ABSTRACT
A total of 2,909 bulls was cultured for the presence of Trichomonas fetus at slaughter at 4 abattoirs in Colorado and Nebraska. Samples were collected using the dry pipette preputial scraping technique and were transported to diagnostic laboratories within 24 h. Of the bulls cultured, 5 were positive. The state of the last origin for each animal was Kansas, 1 bull, Montana, 1 bull, Nebraska, 1 bull, and Utah, 2 bulls. These results indicate and incidence of less than 1% (0.172%) of trichomoniasis in the populations tested, even in the states of Colorado and Nebraska where the larger numbers of bulls were cultured.
ABSTRACT
Four shed-lambing operations in western Colorado were monitored during the 1984 spring lambing season to determine the causes and rates of perinatal lamb mortality. The number of lambing ewes per flock ranged from 513 to 1,712, and lambing percentages ranged from 131 to 180%. Overall perinatal lamb mortality ranged from 8.2 to 12.2%. Most lamb deaths occurred during parturition or within 24 hours after parturition. More than 85% of all lamb deaths were in lambs born to ewes having 2 or more lambs. The leading causes of lamb death were starvation, dystocia, stillbirth (unknown cause), and infectious diseases. A wheel model was used to categorize factors causing lamb deaths into 4 groups: physical, social, host, and biological, and to present data on perinatal lamb mortality in a simple visual model. In all flocks, social and biological factors resulted in most of the lamb deaths. On the basis of our findings, we suggest that interventions designed to improve ewe-lamb bonding and to reduce infectious agents and the incidence of prolonged parturition may reduce lamb mortality.
Subject(s)
Dystocia/veterinary , Fetal Death/veterinary , Infections/veterinary , Sheep Diseases/mortality , Starvation/veterinary , Animals , Animals, Newborn , Colorado , Dystocia/mortality , Enteritis/mortality , Enteritis/veterinary , Female , Fetal Death/epidemiology , Infections/mortality , Litter Size , Male , Pneumonia/mortality , Pneumonia/veterinary , Pregnancy , Sepsis/mortality , Sepsis/veterinary , Sheep , Starvation/mortality , WeatherABSTRACT
Beagle dogs were given a single, whole-body gamma-radiation exposure at various stages during ocular development and were evaluated for the presence of ocular lesions. Dogs were exposed during middle or late pregnancy at 28 or 55 days postcoitus (dpc) or as neonates at 2 days postpartum (dpp). Mean whole-body and ocular doses ranged from 1.0 to 3.8 Gy. Dogs were sacrificed and ocular lesions were evaluated at 70 days, 2 years, or 4 years of age. Retinal dysplasias and atrophy were the most striking lesions related to radiation exposure. These lesions were bilateral and focal to diffuse in nature, and they increased in severity with increasing radiation dose. The stage of development at irradiation had a marked effect on the distribution of retinal lesions, with the most severe changes being present in that portion of the retina undergoing differentiation at the time of the insult. In dogs sacrificed at 70 days of age the lesions were primarily dysplasias consisting of ectopic nuclear aggregates in the photoreceptor layer, retinal folds, and retinal rosettes. With increasing age (up to 4 years), there appeared to be progression of the extent of the clinically evident lesions, and there was a change in the nature of the lesions from dysplasia to atrophy. This was accompanied by marked attenuation of the retinal vasculature.
Subject(s)
Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects , Radiation Injuries, Experimental/pathology , Retina/radiation effects , Retinal Degeneration/etiology , Age Factors , Animals , Animals, Newborn , Atrophy/etiology , Dogs , Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation , Female , Gestational Age , Pregnancy , Retina/pathology , Retinal Degeneration/pathology , Retinal Vessels/radiation effectsABSTRACT
A breeding soundness evaluation was conducted on 824 Colorado range rams. These rams were determined to be free from epididymitis via testicular palpation. Semen evaluation included microscopic observation for the presence of WBC. Of the 824 rams, 15.5% failed the breeding soundness evaluation on the basis of the semen evaluation: 10.6% had WBC in the semen and 4.9% had poor sperm morphology. The prevalence of Brucella ovis isolation varied from 0% to 16.2% within flocks. The prevalence of subclinical B ovis infection was 10% in the control flocks. Brucella ovis was isolated from 71.9% of the rams that had WBC in their semen. From this study, it appeared that palpation and vaccination may be inadequate for control of ram epididymitis.
