Clinical efficacy of a single injection of ceftiofur crystalline free acid sterile injectable suspension versus three daily injections of ceftiofur sodium sterile powder for the treatment of footrot in feedlot cattle

A study was conducted in a feedlot in Alberta, Canada, to compare the clinical efficacy of a single injection of ceftiofur crystalline free acid sterile injectable suspension with three daily treatments of ceftiofur sodium sterile powder for the treatment of footrot. Use of a long-acting antimicrobial to treat footrot would reduce labor costs and hospital pen space requirements during high-risk periods. Four hundred cattle clinically diagnosed with footrot were systematically randomized to one of two treatment groups. The treatment success rate at 14 days after treatment (99.5% for ceftiofur crystalline free acid sterile injectable suspension and 99.0% for ceftiofur sodium sterile powder for injection) was not statistically different (P>.05) between the two drugs.