Association between cow reproduction and calf growth traits and ELISA scores for paratuberculosis in a multibreed herd of beef cattle.

The objective of this research was to assess the association between 4 cow reproductive and weight traits, and 2 preweaning calf traits and ELISA scores for paratuberculosis (0 = negative, 1 = suspect, 2 = weak-positive, and 3 = positive) in a multibreed herd of cows ranging from 100% Angus (A) to 100% Brahman (B). Cow data were 624 gestation lengths (GL), 358 records of time open (TO), 605 calving intervals (CI), and 1240 weight changes from November to weaning in September (WC) from 502 purebred and crossbred cows. Calf data consisted of 956 birth weights (BWT), and 923 weaning weights adjusted to 205 d of age (WW205) from 956 purebred and crossbred calves. Traits were analyzed individually using multibreed mixed models that assumed homogeneity of variances across breed groups. Covariances among random effects were assumed to be zero. Fixed effects were year, age of cow, sex of calf, year x age of cow interaction (except WC), age of cow x sex of calf interaction (only for WC), and covariates for B fraction of sire and cow, heterosis of cow and calf, and ELISA score. Random effects were sire (except for TO and CI), dam, and residual. Regression estimates of cow and calf traits on ELISA scores indicated that lower cow fertility (longer TO), lower ability of cows to maintain weight (negative WC), lower calf BWT, and lower calf WW205 were associated with higher cow ELISA scores. Further research on the effects of subclinical paratuberculosis in beef cattle at regional and national levels seems advisable considering the large potential economic cost of this disease.

Epidemiology of gastrointestinal nematode parasitism in Suffolk and Gulf Coast Native sheep with special emphasis on relative susceptibility to Haemonchus contortus infection.

An eight-year study was conducted to define the epidemiology of gastrointestinal nematode infection in Suffolk and Gulf Coast Native (Native) breeds of sheep, and to determine if the Native sheep is more resistant to infection. For the initial three years, each breed grazed separate pastures where anthelmintic treatments were administered to individual animals on a salvage basis. For the last five years, both breeds grazed concurrently; anthelmintic treatments were administered to individual animals on a salvage basis for the first three years, and to all animals, when treatment criteria were met, for the last two years. The fecal egg count (FEC) and blood packed cell volume (PCV) were monitored, and tracer lamb nematode burdens were determined. Overall, FEC for both breeds increased in the spring (periparturient rise) for most years and in the summer for all years. Under separate grazing conditions, Native ewes and lambs had consistently lower infection levels than Suffolk ewes and lambs. During the haemonchosis season (June-September) each year, Suffolk ewe and lamb PCV decreased, and Native ewe and lamb PCV remained relatively stable. The salvage treatment protocol resulted in 27 treatments for Suffolk and one for Native ewes; similarly for lambs, 13 for Suffolk and zero for Native. Tracer lambs grazed with their respective breed, and the FEC and mean total nematode burden corresponded with the pattern of infection for their respective breed. The predominant nematodes found in Suffolk and Native tracer lambs were Haemonchus contortus and Trichostrongylus spp., respectively. Under concurrent grazing conditions, the same seasonal repeatable pattern of infection was present and was exhibited by both breeds, with the Native ewes and lambs being consistently and significantly (p < or = 0.05) lower for FEC and higher for PCV. The salvage treatment protocol resulted in 57 and zero treatments for Suffolk and Native ewes, respectively; for lambs, 46 and 11. Tracer lamb nematode burdens again corresponded to their respective breed pattern of infection, with H. contortus and Trichostrongylus spp. being predominant in Suffolk and Native lambs, respectively. Data from all tracer lambs showed a relatively low level of hypobiosis (H. contortus only), and, although there was no consistent hypobiosis season, the tendency was for a higher level to occur in the fall. These results showed that the classic repeatable seasonal pattern of gastrointestinal nematode infection occurred in both breeds of sheep, and that Native sheep were more resistant to infection (specifically H. contortus) than Suffolk sheep.

Influence of fish meal and supplemental fat on performance of finishing steers exposed to moderate or high ambient temperatures.

