Veterinary Services

Generalised and systemic disorders

The month was associated with a marked seasonal increase in problems in the neonatal period with navel ill, poor colostral absorption and neonatal septicaemia commonly diagnosed.

Three calves were reported to have died a few days after birth into a Berwickshire suckler herd. The submitted carcass of one of the Limousin cross calves was of a good size, but profoundly dehydrated. One stifle joint contained an excess of purulent synovial fluid and the meninges were cloudy in appearance. Other lesions were suggestive of a septicaemic condition and E.coli was isolated from a range of tissues including the brain and the affected joint. Rather surprisingly, zinc sulphate turbidity testing (ZST) indicated that the calf had received adequate colostrum.

Alimentary tract disorders

On a well managed beef unit in northern Aberdeenshire, rotavirus enteritis was confirmed in two dead calves submitted following severe scour exacerbated by hypogammaglobulinaemia. Gross evidence of splenic depletion in one calf was suggestive of infection with BVD. There was a recent history of confirmation of persistent infection with BVD in calves on the unit. Further investigation is continuing.

Two neonatal Charolais cross calves from a Borders farm developed swollen abdomens within the first few days of life. The first calf died, the second was euthanased and the carcass submitted for post mortem examination. A peritoneal effusion with fibrin clots was found to be present. Examination of the small intestine revealed an interruption in the continuity of the ileum, resulting in a large dilatation in the terminal portion containing fluid digesta. After the interruption the distal ileum, caecum and colon were narrow and contained only mucus and cells. This congenital condition of atresia ilei is considered to be an inherited defect of certain breeds.

Respiratory Tract Conditions

A seven-month-old Charolais cross, male calf which had presented with respiratory distress died a few hours later despite treatment with antibiotics and antiinflammatory drugs. Post mortem examination at the Inverness Centre revealed blood-stained gelatinous oedema of the fascial planes in the hindlimbs from which Clostridium novvyii was identified by fluorescent antibody testing. The lungs had interlobular oedema and interstitial pneumonia was evident ventrally. Histopathology confirmed evidence of acute atypical interstitial pneumonia consistent with fog-fever. Alveolar oedema with fibrin, hyaline membranes and type II pneumocyte hypertrophy and hyperplasia with marked interlobular emphysema were detected.

Reproductive tract conditions

A foetus close to full term but with a crown-rump length suggesting approximately 230 days gestation was submitted for post mortem exanination. Two or three other calves were reported to be ill-thriven after birth. Cerebellar hypoplasia was evident on neuropathology. The farmer routinely vaccinated for BVD and foetal serology proved negative for BVD and no virus was isolated, possibly implicating a hereditary problem.

Nervous disorders

A 12- month-old heifer from a small beef unit in the Borders was submitted for post mortem examination following variable clinical signs in two heifers in a group of 19. Signs observed included haemorrhagic scour, black urine, abdominal pain, ataxia and hyperaesthesia. Clinical pathology confirmed renal failure in both animals. One affected animal submitted for post mortem examination showed generalised oedema and a low grade enteropathy and nephropathy. Histopathological examination suggested a toxic aetiology and investigations are ongoing. The second affected heifer is reported to be making a slow recovery.

Diseases of the Reproductive System

Neospora caninum continued to cause sporadic abortion in beef and dairy herds. The numbers of bovine foetal examinations carried out 2000-2005 are presented in figure 1 and ranged from 382 in 2000 to 625 in 2004. The numbers of diagnoses of foetopathy attributed to N caninum are similarly presented in figure 2 (click on PDF link in right hand column).

The maximum number of diagnoses made was 3.9% in 2001 and the minimum was 1.3% in 2004. There was no apparent difference in the number of abortions attributed to this agent between Centres, indicating a lack of regional variation in infection prevalence. The trend within the current data is downwards, unexpected against a background of increasing herd size and as a result increased movement of breeding stock currently observed in the Scottish and UK herd.