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The maternal-offspring relationship, such as whether fetal sex influences maternal health, is essential to explore to advance prenatal and maternal health. While associations exist between fetal sex and maternal health outcomes, it is unclear whether these reflect a causal relationship. To demonstrate that fetal sex can be randomly assigned to test the causal effect of fetal sex on maternal outcomes. Holstein dairy cows were stratified and randomized using sealed opaque envelopes to be artificially inseminated with either X- or Y-sorted bull semen until 40 cows became pregnant. Monthly body weight measurements were recorded, and an intravenous glucose tolerance test was performed 30 days before the expected calving day. The primary outcome was insulin area under the curve (AUC), and secondary outcomes were clearance rate, half-life, and AUC for glucose, insulin, and non-esterified fatty acid concentrations. An intention-to-treat (ITT) approach using multiple imputation was employed for primary analysis, and an as-treated (AT) approach was used for secondary analysis. We demonstrated that we could successfully randomize the assignment of fetal sex to dams and test for causal effects of fetal sex on glucoregulatory outcomes using dairy cows as a model. Insulin AUC was not statistically different between groups (ITT p = 0.857, AT p = 0.874), and other outcomes were also not statistically different (p > 0.05). We demonstrated that causal effects of fetal sex on maternal outcomes can be causally tested in dairy cows. Our study did not provide statistical evidence to support an effect of fetal sex on maternal glucose-related outcomes. • Dairy cows are a suitable model to test the relationship between fetal sex and maternal health outcomes. • We demonstrate that fetal sex can be randomized using sex-sorted semen to assess causality. • Our results do not provide statistical evidence to support an effect of fetal sex on maternal glucoregulatory outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study determined the frequency of positive tests for bovine tuberculosis in animals and breeders/establishments in Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil. Data were provided by the Instituto de Defesa e Inspeção Agropecuária do Rio Grande do Norte (IDIARN), from its Unidade Local de Sanidade Animal e Vegetal (ULSAV'S), acquired in monthly reports issued by qualified Veterinarians under the National Program for the Control and Eradication of Brucellosis and Animal Tuberculosis (PNCEBT), from June 2012 to December 2021. For diagnosis, the comparative cervical test was used as a routine and confirmatory test. A total of 45,804 cattle were tested, 53 (0.1%) of which tested positive. Secondary data are essential in the evaluation of sanitary measures, allowing rapid generation of hypotheses about diseases and providing support for decision-making. Measures such as raising awareness among producers, sanitary control in the acquisition and sale of cows for reproduction, inspection of sanitary barriers, and conducting epidemiological surveys to understand the actual situation of this disease in the state of Rio Grande do Norte are crucial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The aim of the present study was to describe the presence of co-infection by Toxoplasma gondii and Neospora caninum in goats reared in extensive systems from Mexico. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted to determine the frequency of T. gondii and N. caninum, by detecting antibodies to each parasite by mean commercial ELISA kits. A total of 176 blood samples were randomly collected from mature females reared in extensive system herds from 20 municipalities of state of Guanajuato, Mexico. Results: The general seroprevalence was 23.9 and 21.0% for T. gondii and N. caninum, respectively, while co-infection rate was 3.6%. For geographic and environmental variables, no differences were observed among T. gondii and coinfection; however, it was observed that altitude, annual precipitation, annual average temperature, and rainy period showed significant differences with N. caninum seropositive goats. Conclusion: The seroprevalence of both parasites was appreciated in most of the studied herds. The present study is the first report of T. gondii and N. caninum co-infection in goats from extensive herds in Mexico. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: This study proposes an automatic classification system for determining body condition score in dairy cows using a deep learning architecture. An original dataset was created by categorizing images of different breeds from different farms into five body condition score classes: Emaciated, Poor, Good, Fat, and Obese. In the experimental analysis, the proposed deep learning model accurately classified 102 out of 126 cow images in the test set, achieving an average accuracy of 0.81 for all classes in Holstein and Simmental cows and an average area under the precision–recall curve of 0.87. The proposed body condition score classification system can help to accurately monitor rapid declines in body condition in dairy cows and serve as a tool for production decision-makers to reduce negative energy balance during early lactation. Body condition score (BCS) is a common tool used to assess the welfare of dairy cows and is based on scoring animals according to their external appearance. If the BCS of dairy cows deviates from the required value, it can lead to diseases caused by metabolic problems in the animal, increased medication costs, low productivity, and even the loss of dairy cows. BCS scores for dairy cows on farms are mostly determined by observation based on expert knowledge and experience. This study proposes an automatic classification system for BCS determination in dairy cows using the YOLOv8x deep learning architecture. In this study, firstly, an original dataset was prepared by dividing the BCS scale into five different classes of Emaciated, Poor, Good, Fat, and Obese for images of Holstein and Simmental cow breeds collected from different farms. In the experimental analyses performed on the dataset prepared in this study, the BCS values of 102 out of a total of 126 cow images in the test set were correctly classified using the proposed YOLOv8x deep learning architecture. Furthermore, an average accuracy of 0.81 was achieved for all BCS classes in Holstein and Simmental cows. In addition, the average area under the precision–recall curve was 0.87. In conclusion, the BCS classification system for dairy cows proposed in this study may allow for the accurate observation of animals with rapid declines in body condition. In addition, the BCS classification system can be used as a tool for production decision-makers in early lactation to reduce the negative energy balance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Understanding multi-pathogen infections/exposures in livestock is critical to inform prevention and control measures against infectious diseases. We investigated the co-exposure of foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV), Brucella spp., Leptospira spp., and Coxiella burnetii in cattle in three zones stratified by land use change and with different wildlife-livestock interactions in Narok county, Kenya. We also assessed potential risk factors associated with the transmission of these pathogens in cattle. Methods: We identified five villages purposively, two each for areas with intensive (zone 1) and moderate wildlife-livestock interactions (zone 2) and one for locations with low wildlife-livestock interactions (zone 3). We sampled 1,170 cattle from 390 herds through a cross-sectional study and tested the serum samples for antibodies against the focal pathogens using enzymelinked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits. A questionnaire was administered to gather epidemiological data on the putative risk factors associated with cattle's exposure to the investigated pathogens. Data were analyzed using the Bayesian hierarchical models with herd number as a random effect to adjust for the within-herd clustering of the various co-exposures among cattle. Results: Overall, 88.0% (95% CI: 85.0-90.5) of the cattle tested positive for at least one of the targeted pathogens, while 41.7% (95% CI: 37.7-45.8) were seropositive to at least two pathogens. FMDV and Brucella spp. had the highest co-exposure at 33.7% (95% CI: 30.9-36.5), followed by FMDV and Leptospira spp. (21.8%, 95% CI: 19.5-24.4), Leptospira spp. and Brucella spp. (8.8%, 95% CI: 7.2-10.6), FMDV and C. burnetii (1.5%, 95% CI: 0.7-2.8), Brucella spp. and C. burnetii (1.0%, 95% CI: 0.3-2.2), and lowest for Leptospira spp. and C. burnetii (0.3%, 95% CI: 0.0-1.2). Cattle with FMDV and Brucella spp., and Brucella spp. and Leptospira spp. co-exposures and those simultaneously exposed to FMDV, Brucella spp. and Leptospira spp. were significantly higher in zone 1 than in zones 2 and 3. However, FMDV and Leptospira spp. co-exposure was higher in zones 1 and 2 than zone 3. Discussion/conclusion: We recommend the establishment of a One Health surveillance system in the study area to reduce the morbidity of the targeted zoonotic pathogens in cattle and the risks of transmission to