Necrobacteriosis in animals: causes and symptoms, treatment of cattle and prevention

Keeping cattle requires considerable effort from the farmer, especially if the farm has a large number of livestock. The detection of animal necrobacillosis is a disaster for the owner, since milk yields are significantly reduced, forces and funds are required for the treatment of sick cows, preventive treatment of he althy herds and barns. Infection of breeding stock results in significant financial losses.

What is necrobacteriosis

Nekrobacteriosis - an infectious disease characteristic of domestic and wild animals, birds are infected, humans can also be infected.The infection is especially dangerous for cattle and reindeer. The disease is caused by the strict anaerobic bacteria Fusobacterum necrophorum. Bacteria are polymorphic, may have the form of filaments or sticks. They form several types of toxins with high pathogenicity. They quickly die under the influence of high temperature (within 1 minute at 100 ° C), oxygen, and sunlight. Destroyed by bleach, potassium permanganate, formalin, blue vitriol, and many other chemical compounds.

Stay in soil for up to 1 month in summer and 2 months in winter. Water or urine infected with necrobacteriosis remains dangerous for 10-15 days. Sources of infection with necrobacteriosis - infected individuals that excrete bacteria with urine, feces, putrefactive exudate. The infection is transmitted through contaminated pastures, places for drinking, feeders and drinkers, bedding.

Nekrobacteriosis is common throughout the world, but more common in regions with cold climates.

Reasons for appearance

The main causes of outbreaks of necrobacteriosis are errors in keeping animals. The infection can enter the body from grass or soil in the pasture, when cows from other farms are brought into the farm. The “gates” for her are:

• wounds, cuts and abrasions on the legs;
• damage to the genital tract;
• wounded hooves not trimmed in time;
• bites of flies and horseflies;
• worm infestations;
• crowding in a damp cold barn;
• unbalanced malnutrition;
• prolonged lack of walking.

The disease can be acute or chronic, in severe cases, if left untreated, malignant lesions occur. Often, necrobacteriosis is complicated by the addition of a secondary infection, for example, bronchopneumonia or an abscess may develop.

Symptoms of pathology

At the initial stage of the disease, a purulent-necrotic lesion usually occurs on a finger or hoof. First, the skin turns red and inflamed. The cow begins to limp, behaves restlessly. Most often, one of the hind legs of the animal is affected. In the absence of treatment, the infection rises higher, the legs of the animal, the udder and the mucous membrane of the genital organs are covered with ulcers. If the cow licks the affected area, necrobacteriosis affects the lips and mucous membranes of the oral cavity. Symptoms include:

1. Weeping necrobacteriosis ulcers and wounds cause severe pain, infected cows no longer lean on the injured leg.
2. The tissues around the ulcer are dense and swollen, it constantly gets wet.
3. Animals have a fever, sometimes over 42°C.
4. Appetite disappears, chewing gum is lost.
5. Decrease in body weight and milk production.
6. In advanced cases, ulcers degenerate into a malignant form or gangrene occurs. The animal dies.

If necrobacillosis of the extremities is not treated in time, not only inflammation of soft tissues occurs, joints and bones are affected, pus appears between the muscles, the animal loses the ability to walk.

When the infection spreads to the oral cavity or genitals, it penetrates inside, necrotic foci form in the liver, spleen, and abscesses form.

Diagnostic measures

To establish an accurate diagnosis, microflora is taken from an ulcer or wound. The smear is examined under a microscope. Then a colony of bacteria is grown and infected with the isolated material of laboratory mice or rabbits. In the presence of necrobacteriosis, after some time, the experimental animals become covered with characteristic ulcers and die.Additionally exclude the presence of plague, vesicular stomatitis, foot and mouth disease and other diseases.

Treatment methods

Treatment of necrobacillosis begins immediately after the discovery of the source of infection. The sick animal is isolated. The wound is surgically cleaned, necrotic tissues are removed completely, up to the borders of he althy ones. Then the tissues are washed with one of the solutions: potassium permanganate, chlorhexidine, furacillin, formalin. Next, the wound is sprinkled with streptocide powder or treated with levomycetin or synthomycin.

When necrobacteriosis is affected by oral mucosa or genital organs, antibiotics are prescribed, for example, tetracycline or levomycetin, bicillin and others, with a wide spectrum of action. He althy animals organize common baths for the prevention of necrobacteriosis. The easiest way to make a similar container for processing cattle is to dig a trench, fill the floor and walls of which with concrete and organize strong gangways.

The best treatment option: divide such a bath into 2 parts, pour water into one, and a disinfectant solution into the other, for example, a 10% solution of formaldehyde or copper sulphate. Animals are first driven into a bath of water to wash their hooves, after which they are kept in a bath with an antiseptic for 10-15 minutes. The procedure is repeated 3-4 times with an interval of 5-7 days. The pasture can be used again after 1.5-2 months. If necrobacteriosis is detected on the farm, the cowshed is cleaned of manure, washed with a disinfectant solution, and the bedding is changed.

Restrictive measures from the farm are removed no earlier than 4 months after the recovery of the last animal infected with necrobacteriosis.

General preventive measures

Since the discovery of the disease, veterinary medicine has come a long way. Today, so that cows do not get sick with necrobacteriosis, animals are vaccinated. Adult livestock and calves from 3 months of age are vaccinated against necrobacteriosis.

Specialists of the veterinary service inspect and process the hooves of the entire livestock. For preventive purposes, general baths are arranged with formalin, blue vitriol or creosote. To prevent the disease of cows with necrobacteriosis, it is necessary to systematically clean the barn, remove manure, and replace the bedding. The room should be warm and dry. It is necessary to protect animals from drafts. The floors are made even so that the animals are not injured.

The nutrition of animals should be balanced, with the inclusion of mineral supplements and vitamins. Cows are provided with s alt, chalk, bone meal or special vitamin complexes. Walking areas are organized so that the animals do not stagnate.

Because farm workers can contract necrobacteriosis from animals, first-aid kits are mandatory on farms. Hands must be disinfected after handling sick animals. Employees who become ill are required to be treated.

Is it allowed to eat meat and milk of infected cows

If the cow has enough topical treatment, milk can be consumed after pasteurization.

Important: milk from animals undergoing a course of oral antibiotic treatment in large doses should not be sold or processed.

Sick animals, the treatment of which is useless, are sent to a sanitary slaughterhouse. The issue of selling meat is decided by the sanitary service doctor who examines the carcass after slaughter. Usually, the area of the carcass affected by necrobiosis is removed, the rest of the meat is allowed for sale or processing.

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