Jimma university

College of Agriculture And

Assignment of :- Beef Cattle Management
Group 4


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Beef cattles healthy problems

Introduction
Cattle in feedlots face disease challenges similar to other classes of
livestock and production settings.
The prevalence of disease in feedlots is influenced by many factors,
including
immune status, level of stress, pathogen load, environment,
nutritional background, and feeding management, as well as the
level of execution of animal husbandry practices.
Cattle in feedlots are primarily susceptible to infections and
metabolic diseases, and are less threatened by neoplasia and
poisoning due to their age and controlled environment, respectively
constant movement of cattle into and out of feedlots makes control
of infectious diseases challenging, due to constant exposure to
pathogens and the stress of commingling
cattle arrive in feedlots with a wide variation in their background;
some have been managed so that they can withstand the rigors of
adjustment to feedlot life, while others are very susceptible to most any
disease exposure

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Economically significant feedlot diseases
Respiratory diseases
Digestive system disorder
Diseases of Cardiovascular System in Feedlot
Cattle
Diseases Of nervous System in Feedlot cattle
Diseases of the urinary system in the feedlot cattle
Miscellaneous Diseases Affecting Varied Organ
System
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Respiratory disease is one of the biggest thieves of profits in
the beef industry.
It is the most important cause of sickness (morbidity), death
(mortality)
It is the cause of approximately 75% of all illness in feedlot
cattle. It also is responsible for about 50% of deaths in the
feedlot.
Respiratory disease is common in feedlot cattle and a
number of factors contribute to an outbreak
inadequate nutrition,
Stress, and
viral or bacterial infection

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feedlot environment
Stress Factors
Respiratory viruses Bacterial infection
Respiratory Disease
Respiratory diseases causes
bovine respiratory diseases(BRD)complex/shipping fever
most significant cause of clinical death in feedlots and is the
leading cause of economic loss in the intensive beef industry.
Mainly affect calves especially in intensive farming situations
and older animals may also experience severe pneumonia.
Is a multifactorial disease caused by
transportation over long distances,
mixing different groups of cattle
Altered immune status
Stressors
Feeds often contaminated with dusty or plant particles
Why is it important to get a good handle on bovine respiratory
disease (BRD)?
The cost of BRD goes far beyond just the cost of
treatment of sick animals and the cost of dead animals.
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A typical interstitial pneumonia/acute bovine pulmonary edema
and emphysema
most common in feedlot cattle with more than 45 days on feed.
commonly associated with
movement of cattle from dry pasture to lush pasture
ingestion of plants and mold contaminated plants
ration containing high level of tryptophan
It is fairly common in feedlot, and Its incidences is sporadic
and there is seasonality
Fever is not present; coughing is minimal; and the onset of
symptoms is sudden. Breathing is obviously difficult, with the
animal breathing through its mouth, extending its tongue and
drooling saliva.


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second to respiratory disease as a cause of morbidity and
mortality.
most common digestive disorders are:-
1. Digestive disease due to infectious/septic/parasitic causes
With exception of diseases associated with neonatal scour, it is
little different from disease found in the husbandry situation.
BVD, Malignant catarrhal fever, Clostridium novyi/hemolyticum
2. Physical disorder disease:
Organ misplacement, torsion, or volvulus of digestive tract is
uncommon in feedlot cattle.
Digestive disorders, manifested primarily as rumen tympany or
bloat, are the second leading cause of death in feedlots.
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Bloat is a common digestive disorder in beef cattle. It occurs
most often in feedlot cattle but affects cattle in all production
phases
The major cause of bloat is eating too much green legume too
fast
Occurs when rapid fermentation in the rumen causes too much
gas to be produced
the rumen swells and the animal cannot get rid of the gas.
WHAT IS FEEDLOT BLOAT?
disruption in the rumen function that promotes the formation
of stable foam impairing the normal elimination of the gas
produced during the digestive processes.
Typically feedlot bloat is associated with the intake of large
amounts of grain, specially those types of grain that ferment rapidly
in the rumen such as wheat or barley.
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TYPES OF FEEDLOT BLOAT
Free gas bloat - is of rapid onset and often lethal . Animals with
free-gas bloat usually die suddenly as a result of an obstruction
in the esophagus impairing the elimination of gases. obstructions
can be caused by undigested feed particles or partially chewed
feeds that can block the esophagus.
Frothy bloat- is the most common type of bloat and rarely leads
to death. Animals with frothy bloat present a stable mix
(bubbles) of gas and liquid at the top of the rumen that traps feed
particles and prevents gas release.
In frothy bloat caused by pastures, legumes such as alfalfa or red
clover are responsible for the formation of stable foam.
In the case of feedlot frothy bloat the responsible agents for the
formation of foam are the rumen microbes.
NB. Obstructive bloat is uncommon in feedlot i.e. it is not
feedlot bloat
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The primary metabolic disease affecting digestive system is
ruminal acidosis.
Acidosis is often associated with a shift from a foragebased diet to
a high concentrate-based diet or excessive consumption of
fermentable carbohydrates.
due to eating highly fermentable carbohydrates, concentrates,
where supply of food is interrupted and cattle over consume.
Its local effects includes:-
chemical rumenitis, rumen atony, death of normal microflora
and over growth of other microbes.
Systemic effects includes:-dehydration, death of normal
microflora over growth of abnormal microflora and endotoxin

