Prediction of mature cow carcass composition from live animal measurements

Two trials were conducted with mature cows to develop prediction equations for estimating carcass composition from live animal measurements. Trial 1 involved 82 animals that were used to develop these equations. Subjective criteria (frame and condition scores) also were utilized along with live weight in development of prediction equations. Equations using subjective independent variables predicting energy and carcass tissue weights apparently were slightly more variable in precision (R2 = .69 to .91) than those developed with objective variables (R2 = .74 to .90). Equations predicting percent compositions from subjective variables had lower coefficients of determination (R2 = .49 to .76) than those developed with objective variables (R2 = .63 to .83). Forty-one animals similar to those used in Trial 1 served as a test group in Trial 2. Measured carcass composition was regressed on composition predicted by equations developed in Trial 1. These equations generally had slopes and intercepts with confidence intervals that included 0 and 1, respectively, indicating that most of the prediction equations were unbiased. This work indicates that carcass composition can be predicted from both objective and subjective measurements, with some accuracy and precision.     

Coagulase-positive staphylococcal mastitis in a herd with low somatic cell counts

An increase in clinical mastitis infections was observed in a high-producing 77-cow Holstein herd. Low bulk tank somatic cell counts and individual cow Dairy Herd Improvement Association somatic cell counts observed before, during, and after the epizootic were suggestive of herd environmental mastitis. However, bacteriologic culture survey of the total herd indicated that, in addition to infections possibly attributable to environmental pathogens, 22% (17/77) of the cows were infected with coagulase-positive Staphylococcus spp. Conceivably, investigative efforts and management changes, without bacteriologic culturing, might have resulted in reduction of the clinical infection rate in this herd. However, the continued high prevalence of a contagious pathogen with potential future implications would have gone unnoticed. Somatic cell count in milk from individual cows generally is a useful tool for monitoring the probability of intramammary infection, but must be complemented with bacteriologic culture of milk to determine whether contagious or environmental pathogens are responsible.     

Prolapse of the bladder in a cow

Extract

A three-year-old dairy cow was noted to have a fist-sized mass of tissue protruding per vaginum immediately after an apparently uncomplicated parturition. Examination revealed that the protruding mass originated from the floor of the vagina, to which it was attached by a neck of tissue about 5 cm in diameter. The whole protrusion was congested and showed shallow ulceration. At this stage the cow appeared quite bright, although there was some uneasiness and frequent passage of small quantities of urine.     

Megaesophagus in a cow

Megaesophagus developed subsequent to presumed pharyngeal trauma in a cow. Signs resolved after prolonged antibiotic treatment and supportive care.     

Hemangiosarcoma in a cow

A 4-year-old cow initially examined because of hindlimb lameness had a waxing and waning course of illness for 31 weeks. Signs included lameness, swelling of the affected limb, and intermittent fever, and anorexia. Radiography and bacterial culturing suggested osteomyelitis. Terminally, there was peracute anemia and dyspnea. The final diagnosis was hemangiosarcoma of the metatarsus, with metastasis to the lungs.     

Endocarditis in a cow

Bacterial endocarditis of the tricuspid valve was diagnosed in a cow with weight loss, reduced milk production, and intermittent fever. Clinical signs of disease included jugular and mammary vein pulses, tachycardia, large cardiac silhouette, and grade-III/V holosystolic murmur. The diagnosis was also supported by echocardiographic findings and isolation of Streptococcus viridans from blood samples. The cow was treated with penicillin, furosemide, acetylsalicylic acid, heparin, and potassium chloride and survived 14 months after the diagnosis, producing 1 live calf and 4 viable embryos. The cow's heart rate exceeded an upper normal limit of 80 beats/min during most of the initial 4 months of treatment. Additional clinical signs of disease that were observed during treatment included diarrhea, ventral edema, and coughing. General medicine and cardiology textbooks have previously minimized the potential benefits of anticoagulant use in cases of septic endocarditis. The advent of routinely performed embryo transfer procedures may make treatment of endocarditis feasible in cattle with exceptional genetic merit.     

