTS CAUSED BY E.coli
DIARRHOEA IN NEWLY BORN RUMINANTS CAUSED BY E.coli 1280 720 Kingsley Emmanuel Bentum

Diarrhoea in newly born ruminants caused by Escherichia coli (E.coli) remains as one of the common conditions of newborns which sometimes leads to death.

E. coli, is a bacterium which naturally resides in the intestines of living organisms and aid in digestion. There are however some strains of E. coli (Enterotoxigenic E. coli and Enteropathogenic E. coli) that cause severe infection especially in the early lives (normally within the first week) of calves and lambs. The infection is sometimes complicated with other pathogens such as Clostridium perfringens and Rota virus.

Enterotoxigenic E. coli release enterotoxins which disrupts the osmotic balance of the gut cells, leading to excess fluid secretion into the lumen of the gut, resulting in diarrhoea.  

Enteropathogenic E. coli affect the intestinal lining, leading to ulcers and erosions of the intestinal walls. Some of these strains of E. coli release toxins (verotoxin) which enhance the erosions of the intestinal mucosa leading to hemorrhages.

Clinical Signs

– Diarrhoea (very clear watery stool or bloody)

– Dehydration

– Death

– Lethargy

– Fever

Treatment and Prevention

– Practice good hygiene especially in delivery pens

– Ensure young animals get colostrum especially during the first week of life. Kids (baby goats)  are however resistant to this infection.

Affected animals are usually given supportive therapy with antibiotics after sensitivity testing has been carried out.

DETERMINE THE AGE OF YOUR SHEEP OR GOAT USING ITS’ TEETH
DETERMINE THE AGE OF YOUR SHEEP OR GOAT USING ITS’ TEETH 1280 720 Kingsley Emmanuel Bentum

Today’s article is a very useful tool in guiding your decision making during buying new animals both for breeding and production purposes. Veterinarians generally use this technique also, to guess the approximate age of an animal where data or acquisition history of the animal may be deficient. In the absence of any defect or accidents, dentition of ruminants has proven and remained one of the popular and easy means to determine their age.

An adult sheep or goat has a total of 32 teeth. There are four pairs of incisors and twelve molars on the lower jaw whilst twelve molars and a dental pad are found on the upper jaw. Lambs and kids have temporary/milk teeth (incisors) which will eventually fall out and be replaced by permanent teeth.

The incisors therefore play a major role in enabling us to approximate the age of a sheep or goat (I I I I I I I I). When your ruminant is about a year old, the middle pair of incisors get replaced by a pair of permanent incisors (I I I I I  I I I).  After another year (2 years old), they have an additional pair of incisors replaced by permanent teeth (I l I  I I  I l  I). By their fourth year, all four incisors would have been replaced by permanent teeth (I I I I I I I I).

As they animals age (beyond 5 years), the teeth begin to space out, and then break or fall out. A sheep whose teeth are all fallen out (approximately 10 years old) is called a ‘’gummer”/” gummy’’.

Picture credit:Royal Veterinary College. Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 International

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