humans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Importance: Bovine mastitis, predominantly associated with gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus, poses a significant threat to dairy cows, leading to a decline in milk quality and volume with substantial economic implications. Objective: This study investigated the incidence, virulence, and antibiotic resistance of S. aureus associated with mastitis in dairy cows. Methods: Fifty milk-productive cows underwent a subclinical mastitis diagnosis, and the S. aureus strains were isolated. Genomic DNA extraction, sequencing, and bioinformatic analysis were performed, supplemented by including 124 S. aureus genomes from cows with subclinical mastitis to enhance the overall analysis. Results: The results revealed a 42% prevalence of subclinical mastitis among the cows tested. Genomic analysis identified 26 sequence types (STs) for all isolates, with Mexican STs belonging primarily to CC1 and CC97. The analyzed genomes exhibited multidrug resistance to phenicol, fluoroquinolone, tetracycline, and cephalosporine, which are commonly used as the first line of treatment. Furthermore, a similar genomic virulence repertoire was observed across the genomes, encompassing the genes related to invasion, survival, pathogenesis, and iron uptake. In particular, the toxic shock syndrome toxin (tss-1) was found predominantly in the genomes isolated in this study, posing potential health risks, particularly in children. Conclusion and Relevance: These findings underscore the broad capacity for antibiotic resistance and pathogenicity by S. aureus, compromising the integrity of milk and dairy products. The study emphasizes the need to evaluate the effectiveness of antibiotics in combating S. aureus infections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ante-mortem diagnosis of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) is based mainly on the tuberculin skin test (TST) and the ...-IFN release assay (IGRA). Some infected animals escape screening tests, thus, limit herd sanitation. Previous reports have suggested a predominant pattern of multi-organ lesions attributable to Mycobacterium bovis (the causative agent of bTB) bacteraemia. A case--control study was conducted to investigate blood PCR as an alternative tool for improving ante-mortem detection of TST false-negative bovines. Cases comprised 70 TST false-negative bovines (cases), which were serology positive, and controls included 81 TST positive bovines; all of them confirmed as infected with M. bovis. Detection of the IS6110 target through touchdown blood-PCR (IS6110 TD-PCR) was performed. The positivity of the blood-PCR was 27.2% in the control group. This performance was similar to the 15% obtained among cases (p = 0.134). Most cases identified by the IS6110 TD-PCR exhibited focalized lesions (p = 0.002). Results demonstrated that blood-PCR could detect TST false-negative cattle, even if they are negative for IGRA. Considering that cases exhibited humoral response to M. bovis, further studies conducted in a pre-serological stage could provide evidence about the real contribution of the technique in herds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bovine tuberculosis (bTB) is a chronic zoonotic disease affecting cattle of all age groups including wild animals. It poses a significant threat to public health and high economic losses to dairy farmers. While the disease has been eradicated from most of the developed countries through extensive surveillance, testing and culling strategy, it is endemic in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East countries. Currently, there is limited research regarding the prevalence of bTB in cattle in Bhutan. This study aimed to determine the seroprevalence of bTB in cattle in six districts of eastern Bhutan. A two-stage probability proportional to size (PPS) sampling strategy was used to determine the number of animals from which serum samples needed to be collected in each district and sub-district. All farms and cattle for sampling were randomly selected from the data in the annual livestock census of 2020. The samples were tested using bTB ELISA test kit. The seroprevalence and their 95% confidence intervals were calculated. Logistic regression models were constructed to assess the influence of various individual animal and environmental risk factors (breed, age, sex, source of animal, body condition scores of animals, respiratory system status) associated with sero-positivity in animals. The study revealed an apparent seroprevalence of 2.57% (25/971 cattle; 95% CI:1.58–3.57), with an estimated true seroprevalence of 0.91% (95% CI: 0.0–2.81). However, none of the variables were found to be significantly associated with bTB seroprevalence in cattle. We recommend, further sampling and employment of confirmatory testing to fully ascertain the extent of bTB in the cattle herds in eastern Bhutan for prevention and control. Author summary: Bovine tuberculosis (bTB) is a bacterial zoonotic disease caused by Mycobacterium bovis, affecting cattle of all ages. Mycobacterium bovis imposes significant economic burdens on livestock farmers, primarily through reduced production, trade restrictions for live animals and animal products, and the costs of control measures. The disease can be transmitted to humans via consumption of raw milk or through inhalation of infected aerosols. Worldwide, the bovine tuberculosis accounts for 10% of the human tuberculosis cases. In Bhutan, the prevalence and incidence of bTB in both cattle and humans are unknown. In this study, we estimated the seroprevalence of bTB among cattle in six eastern districts of Bhutan. We collected serum samples from 971 cattle and tested them for bovine tuberculosis using ELISA. Our study demonstrated an apparent prevalence of 2.57% (95% CI:1.58–3.57) and a true prevalence of 0.91% (95% CI: 0.0–2.81). Additionally, we assessed factors such as age, breed and farm location that could affect the prevalence of bTB, but none of these factors were significantly associated with the prevalence of bTB. Our study revealed a very low seroprevalence of bTB, among cattle in eastern Bhutan. The findings from this study will contribute to design prevention and control measures for bTB in cattle in Bhutan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within the current process of large-scale dairy-cattle breeding, to address the problems of low recognition-accuracy and significant recognition-error associated with existing visual methods, we propose a method for recognizing the feeding behavior of dairy cows, one based on an improved RefineMask instance-segmentation model, and using high-quality detection and segmentation results to realize the recognition of the feeding behavior of dairy cows. Firstly, the input features are better extracted by incorporating the convolutional block attention module into the residual module of the feature extraction network. Secondly, an efficient channel attention module is incorporated into the neck design to achieve efficient integration of feature extraction while avoiding the surge of parameter volume computation. Subsequently, the GIoU loss function is used to increase the area of the prediction frame to optimize the convergence speed of the loss function, thus improving the regression accuracy. Finally, the logic of using mask information to recognize foraging behavior was designed, and the accurate recognition of foraging behavior was achieved according to the segmentation results of the model. We constructed, trained, and tested a cow dataset consisting of 1000 images from 50 different individual cows at peak feeding times. The method's effectiveness, robustness, and accuracy were verified by comparing it with example segmentation algorithms such as MSRCNN, Point_Rend, Cascade_Mask, and ConvNet_V2. The experimental results show that the accuracy of the improved RefineMask algorithm in recognizing the bounding box and accurately determining the segmentation mask is 98.3%, which is higher than that of the benchmark model by 0.7 percentage points; for this, the model parameter count size was 49.96 M, which meets the practical needs of local deployment. In addition, the technologies under study performed well in a variety of scenarios and adapted to various light environments; this research can provide technical support for the analysis of the relationship between cow feeding behavior and feed intake during peak feeding periods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Bovine tuberculosis (bTB) is a complex zoonotic disease that poses challenges in its management throughout numerous countries. The potential of Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccination as a preventative measure against bTB is explored by many researchers. However, traditional tuberculin skin test methods cannot differentiate infected from vaccinated animals (DIVA). In this study, we established a novel interferon-gamma in vitro release assay (IGRA) for the bTB DIVA test by expressing a recombinant fusion protein named RCE that contains three differential antigens (Rv3872, CFP-10, and ESAT-6) that are present in virulent M. bovis but lacking in BCG genomes. Using a commercial IGRA bTB diagnostic kit based on several RCE stimulators of peripheral blood mononuclear cells as the references