Comparison of real-time ultrasound and other live measures to carcass measures as predictors of beef cow energy stores.

Thirty-nine mature cows were divided into three condition groups on the basis of their subcutaneous fat thickness as determined by real-time ultrasound. A representative animal from each group was measured and slaughtered. The remaining cows with each group were stratified evenly into two groups with one group fed to gain weight and the other to lose weight. Several ultrasound and other live measures were taken every 4 wk and two animals per subgroup were randomly slaughtered. Carcass data were collected and one side of each carcass was boned, ground, mixed, and subsampled for fat and protein determination. Four regression equations were generated to predict percentage of fat (FAT), percentage of protein (PROT), total fat (TOTFAT), total protein (TOTPROT), total calories (CAL), CAL per live weight (CAL/WT), yield grade (YG), and marbling (MARB). The first equation used all live measures (SUB), the second equation used only objective live measures (OBJ), the third equation incorporated traditional live measures (EAS), and the fourth equation used only carcass data (CAR). Adjusted R-squares of the most appropriate equation using the SUB, OBJ, EAS, and CAR measurements were .82, .73, .82, and .82 for FAT; .82, .57, .61, and .66 for PROT; .89, .87, .86, and .85 for TOTFAT; .95, .95, .93, and .74 for TOTPROT; .93, .92, .91, and .90 for CAL; .83, .78, .83, and .82 for CAL/WT; .86, .86, .78, and .93 for YG; and .75, .70, .74, and .74 for MARB, respectively. It seems that condition score or ultrasound with other objective live measures is as accurate in predicting cow composition as carcass measures.     

Torsion of the descending colon in a cow

An acute intestinal obstruction caused by a torsion of the descending colon with incarceration and strangulation of the apex of the cecum was diagnosed in a mature Holstein cow. The clinical signs manifested were acute anorexia, depression, signs of abdominal pain, and absence of feces. Rectal examination revealed a sharp decrease in luminal size of the descending colon and taut bands at that level. The final diagnosis was obtained by exploratory celiotomy. Although surgical correction was attempted, the cow died of acute fecal peritonitis 18 hours postoperatively.

Acute intestinal obstruction caused by torsion of the descending colon in the cow has not been reported in the literature.

     

Melanosis of the urinary bladder in a cow

Melanosis of the urinary bladder is a very rare condition characterized by an abnormal black or brownish-black pigmentation of the organ. The pigmentary disorder can involve both the urothelial cell layers and/or the submucosa. The biologic potential of the melanosis of urinary bladder remains unknown because only a few cases have been reported in medical literature. So far melanosis of the urinary bladder is not known to occur in cattle. Here we describe the first case of melanosis of the urinary bladder in an inbred red-spotted, 7-year-old cow. Light, ultrastructural, and immunohistochemic investigations demonstrated melanin pigment in the submucosa and lamina propria but not the urothelium of the bladder. In addition, biochemical characterization of the pigment-laden cells demonstrated that the pigment of this disorder consisted mainly of eumelanin, thus corroborating the morphologic studies. Finally, virologic examination revealed the presence of bovine papillomavirus type 2.     

Liposarcoma in the nasal cavity of a cow

Liposarcomas are rare neoplasms in domestic animals, but have been reported to occur in many species. In humans, liposarcoma is one of the most common malignant mesenchymal tumors. Classification of liposarcomas in humans has been well established and categorization by type can be of prognostic value; no such unique classification scheme has been established for liposarcomas in animals. Liposarcoma of the head and neck in humans are uncommon, and are rarely reported in the nasal cavity, sinuses, and nasopharynx. To our knowledge, a liposarcoma has never been reported in the nasal cavity of a domestic animal. In this report we describe a liposarcoma that developed in the nasal cavity of a cow, with local invasion into the oral cavity.