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Diseases of Cardiovascular System in Feedlot Cattle
Two bacterial diseases are of concern
Haemophilus somnus . infect the heart, leading to focal
necrosis (death of tissue) and myocarditis.
Cl. chauvoei (visceral blackleg) Acute myocarditis with
necrosis is present and inflammation may also involve the
pericardium and/or the membranous coverings of the lung
(pleural) resulting in pericarditis and pleuritis. Death is usually
sudden
Malignant catarrhal fever is viral disease of blood vessel,
arteries, and smaller arterioles.
Routes of transmission is the contact between cattle and sheep it
is nothing to sheep but can causes severe systemic illness in cattle.
NB. hardware disease can also be observed in feedlots and cause
epicarditis and pericarditis
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Myocarditis, Vaculities (inflammation of heart, blood vessels)
Myocardial Degeneration, Cardiomyophat
Nutritional myodegeneration
Vitamin E / selenium
Copper
Toxic myodegeneration
Ionophores- inadequate or faulty mixing of ionophores such as
rumensin in the feedlot ration allowing some animals to receive
toxic amounts
Gossypol - a toxin present in cottonseed used to formulate feedlot
rations
Cor pulmonale
right-sided cardiac failure secondary to increased pulmonary
vascular resistence
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Diseases Of nervous System in Feedlot cattle
Infectious/inflammatory disease of the nervous system
1. Viral diseases:-herpes virus such as bovine herpesvirus-5 are
neurotropic
2. Bacterial diseases:- includes thrombotic meningoencephalitis which is
inflammation of brain and meninges ,is caused by Haemophilus somnus
Metabolic diseases of the nervous system
Polioencephalomalacia (PEM): Is the single most important disease
affecting the nervous system of feedlot cattle.
Cattle with polio are thin and usually have been on a diet high in sulfate
and low in protein and roughage. .
The major predisposing factors are: -
ruminal acidosis and formulation of diet containing sulphur
NB. viral infections of the CNS are not a major cause of morbidity and
mortality
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Diseases of the urinary system in the feedlot cattle
1. Leptospirosis(presence of
spirochetes in blood)
caused by serovars of
Leptospira interrogans
2. Pyelonephritis: - Is an
ascending bacterial infection of
the kidney.
3. Urolithiasis: -Is formation of
calculi or stone in the urinary
tract.
It is a problem in male feedlot
ruminants, although it can also
occur in steers on pastures
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Leptospirosis
Miscellaneous Diseases Affecting Varied Organ System

It includes: -
lameness due to foot rot,
abscess, and degeneration
inflammation of joint and
tendons.
One syndrome of lameness and
swelling of joint and periarticular
tissue that affect multiple animals
is attributed to Mycoplasma bovis
Mycoplasma bovis is a major
problem, WHY?
b/c not usually responsive to
antibiotics
disease is chronic and the
illness is generally refractory to
treatment
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Part II

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Control and Prevention of Disease in Feedlot Cattle
Successful and economical control of diseases of
feedlot cattle depends on many factors
Purchasing healthy animals,
providing transportation system that minimizes
stress,
comfortable feedlot pen environment,
adequate feeding system,
establishing good surveillance system,
Judiciously using vaccine and antibiotics

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One of the most important considerations in the construction
of a feedlot is good drainage
The pens should be well drained and easily accessible for
scraping the ground surface.
Good drainage requires a 6% slope.
To avoid overstocking, each animal should be provided with
18 m
2
of space in well-drained land and with 9 m
2
in a paved
lot
general clean up is needed to reduce the potential for disease
spread
Trees should be planted to provide protection from wind,
rain, snow, excessive heat, and sunshine.
The shed should be open to the south or southeast
The back of the shed should be 2.5m high
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It is more associated with increased bovine
respiratory disease (BRD), hence shipping fever.
In the current improvement method, cattles loose
their considerable weight within the first 24-48 hrs
after weaning,
Most of the electrolytes can be restored within few
days if the animal begins to eat and drink normally.
The total loss in BW may not be restored for up to 3
weeks in highly stressed animals.
On arrival at their destination cattle should be
examined carefully for evidence of clinical diseases.