for testing 97 cattle, the RCE optimal concentration and cut-off value were measured using the receiver operator curve (ROC). After that, we utilized RCE-IGRA on calves that had received a BCG vaccination to demonstrate that it could be an ideal DIVA method. Therefore, this study is significant for the application of BCG vaccination and the more effective prevention and control of bTB. BCG vaccination is increasingly reconsidered in the effective prevention of bovine tuberculosis (bTB). However, the primary challenge in BCG vaccination for cattle is the lack of a technique for differentiating between infected and vaccinated animals (DIVA). This study aimed to establish a novel DIVA diagnostic test based on an interferon-gamma in vitro release assay (IGRA). The plasmid encoding three differential antigens (Rv3872, CFP-10, and ESAT-6) absent in BCG genes but present in virulent M. bovis was previously constructed. Thus, a recombinant protein called RCE (Rv3872, CFP-10, and ESAT-6) was expressed, and an RCE-based DIVA IGRA (RCE-IGRA) was established. The RCE concentration was optimized at 4 μg/mL by evaluating 97 cattle (74 of which were bTB-positive, and 23 were negative) using a commercial IGRA bTB diagnostic kit. Further, 84 cattle were tested in parallel with the RCE-IGRA and commercial PPD-based IGRA (PPD-IGRA), and the results showed a high correlation with a kappa value of 0.83. The study included BCG-vaccinated calves (n = 6), bTB-positive cattle (n = 6), and bTB-negative non-vaccinated calves (n = 6). After 3 months post-vaccination, PPD-IGRA generated positive results in both vaccinated and infected calves. However, RCE-IGRA developed positive results in infected calves but negative results in vaccinated calves. In conclusion, this DIVA method has broad prospects in differentiating BCG vaccination from natural infection to prevent bTB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Various therapeutic parameters and protocols were performed to identify the most suitable therapeutic method which best suited for this region to treat sub clinical mastitis. The present research study was conducted during December 2020 to June 2021 by screening a total 200 sub clinical cases of mastitis in cows. Animals were screened by based on series of cow side tests namely California Mastitis Test (CMT) and White Side Test (WST). Forty animals among the positive for sub clinical mastitis were randomly divided into 4 groups of 10 animals each and therapeutic efficacy of different antibiotics with nutritional supplements compared. Among the treatment group 100% recovery was recorded in group IV followed by group III, group II and group I. Significant reduction was noticed in post treatment scores of CMT and WST. Study reveals combination of antibiotic Enrofloxacin with supplementation of udder immunity product was most suitable treatment therapy for SCM in the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Non-tuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) are considered a relevant cause of non-specific reactions to the most widely applied bovine tuberculosis (bTB) test, the intradermal tuberculin test. In order to establish which NTM species might act as a potential source of such diagnostic interference, a collection of 373 isolates obtained from skin test positive cows from 359 officially tuberculosis-free (OTF) herds, culled in the framework of the bTB eradication campaign in Spain, were identified at the species level through PCR and Sanger sequencing of the 16S rDNA, hsp65 and rpoB genes.Of the 308 isolates for which a reliable identification was achieved, 32 different mycobacterial species were identified, with certain species being most represented: among M. avium complex members (n = 142, 46.1%), M. aviumsubsp. hominissuis (98; 69.0%) was themost abundant followed by M. avium subsp. avium (33, 23.2%), and M. intracellulare (7, 4.9%). Among non-MAC members (n = 166, 53.9%), M. nonchromogenicum(85; 27.6%) and M. bourgelatii (11; 5.6%) were the predominant species. In addition, mixed results were obtained in 53 isolates presenting up to 30 different genotypes, which could be indicative of new mycobacterial species. Our results represent a first step toward characterizing the diversity of NTM species that could interfere with official diagnostic tests for bTB eradication in Spain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the main livestock productions is represented by the dairy sector. The progress made over time being significant, but constrained by a limiting factor, the interval between generations (5 years). An excellent tool that helps make progress by reducing the time period until performance is manifested is genomic testing. This provided the necessary means to constantly improve genetics in production, fitness and conformation of dairy cows. Through its implementation, important changes are occurring in this branch of animal husbandry. This paper aims to review the most important aspects regarding the genomic testing by analyzing a significant number of works on this topic Based on genomic testing, the farmer can take effective decisions about herd improvement, to verify parentage or to identify bacterial strains associated with particular disease outbreaks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Milk provides a readily available diagnostic fluid collected daily or more frequently on an individual animal or herd basis. Milk, as an aggregated sample in bulk tank milk (BTM) represents the status of a herd instead of a single animal. In this review, we examine the potential for milk to predict risks to efficient production, reproductive success, and health on the individual cow and herd level. Findings: For many conditions related to disorders of metabolism including hyperlipdaemia and ketonaemia, improved individual cow milk testing may allow a temporally useful detection of metabolic disorder that can target intervention. However, the extension of these tests to the BTM is made more difficult by the tight temporal clustering of disorder to early lactation and the consequent mixing of cows at even moderately different stages of lactation. Integrating herd recording demographic information with Fourier‐transformed mid‐infrared spectra (FT‐MIR) can provide tests that are useful to identify cows with metabolic disorders. The interpretation of BTM urea and protein content provides useful indications of herd nutrition. These may provide indicators that encourage further investigations of nutritional influences on herd fertility but are unlikely to provide strong diagnostic value. The fat‐to‐protein ratio has a high specificity, but poor sensitivity for detection of fibre insufficiency and acidosis on an individual cow basis. Selenium, zinc, β‐carotene, and vitamin E status of the herd can be determined using BTM. Conclusions: There appears to be increasing potential for the use of milk as a diagnostic fluid as more in‐parlour tests become available for individual cows. However, the BTM appears to have under‐utilised potential for herd monitoring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Artificial intelligence (AI) was developed to distinguish cattle by their muzzle patterns and identify early cases of disease, including infectious bovine keratoconjunctivitis (IBK). It was tested on 870 cattle in four locations, with 170 developing IBK. The AI identified 169 of the 170 cases prior to their identification by veterinarians, and another 17 cases that remained free of IBK signs (sensitivity = 99.4%, specificity = 97.6%). These results indicate the AI can detect emerging IBK cases by muzzle images very early in the disease process and be used as an intervention tool in the prevention of IBK outbreaks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bluetongue virus serotype 16 detection in NSW : In coastal New South Wales (NSW), bluetongue virus (BTV) serotypes 1 and 21 are endemic and transmitted in most years without evidence of disease. However, serotype 16 (BTV‐16) infection was detected for the first time in NSW in November 2016 in cattle undergoing testing for export. Retrospective testing of blood samples collected from sentinel cattle as part of the National Arbovirus Monitoring Program (NAMP) established that the first detected transmission of BTV‐16 in NSW occurred in April 2016 in sentinel cattle on the NSW North Coast. Subsequently, until 2022, BTV‐16 has been transmitted in most years and was the predominant serotype in the 2018–2019 transmission season. The data available suggests that BTV‐16 may have become endemic in NSW. Experimental studies: During experimental infection studies with BTV‐16, all sheep were febrile, with the peak of viremia occurring 6–10 days after inoculation. There was nasal and oral hyperaemia in most sheep with several animals developing a nasal discharge and nasal oedema. All sheep developed coronitis of varying severity, with most also developing haemorrhages along the coronary band. There was a high incidence of haemorrhage in the pulmonary artery, epicardial petechiae, extensive pericardial haemorrhages and moderate body cavity effusions including pericardial effusions. Conclusion: Overall, experimental pathogenicity findings suggest moderate disease may occur in sheep in the field. These findings, when combined with climatic variability that could result in an expansion of the range of Culicoides brevitarsis into major sheep‐producing areas of the state, suggest that there is an increasing risk of bluetongue disease in NSW. