Background Endoparasites in dogs and cats are a concern related to pet health and zoonotic risks. Several determinants may affect the endoparasite transmission and infection of dogs and cats such as pet’s lifestyle or regional parasite distribution. Although different zoonotic endoparasites, such as Toxocara spp. and Echinococcus spp., have been identified in France, little information exists about the deworming behaviors of owners or the frequency of occurrence of risk factors associated with endoparasite infection or transmission. Deworming guidelines, such as those created by the European Scientific Counsel Companion Animal Parasites (ESCCAP), recommend a deworming frequency according to the risk of infection of every pet and the potential risk for zoonotic transmission. The objectives of this study were to explore how lifestyles of dogs and cats from France were related to a particular risk of endoparasites and assess whether deworming frequencies complied with ESCCAP recommendations. Methods French data were extracted from a database created during a recent European pet owner survey regarding endoparasitic infection risk. Dogs and cats were grouped into risk categories based upon the ESCCAP guidelines. The compliance between the actual and recommended deworming frequencies were explored among the regions surveyed. Results The majority of dogs and cats were older than 6 months, had outdoor access, had contact with children or elderly people, and lived in rural and town areas. Most of the dogs were in contact with other dogs, snails or prey (83%), and ate slugs, snails, grass or dug in the garden (68%). Likewise, most of the cats hunted outside (57%) and caught prey animals (52%). Consequently, most of the dogs (89%) and cats (53%) were considered to be in the highest-risk category (D). However, independent of the region, the average deworming compliance for dogs was poor (6%). While deworming compliance for cats in category A (low-risk) was excellent (94%), for cats in category D it was poor (6%). Conclusions Deworming compliance is needed to enhance pet health and reduce zoonotic risks. Future studies are warranted to thoroughly investigate the compliance and effectiveness of deworming protocols, and the risk factors associated with endoparasites in France.

14Bovine digital dermatitis (DD), is a highly prevalent disease among dairy cattle 15 characterized by ulcerative and painful lesions. While multiple risk factors are involved 16 in the disease, its precise etiology remains unclear and the effectiveness of the current 17 control strategies still highly variable. However, and even if the main role of Treponema 18 spp. in the development of the disease is consistently recognized, the importance of 19 other bacterial communities and the factors affecting the skin environment remains 20 uncertain. The objective of this study was to investigate the dynamics of microbiotas 21 from feet affected by DD, before and after the implementation of disinfectant footbaths 22 under field conditions. During this investigation, the diversity, structure, and 23 composition of microbiotas from DD lesions over time were explored according to 24 different clinical factors. The findings of this investigation confirmed a particular 25 lesions evidenced a different structure and diversity in comparison to non-proliferative 30 lesions. The composition of microbiotas changed over time revealing the potential main 31 role of Treponema spp., Fusobacterium spp., Mycoplasma spp. and Porphyromonas 32 spp. in the dynamics of DD lesion progression. Further studies are necessaries to 33 confirm if the clinical evolution of DD lesions is driven by a particular microbiota and 34 how this microbiota induces disease. 35 Highlights 39Multiple bacteria have been identified in DD lesions. However, a large part of these 40 microorganisms are inhabitants of the foot skin and the farm environment. For the first 41 time, the microbiotas of DD lesions were followed over 45 days under field conditions 42 to explore their evolution over time and how footbaths practices may affect their 43 dynamics. The results of this investigation confirmed a particular microbiota related to 44 DD lesions dominated by Treponema spp. and highly different from those microbiotas 45 of healthy skin. The microbiotas from DD lesions evolved over the study period and 46 the differential bacteria were identified. Further studies are guaranteed to determine 47 the role of the bacteria composing these microbiotas on the lesion occurrence and its 48 outcome. 49 50 polymicrobial disease spread across the world and characterized by ulcerative and 55 painful lesions which might persist as a chronic condition. DD lesions progress in 56 dynamic ways conditioned by multiple environmental factors that influence the spread 57 of associated-pathogens and the integrity of the foot skin. Currently, the control 58 strategies implemented in dairy farms such as footbaths or individual treatments, have 59 demonstrated variable effectiveness in the healing and prevention of DD lesions 2,3 . 60Although the precise etiology of DD remains unclear, the maceration of the foot skin 61 and the presence of Treponema spp. have been consistently identified as the major 62 etiological components of DD 4-7 . However, multiple other bacteria have also been 63 associa...

Footbaths represent a potentially useful strategy for the prevention of claw infectious diseases by treating a large number of animals concomitantly. Nevertheless, under field conditions, footbath solutions are exposed to increasing number of animal passages and therefore, to different volume losses and concentrations of manure contamination which could alter their presumed bactericidal activity. Across increasing number of cow passages, the organic matter (OM) concentration, the microbial load (ML) and the residual volumes were assessed in six commercial farms. The results indicate that the OM concentration and ML increased linearly with the number of passages of animals, and with the number of defecations in the footbath. The OM concentrations and the ML were not impacted by the farm’s feet hygiene status (clean, fair and dirty), suggesting that probably the increasing number of cow passages and defecations influenced more the contamination of footbaths than the hygiene of the feet. In all the farms the volumes decreased drastically after 200 cow passages (50%). The OM concentrations after 150 and 200 cow passages did not exceed the regulatory concentrations in which disinfectant products should demonstrate to still be effective (20 g/l), and coincide with the often advised renewal rates. The findings of this study suggested that beyond the footbath contamination by OM, the renewal rates must be mainly adapted according to the remaining volume to guarantee that the entire foot is covered and therefore assure the topical action of the solution. This study highlights the importance of footbath designs for the successful implementation of these strategies in practice.

