Feeder Cattle Health Management: Effects on Morbidity Rates, Feedlot Performance, Carcass Characteristics, and Beef Palatability

Effect of constant exposure to cattle persistently infected with bovine viral diarrhea virus on morbidity and mortality rates and performance of feedlot cattle

“…Although morbidity rate and ADG did not differ significantly among the 4 treatment groups in trial 2, for the calves that were not exposed to PI cattle prior to weaning, those that were vaccinated against BVDV (group 2c) had a lower morbidity rate and higher ADG than did those that were not vaccinated against BVDV (group 2d), a finding that was consistent with results of other studies. [19][20][21] Calves exposed to PI cattle prior to weaning had lower morbidity and mortality rates than did calves not exposed to PI cattle prior to weaning, regardless of vaccination status, a result that is consistent with findings of other studies [22][23][24] and suggests that exposure of calves to BVDV before feedlot entry has a protective effect on health and performance dur-ing the feeding period. Additionally, the mean ADG for calves that were vaccinated against BVDV 2 weeks prior to weaning (groups 2a and 2c) was consistently higher than that for calves that were not vaccinated against BVDV 2 weeks prior to weaning (groups 2b and 2d) for each 28-day interval; thus, those calves weighed more at the end of the feeding period.…”

Editorial: Respiratory diseases and management in livestock

“…Even though mortality rates were low, only AD animals died. These results are further confirmed from another study, when compared with PC animals (5). Another aspect of that study was the average daily gain (ADG) that resulted higher in AD respect to PC animals, although the emphasis was on exploring the effects of comingling.…”

Stimulating innate immunity in feedlot cattle: strategies to induce tracheal antimicrobial peptide gene expression

“…When practicing this method, vaccination and weaning must occur at least 30 days before sale (Macartney et al, 2003;Thornsbury, 1991). Studies have shown that preconditioning significantly decreases morbidity and mortality caused by BRD in comparison to conventional methods of processing (Roeber et al, 1995;Macartney et al, 2003). A study showed that conventionally treated calves were 4.5 times more likely to be treated for BRD than those that were pre-conditioned (Macartney et al, 2003).…”