Current attitudes of veterinarians and producers regarding the use of local and systemic analgesia in beef and dairy cattle in the United States

Abstract

OBJECTIVE To survey cattle producers and veterinarians about the use of analgesia on US cattle operations. SAMPLE 1,187 members of the following database, electronic mailing lists, and social media groups: FarmProgress master file, American Association of Bovine Practitioners, Academy of Veterinary Consultants, National Milk Producers Federation Farm Evaluators, Dairy Moms Facebook group, and Dairy Girl Network Facebook group. PROCEDURES An online survey was developed to gather information about the frequency of local and systemic analgesia use for common painful procedures and diseases in cattle < 2, 2 to 12, and > 12 months old. Respondents also rated their extent of agreement with each of 10 statements related to pain management in cattle. The survey was available from June 11 to August 10, 2018. Descriptive data were generated. Logistic regression was used for comparisons among cattle age groups and respondents on the basis of their industry role. RESULTS In general, frequency of analgesia use increased as cattle age increased, regardless of the procedure or disease. The odds of analgesia use were lower for men, compared with women, and greater for veterinarians, compared with producers. Many respondents indicated they were cognizant of the benefits of analgesia use in cattle but perceived federal regulations and drug costs as impediments to the implementation of pain mitigation protocols on cattle operations. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Results provided insight into current perceptions and use of analgesia in cattle, which can be used to guide implementation of pain mitigation protocols on US beef and dairy cattle operations.

A comparison of sedative effects of xylazine alone or combined with levomethadone or ketamine in calves prior to disbudding

“…Time is often indicated as a major obstacle limiting the use of analgesic agents in cattle, as also discussed recently by Johnstone et al (2021). In the present study, the time to recumbency did not differ between calves sedated with levomethadone and xylazine (0.1 mg kg −1 ) and calves given only xylazine (0.2 mg kg −1 ).…”

Unmitigated Surgical Castration in Calves of Different Ages: Cortisol Concentrations, Heart Rate Variability, and Infrared Thermography Findings

“…Additional outcomes are reported in Bergamasco et al [ 21 ], a companion paper that can be referred to for further information. Despite the fact that surgical castration is a painful procedure having both acute and chronic impacts, the use of pain control is not routinely practiced in the United States [ 1 , 2 ]. Surveys of producers and/or veterinarians exploring pain mitigation use for various management procedures including castration have demonstrated that analgesia use increases with cattle age [ 2 , 25 ].…”

“…Despite the fact that surgical castration is a painful procedure having both acute and chronic impacts, the use of pain control is not routinely practiced in the United States [ 1 , 2 ]. Surveys of producers and/or veterinarians exploring pain mitigation use for various management procedures including castration have demonstrated that analgesia use increases with cattle age [ 2 , 25 ]. Industry guidelines for castration procedures suggest performing the procedure at the youngest age possible to reduce stress [ 5 ].…”

“…Bovine castration is a painful procedure typically performed without analgesia in the United States [ 1 , 2 ], although stakeholder groups do encourage the adoption of techniques to minimize pain and distress associated with the procedure [ 3 , 4 , 5 ]. One of the limitations with providing pain mitigation for castration in the United States is the lack of available FDA-approved drugs to control pain associated with castration [ 1 , 2 , 6 ].…”

“…Bovine castration is a painful procedure typically performed without analgesia in the United States [ 1 , 2 ], although stakeholder groups do encourage the adoption of techniques to minimize pain and distress associated with the procedure [ 3 , 4 , 5 ]. One of the limitations with providing pain mitigation for castration in the United States is the lack of available FDA-approved drugs to control pain associated with castration [ 1 , 2 , 6 ]. Although there are several approved analgesics for use to control pain in cattle available in other countries, in the United States, there is only one approved drug authorized for this use (e.g., transdermal flunixin meglumine, specifically for pain related to interdigital phlegmon, i.e., foot rot; [ 7 ]).…”