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brucellosis is a zoonotic disease, caused by some species within the Brucella genus. The primary and secondary objectives of this cross-sectional study were to determine the seroprevalence of Brucella antibodies in humans and cows and identify risk factors for exposure to Brucella spp. among people in Shahjadpur sub-district, Bangladesh. Twenty-five villages were randomly selected from the 303 milk-producing villages in the sub-district. We randomly selected 5% of the total households from each village. At each household, we collected demographic information and history of potential exposure to Brucella spp. in humans. In addition, we collected serum from household participants and serum and milk from cattle and tested to detect antibodies to Brucella sp. Univariate analysis was performed to detect associations between seropositivity and demographics, risk factors, and behaviors in households. We enrolled 647 households, 1313 humans, and 698 cows. Brucella antibodies were detected in sera from 27 household participants (2.1%, 95% confidence interval [95%CI]: 1.2–2.9%). Eleven (1.6%, 95%CI 0.6–2.4%) cows had detectable Brucella antibodies in either milk or serum. About half (53%) of the 698 cows exhibited more than one reproductive problem within the past year; of these, seven (2%) had Brucella antibodies. Households with seropositive individuals more frequently reported owning cattle (78% vs. 32%, P < 0.001). Despite a low prevalence of Brucella seropositivity in the study, the public health importance of brucellosis cannot be ruled out. Further studies would help define Brucella prevalence and risk factors in this region and nationally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This report presents the results of surveillance on transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSE) in cattle, sheep, goats, cervids and other species, and genotyping in sheep and goats, carried out in 2022 by 27 Member States (MS, EU27), the United Kingdom (in respect of Northern Ireland [XI]) and other eight non‐EU reporting countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia, Switzerland and Türkiye. In total, 977,008 cattle were tested by EU27 and XI (−4.3%, compared with 2021), and 52,395 cattle by eight non‐EU reporting countries, with one case of H‐BSE in France. In total, 295,145 sheep and 109,074 goats were tested in the EU27 and XI (−5.2% and −7.9%, respectively, compared to 2021). In the other non‐EU reporting countries, 25,535 sheep and 633 goats were tested. In sheep, 557 cases of scrapie were reported by 17 MS and XI: 480 classical scrapie (CS) by five MS (93 index cases [IC] with genotypes of susceptible groups in 97.6% of the cases), 77 atypical scrapie (AS) (76 IC) by 14 MS and XI. In the other non‐EU reporting countries, Norway reported 16 cases of ovine AS. Ovine random genotyping was reported by eight MS and genotypes of susceptible groups accounted for 7.3%. In goats, 224 cases of scrapie were reported, all from EU MS: 216 CS (42 IC) by six MS, and 8 AS (8 IC) by four MS. In Cyprus, two cases of CS were reported in goats carrying the heterozygous DN146 allele. In total, 3202 cervids were tested for chronic wasting disease by 10 MS. One wild European moose tested positive in Finland. Norway tested 17,583 cervids with two European moose, one reindeer and one red deer positive. In total, 154 animals from four other species tested negative in Finland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurate cattle pose estimation is essential for Precision Livestock Farming (PLF). Computer vision-based, non-contact cattle pose estimation technology can be applied for behaviour recognition and lameness detection. Existing methods still face challenges in achieving fast cattle pose estimation in complex scenarios. In this work, we introduce the FasterNest Block and Depth Block to enhance the performance of cattle pose estimation based on the RTMPose model. First, the accuracy of cattle pose estimation relies on the capture of high-level image features. The FasterNest Block, with its three-branch structure, effectively utilizes high-level feature map information, significantly improving accuracy without a significant decrease in inference speed. Second, large kernel convolutions can increase the computation cost of the model. Therefore, the Depth Block adopts a method based on depthwise separable convolutions to replace large kernel convolutions. This addresses the insensitivity to semantic information while reducing the model's parameter. Additionally, the SimAM module enhances the model's spatial learning capabilities without introducing extra parameters. We conducted tests on various datasets, including our collected complex scene dataset (cattle dataset) and the AP-10K public dataset. The results demonstrate that our model achieves the best average accuracy with the lowest model parameters and computational requirements, achieving 82.9% on the cattle test set and 72.0% on the AP-10K test set. Furthermore, in conjunction with the object detection model RTMDet-m, our model reaches a remarkable inference speed of 39FPS on an NVIDIA GTX 2080Ti GPU using the PyTorch framework, making it the fastest among all models. This work provides adequate technical support for fast and accurate cattle pose estimation in complex farm environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study examined the relationship between milk yield and udder morphology traits in White Fulani cows. Fifty-eight apparently healthy cows in early lactation at 2nd, 3rd, and 4th parity were used in the study. The data obtained from the cows were test day milk yield (TDMY) from single milking and udder morphology traits comprising udder length (UL), udder width (UW), udder depth (UD), fore teat length (FTL), rear teat length (RTL), fore teat diameter (FTD), and rear teat diameter (RTD). There was no significant effect of parity on TDMY or the udder morphology traits. Phenotypic correlations between TDMY, UL, UW, and UD were positive and significant. Notably, phenotypic correlations between UL and TDMY at different parities were the strongest. Teat measurements had no significant correlation with TDMY. Stepwise and principal component regressions were implemented to assess the relationship between milk yield and udder morphology traits. Interestingly, UL was the only trait that entered the reduced models. The results suggest a probable genetic correlation between milk yield and udder length. Therefore, since udder conformation traits are heritable, when selecting for udder length in White Fulani cows, a correlated response in milk yield is expected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aim: Mastitis is an essential issue in dairy cows. Post-milking teat dips can help reduce this problem, but they employ harsh disinfectants, and many bacteria are becoming increasingly tolerant. This study aimed to investigate the antibacterial activity of clove, citronella, and sweet basil essential oils against the common bovine mastitis causative agents Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus agalactiae, and Escherichia coli and to develop an antiseptic post-milking teat spray for use in dairy cows. Materials and Methods: The in vitro antimicrobial activity of the essential oils was determined by broth microdilution and time-kill assays. Essential oil-based post-milking teat sprays were developed. The bacterial eradication efficacy of the formulations was determined by time-kill assays and their stability was tested by repeated freeze-thaw cycles. The most effective formulation was tested in dairy cows. Results: The minimum inhibitory concentrations and minimum bactericidal concentrations of the tested essential oils against S. aureus, S. agalactiae, and E. coli were in the range of 0.78-6.25 µL/mL. The time-kill tests indicated that the essential oils' antibacterial activity depended on concentration and contact time. All three essential oil-based post-milking teat spray preparations showed good stability. The citronella spray formulation showed the highest antibacterial potency. In in vivo testing, the citronella spray eradicated aerobic bacteria on the teat skin of cows (99.9% or 3-log10 reduction) within 1 min, which was non-inferior to a standard 0.54% iodine solution teat dip. Conclusion: Clove, citronella, and sweet basil essential oils were effective against S. aureus, S. agalactiae, and E. coli in vitro. Of these, citronella essential oil is the most promising to be developed as a post-milking teat spray with high antibacterial activity and excellent bacterial eradication properties in vivo. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The bovine high fecundity allele, Trio, causes overexpression in granulosa cells (GCs) of SMAD6, an inhibitor of BMP15-activated SMAD signalling. Furthermore, the Trio allele results in antral follicles that develop slower, acquire ovulatory capacity at smaller sizes, and have three-fold greater ovulation rate compared to half-sib non-carriers. The present study was designed to determine preantral follicle numbers and size in Trio carrier and non-carrier cattle testing the hypothesis that inhibition of SMAD signalling would alter preantral follicle activation and/or growth. Ovarian tissues from Trio carrier (n = 12) and non-carrier (n = 12) heifers were obtained by laparotomy after follicle wave synchronization. Follicle numbers and dimensions were determined for each stage of development (primordial, transitional, primary, and secondary) from paraffin-embedded sections. There were no differences in the number of primordial, transitional, or secondary follicles or in antral follicle count, circulating AMH, or ovarian volume between carriers and non-carriers. Trio carriers had ~2.5-fold greater (P < 0.01) number of primary follicles than non-carriers, and transitional and primary follicles were larger (~1.2-fold; P < 0.1) in Trio carriers. Oocyte volume of primordial and transitional follicles was not different between genotypes; however, oocytes were larger (P < 0.05) in primary (~1.3-fold) and secondary (~1.8-fold) follicles for Trio carriers. Granulosa cell numbers were not different (P > 0.3) between carriers and non-carriers, irrespective of the stage of development. These results suggest that, after primordial follicle activation, follicles in Trio carrier cattle have slower progression through the primary stage, hence the larger oocyte and greater number of primary follicles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The circulation of Bluetongue (BT) and Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease (EHD) in the Middle East has already been reported following serological analyses carried out since the 1980s, mostly on wild ruminants. Thus, an EHD virus (EHDV) strain was isolated in Bahrain in 1983 (serotype 6), and more recently, BT virus (BTV) serotypes 1, 4, 8 and 16 have been isolated in Oman. To our knowledge, no genomic sequence of these different BTV strains have been published. These same BTV or EHDV serotypes have circulated and, for some of them, are still circulating in the Mediterranean basin and/or in Europe. In this study, we used samples from domestic ruminant herds collected in Oman in 2020 and 2021 for suspected foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) to investigate the presence of BTV and EHDV in these herds. Sera and whole blood from goats, sheep and cattle were tested for the presence of viral genomes (by PCR) and antibodies (by ELISA). We were able to confirm the presence of 5 BTV serotypes (1, 4, 8, 10 and 16) and the circulation of EHDV in this territory in 2020 and 2021. The isolation of a BTV-8 strain allowed us to sequence its entire genome and to compare it with another BTV-8 strain isolated in Mayotte and with homologous BTV sequences available on GenBank. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Genomic tests (GTs) provide information about the expected performance of cattle. Cattle producer survey results indicated that 56% of producers were interested in using GTs for marketing cattle and 74% would use GTs to select replacement heifers. If interested in using GTs to market cattle, on average, producers indicated they were willing to pay $21/head and test 55% of their animals. For replacement heifers, on average, they were willing to pay $23/head and test 77% of their heifers. A conditional mixed process regression framework found producer characteristics and risk preferences were associated with the decisions involved in using GTs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: In this study, we aimed to solve the incompatibilities between the skin prick test (SPT) result and the clinical picture encountered among patients. Thus, we used various milk products (raw, ultrahigh temperature [UHT], and pasteurized cow's milk) with commercial milk allergen extract in patients we think may have cow's milk protein allergy (CMPA) and made a comparison among the milk types. Methods: This study was conducted retrospectively between February 1, 2019, to June 1, 2019, at a pediatric allergy polyclinic of the university training/research hospital. A pair of 79 individuals, as control and patient groups, ages between 1 month and 21 years who were presented with a suspicion of CMPA and defined with SPT and/or allergen-specific immunoglobulin E (IgE) levels were included in the study. Allergen-specific IgE tests (specific IgE cow's milk, β-lactoglobulin, α-lactalbumin, casein) were evaluated. SPT was performed with fresh/raw, UHT, and pasteurized (daily) cow's milk besides the standard used commercial extract. Results: In the group included in the study and defined as IgE-mediated CMPA, 52.9% of the 79 patients were boys (n = 46), 47.1% were girls (n = 33), and the median age was 6 months (5.0‐8.0 months). In the group of specific IgE cow's milk reaction that was sought, frequency and wheal (induration) size of SPT reaction to fresh/raw milk was also found to be statistically significant between positive- and negative-reaction groups, not detected against other milk products. The area under the curve for the diagnostic value of fresh milk was 93.1%. For the cutoff value of 2.50 mm, 88.1% sensitivity and 90.8% specificity were determined. In the group of specific IgE β-lactoglobulin reaction searched, there was a statistically significant difference in the frequency of SPT positivity and wheal size against UHT, fresh, and daily/pasteurized milk between positive and negative reaction groups. When the correlations of the mean induration axis in the tests were examined, it was found that, among raw milk, daily milk, cow's milk allergen extract, and UHT milk, a strong positive correlation was also statistically significant. Conclusion: The positivity that could not be detected with SPT when using allergen extract in a patient with positive specific IgE cow's milk result in the clinic can be detected with SPT made with fresh (raw) milk, which can be an alternative. In addition, specific IgE β-lactoglobulin seems to be the most compatible with the SPT wheal size (induration) of other milk types rather than extract. Comparative studies of SPT allergen extracts and various milk types used in the diagnosis of CMPA are very scarce in the literature, and more studies are needed on this subject. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Camel trypanosomiasis (Surra) is endemic in the Horn of Africa. Understanding the spatiotemporal variations in Surra prevalence, vector dynamics, and host-related risk factors is important in developing effective control strategies. A repeated cross-sectional study was conducted to determine the Surra parasitological prevalence, livestock reservoirs, vector density/diversity, and host-related risk factors in Kenya. Random samples of 847, 1079, and 824 camels were screened at the start of the dry season, peak dry season, and during the rainy season, respectively. Blood samples were examined using the dark ground/phase contrast buffy-coat technique, and Trypanosoma species were identified based on their movement and morphology in wet and stained thin smears. Reservoir status for Trypanosoma evansi was assessed in 406 cattle and 372 goats. A rainy and dry seasons entomological surveys were conducted to determine the Surra vector abundance/diversity and spatiotemporal density changes. Surra prevalence was 7.1%, 3.4%, and 4.1% at the start of the dry season, peak dry season, and rainy season, respectively. Camel co-infections by Trypanozoon (T. evansi or Trypanosoma brucei brucei) and Trypanosoma vivax were recorded. Spatial variations in Surra prevalence were recorded at the beginning of dry ( X 7 , N = 846 2 = 110.9 , p ≤ 0.001), peak dry ( X 7 , N = 1079 2 = 42.2 , p ≤ 0.001), and rainy ( X 7 , N = 824 2 = 29.1 , p ≤ 0.001) seasons. The screened cattle and goats tested negative for Trypanozoon (T. evansi or T. b. brucei), while two cattle tested positive for Trypanosoma congolense. Biting fly catches were composed of a single species from Tabanus, Atylotus, Philoliche, Chrysops, and Stomoxys genera. The total catches for Philoliche, Chrysops, and Stomoxys were higher in the rainy than dry season consistent with the prevalence results. Surra remains an important camel disease in the region with its prevalence varying in space and time. Camel co-infections by Trypanozoon (T. evansi or T. b. brucei) and T. vivax necessitate proper diagnosis of suspected cases and targeted therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bovine tuberculosis is a contagious bacterial disease of worldwide economic, zoonotic and welfare importance caused mainly by Mycobacterium bovis infection. Current regulatory diagnostic methods lack sensitivity and require improvement. We have developed a multiplex serological test for bovine tuberculosis and here we provide an estimate of the diagnostic accuracy of the test in cattle. Positive and negative reference serum samples were obtained from animals from Europe and the United States of America. The diagnostic specificity estimate was 98.4% and 99.7% using high sensitivity and high specificity settings of the test respectively. Tuberculin boosting did not affect the overall specificity estimate. The diagnostic sensitivity in samples from Mycobacterium bovis culture positive animals following tuberculin boosting was 93.9%.The relative sensitivity following boosting in