Calf Diarrhea

The highest incidence of calf diarrhea occurs during the _______________ of life

Second week

What is the leading cause of disease and death in calves?

Diarrhea

10.6% cases of diarrhea are complicated by _________________

Sepsis

What are risk factors for neonatal calf disease?

1. Dystocia

2. Failure in the transfer of passive immunity

3. Prepartum cow nutrition, vaccination status and health

4. High stocking density

5. Poor management of calving pen/pasture

Inadequate absorption of immunoglobulins from maternal colostrum during the first 24 hours of life

Failure in the transfer of passive immunity

Failure in the transfer of passive immunity is considered < ________ g/L for dairy calves

10

Beef calves with serum IgG < ____________ g/L at 24 hours of life are considered to have failure in the transfer of passive immunity

24

The odds of (beef or dairy) calf mortality and treatment are increased in 1 day old calves with serum IgG < 24g/L

Beef

Describe the recommendations of colostrum feeding for dairy calves

1. A single feeding of colostrum at 2 hours delivering 300 g IgG

2. Multiple colostrum feedings reaching 400 g of total IgG in 24 hours

What volume of maternal colostrum should dairy calves receive?

4 to 6 liters

For the dairy teaching herd at Auburn, what is the colostrum feeding schedule?

4 L at 2 hours and 2 L at 12 hours

What volume of maternal colostrum should beef calves receive?

2 to 3 liters

What should you check for beef calves to ensure appropriate colostrum consumption?

1. Check suckle reflex

2. Lead calf to cow

3. Milk the cow

4. Use colostrum replacer if needed

T or F: Beef colostrum is NOT more concentrated than dairy colostrum

B

What Brix (%) is considered "good" for using or storing colostrum in dairy cattle?

23%

What are the 5 major pathogens associated with diarrhea in calves?

1. Bovine rotavirus

2. Bovine coronavirus

3. ETEC

4. Cryptosporidium parvum

5. Salmonella spp.

At calving ___________ shed large quantities of rotavirus, coronavirus, Cryptosporidium spp. and E. coli

Dams

What are the virulence factors of E. coli?

1. Adhesins

2. Cytotoxins

3. Enterotoxins

Sick neonates _______________ environmental contamination of E. coli

Amplify

_____________ infections can complicate and prolong viral diarrhea in calves

E. coli (ETEC)

Which type of E. coli is most important for causing calf diarrhea?

ETEC

Disease from ETEC is commonly in calves ___________ of age

≤ 4 days

What is the most important virulence factor for ETEC?

Fimbria (K99)

What enterotoxins does ETEC produce?

Thermolabile and thermostable

Thermostable enterotoxins STa and STb stimulate ___________________________

Hypersecretion in crypt cells of SI

AEEC and STEC are in what aged calves?

2 day to 4 week old

AEEC and STEC cause __________________________

Mucohemorrhagic enteritis (SI and LI) and blood stinted feces

T or F: There is zoonotic potential with E. coli O157:H7 (EHEC)

A (causes hemorrhagic colitis and hemolytic syndrome in humans)

Salmonella causes ________________ feces

Blood stinted

Fulminant septicemia from Salmonella typhimurium causes what?

1. Septic arthritis

2. Meningitis

3. Hemorrhagic pneumonia

Salmonella causes what?

Severe enteritis, mucosal necrosis and fibrin deposition in the SI and LI

_________________ occurs from salmonellosis due to high catabolic state from TNFa

Rapid weight loss (emaciation/cachexia)

Salmonella dublin is shed in ___________________, which is a source of infection for neonates leading to septicemia

Colostrum and milk

Salmonella dublin is considered an (endemic or epidemic) disease on farms

Endemic

Salmonella typhimurium is considered an (endemic or epidemic) disease on farms

Epidemic

T or F: Clostridiosis is a disease of an individual rather than a herd typically

A

Clostridium perfringens type C causes disease at ___________ of age

< 10 days

Clostridium perfringens types A and D cause disease at ______________ of age

2 to 4 months

Clostridium perfringens type C causes _______________

Enteritis

If there is a neonatal calf with diarrhea and acute distention/colic, what should be high on your differential list?

Clostridium perfringens

Clostridium perfringens ______________ causes sudden death in calves

Type D

Clostridium perfringens ______________ causes neurological signs

Types C and D

Which type of clostridium perfringens is found in the GI tract of healthy cattle/environment?

Type A

What can increase the incidence of Clostridium perfringens infection in calves?

1. Interrupted nursing

2. Repeated esophageal tube feeding

Clostridium perfringens type D produces ___________ toxin leading to neurological signs and sudden death

Epsilon

What is the most common cause of diarrhea in calves?

Bovine rotavirus

Bovine rotavirus is common at what age in calves?

5 to 14 days

Bovine rotavirus causes _______________

Villous blunting

What is the mechanism of diarrhea for bovine rotavirus?

