Diseases of Cattle

3B

Advanced Animal Science

Scours

� Or Calf diarrhea

� Causes the most

financial lost to cow-

calf producers than

any other disease

� Dehydration is the

main sign of Scours

� Caused by lack of

colostrum intakeany other disease

� It is a discharge of

excess fluid usually

more frequently than

normal and can be

white, yellow, gray, or

blood stained with a

fowl smell

colostrum intake

� Treatments include

correcting:

-Dehydration

-Acidosis

-Electrolyte loss

Brucellosis

� A.K.A. Bangs

� Causes abortion or

premature calving

and can sometimes

make the cow sterile

� Zoonotic Disease:

can be transferred

to humans through

infected milk

No treatment but make the cow sterile

� Spread from vaginal

discharge, aborted

fetus, and infected

breeding bulls

� No treatment but

can be prevented

through vaccination

Wooden tongue disease

o Disease effecting soft tissue in the mouth region of adult cattle

o caused by A. lignieresii coccobacillus, which is part of the normal bacteria flora that is found in the upper digestive tractupper digestive tract

o The bacteria usually form through a wound or minor trauma that may have been caused by straw, or barley yawns

o The affected part swells under the jaw and regional lymphnodes

Wooden tongue disease cont’d

o Clinical symptoms include excessive salivation, no appetite and difficulty to chew.

o Fatal unless treated

o Treatments are: iodine therapy or tetracycline

o More severe cases may need surgical drainage

Black leg disease

� A highly fatal disease in young cattle caused by clostridium chauvoei which are spore forming rod shaped gas producing bacteria

� Bacteria enter through ingestion of contaminated soil, and travel through small punctures in mucus membrane.and travel through small punctures in mucus membrane.

� Cattle most susceptible are those on a high plane of nutrition, are rapidly gaining weight and are between 6months and 2 years of age

� Symptoms are lameness, loss of appetite, rapid breathing, and the animal has a high fever and is depressed.

Black leg disease cont’d

� Swelling develops In hips, shoulder, chest, back and neck.

� At first swelling is small hot and painful, but soon swelling becomes much larger, spongy and gaseous, if skin is pressed then you can feel the gas underneath. It is extremely painfulextremely painful

� Animal will usually die between 12 and 48 hours, treatment is useless because progression of the disease is not usually noticeable until full blown.

� Blackleg is entirely preventable by vaccination

Lumpy Jaw

• Description: Immovable hard swelling on Cow’s jaw. The swelling ranges from cow to cow. Swelling comes from yellow pus forming in the thin bone line of the jaw. Sometimes the swelling will get so bad that it causes a break in the skin that excretes the pus.

• Signs: The cow has a hard time chewing and eating. There is a noticeable difficulty in breathing for the cow.

• Causes: It is caused by the bacteria Actinomycis Bovis. The bacteria enters through breaks in the mouth caused by eating rough forage.

• Treatment: The most common treatment is iodine therapy. But most often the treatment is ineffective and the cow will die. The best thing to do is to detect it early and make use of the cow before the entire body is infected.

Hardware disease

• Description: When a cow eats a large and sharp object that when swallowed does not digest but rather sits at the bottom of the stomach and causes inflammation.

• Signs: The cow may stand with an arched back or not want to walk. A pulse in the jugular. A grunt when walking.not want to walk. A pulse in the jugular. A grunt when walking.

• Causes: Large objects and sharp or heavy objects being swallowed and not thoroughly chewed.

• Treatment: Using a magnet to find the object in the stomach. Then surgery will be necessary to extricate the object so the animal does not die from starvation or pain.

Foot and Mouth Disease

� Foot and Mouth Disease is a very contagious viral disease that can be transmitted to Cattle, swine and any other cloven-hoofed ruminants.

� The disease is characterized by fever and blister like lesions followed by erosions on the tongue and lips, in the mouth, on the teats, and between the hooves.

� Signs of illness can appear after an incubation period of 1 to 8 days, but often develop within 3 days.often develop within 3 days.

� Signs of the Disease are blisters followed by erosions in the mouth or on the feet and the excessive salivation or lameness are the best signs of the disease.

� Prevention of the FMD Disease is to vaccinate your livestock to the specific type and subtype of virus causing the outbreak.

� FMD can be found in North America, Central America, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Chile, and many countries in Europe.

Foot and Mouth Disease

Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy

� Also known as Mad Cow Disease, is a chronic degenerative disease that targets and affects the cows central nervous system. The disease first made its appearance in great Britain.

� Signs are changes of temperament in nervousness or aggression, abnormal posture, in coordination and difficulty aggression, abnormal posture, in coordination and difficulty in rising, decreased milk production, or loss of body weight despite continued appetite.

� Incubation period for the disease is 2 to 8 years, before you might see any sign of the disease. The disease continuous until the animal either dies or is destroyed. This process takes either 2 weeks to 6 months. There is not a test to determine weather the animal as the disease or not.

Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy

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Listeriosis

• Is a non-contagious bacterial infection caused by a gram-positive, motile bacterium called Listeria monocytogenes

• Is also called “circling disease”• Is zoonotic, meaning Listeriosis can be passed between humans

and animalsand animals• Is more common in domestic animals, especially sheep• Is recognized in three types are: encephalitis, late abortion and

gastro-intestinal septicemia

Listeriosis

Water Belly

• The development of calcium deposits in the bladder that cause urinary retention or irritation of the bladder walls

• It is also known as “Urinary Calculi” or more commonly as the development of “bladder stones”

• It is most commonly found in male sheep, though many other • It is most commonly found in male sheep, though many other animals are capable of developing water belly as well

• Symptoms are a “humped-up” appearance, salt crystals in the fleece and swelling of the area

Water Belly X-Rays