tuberculin test positive, lesion positive animals and interferon gamma test positive, lesion positive animals was 97.2% and 96.9% respectively. In tuberculin test negative, lesion positive animals and in interferon gamma test negative, lesion positive animals, the relative sensitivity following tuberculin boosting was 88.2% and 83.6% respectively. The results show that the test has high diagnostic sensitivity and specificity and can detect infected animals that are missed by tuberculin and interferon gamma testing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The experiment was to study the effect of rumen-passed capsicum oleoresin on serum antioxidant index, serum immune index and serum hormone level of dairy cows. A total of 465 Holstein cows with (2.52±1.33) parity, with (109.00 ± 52.31) d of lactation were randomly divided into two groups, 236 cows in control group and 229 cows in test group. The cows in control group were fed with total mixed diet (TMR), and the test group was supplemented with 300 mg/(head·d) of rumen-passed capsicum oleoresin in TMR. The test period was 91 d. The results showed that during the whole experimental period, the days with THI more than 72 (the cows entered heat stress state) were 62 d in total. The average THI in early, middle and late stages of test were 70.61, 75.60 and 73.17, respectively, and the days with THI more than 72 were 11, 27 and 24 d, respectively. The order of the severity of heat stress in dairy cows during test period was the middle stage of test > the later stage of test > the earlier stage of test. T-AOC and the activity of GSH-Px, CAT and SOD in serum of dairy cows at 90 d of trial period were significantly higher than those at 30 d and 60 d (P<0.05), and the content of MDA was significantly lower than those at 30 d and 60 d (P<0.05). At the 30th day of trial period, the serum IgG content of dairy cows was significantly lower than that of the 60th and 90th days (P<0.05), the serum IL-10 content of dairy cows at the 60th day was significantly higher than that of the 30th and 90th days (P<0.05), and the serum IgA, IgM, IL-6 content of dairy cows at the 90th day was significantly higher than that of the 30th and 60th days (P<0.05). At the 60th and 90th days of the trial period, the serum COR content of dairy cows was significantly lower than that of the 30th day (P<0.05), the serum T3 content of dairy cows at the 60th day was significantly higher than that of the 30th and 90th days (P<0.05), and the serum ALD content of dairy cows at the 90th day was significantly higher than that of the 30th and 60th days (P<0.05). Compared with control group, the addition of capsicum oleoresin could significantly increase serum SOD activity of dairy cows (P<0.05), and reduce the serum ALD content of dairy cows (P<0.05). There were significant interaction effect on the activity of GSH-Px, SOD and ALD content in serum of dairy cows during the diet treatment and test time (P<0.05). The experiment indicates that the addition of 300 mg/(head·d) rumen passing capsicum oleoresin in diet can improve the performance of dairy cows, increase the level of serum antioxidant and improve the level of serum stress hormone in dairy cows under heat stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The experiment was conducted to study the effect of different levels of rumen bypass fat on serum hormone, apparent digestibility of nutrients and reproductive performance of Angus cows. A total of 40 Angus cows were randomly divided into four groups, with ten replicates in each group and one cow in each replicate. The cows in control group were fed with basic diet, the cows in group 1 were fed with basic diet + 100 g/(head·d) of rumen bypass fat, the cows in group 2 were fed with basic diet + 200 g/(head·d) of rumen bypass fat, and the cows in group 3 were fed with basic diet + 300 g/(head·d) of rumen bypass fat. The test period was 60 d. The results showed that compared with control group, the content of serum insulin, bovine insulin-like growth factor binding protein-4, follicle stimulating hormone, progesterone and estradiol of cows in group 2 and group 3 were significantly increased (P<0.05). Compared with control group, the crude protein and neutral detergent fiber apparent digestibility of cows in group 2 and group 3 were significantly increased (P<0.05), and the crude fat apparent digestibility of cows in each test group was significantly increased (P<0.05). Compared with control group, the first oestrus time of cows in group 2 and group 3 was significantly decreased (P<0.05), the first mating days of cows in each test group were significantly reduced (P<0.05), and the pregnancy rate was significantly increased (P<0.05). The study indicates that the use of 200 g/(head·d) and 400 g/(head·d) rumen bypass fat in cow production can promote the digestion and absorption of nutrients, improve reproductive performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The epidemiology of corresponding tick-borne diseases has changed as a result of the recent introduction of Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus to West Africa. The current study aimed to assess the diagnostic performance of an indirect ELISA for the detection of Babesia bovis infection in cattle. In a cross-section study, using a Bayesian Latent Class Model and iELISA diagnostic test for cattle babesiosis due to Babesia bovis, accuracy has been assessed with RT-PCR as an imperfect reference test. A total of 766 cattle were tested. The optimal diagnostic performances were obtained with 5% percentage of positivity. Sensitivity and specificity were, respectively, 0.94 [Cr. I.: 0.85–0.99] and 0.89 [Cr. I.: 0.87–0.92]. Additional diagnostic characteristics revealed that the Positive Predictive Value (PPV) and Negative Predictive Value (NPV) were 96.6% [Cr. I.: 92.7–100%] and 82.2% [Cr. I.: 72–93%]. Overall, this test well discriminates an infected status from an uninfected status considering the area under the ROC curve (AUC) which was 0.78 [Cr. I: 0.72–0.85] and a Diagnostic Odds Ratio (DOR) of 127.8 [Cr. I.: 10.43–1562.27]. The AUC was significantly higher than 0.5 (p < 10−5). In consequence, this serologic assay could be suitable in moderate to high prevalence assessments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The experiment was conducted to study the effect of Saccharomyces cerevisiae culture on production performance, serum biochemical indexes and antioxidant indexes of lactating cows under heat stress. On the basis of original grouping of cattle farm, two groups of cows with similar average yield were selected, one group was control group (90 cows), the cows in control group were fed with basal diet, one group was test group (76 cows), the cows in test group were fed with basal diet+50 g/(head·d) of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The test period was 30 d. The results showed that on 28 to 30 d of experiment, the milk yield of test group was significantly higher than that of control group and on 1 to 3 d of experiment (P<0.05). The SCC of milk in test group on 14~16 d was extremely lower than that in control group on 1~3 d (P<0.01). The SCC of milk in two groups was extremely lower than that on 1 to 3 d (P<0.01). Compared with control group, the content of TP, T3 and T4 in test group was extremely increased (P<0.01), and BUN content was extremely decreased (P<0.01). Compared with control group, the activity of T-SOD and GSH-Px in the test group was extremely increased (P<0.01), and the content of serum MDA in test group was extremely decreased (P<0.01). The study indicates that the culture of Saccharomyces cerevisiae can improve the intake and milk yield of cows under heat stress to a certain extent, enhance the antioxidant capacity, and alleviate the heat stress of dairy cows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Q fever caused by Coxiella burnetii is an important zoonosis and has great public health significance. A total of 905 clinical samples from 387 cattle [serum (n = 387); vaginal swabs (n = 387); milk (n = 131)] and 59 serum samples from humans were collected from gaushala (cattle shelter) and screened for anti-C. burnetii IgG antibodies in the sera using an indirect-ELISA kit. Further, the samples were tested for C. burnetii DNA employing TaqMan real-time and conventional PCR assays targeting the com1 gene. In ELISA, 9.56% and 6.78% of animal and human sera samples were positive for anti-C. burnetii antibodies, respectively. Upon pathogen detection, 3.87% sera, 1.81% vaginal swabs, and 6.87% milk samples from cattle tested positive in TaqMan real-time PCR and 1.55% sera, 0.52% vaginal swabs, and 3.05% milk samples were found positive in conventional PCR. In humans, one serum sample was positive in both the PCR assays. The PCR positive samples (n = 12) were partially sequenced and the phylogenetic tree was constructed using com1 gene sequences (n = 42) from a different host and geographical areas. The study highlights infection of cattle and their human contacts in gaushala and identifies relationships between strains identified in the gaushala and those in other parts of the globe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• CNN, LSTM, CNN-LSTM, and CNN-BiLSTM-attention predicted cow calving. • Triaxial and x -axis tail acceleration data