Ninety-six Hereford x Angus steers (mean initial BW = 295 kg) were used in two growth experiments conducted at moderate and high ambient temperatures (AT), 48 steers per AT. Within each AT, calves were assigned to six dietary treatments consisting of a basal diet (approximately 60% corn and 20% grass hay) supplemented with either 0, 2.5, or 5% fat and with either soybean meal (SBM) or Menhaden fish meal (FM) included at levels such that a ratio of 16.3 kcal of NEm per kilogram of CP was maintained. Blood and ruminal fluid were collected 40 d before slaughter. During the final 28 d of the moderate AT experiment, apparent digestibility of dietary components was measured in four individually fed steers from each dietary treatment. Steer ADG was not affected by fat, and DMI and efficiency of gain were not affected (P > .10) by treatment. Average daily gain was lower for steers fed FM than for those fed SBM at moderate AT but higher at high AT (CP source x AT interaction; P < .05). Ruminal ratio of acetate to propionate declined linearly with increasing fat at moderate AT but was not affected by fat at high AT (fat x AT interaction trend; P = .08). Plasma urea N concentration increased linearly (P < .05) with increasing fat and was higher (P < .05) in steers kept at high than in those kept at moderate AT. Although apparent digestibility was not altered in steers fed FM, DM and NDF (P < .05) and ADF (P = .07) digestibility decreased with increasing fat in steers fed SBM (CP source x fat interaction).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Effects of breed and wintering diet on heifer postweaning growth and development.

Fifteen spring-born Angus (AN) and 25 Brangus (BN) weanling heifers were used in a 2x5 factorial arrangement of treatments to evaluate the effects of breed and postweaning winter diet on heifer growth and development. Dietary treatments were warm-season perennial grass hay (H), ammoniated H (AH), H plus .68 kg/d cottonseed meal (HP), H plus .45 kg/d cottonseed meal plus 1.37 kg/d ground corn (HPE) and HPE plus 200 mg/d monensin (HPEM). Mean initial weight and age for the 107-d feed trial were 207 kg and 270 d. Brangus had .06 kg greater (P less than .05) ADG than AN during the trial. Although digestible DM intake (DDMI) relative to body weight was greater (P less than .10) for AN than for BN, ADG:DDMI was greater (P less than .05) for BN than for AN. Heifers fed H and AH lost weight, but heifers fed AH had 50% (P less than .05) less daily weight loss than those fed H. Daily gain increased (P less than .05) incrementally in response to sequential supplement additions of cottonseed meal (AH vs HP; -.10 vs .17 kg), ground corn (HP vs HPE; .17 vs .29 kg) and monensin (HPE vs HPEM; .29 vs .39 kg). Hay DM intake relative to body weight and DDMI were increased (P less than .01) by ammoniation. Intake did not differ between HPE and HPEM. Diet affected age at puberty (P less than .05), which decreased with increased dietary components. Weight differences among diet groups following the winter feed trial were largely eliminated prior to breeding. Nevertheless, H- and AH-fed heifers collectively weighed less (P less than .01) prior to breeding than did heifers of supplemented diet groups. Reproductive development tended to be adversely affected by weight loss during the postweaning period.

Dose-response relationship of tetronasin administered to grazing steers.

Two grazing experiments were conducted to evaluate the dose-response relationship of steers to the ionophore tetronasin. Bermudagrass-based pastures were grazed 126 d in Exp. 1, and annual ryegrass or an annual ryegrass-berseem clover mixture was grazed 112 d in Exp. 2. Tetronasin was administered in ground corn (.91 kg/hd) fed daily to provide dosages of 0, 7.5, 15, 30, 60 or 90 mg. One hundred forty-four steers (220 kg, Exp. 1; 196 kg, Exp. 2) were allocated to treatment groups of six steers within four initial weight blocks in Exp. 1 and within two initial weight blocks, assigned to two forage types in Exp. 2. Initial weight blocks were confounded with four pasture blocks, divided in six 1.35-ha paddocks. Treatment groups were rotated among paddocks within pasture block every 2 wk. Stepwise tetronasin addition resulted in a linear increase (P less than .05) in the proportion of propionic acid and a linear decrease (P less than .05) in the proportion of acetic acid and the acetic to propionic acid ratio in both experiments. Total VFA concentrations were not altered in Exp. 1 but they decreased linearly in Exp. 2 with tetronasin addition. Maximal observed improvement in daily gain (.1 kg) occurred at a dosage of 30 mg.hd-1.d-1 in Exp. 1 and 90 mg.hd-1.d-1 in Exp. 2. Daily gain increased linearly (P less than .06) with tetronasin level in both experiments.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Effects of breed and wintering diet on growth, puberty and plasma concentrations of growth hormone and insulin-like growth factor 1 in heifers.

