Isolation of Clostridium perfringens from neonatal calves with ruminal and abomasal tympany, abomasitis, and abomasal ulceration

Eight neonatal calves (2 to 21 days old) with suspected abomasal displacement or intestinal obstruction after acute onset of abdominal tympany, colic, depression, or death were referred to Kansas State University for clinical examination or for necropsy. Results of routine hematologic and serum chemical analyses did not reveal consistent changes. Necropsy revealed abomasal distention, with various degrees of abomasitis, hemorrhage, and ulceration, but did not reveal evidence of displaced abomasum or obstructed intestine. Specimens of ruminal contents collected via stomach tube or at necropsy and abomasal contents collected at necropsy were obtained for anaerobic bacteriologic culture. Clostridium perfringens was isolated from all specimens, and on the basis of toxin neutralization tests in mice, 7 were type A and one was type E. Copper concentrations in serum and tissues were within normal limits. It appeared that the acute abdominal syndrome in these neonatal calves was unrelated to copper deficiency, and that C perfringens, particularly type A, may have had an appreciable contributory role in its pathogenesis.