were used. • CNN-BiLSTM-attention achieved a recall of 0.94, and a F1 score of 0.93. • CNN-LSTM generated alert within 12 h before calving for 91 % of the total cows. • CNN-BiLSTM-attention generated alert within 12 h before calving for all the cows. Calving monitoring in dairy cattle is a crucial task for modern farms. Accurate prediction of calving time is a prerequisite for timely and effective calving management. Recently, deep learning models using behavioral data have been proposed to predict calving in dairy cattle. However, few studies have utilized deep learning models on tail acceleration data to directly predict calving in dairy cattle. This study assessed the performance of the convolutional neural network (CNN), long short-term memory (LSTM), CNN-LSTM, and CNN based bidirectional long short-term attention (CNN-BiLSTM-attention) models using tail acceleration data to predict dairy cattle calving. We collected tail acceleration data from 25 cows for model training and obtained tail acceleration data from 11 additional cows for model testing. Given that the tail acceleration data at the prenatal stage were less than the data at the nonprenatal stage, a time-series generative adversarial networks (TimeGAN) was used to augment the amount of data at the prenatal stage. The performance of each model during the training phase was evaluated, and the differences between the calving alert-generation times and the actual calving times were compared. The CNN, LSTM, CNN-LSTM, and CNN-BiLSTM-attention models achieved precision values of 0.8537, 0.8605, 0.8861, and 0.9147; recall values of 0.9085, 0.9427, 0.9455, and 0.9459; and F1 scores of 0.8803, 0.8997, 0.9148, and 0.9300, respectively. The four models generated the first alert within 12 h before calving for 64 %, 73 %, 91 %, and 100 % of the total 11 cows. When trained using one-dimensional tail acceleration data (parallel to the tail direction of the cow and pointed downward), the CNN–BiLSTM–attention model achieved a precision of 0.8427, a recall of 0.8219, and an F1 score of 0.8322. These preliminary results indicate the feasibility of utilizing deep learning models with tail acceleration data to predict dairy cattle calving time, providing methods to optimize calving management and improve animal monitoring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This report presents the results of surveillance on transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSE) in cattle, sheep, goats, cervids and other species, and genotyping in sheep and goats, carried out in 2021 by 27 Member States (MS, EU27), the United Kingdom (in respect of Northern Ireland) (XI), and eight other non‐EU reporting countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia, Switzerland and Turkey. In total, 1,021,252 cattle were tested by EU27 and XI (−9%, compared with 2020 when data from the United Kingdom were not restricted to Northern Ireland), and 66,121 cattle by eight non‐EU reporting countries, with two cases of H‐BSE in France and Spain, and four L‐BSE in France (2), Germany and Spain. In total, 311,174 sheep and 118,457 goats were tested in the EU27 and XI (−6.4% and −1.8%, respectively, compared to 2020 when data from the whole United Kingdom were considered). In sheep, 551 cases of scrapie were reported by 17 MS and XI: 448 classical scrapie (CS) by six MS [80 index cases (IC) with genotypes of susceptible groups in 97% of the cases], 103 atypical scrapie (AS) (96 IC) by 13 MS and XI. In the other non‐EU reporting countries, 27,594 sheep were tested with 55 CS and 1 AS in Iceland and 8 AS in Norway. Ovine random genotyping was reported by nine MS and genotypes of susceptible groups accounted for 7.9%. In goats, 224 cases of scrapie were reported by six EU MS: 219 CS (30 IC) by six MS, and five AS (5 IC) by three MS. In total, 5,854 cervids were tested for chronic wasting disease by eight MS; all resulted negative. Norway tested 21,670 cervids with two moose and one red deer positive. In total, 149 animals from four other species tested negative in Finland and Turkey. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Simple Summary: Dairy cows' fertility is very important for the success of the dairy farm. In addition, welfare issues are very important and can have an effect on cow performance. A pregnancy test is a routine precoder in cows that is usually conducted by rectal palpation performed around 40–45 days from last insemination. Another possibility is a milk test performed 28 days post insemination. The second procedure does not require the use of headlocks. This study compares those two methods and tests the effects on cow welfare and reproductive performance. The milk test resulted in a 16-day reduction in days open for cows identified as non-pregnant on day 28 compared to day 42 (rectal examination). Well-being indices such as rest time and lying ratio of milk-tested cows improved, especially in winter. In addition to fewer days open and economic improvement, early milk tests for pregnancy can free up the practitioner for other tasks on the dairy farm. The main pregnancy test method for dairy cows is rectal palpation performed around 40–45 days from last insemination. This is an invasive examination that disrupts the cow's routine, potentially affecting its well-being. We examined the effectiveness of a commercial kit for performing pregnancy tests on milk samples compared to rectal palpation at 28- and 42-days post insemination. Accordingly, the purpose of the current study was to check if performing early pregnancy test instead of rectal palpation would result in better welfare and improvement of the reproductive performance, at least in part, of the cows. At 28 days, we examined the effect of early pregnancy testing on reproductive performance, especially number of days open. At 42 days, we determined the pregnancy test methods' effects on cow welfare measures and milk production. For the day 28 experiment, cows on one farm were divided into two groups: one milk-tested for pregnancy on 28 to 30 days after insemination, and the other tested by routine veterinary examination (42 to 45 days after insemination). The milk test resulted in a 16-day reduction in days open for cows identified as non-pregnant on day 28 compared to day 42 (rectal examination), potentially improving reproductive performance on the dairy farm. For the day 42 experiment, test effects on cow welfare as seen in pedometer data and milk production were examined on two large dairy farms. Test-day milk production did not differ significantly between milk-tested and rectally palpated groups, but well-being indices of milk-tested cows improved, especially in winter months. The reason for this can be because, in the summer, cows are interrupted due to colling activities. In addition to fewer days open and economic improvement, early milk tests for pregnancy can free up the practitioner for other tasks on the dairy farm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The experiment was to study the effect of Angelica sinensis extract on production performance, milk quality and economic benefits of dairy cows. A total of 48 Holstein cows were selected and randomly divided into four groups, with six replicates in each group and two cows in each replicate. The TMR mixed diet was supplemented with 0 (group A, control group), 0.5% (group B), 1.0% (group C) and 1.5% (group D) Angelica sinensis extract, respectively. The pre-trial period was 7 d, and the formal test period was 60 d. The results showed that compared with control group, the average daily feed intake of dairy cows in group C was significantly increased (P<0.05), and the average daily milk production of dairy cows in each test group was significantly increased (P<0.05). Compared with control group, the milk fat content of fresh milk in group C and group D was significantly increased (P<0.05). With the increase of the addition of Angelica sinensis extract, the serum T-AOC of dairy cows showed an upward trend (P<0.05). Compared with control group, the activity of serum GSH-Px and SOD of dairy cows in each experimental group were significantly increased (P<0.05), and the content of serum MDA was significantly decreased (P<0.05). Compared with control group, the content of IgA in group D was significantly increased (P<0.05), the content of serum IL-6 in each test group was significantly decreased (P<0.05), the content of serum IL-10 in test group was significantly increased (P<0.05), and the serum TNF-α content of dairy cows in group C and group D decreased significantly (P<0.05). The economic benefit of a each cow in group B was 94.33 yuan higher than that in control group. The study indicates that Angelica sinensis extract can significantly improve the production performance, milk quality and health of dairy cows. Combined with the calculation results of economic benefits, the 0.5% of Angelica sinensis extract is the suitable addition amount in dairy cow diets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to clarify the relationship between the maternal pelvis and calf size in normal and dystocia groups (Experiment 1) and to establish a method to predict dystocia due to physical imbalance between foetus and maternal pelvis before calving based on the parameters found in Experiment 1 (Experiment 2). In Experiment 1, 26 pairs of dams and their offspring were tested immediately after calving, and various parameters of offspring size and maternal pelvis were measured in normal and dystocia cases. The longitudinal diameter of the maternal pelvis was smaller (p <.01), and ratios of the offspring's birth weight and the width of the hoof crown (hoof width; measured using callipers) to the longitudinal diameter of the maternal pelvis were larger (p <.01) in the dystocia group than those in the normal group. In Experiment 2, 37 cows were tested, and in addition to the measurement items of Experiment 1, the inner pelvic diameter and the foetal hoof width were measured via ultrasonography at 285 days of gestation. The ratio of the internal diameter of the maternal pelvis (longitudinal diameter, transverse diameter and area) to the foetal hoof width was compared and was greater (p <.01) in the dystocia group than in the normal group. In conclusion, the risk of dystocia can be estimated by the ratio of the foetal hoof width to the longitudinal diameter of the maternal pelvis before calving. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The experiment was to explore the effect of compound feed additives on growth performance, antioxidant capacity and immune function of beef cattle under high temperature conditions in summer. A total of 32 Simmental cattle weighing about 370 kg were selected and randomly divided into two groups, with 16 replicates in each group and one cattle in each replicate. The cattle in control group were fed with basal diet, and the cattle in test group were supplemented with compound feed additives consisting of lotus leaf powder, lotus seed core-penetrating powder, tea polyphenols and vitamin C in basal diet. The experimental period was 36 d. The results showed that THI was greater than 72 throughout test period, and the test cattle were in a state of continuous heat stress. Compared with control group, the average daily gain of cattle in test group increased by 6.25%, and the dry matter intake increased by 1.84% (P>0.05). Compared with control group, the activity of T-SOD in bovine serum of test group was significantly increased (P<0.05), the content of TC and MDA was significantly decreased (P<0.05), and the expressions of IL-2 and HSP70 mRNA in blood were significantly decreased (P<0.05). The study indicates that under high temperature conditions in summer, the addition of compound feed additives has a tendency to increase daily weight gain of beef cattle, which can significantly improve the antioxidant capacity of beef cattle serum, and has a certain alleviation effect on heat stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dairy cows are generally calm and compliant, but some management procedures can make cows fearful or stressed. Not only are fearful cattle a threat to human safety, but fear is also detrimental to animal welfare and productivity. This study aimed to test whether fear in small groups of dairy cattle could be attenuated by the presence of a calm and experienced companion. Twenty-seven dairy cows from a Swedish agricultural school participated in the study. The study included a standardized fear-eliciting stimulus, which was 3 sudden, repetitive openings of a red and white umbrella. Demonstrator cows (n = 9) were selected based on age to ensure that all demonstrators were older than the naïve test cows (n = 18). Of these 9 demonstrator cows, 6 were selected as untrained (i.e., habituated to the presence of the test person) and 3 were selected as trained demonstrators (i.e., additionally habituated to the fear-eliciting stimulus). The remaining 18 test cows comprised 6 test-cow groups of 3 cows each, which were their own controls, resulting in a crossover design; 3 groups were tested with a trained demonstrator first and then with an untrained demonstrator, and vice versa for the other 3 groups, resulting in a total of 12 trials (4 sub-treatments). Response variables were heart rate increase from baseline, behavioral reaction indicative of fear, and latency to resume feeding after exposure to the fear-eliciting stimulus. The study found a calming effect of a trained demonstrator on test cows' heart rate but not on latency to resume feeding or behavioral reaction. Post hoc analyses revealed a carryover effect on latency, indicating that test cows who were accompanied by an untrained demonstrator first had longer latencies than cows in all other sub-treatments. Adding a calm, experienced cow to groups of dairy cattle may mitigate fear and thereby improve welfare and safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Lameness has high economic and welfare cost to the U.K. dairy industry; accurate and early detection of lameness minimises this cost. Thermal imaging devices can be used as a method of detecting lameness; however, these devices are typically high-cost and fragile, limiting their usefulness in a farm setting. This study looked at the effectiveness of low-cost thermal imaging devices when used as lameness detection aids, by comparing one to a research-specification thermal imaging device. Thermal images were taken of cattle feet, and each cow was assessed for lameness. Both devices tested were able to determine whether the cattle were lame; however, the research-specification device performed marginally better at this function. This minimal difference in effectiveness between these devices suggests that low-cost thermal imaging devices could be used as a lameness detection aid; increased use of these devices by farmers may increase lameness detection rates and benefit animal welfare. Lameness has a high economic cost to the U.K. dairy industry; accurate and early detection of lameness minimises this cost. Infrared thermal imaging (IRT) devices have shown promising results for use as a lameness detection aid in cattle when used in research settings; these devices are typically high-cost, limiting their adoption. This study analysed the effectiveness of low-cost IRT devices (LCDs) as lameness detection aids, by comparing both maximum environmentally adjusted temperature values and hindfeet temperature difference collected by an LCD to the mobility score of the cow; this test was repeated for data collected by a research-specification device. Data collection occurred during routine milking of 83 cattle; each cow's mobility was scored afterwards. Significant differences were found between lame and sound cows with the LCD, upon analysis of both methods. There was no significant difference between the data captured by differing devices. The maximum sensitivity and specificity values for the LCD were calculated as 66.95 and 64.53, respectively, compared with 70.34 and 70.94, respectively, for the research-specification device; optimum threshold values for these were equivalent for both devices, suggesting IRT lameness identification is not device-dependent. It was concluded that a minimal difference in effectiveness between tested devices suggests that LCDs could be used as a lameness detection aid; consequently, there is potential for widespread adoption as on-farm detection aids. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bovine tuberculosis (bTB) caused by Mycobacterium bovis is an important zoonotic disease. This infection is difficult to control because of the limited ability of the tuberculin skin test (TST) and ancillary IFN-γ release assay to detect all infected animals. In this study, we aimed to develop an efficient assay based on the enzyme-linked immunospot (ELISpot) technique for the diagnosis of bTB, with IFN-γ monoclonal antibodies 3E9 and Bio-labeled 6F8 used as capture and detection antibodies, respectively. As expected, there were significantly more M. bovis -specific spot-forming units (SFU) in bTB-infected cattle than in healthy cattle when an M. bovis -specific antigen, CFP-10-ESAT-6 fusion protein (CE protein), was used. The M. bovis IFN-γ ELISpot assay demonstrated a high level of agreement (90.83%) with the BOVIGAM ELISA test (Thermo Fisher Scientific) for detecting bTB. Furthermore, 3 of 109 cattle tested negative by both the TST and the BOVIGAM ELISA tests, but positive by the ELISpot assay (TST− ELISA− ELISpot+). During subsequent long-term monitoring, these 3 cattle became TST+ ELISA+ ELISpot+. These results suggest that the M. bovis IFN-γ ELISpot assay we established could detect infected cattle earlier than the BOVIGAM ELISA test. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this review is to examine the scientific literature on the effects of heat stress on some physiological, productive and reproductive parameters in dairy cows. The article analyzes the scientific papers in which the influence of heat stress and its impact on some indicators is studied. As a result of the review, it became clear that heat stress has an impact on the studied indicators, but there are no clear criteria at which values of temperature-humidity index (THI) this effect is registered. The relationship between heat stress, productivity, successive lactation and physiological and reproductive parameters in dairy cows is still controversial. This poses a challenge, through research, to solve the problems in regards to high temperature and animal welfare and productivity for specific climatic conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]