Twenty-five Brangus (BR) and 15 Angus (AN) heifers were used to study the effects of breed and wintering diet on average daily gain (ADG), onset of puberty and plasma concentrations of growth hormone (GH) and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1). Wintering diets (fed for 107 days beginning November 15) consisted of the following: 1) native grass hay (NGH), 2) ammoniated NGH, 3) NGH plus cottonseed meal, 4) Diet 3 plus corn and 5) Diet 4 plus monensin. After wintering, heifers were transferred to ryegrass pasture for 70 days. Mean ADG during the wintering phase were -.20, -.10, .17, .29 and .39 kg for heifers fed Diets 1 through 5, respectively (P less than .01). ADG was greater (P less than .05) for BR than for AN heifers. Plasma concentrations of GH were higher (P less than .05) in heifers fed Diets 1 and 2 than in heifers fed Diets 3, 4 or 5. Plasma concentrations of IGF-1 were lowest in heifers fed Diet 1 and highest in heifers fed Diets 4 and 5. During ryegrass grazing, GH concentrations were similar for all groups. However, concentrations of IGF-1 were higher (P less than .05) in heifers fed Diets 3, 4 and 5 than in heifers fed Diets 1 and 2. Age at puberty (onset of cyclic progesterone concentrations) was greatest in heifers fed Diet 1 and lowest in heifers fed Diet 5. Weight at puberty was not affected (P greater than .10) by wintering diet but was greater (P less than .01) in BR than in AN heifers. Therefore, negative ADG appears to be associated with elevated plasma GH concentrations in heifers, and plasma IGF-1 concentration appears to be a more accurate indication of nutritional status than plasma concentrations of GH.

Efficacy of oxfendazole against inhibited larvae of Ostertagia ostertagi acquired by calves in the spring.

During the spring of 1985, 40 calves grazed pastures known to have high numbers of spring inhibition-prone, infective Ostertagia ostertagi larvae. Calves were removed from pasture and placed in outdoor pens with concrete floors from 10 days prior to treatment until necropsy 14 days after treatment. Ten calves were allocated to each of 4 treatment groups, and oxfendazole was administered to each group by intraruminal injection at dosages of 0, 2.25, 4.5, and 6.75 mg/kg of body weight. Efficacies greater than or equal to 94.6% were achieved at dosages of 4.5 and 6.75 mg/kg against adult Ostertagia spp, Trichostrongylus spp, Haemonchus placei, Cooperia punctata, Bunostomum phlebotomum, Oesophagostomum radiatum, and Dictyocaulus viviparus. Efficacy against inhibited larvae of O ostertagi was variable, with the highest efficacy (90.2%) attained at a dosage of 6.75 mg/kg.

Efficacy of levamisole and netobimin against Haemonchus contortus in lambs in Louisiana.

Efficacy of levamisole was evaluated in a suspected levamisole-resistant population of Haemonchus contortus in the Louisiana State University sheep flock. The efficacy of netobimin also was evaluated against this population of Haemonchus. In trial 1, 5 lambs naturally infected with H contortus were given 8 mg of levamisole/kg of body weight as a drench, and 5 lambs were not treated (controls). Nematode recovery after slaughter indicated 0% efficacy against H contortus. In trial 2, 30 nematode-free lambs were each given 8,300 F1 generation infective larvae of H contortus, which were derived from parent H contortus that survived 2 levamisole treatments in lambs being maintained in a nematode-free environment. Ten lambs were treated with 8 mg of levamisole/kg as a drench, 10 were treated with 20 mg of netobimin/kg as a drench, and 10 were not treated (control). Nematode recovery after slaughter revealed 62.3% and 99.8% efficacy for levamisole and netobimin, respectively, against H contortus.

Changes in ruminal concentrations of microbial ammonia and amino acids due to monensin and time.

