[The importance of Mycoplasma bovis in bovine respiratory disease]. / Het belang van Mycoplasma bovis bij luchtwegaandoeningen van kalveren.

The annual damage caused by bovine respiratory disease is estimated at 45 up to 55 euro per calf of milking cattle and 117.50 euro per veal calf In Europe, M. bovis is responsible for at least 1/4 to 1/3 of all pneumonia cases in calves. Serology may help to identify the spreading of these bacteria in a herd.

Plasma chemistry and urine analysis in Salmonella-induced polyuria in racing pigeons (Columba livia).

Polyuria-polydipsia is a frequent observation in pigeons with salmonellosis. These are accompanied by a decreased albumin/globulin ratio, increased creatinine and haptoglobin concentrations, and decrease in the chloride concentration in the blood plasma. The urine was found to have a low density with red and white blood cells frequently present in the sediment. A water deprivation test was conducted on three animals: polyuria disappeared and plasma urea increased significantly.

Protective effects of vaccines against experimental salmonellosis in racing pigeons.

Five inactivated and one attenuated vaccine produced for the prevention of salmonellosis in pigeons were compared in an experimental challenge model. The birds were vaccinated according to the recommendations of the manufacturers and they were infected by gavage with a Salmonella typhimurium (var copenhagen) pigeon strain. The challenged control animals showed severe weight loss, excessive water intake over a prolonged period, and excreted large numbers of salmonellae. None of the vaccines fully protected the pigeons, and only an inactivated oil adjuvant vaccine was able to reduce the severity of the clinical signs significantly. Mortality was low and tended to increase with the severity of the clinical signs. These results do not justify the preventive use of salmonella vaccination in pigeons. Nevertheless, the oil adjuvant vaccine may help in the effective cleaning of lofts after an outbreak of salmonellosis.

In vivo activity of orally administered antibiotics and chemotherapeutics against acute septicaemic pasteurellosis in rabbits.

Different antibiotics and chemotherapeutics were tested for therapeutic efficacy in rabbits, in an experimental model using a Pasteurella multocida strain which causes hyperacute septicaemia in this animal species. Only enrofloxacin, administered in the drinking water at a concentration of 50-100 mg/l cured the rabbits, provided that a daily intake of 5 mg/kg body weight was achieved. The other drugs tested (tetracycline, spiramycin, erythromycin and a combination of sulfamerazine with trimethoprim), at doses recommended for rabbits, showed little or no activity at all, with the exception of chloramphenicol, which was only partially effective.

Characteristics of Streptococcus bovis associated with pigeons.

Streptococcus bovis strains isolated from different lesions in pigeons were found to differ from most S. bovis associated with mammals. S.bovis was only infrequently found in the gut and faeces of pigeons without streptococcal disease. The bacterium was also isolated from the crop and the pharynx of a minority of healthy pigeons.

Streptococcus bovis infections in pigeons.

Streptococcus bovis infection was diagnosed in pigeons from 20 lofts submitted for post mortem investigation. Clinical signs were very variable and ranged from hyperacute death to chronic lameness with arthritis. Lesions were generally unspecific except for single cases of muscle necrosis with purulent myositis. Histological examinations demonstrated the septicaemic nature of the infections. Intravenous inoculations of S. bovis resulted in prostration, long lasting loss of weight and polyuria. Microscopically purulent hepatitis and nephritis were the most characteristic lesions. After oral inoculation no clinical signs were seen.