1. Malabsorption

2. Hypersecretion

What causes hypersecretion from bovine rotavirus infection?

Nonstructural protein 4

Bovine rotavirus causes __________________

Lactose intolerance

Adult cows shed rotavirus at __________________

Parturition

______________ is likely the most important source of infection of rotavirus in calves

Environment

Bovine coronavirus causes diarrhea from ____________________ of age or longer

5 to 30 days

Bovine coronavirus causes mucohemorrhagic enterocolitis in the ________________

SI and LI

What is the mechanism of diarrhea for bovine coronavirus?

Malabsorption and hypersecretion

T or F: Bovine coronavirus causes lactose intolerance

A

Bovine coronavirus causes ________________ in adult cattle

Winter dysentery

Bovine coronavirus is more common in the ______________

Winter

Coronaviridae family similar to bovine coronavirus causing diarrhea in calves under 3 weeks of age

Bovine torovirus (Breda-virus)

What is the mechanism of diarrhea for bovine torovirus?

Malabsorption and hypersecretion

________________ is the highly zoonotic form of crypto

Type 1 (C. hominis)

________________ causes diarrhea in calves 1 to 4 weeks of age

Type 2 (C. parvum)

What is the mechanism of diarrhea for Cryptosporidium parvum?

Malabsorption and hypersecretion

Cryptosporidium parvum causes epithelial destruction and villus atrophy in the ___________

SI

_________________ from Cryptosporidium parvum infection leads to crypt cell secretion

Prostaglandin

Cryptosporidium parvum is more common in (dairy or beef) herds

Dairy

How is Cryptosporidium parvum transmitted?

Fecal oral

What is the most important risk factor in dairy operations for Cryptosporidium parvum?

Accumulation of water

T or F: Wildlife can be reservoirs and amplify environmental contamination of Cryptosporidium parvum

A

T or F: Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts are resistant to chlorination and most disinfectants

A

Found in diarrheic calves in association with other pathogens

Giardia duodenalis

How do you treat for Giardia spp?

Fenbendazole

Which species of coccidia affect calves?

1. Eimeria bovis

2. Eimeria zuernii

3. Eimeria alabamensis

Coccidiosis occurs in ____________ calves

Weaned

Coccidiosis causes destruction of crypt cells and enteritis in the __________

LI

What does coccidiosis cause?

1. Hypersecretion

2. Inflammation

3. Bloody diarrhea --> anemia

T or F: Milk overfeeding has not been implicated in causing diarrhea

A

Malabsorption and maldigestion leads to increased ____________________

Milk fermentation

An increase in milk fermentation leads to increased _____________ which increases the _____________ leading to ________________

D-lactate, osmolarity, diarrhea/acidosis

Fresh samples from calves early in the course of disease are best for sample collection, what should you collect?

1. Early necropsy

2. Intestinal sections

3. Feces

Some state labs have a ______________________ that tests for E. coli K99, Salmonella spp. BRV, BCoV, and C. parvum in one

Multiplex calf enteric-pathogen PCR panel

T or F: Fecal culture of E. coli is unremarkable

A (unless associated with specific typing)

How do you diagnose E. coli?

Identification of Fimbria K99 for ETEC through PCR

T or F: There is NO gross/histological changes for ETEC infections

A (only causes hypersecretion)

How are AEEC, EPEC, and STEC tested/diagnosed for?

PCR

How do you diagnose Salmonella spp.?

1. Fibrinonecrotic ulcerative enteritis (necropsy)

2. Culture of feces (several days - 5) and tissues (SI)

3. Conventional and real time PCR (with feces or tissues)

If you wanted to culture for Salmonella spp. with a tissue sample, which location should you culture?

SI

What is the best diagnostic for Clostridium perfringens?

1. Fresh necropsy and histopathology

2. Quantitative bacterial counts at the site of the lesion (>10^6/mL)

T or F: Toxin identification only supports a diagnosis of Clostridium perfringens

A

What is the best diagnostic for bovine coronavirus/torovirus?

RT-PCR with feces

What is the best diagnostic for bovine rotavirus?

RT-PCR with feces

How do you diagnose Eimeria spp.?

1. Direct fecal smear

2. Flotation/centrifugation

3. >5,000 oocysts per gram with clinical signs

T or F: Identification of Eimeria spp. oocysts in feces of healthy animals is common

A

What is the best diagnostic for Cryptosporidium spp.?

RT-PCR with feces

T or F: A fecal smear/flotation is appropriate for diagnosing Cryptosporidium spp.

B (due to size of oocysts they are easily missed)

What is the most common pathogen combination for multi-pathogen enteric disease?

Bovine rotavirus and C. parvum

The top 5 causes of calf diarrhea mostly occur when?

First two weeks of life

What are the three pathophysiology mechanisms for calf diarrhea?

1. Hypersecretion

2. Malabsorption

3. Inflammation

Hypersecretion leads to the loss of what?

Cl, HCO3 and K