The effect of monensin (33 mg/kg) and no monensin on distribution of ammonia and free amino acids in fluid and particulate phases of ruminal contents was studied. Two Jersey cows and two Angus-Hereford steers, weighing approximately 350 kg and each containing a ruminal cannula were meal fed a 65% concentrate diet for two periods. Feed was available for 30 min; any feed not eaten was removed after this time. Whole ruminal contents were sampled before feeding, immediately after feed removal and 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 h after feed removal. A crossover design with split-plot in time was used with four observations per time point per treatment. Extracellular (E) ammonia and amino acids were determined on high speed supernatants of strained ruminal fluid. Total (T) ammonia and amino acids were obtained by lysing microbial cells with 1% cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and one freeze treatment before centrifugation. Intracellular (I) amino acids and ammonia were determined as T minus E. Squeezed particles were suspended in .1 N HCl containing 1% CTAB. Total and E ammonia were higher throughout the study for no monensin vs monensin (P less than .05). Intracellular ammonia was low (.03 to 1 mM) and did not change (P greater than .10) across time for either dietary treatment. Intracellular amino acids ranged from 1.2 to 4.5 mM and were higher (P less than .05) than E amino acids (.9 to 2.2 mM) for both diets immediately after feeding. Monensin did not significantly lower (P greater than .10) T amino acids compared with no monensin throughout sampling (2.6 and 3.1 mM, respectively).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Efficacy of repeated doses of levamisole, morantel, fenbendazole, and ivermectin against gastrointestinal nematodes in ewes.

Levamisole, morantel, fenbendazole, or ivermectin was administered at 2-week intervals from May 1 through Sept 14, 1985, to breeding ewes (20 ewes/drug) infected with various gastrointestinal nematodes. All ewes had fewer gastrointestinal nematode eggs per gram of feces (epg) after 2 treatments, compared with pretreatment epg counts. Ewes administered ivermectin continued to have a low mean epg (0 to 3) throughout the study. The mean epg counts of ewes treated with levamisole increased from 3 to 483 during the study. This increase was similar to that of ewes treated with morantel (7 to 485 epg). The mean epg count of fenbendazole-treated ewes increased from 4 to 192 during the study. By the end of the study, the mean epg counts when expressed as a percentage of the pretreatment epg counts were 4% (ivermectin), 249% (fenbendazole), 627% (levamisole), and 630% (morantel). With the exception of the ivermectin-treated ewes, the epg count increased almost linearly in the ewes after the 2nd anthelmintic treatment. These data indicate that the gastrointestinal nematodes (including Haemonchus contortus) may have developed more resistance to levamisole and morantel than to fenbendazole. On the basis of the epg counts, resistance to ivermectin did not develop during the 4.5-month treatment period. The percentage of ewes shedding eggs after 2, 4, and 6 anthelmintic treatments was lowest for ewes treated with ivermectin (20%) and was similar (40%) for ewes treated with 1 of the other 3 anthelmintics. At the conclusion of the study, most of the ewes (90%) were shedding at least a small number of eggs, regardless of the anthelmintic treatment.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

EFficacy of albendazole for treatment of naturally acquired fasciola hepatica in calves.

In calves given various doses of albendazole as a 4.55% (w/v) drench suspension, removal efficacies against mature Fasciola hepatica were 77.5% with the dose of 7.5 mg/kg; 92.3%, with 10 mg/kg; and 85.9%, with 15 mg/kg. Against immature F hepatica, drug efficacies with these doses were 32.7%, 20.0%, and 36.7%, respectively. Reductions in length and width measurements of mature and immature flukes recovered from the bile ducts correlated with the larger doses reflected a greater efficacy against mature flukes or a possible inhibiting effect of the drug on fluke size or growth. Numbers of eggs recovered in bile at necropsy were reduced by 87.8% with the dose of 7.5 mg/kg; 91.8%, with 10 mg/kg; and 95.6%, with 15 mg/kg.

Utilization of nitrogen from soybean meal, casein, zein, and urea by mature sheep.

The utilization of nitrogen contained in soybean meal, casein, zein, and urea was studied in 12 mature wethers. Net microbial synthesis rates during the 6-hour period after feeding corresponded to ruminal ammonia concentrations, suggesting that the ruminal ammonia level in these experiments was a limiting factor in microbiol protein synthesis. Maximum conversion of dietary nitrogen to microbial nitrogen in the rumen during a 24-hour period was estimated to be 62.5, 85.3, 40.9, and 90.1%, respectively, for soybean meal, casein, zein, and urea. Estimated production rates of acetic, propionic, butyric, isovaleric, and valeric acids during the first 6 hours after feeding suggested that zein supported the lowest microbial activity in the rumen, and that urea supplementation resulted in isovaleric and valeric acids production rates equivalent to or greater than rates when the other nitrogen supplements were present in the diet. Daily endogenous urinary and metabolic fecal nitrogen determined by regression analysis utilizing soybean meal as the only nitrogen supplement were 72 mg/kg body weight0.75 and 340 mg/100 g of dry matter intake. Biological values of 84.8, 78.3, 84.3, and 76.4 were obtained for soybean meal, casein, zein, and urea, respectively.