Cattle Purchase and Introduction in to a Feedlot
feedlot cattle are subjected to a variety of stressors when they are
shipped to the feedlot and after they arrive in the feedlot.
Transportation over long distances without adequate rest and
feeding periods may be followed by an epidemic or wreck
associated with acute respiratory disease.
Rapid changes in weather and unexpected snowstorms at the time of
shipping may result in outbreaks of shipping fever.
recently weaned beef calves, at 6-8 months of age when get into
feedlot result in higher morbidity and mortality than older yearling
cattle , due to the higher level of acquired immunity in the older cattle.
Mixing weaned beef calves from many different origins at the time of
entry into the feedlot is considered to be a major factor in acute
fibrinous pneumonia
Cattle are often vaccinated, dehorned, castrated, branded, implanted,
and injected with vitamins and antibiotics within a few days after
their arrival in the feedlot.

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Preimmunization and Preconditioning
What is Preconditioning
?

A management strategy to allow calves to perform better in the
feedlot . Preconditioning is based on immunological and
nutritional principles.
is a management practice to lessen the adverse effects to animals
entering the feedlot environment.
The first principle is that effective immunity against infectious
diseases of the respiratory tract can be achieved only if animals
are vaccinated in sufficient time before natural exposure occurs
after arrival in the feedlot.
Preconditioning involves management practices that include
weaning days or weeks prior to entering the feedlot, a complete
set of vaccinations and exposing the animals to water troughs
and feed bunks.
Preimmunization or vaccination of calves two to three weeks
before shipment from the ranch to the feedlot, against the
common infectious agents associated with acute respiratory
disease was the beginning of the practice of preconditioning.

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Back grounding
Backgrounding is a variation of preconditioning in which recently
weaned calves are grown to yearling feeder cattle weight usually in a
smaller feedlot
The principal objective is to prepare yearling cattle to adjust to a
high-energy finishing ration in a feedlot with minimal problems.
This is achieved by feeding the calves a growing diet that yields
rapid, efficient body weight gains without fattening.
The spectrum of diseases that occur in backgrounding operations
during the first 45 days after arrival of the calves will depend on
whether the calves were preimmunized, preconditioned, or obtained
from several different sources with no preconditioning.
Recently arrived cattle of unknown background should be
vaccinated and some need to be castrated, dehorned and treated for
internal and external parasites.
None preconditioned, stressed, cattles of unknown back ground
should be watched closely for sign of BRD for 3 weeks after arrival.


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Processing procedures
Identification
Each animal must be identified immediately, preferably with a color-coded
and numbered plastic ear tag that is easily visible from a distance.
Information that can be maintained on individual animals through this
technology includes performance, vaccine, and treatment history.
These tags remain on the animal until slaughter, at which time the
identification from the ear tag can be transferred to the overhead trolley
system.
Measurement of Body Temperature
On arrival, some animals may be affected with acute disease but show no
obvious clinical signs. Others may appear fatigued and gaunt but are not
affected with clinical disease.
Identifying animals with acute infectious disease that should be treated
early to minimize mortality can be difficult. The body temperature of high-
risk cattle (eg, unweaned calves, calves from auctions, or calves that have
been transported long distances over several days) is often measured at
processing.
Animals with a body temperature >104F (40C) are treated with an
antimicrobial.
Treated animals may be tagged and noted in the individual animal
database, or the total number of animals treated (total amount of drug
administered) in a group or pen may be recorded


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Identification

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Vaccination
All calves that arrive at a feedyard should be vaccinated.
Cattle that have been preconditioned should be boostered with a
single dose of a modified live viral vaccine.
Nonpreconditioned cattle should receive two doses of a modified
live vaccine 2 weeks apart.
The non-preconditioned calves should also receive a dose of a
clostridial vaccine (7-way or 8-way, depending on geographical
location).
Vaccine is available for the following diseases or infectious of
feedlot cattles
IBR, and pneumonic pasteurellosis, Parainfluenza-3 virus,
bovine respiratory syncytial
histophilus somni disease complex, BVD (bovine viral
diarrhea), and Clostridial disease (highly effective vaccines)
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The feedlot operator and veterinarian should be informed
about feeder calves or yearling cattles that have originated from
farms or areas in which intestinal parasites is likely.

Young cattle raised on small farms in which the stocking rate on
pasture is high may harbor helminths.

Young cattle may also be affected by chronic verminous
pneumonia caused by Dictyocaulus viviparus.
When compared with a topical organophosphate, treatment
with ivermectin can cause improved average daily weight gain
and feed conversion in feedlot calves under commercial
conditions.
Most young cattle will be infected with coccidia, and having an
appropriate anticoccidial agent in the feed is necessary.
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Growth-promoting Agents
Growth-promoting agents increase growth rate of animals
without being used themselves to provide nutrients for growth.
They are generally administered in small amounts often via
implants or in feed to alter metabolism so that the animal
increases body tissues and grows more rapidly.
They include a
Antibacterials
Antimicrobials
steroids (eg, estrogens, androgens), and ionophores.
They promote changes in
Composition
Conformation
mature weight, or efficiency of growth
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