Welcome to BCI Cattle Chat! On this episode our experts answer a listener question from South Africa that talks about increasing herd size, managing disease, and affordable feed plans. Next Dr. Lancaster answers a question about NPNs. Finally our guest Dr. Laurie Beard talks about tips and techniques for managing your ranch horse. Thanks for tuning in and enjoy the episode!
2:19 South Africa Listener Questions
10:26 Pros and Cons of Non-Protein Nitrogen
15:15 Managing Ranch Horses
For more on BCI Cattle Chat, follow us on X at @ksubci, Facebook, and Instagram at @ksubci. Check out our website, ksubci.org. If you have any comments/questions/topic ideas, please send them to bci@ksu.edu. You can also email us to sign up for our weekly news blast! Don’t forget if you enjoy the show, please go give us a rating!
In the initial call Dr. Scott Fritz receives a box of cattle to determine what caused 30% death loss after heifers were put out on grass. Find out how they got to the bottom of this case on this episode of Tox Talk with Dr. Brad White and Dr. Scott Fritz. Thanks for tuning in and enjoy the show!
The toxicology website and Bovine Sciences with BCI podcasts have been sponsored in part through a veterinary services grant that Dr. Scott Fritz, Dr. Steve Ensley and Dr. Bob Larson have received to share more toxicology information and examples for people to understand what to submit and how to submit. Another part of that grant has been working with people and producer in the field.
Welcome to BCI Cattle Chat! This week our experts are joined by Dr. Todd Gunderson. They begin by discussing the difference between biosecurity and biocontainment, as well as their importance. Next Dr. Gunderson gives some advice on feeding second and third trimester cows. Dr. Brian Lubbers concludes the episode with an update from the FDA on using aspirin.
For more on BCI Cattle Chat, follow us on Instagram and X at @ksubci or Facebook. Check out our website, ksubci.org. If you have any comments/questions/topic ideas, please send them to bci@ksu.edu. You can also email us to sign up for our weekly news blast! Don’t forget if you enjoy the show, please go give us a rating!
In this episode of After the Abstract Dr. Brian Lubbers and Dr. Brad White look at a research paper from the Journal of Dairy Science. This research uses machine learning models to identify intramammary infections, and compares it to a rule based algorithm. The experts discuss how this could be used for the beef industry and what it could mean for the future of technology in cattle. Thanks for listening!
Welcome to BCI Cattle Chat! This episode is full of listener questions, up first the experts talk about live or modified vaccines on incoming cattle. The episode continues with a bull health situation from a listener. Finally the experts give their thoughts on using ionophores in the winter. Thanks for tuning in and enjoy the episode!
4:40 Vaccinating Incoming Cattle
11:30 Bull Health Problem
16:38 Ionophores
For more on BCI Cattle Chat, follow us on X at @ksubci, Facebook, and Instagram at @ksubci. Check out our website, ksubci.org. If you have any comments/questions/topic ideas, please send them to bci@ksu.edu. You can also email us to sign up for our weekly news blast! Don’t forget if you enjoy the show, please go give us a rating!
Fescue toxicosis is a syndrome of cattle consuming endophyte-infected tall fescue. The endophyte provides a hardiness to the plant allowing the plant to grow in stressful conditions such as drought and cold temperatures. However, the endophyte produces ergot alkaloids that are detrimental to cattle performance. Cattle experience hormonal changes in the production of and response to natural serotonin that result in lower heat tolerance and reduced feed intake.
Serotonin is synthesized in the body from the amino acid tryptophan. One therapy being explored is administration of 5-hydroxytryptophan, which is a step in the synthesis of serotonin from tryptophan. In a recent study, researchers at USDA-ARS tested the effect of 5-hydroxytryptophan on the response of steers fed endophyte-infected fescue seed. By providing 5-hydroxytryptophan, the researchers were able to reverse the negative effects of ergot alkaloids on blood serotonin levels and cattle feed intake (Figure 1). The control steers that were not fed endophyte-infected seed or 5-hydroxytryptophan consumed 1.9% of body weight whereas the steers fed endophyte-infected seed without 5-hydroxytryptophan consumed only 1.8% of body weight. However, when steers fed endophyte-infected seed were also given 5-hydroxytryptophan, feed intake was not different from the control steers indicating that 5-hydrxytyptophan reversed the negative effects of endophyte-infected seed on feed intake.
Giving cattle grazing endophyte-infected tall fescue a dose of 5-hydroxytryptophan would likely greatly improve the performance of these cattle. However, 5-hydroxytryptophan is not ready for commercial application yet. In this study, steers were dosed with 5-hydroxytryptophan through a rumen cannula into the abomasum, thus bypassing the rumen microbes and any possible degradation of 5-hydroxytryptophan. Before 5-hydroxytryptophan could be added to feed, a method to protect it from the rumen microbes will need to be developed. However, this molecule shows great potential to improve performance of cattle grazing endophyte-infected tall fescue.
In this episode of Diving into Diets a Bovine Science Podcast Dr. White and Dr. Lancaster look at a research paper about the effects of poor nutrition on late gestation cows. They will dive into what this means for future research as well as their key takeaways.
