Search

The article presents several research papers for veterinary medicines as of the week ending March 4, 2006 in Great Britain. The World Trade Organization has provided information on the mast cell tumor on dogs. Veterinarian David Halloy and colleagues studied the effects of treating respiratory diseases caused by bacterial infections in pigs with antibiotic ceftiofur. Animal doctor Marcela Uhart and colleagues describe the health status of several adult, free-ranging rheas.

Presents research papers on veterinary in Great Britain. Performance of echocardiography in parrots in healthy parrots; Risk involved to livestock of transmitting disease through the use of composted waste as fertilizer on land; Utilization of magnetic resonance imaging in the management of sacral osteochondrosis in a dog.

The article presents several researches related to veterinary medicine. A four-point photographic scale was used to assess footpad dermatitis in broiler chickens at two processing plants in Great Britain. An investigation on the purported bias system in France that may lead to inaccurate estimates of the prevalence of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy in sheep and goats in European countries has been done. A research on the lesion found in the oral mucosa of sheep is also conducted.

The objectives of this paper were to characterise lesions found at the hock and to establish their prevalence across a large sample of dairy cows in the UK. In addition, the study aimed to examine farmers' perceptions of these lesions. Seventy-seven farms were visited; both hocks on a random sample of approximately 50 cows were scored on a categorical scale for hair loss, ulceration and swelling. In addition, the size and location of lesions were marked on a hock map. A questionnaire designed to explore attitudes towards lesions was conducted with the owner. Hair loss and ulceration were seen at five locations. Hair loss was identified on 5,619 of 6,896 hocks (mild: 43.7 per cent; moderate: 25.1 per cent; severe: 12.6 per cent) and 1,137 of 6,896 hocks had areas of ulceration (mild: 8.6 per cent; moderate: 5.8 per cent; severe: 2.1 per cent). The majority of lesions were small; however, a small proportion had extensive areas of hair loss (maximum size 113.3 cm²) and ulceration (maximum size 95.5 cm²). Moderate swelling was recorded on 20 per cent of hocks, and 2.0 per cent had severe swelling. Interview results suggested that more than 90 per cent of participants were aware of hock lesions and a third had sought treatment for them; most felt that lesions had at least some impact on productivity and welfare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Johne's disease (JD) is an infectious, progressive, gastrointestinal disease affecting ruminants. Calves are mostly infected in their first six months of life, or in utero. We investigated the impact of specific periparturient management practices on within-herd JD prevalence and economic losses foregone in UK dairy herds by means of data synthesis (systematic appraisal of published evidence and expert elicitation) and use of a pre-existing simulation model. Our results show the scarcity of accurate estimates of the impact of specific periparturient management practices on within-herd JD prevalence, which could, in part, be explained by challenges associated with the chronic nature of JD. Management practices aiming to limit the faecal-oral transmission route of Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis (MAP) were found to be most effective at reducing within-herd prevalence of JD. Practices aiming to limit MAP transmission via colostrum and milk were found to be less effective. Losses foregone for a hypothetical herd of 200 milking cows were considerable; based on the assumptions, it is reasonable to expect between £7000 and £11,000 of losses foregone when management practices are implemented as a package of measures. The findings of this study are envisaged to enable farmers and veterinarians to make more informed decisions on changes to periparturient management to control JD [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Characteristics of 94 veterinary surgeons associated with delivering preventive herd-level strategies to control mastitis, lameness and Johne's disease were investigated using two multinomial models. The response variables were 'Gold Standard Monitoring' (including on-going data analysis, risk assessments and laboratory testing), and a lower level of involvement called 'Regular Control Advice'. Although the sample was biased towards those who spend the majority of their time with dairy cows, 69 per cent currently had no involvement in Gold Standard Monitoring for lameness, 60 per cent no involvement with Johne's, and 52 per cent no involvement with mastitis. The final model predicted that an assistant without a postgraduate cattle qualification, who had spent no time on dairy cattle continuous professional development (CPD) in the last year, had an 88 per cent chance of having no involvement with Gold Standard Monitoring for any disease, versus <5 per cent chance for a CPD 'enriched' partner with a postgraduate cattle qualification; there was <1 per cent chance this assistant would be involved with Gold Standard Monitoring of all three diseases on one or more farms, versus a 58 per cent chance for this partner. CPD and employment status were also associated with markedly different probabilities for delivering Regular Control Advice. Increased postgraduate education may further veterinary involvement of this nature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The efficacy of an injectable formulation of danofloxacin (180 mg/ml) in the treatment of naturally occurring bovine respiratory disease was evaluated in field studies on farms in France, Ireland and the United Kingdom. Cattle aged one week to 15 months with clinical respiratory disease were randomly allocated to treatment with 6 mg/kg danofloxacin or 10 mg/kg tilmicosin, administered by a single subcutaneous injection on day 0. A second injection of danofloxacin was administered on day 2, only if predefined clinical criteria were met. Mannheimia haemolytica, Pasteurella multocida and Haemophilus somnus were isolated from pretreatment nasopharyngeal swabs taken on all the farms. After the treatment, there was a more rapid improvement in the clinical response of the 178 animals treated with danofloxacin by day 2 (P<0.01) than in the 90 treated with tilmicosin. For both treatments, there were similar significant (P<0.001) reductions in the mean rectal temperature and severity of clinical signs of abnormal respiration and depression, on days 4 and 10 compared with day 0; 78.1 per cent of the animals treated with danofloxacin and 78.5 per cent of those treated with tilmicosin completed the studies. Danofloxacin 18 per cent was clinically safe and as effective as tilmicosin in the treatment of bovine respiratory disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, the author discusses the common diseases among farm animals in Great Britain. He states the importance of continuous surveillance and research pertaining to the disease in animals and their treatments to control them to avoid ruining the health of human beings. He mentions the significance of the Animal Health and Welfare Strategy that advocates responsibility and cost sharing as a means of safeguarding animal health effectively.