The collective treatment (CT) of an affected herd is commonly advised to control bovine digital dermatitis (DD). Several CT are commercialized, frequently without major evidence supporting their effectiveness. The objective of this systematic review was to evaluate the published evidence that supports CT in the treatment and prevention of DD lesions in dairy herds. Across the evidence, the main limitations in the studies design were identified and the possible sources of inconsistency were investigated. An extensive literature search of publications through electronic databases and gray literature was conducted between July 2015 and January 2016. Studies that did not include an untreated or placebo control group were excluded from the review. The literature search and screening process identified 13 publications with 24 treatment trial comparisons and 18 prevention trial comparisons. The published evidence included studies mostly considered to have a low or unclear risk of bias. Descriptive analyses were performed according to the prevention and treatment outcomes, and case and success definitions were identified for each study and summarized in odds ratios (OR). Pairwise meta-analyses were conducted according to the prevention and treatment outcomes, comparing directly the intervention used in each study, and ignoring any other differences in the intervention characteristics. The results of the meta-analyses indicated a low degree of heterogeneity across the evidence for the prevention outcome [I = 0%, 95% CI: 0 to 37.2%, 95% prediction interval (PI): 0.72 to 1.74)] and a moderate degree for the treatment outcome (I = 25.3%, 95% CI: 0 to 63%, 95% PI: 0.39 to 3.73). Similarly, appraisal of the graphical L'Abbé plot suggested a considerable degree of heterogeneity across the evidence for the treatment outcome. For both outcomes, the frequent small sample sizes of the trials indicate imprecision across the included studies. Additionally, for the treatment and prevention outcomes, an asymmetric funnel plot suggested possible publication bias. The overall quality of the evidence, for both outcomes (prevention and treatment), was therefore considered to be low, indicating that the true effect of CT may be substantially different from that estimated across the included studies. Consequently, this review and meta-analysis does not support an association between the CT considered in the review and a beneficial effect in the prevention and treatment of DD lesions. The effectiveness of CT therefore remains uncertain, and the epidemiological circumstances in which it can be useful must be investigated. These findings highlight the importance of developing high quality, controlled trials to evaluate the effectiveness of CT for DD control.

No abstract

Enhanced milk composition can improve human health. The composition of milk determines its nutritional and market value. Therefore, in almost all pricing schemes the economic benefits obtained from raw milk sales are influenced by the milk yield and composition. The objective of this retrospective study was to quantify the average effects of supplementing extruded linseed, rich in α-linolenic acid, to dairy cows on milk yield and milk fat and protein content under field conditions. The study included test day records performed on cows from 1294 dairy herds during the period from 2008 to 2015 that were supplied at least 4 times with extruded linseed deliveries. Exposure statuses were defined according to the time sequence and the amount of extruded linseed distributed in the herd. The unexposed population was composed of cows being in a herd period when extruded linseed was not offered. In a linear dose-response relationship, every 100 g increase in exposure to EL was associated with an increased milk yield from 0.11 to 0.14 kg/day, decreased milk fat from 0.06 to 0.13 g/kg and decreased milk protein from 0 to 0.02 g/kg, according to the cow parity. This study provides information on the associations between estimated intakes of EL and milk production and composition using a large database obtained from commercial dairy herds.

No abstract

Lameness in dairy cattle is an important health and welfare concern directly affecting the economic benefits of farmers. Although foot dirtiness is a recognized risk factor for diseases inducing lameness, there is a lack of scoring systems that focus specifically on the foot. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the reliability of a 3-point dirtiness scoring system recently conceived for the assessment of the dirtiness present at the lower legs and claws of dairy cows. The scores of both the lateral and back views from 4 unfamiliar raters at 4 different times were used to evaluate interrater reliability (3 times) and intrarater scoring consistency (1 time). The findings of this investigation revealed that coefficients for interrater agreement (0.38, 0.62 and 0.63) and rating concordance (0.55, 0.75 and 0.74) of back-view scorings improved over time and were superior or similar to those obtained from lateral-view evaluations (coefficients for interrater agreement = 0.20, 0.35, and 0.69; coefficients for rating concordance = 0.48, 0.59, and 0.78). Additionally, the scoring consistency of the raters using the back-view grid was excellent (Cronbach's α = 0.93). The results suggest that the 3-point back-view dirtiness scoring grid may provide dairy consultants and farmers a reliable and easy tool for assessing cow foot dirtiness.