Article Discussed: Colby A Redifer, Lindsey G Wichman, Shelby L Davies-Jenkins, Abigail R Rathert-Williams, Harvey C Freetly, Allison M Meyer, Late gestational nutrient restriction in primiparous beef females: Performance and metabolic status of lactating dams and pre-weaning calves, Journal of Animal Science, Volume 102, 2024, skae015, https://doi.org/10.1093/jas/skae015
Welcome to BCI Cattle Chat! Dr. Brad White, Dr. Brian Lubbers and Dr. Bob Larson are joined this week by Cambree Schmaltz and Dr. Ted Schroeder. They discuss some exciting new innovations in record keeping for cow calf producers and Cambree talks about her research project looking into the economics of beef-dairy cross and serial slaughter.
For more on BCI Cattle Chat, follow us on X at @The_BCI, Facebook, and Instagram at @ksubci. Check out our website, ksubci.org. If you have any comments/questions/topic ideas, please send them to bci@ksu.edu. You can also email us to sign up for our weekly news blast! Don’t forget if you enjoy the show, please go give us a rating!
Bob Larson, DVM, PhD Reproductive physiologist and Epidemiologist Beef Cattle Institute Kansas State University RLarson@vet.k-state.edu
Blackleg and other clostridial diseases are caused by a family of bacteria that can release large amounts of toxins that vary between the specific clostridial organisms. Different species of clostridial bacteria tend to cause disease in different ages of cattle, and the most common clostridial diseases of young calves are blackleg, clostridial enterotoxemia, and occasionally, tetanus.
Blackleg is caused by Clostridia chauvoei that enters cattle through the digestive tract and can be found in many tissues of healthy animals. The disease is created when the bacteria multiply rapidly in muscle and releases large quantities of a fatal toxin. Muscle trauma or bruising from handling, trucking, or normal animal interactions may be required for the bacteria to have a suitable environment to multiply rapidly, but the exact requirements for disease onset is not known.
Blackleg is most common in young calves up to 12 months of age, with animals more than 1 to 2 years of age rarely being affected. The disease attacks very rapidly and in many cases a dead calf is the first indication of a problem. Blackleg (like other clostridial diseases) is not considered a contagious disease, in that the disease does not pass directly from one calf to another – rather it is from soil to an animal. An outbreak may appear contagious in that a number of animals can be affected in a short period of time, usually following a soil disturbance. Any event that disturbs the soil, such as flooding, pond repair, bulldozer work, laying water pipe, etc, can initiate an outbreak of blackleg disease in pastures with heavy loads of blackleg organisms. Although vaccination is not 100% successful at protecting calves from blackleg disease (especially in young calves), vaccination will decrease the number of calves that are susceptible to the organism.
Clostridium perfringens or enterotoxemia is typically a disease of young calves. Most commonly, death following the onset of disease is so rapid that the first sign of a problem is to find a dead calf. Affected calves are typically suckling cows with high milk production and are often the healthiest, fastest-growing calves. Because the germ normally lives in the gut of healthy calves, two things must happen for the organism to multiply rapidly and produce large amounts of the toxin. First, the bacteria need an abundance of carbohydrates (which is present in milk), and secondly, the intestinal tract motility must be at least partially slowed (which occurs following a large meal). Following a large milk meal, high levels of toxin can be produced and death can occur rapidly.
Tetanus is caused by Clostridium tetani and cattle are not as susceptible as many other species – but deaths due to tetanus are occasionally seen. The organism can enter a wound and produce toxins that cause death. Many commercially available clostridial “Blackleg” vaccines do not include a component for protection against tetanus. Vaccines for cattle that provide protection against tetanus are available, and are commonly used when cattle are castrated with elastic bands as this method of castration is associated with some tetanus deaths.
Because the vaccine is fairly effective, a program where calves are initially vaccinated at 2 to 3 months of age with subsequent revaccination is recommended.
Yearling heifers are found walking odd after being moved to a grass pasture. Dr. Scott Fritz and Dr. Brad White get to the bottom of this case in this edition of Tox Talk: a Bovine Science with BCI podcast. Thanks for tuning in and enjoy the show!
The toxicology website and Bovine Sciences with BCI podcasts have been sponsored in part through a veterinary services grant that Dr. Scott Fritz, Dr. Steve Ensley and Dr. Bob Larson have received to share more toxicology information and examples for people to understand what to submit and how to submit. Another part of that grant has been working with people and producer in the field.
Welcome to BCI Cattle Chat! This week’s episode sponsored by ESTROTECT and brings Dr. Ken Odde to bring some insightful knowledge into some of the research he has done. Dr. Odde starts the episode by talking about selecting semen based on sex and doing so commercially. Dr. Dustin Pendell then brings some questions to the group regarding meat consumption. Finally the experts discuss twinning, and the opportunities involved in purposefully birthing twins.
For more on BCI Cattle Chat, follow us on Facebook or X and Instagram at @ksubci. Check out our website, ksubci.org. If you have any comments/questions/topic ideas, please send them to bci@ksu.edu. You can also email us to sign up for our weekly news blast! Don’t forget if you enjoy the show, please go give us a rating!
