The Management of Prostaglandin-controlled Breeding Programs in Beef Cattle - A Five Year Study

A herd of 180 beef cows was synchronized with prostaglandin and bred by artifical insemination for five successive years. Factors influencing the success or failure of estrus synchronizing programs were identified, including the management of nutrition, postpartum interval, cow age and artificial insemination technology. Specific recommendations on the management of prostaglandin-controlled breeding programs resulted in improving the pregnancy rates from 33% in year 1 to 67% in year 5. Improved management and close veterinary supervision were shown to improve the success of an estrus synchronization program.     

Effects of breed, diet and sex on the alkaline phosphatase activity in walls of the bovine rumen and abomasum

Alkaline phosphatase (APase) activity in tissue samples, with adherent bacteria, was measured from two sites in the rumen and from two sites in the abomasum of 57 yearling Angus and Hereford bulls and heifers fed a high or a low energy diet. In the rumen, APase activity was higher at the caudoventral blind sac than at the dorsal sac in animals of both breeds fed the high energy diet and in Angus bulls fed the low energy diet, but the reverse was observed in Hereford bulls fed the low-energy diet (P less than .01). In the abomasum, APase levels were higher for bulls than heifers (P less than .01) and higher at the fundic than at the pyloric region (P less than .01). Morphological studies also showed that rumen samples from animals fed a high energy diet exhibited a more widely distributed APase activity and an increase in the digestive recycling of epithelial cells that produced some "pitting" of the tissue. The higher APase activity of the epithelial tissue of animals fed the high energy diet may be explained by the greater rate of cell death and renewal indicated by the higher mitotic index reported by other researchers who have studied the cell cycle of the rumen epithelium in ruminants fed high and low energy diets.     

Chronic malignant catarrhal fever: a case in a sika deer (Cervus nippon)

A condition resembling chronic malignant catarrhal fever was seen in a 9-month-old pet sika hind (Cervus nippon). From an initial acute depression, pyrexia, and anorexia, the condition progressed to include hypopyon, keratitis, lethargy, loss of condition, sloughing of one hoof and eventually death after seven weeks. There were multiple, 5 to 8mm diameter dark-red nodules throughout the mesenteries and mediastinum, along abdominal organ ligaments, and about the uterus and kidneys. Histopathology showed the nodules to be organising vascular thrombi. Concurrent perivascular mononuclear infiltrations and intravascular thrombi in many tissues confirmed that the condition was malignant catarrhal fever.     

The F38-Like Group,a New Group of Caprine Mycoplasmas?

This paper concerns the taxonomic status of the F38-like group (MacOwan), a prime determinant of contagious caprine pleuropneumonia (CCPP). Extensive biochemical and serological investigations on strain F38 are reported. Some complex serological relationships with other mycoplasma species are revealed. The results, taken in conjunction with earlier published work on geno-typic characters, lead to the conclusion that final classification of these organisms should await further comparative studies of a number of field strains with a related group of strains classified as M. capri-colum.The characterization of F38 confirms its partial relationship to the “M. mycoides group” of ovine/caprine/bovine mycoplasmas, and has also revealed a very close phenotypic relationship to the bovine mycoplasma serogroup 7, a finding of potential diagnostic and epidemiological importance.Key words: mycoplasmas, classification, F38-like group     

Endocrine effects of heat stress in boars

The purpose of this study was to describe the temporal changes in peripheral plasma levels of testosterone and Cortisol in boars during and after heat stress. A total of 8 boars were utilized, 4 of them were exposed to 35°C, for 100 h in a climatic room, and 4 served as controls and were kept at 20 °C for 100 h in the climatic room.Blood samples were obtained via permanent vein catheters 3 times daily from 5 days before heat stress until 20 days after termination of heat stress. Testestorone levels were determined by radioimmunoassay and Cortisol by a competitive protein binding technique.For both hormones the pre-exposure levels were similar in both groups of boars. The control boars had significantly higher testosterone levels, while being in the climatic room, than during any other period. The experimental boars had slightly increased testosterone levels during the first day of heat stress and thereafter continuously decreased levels. In the control boars the testosterone levels returned to pre-exposure levels immediately after removal from the climatic room, whereas in the experimental boars the testosterone levels were dramatically increased during the first 5 days after exposure. The differences in Cortisol levels, between the 2 groups of boars were restricted to the period spent in the climatic room. During this period the experimental boars had significantly higher Cortisol levels.Key words: boars, heat stress, testosterone, cortisol     

An Epidemiological Study of Foot Rot in Pastured Cattle

Using 12 years of data from the common grazing areas at Store Vildmose on the incidence of foot rot in cattle, it was shown that the disease incidence varied significantly between the sections in which the animals were grazing. Differences also existed between breeds in their foot rot incidence. Extraordinarily wet summers were noted to influence foot rot in cattle, and a possible effect of soil pH was also observed.Key words: foot rot, cattle, incidence, epidemiology, breed differences, climatic factors, lameness     

Sarcocystis spp. infections in naturally infected cats and dogs: levels of sporocyst production and the influence of host, environmental and seasonal factors on the prevalence of infection

Data obtained from faecal samples from 508 domestic cats and 481 dogs, previously found to have a high frequency of Sarcocystis spp. infections, were further examined to provide information on levels of sporocyst shedding and to ascertain the influence of host, environmental and seasonal factors on the prevalence of naturally acquired infections. Statistical analysis of prevalence data revealed that, of the factors examined, only host age in cats exerted any apparent influence. Infections were significantly more common in cats up to, rather than over, 6 months of age. Although they tended to be greater in dogs than cats, faecal sporocyst counts in both hosts were generally low, with the majority of infected samples containing 200 sporocysts per gram or less. In infected dogs the highest count recorded was 144,600/g with a mean of 2270/g, and in infected cats it was 11,100/g with a mean of 597/g.     

Oxfendazole resistance in Nematodirus spathiger

The occurrence of anthelmintic resistance in a field strain of Nematodirus spathiger is reported for the first time. In a controlled anthelmintic trial with naturally-acquired infections, oxfendazole at 5 mg/ kg and levamisole at 8 mg/kg were 0 and 86% effective respectively, against this strain.