Evaluation of a Killed Vaccine Against Porcine Pleuropneumonia Due to Haemophilus pleuropneumoniae

A bacterin containing serotypes 1 and 5 of Haemophilus pleuropneumoniae was developed for the prevention and the control of porcine pleuropneumonia. It was injected intramuscularly into three groups of ten piglets, the first group with one dose, the second one with two doses and the third one with three doses at two-week intervals. Another group of ten piglets did not receive the vaccine. All the piglets were then challenged by an aerosol of mixed suspensions of H. pleuropneumoniae serotypes 1 and 5. Two and three injections of vaccine completely prevented mortality, whereas half of the control piglets and of those receiving only one dose of vaccine died. All surviving piglets, both control and vaccinated, had severe signs of respiratory disease for at least 36 hours after exposure to challenge. Moreover, vaccination did not induce the production of antibodies at high titers. Local reactions were not noted after vaccination and at postmortem; ten weeks after the challenge, there were no signs of abscess formation or induration.     

Erosion of the non-occlusal surfaces of sheeps' deciduous teeth

Major erosion of the labial or lingual surfaces was seen in histological sections of deciduous teeth from three of 208 sheep from two farms. In one, the erosion extended through both the enamel and the dentine and thus exposed the pulp cavity which had developed pulpitis. In the other cases the erosion affected the cementum and dentine of the tooth root, and did not penetrate as far as the pulp cavity. Dentine proliferation occurred on the adjacent pulpal surface, however, although pulpitis was not evident.     

Plasma cell sarcoma in a cat

Lytic lesions occurring in conjunction with plasma cell sarcoma (multiple myeloma) have rarely been reported in cats.

A plasma cell sarcoma was diagnosed in a 13 year old castrated male Siamese cat with hind limb paresis resulting from osteolysis of the second lumbar vertebra. Serum electrophoresis showed a monoclonal gammopathy. A uniform population of plasma cells was found in and around the second lumbar vertebra and in the bone marrow of the femora, humeri, pelvis and the fifth lumbar vertebra. The neoplastic cells were identified as IgA and kappa chain specific by direct immunofluorescence.

     

Submitting canine blood for prothrombin time and partial thromboplastin time determinations

Practitioners commonly submit samples from dogs for partial thromboplastin time and prothrombin time determinations. Controversy exists as to the necessity for rapid separation of plasma and cells, and submission of the plasma on ice (or frozen). The purpose of this study was to address three questions. First, is it better to submit plasma or is whole blood satisfactory? Second, is it necessary to refrigerate the sample or is maintenance at room temperature (20° C) adequate? Third, does the sample have to arrive at the laboratory within a few hours of collection or can reliable partial thromboplastin time/prothrombin time determinations be made on samples up to 48 hours old?It has been shown by this study that reliable partial thromboplastin time and prothrombin time determinations can be carried out on canine plasma for up to 48 hours after collection regardless of whether or not the plasma is separated immediately; however the samples must be kept at 4°C. If the samples are maintained at room temperature, reliable prothrombin time determinations can be obtained for up to six hours after collection regardless of whether or not the plasma is separated immediately. Reliable partial thromboplastin time determinations can be made on plasma stored at 20°C for up to 24 hours after collection and possibly longer (up to 48 hours) if the plasma has been separated immediately.     

A bacteriological investigation of subcutaneous abscesses in cats

Ten out of eleven subcutaneous abscesses in cats harboured anaerobic bacteria. Seven of the ten abscesses contained a mixture of obligate anaerobes and facultative anaerobes or microaerophilic bacteria. All of the anaerobic isolates were sensitive to the antibiotic metronidazole, but were resistant to streptomycin. Three isolates from one abscess were resistant to penicillin and ampicillin. Clinical resolution of subcutaneous abscesses was poor when procaine penicillin was used alone as treatment.     

The effect of gastro-intestinal parasitism on the temporary dentition of lambs

The temporary dentitions of 18 to 39-week-old lambs with a very light or a very heavy parasite burden are compared. The heavily parasitised lambs developed longer temporary incisors which tended to protrude further forward in relation to the upper dental pad. They showed absolute hypocalcaemia and hypoalbuminaemia and relative hypophosphataemia and hypoproteinaemia and in the alveolar bone of the mandible there was a reduction in ash and matrix densities and matrix mineralisation. The incisor protrusion and lengthening may have been a consequence of the loss of supporting bone, but inappetance was likely to have been a factor contributing to the lengthening.     

Wastage and disease in Bay of Plenty dairy herds

Information on disease incidence and herd wastage was collected from 36 farms supplying the Rangitaiki Plains Dairy Company over a two-year period from June 1981 to May 1983. These herds contained 7050 milking cows and 1460 yearlings. Although 33.5% of calves horn were reared, only 21.7% entered the herd. The average wastage rate over the two seasons was 22.6%. This included a 2.5% death-rate. Main reasons for culling were infertility (6.3%), low production (3.7%) and mastitis (2.3%). Only 0.8% of cows died or were culled because of bloat and 0.4% from each of facial eczema and metabolic diseases. Treatments were administered by farmers or veterinarians to 18.8% of the cows for mastitis, to 3.9% for metabolic diseases and to 3.6% for lameness. In total, 34.6% of cows received treatment for disease. Wide differences were noted in the proportion of cases of different diseases for which veterinarians were consulted. These ranged from 83.6% for scours to 3.8% for mastitis. As well as confirming or quantifying the relative importance of various diseases and causes of wastage, the survey highlighted the problems in collecting reliable data from herd owners on the events in their herds.     

Sources of variation and prospects for improvement of productive efficiency in the dairy cow: a review

In this review, "productive efficiency" in dairy cows is defined as the yield of milk obtained in ratio to the nutritional costs associated with maintenance, milk synthesis and loss of body condition during lactation. Improvements in efficiency could occur as a result of changes in digestion and nutrient absorption, maintenance requirement, utilization of metabolizable energy for production or nutrient partitioning. Digestibility can be greatly enhanced by appropriate dietary manipulation. Likewise, it may be possible to reduce maintenance requirements and improve the efficiency with which metabolizable energy is used for milk synthesis by manipulation of the pattern of nutrients presented to tissues. However, these factors apparently do not respond to selection for increased milk yield, and little variation is observed among cows. In contrast, individual cows differ substantially in feed intake and in the partitioning of nutrients among body tissues. Techniques associated with genetic engineering and the early prediction of genetic merit have the potential to improve productive efficiency by manipulation of these processes. However, changes in nutrient partitioning and feed intake during lactation are coordinated by a complex network of controls that accommodate the nutrient requirements of each tissue while maintaining homeostatic balance. Future improvements in productive efficiency will therefore depend on our ability to understand the manner in which these controls operate.