Diarrhoea in the young lamb and kid Flashcards
Causes of diarrhoea <3weeks (7)
E. coli
Cl. perfringens B, C
Salmonella
Rotavirus
Cryptosporidium
Giardia
Diet
Causes of diarrhoea 4-12 weeks (7)
Cl. perfringens B, D
Enterotoxic clostridia
Salmonella
Nematodirus spp
Telasodorsagia
Coccidiosis
Diet
Causes of diarrhoea in weaned (>12 weeks) (5)
Enterotoxic clostridia
Salmonella
Parasitic gastroenteritis
Coccidiosis
Diet
Nutritional diarrhoea
Usually lambs/kids fed on automatic milking machines
Often associated with overfeeding, mistakes at mixing or poor quality milk replacers
Inappropriate concentration milk replacers induce osmotic diarrhoeas - pasty white scour
Common bacterial causes of diarrhoea in lambs/kids
E. coli
Salmonella
Cl. perfringens
Common viral causes of diarrhoea in lambs/kids
Rotavirus
Common parasitic causes of diarrhoea in lambs/kids
Crypto
Coccidia
Giardia
Parasitic gastroenteritis (PGE)
E. coli
- Severe problems in intensive lambing environments
- Can cause high mortality in neonatal lambs
- Septicaemia may be a sequelae
- PM findings - bacteria adhering to brush border, hyperaemia and neutrophil infiltration to SI, LI and caecum are unaffected
- Treatment largely ineffective and there may a high mortality amongst clinical cases - use spectinomycin
- Prevention by improved husbandry
Watery mouth (rattle belly)
- Ingestion of non-enterotoxigenic E. coli (K99)
- Hypogammaglobulinaemia may predispose (low colostrum intake)
- May affect lambs causing tympanism, constipation - intestinal stasis, and acidosis even without diarrhoea
- Can cause high mortality in neonatal lambs
- Treat with antibiotics and flunixin or meloxicam
- Prevention with hygiene, colostrum and husbandry
Salmonella
- Can affect any age but more severe in young animals
- Diarrhoea may contain blood
- Septicaemia is usually accompanying
- PM: generalised septicaemia, acute abasomitis, and necrotic enteritis, swollen friable liver, haemorrhages on organs
- Treat with antimicrobials (potentiated sulphonamides), NSAIDs
- Notifiable
Lamb dysentery
- Clostridium perfringens type B
- Seen in young lambs- usually under 1 week
- Affects small intestine - ulceration and haemorrhage
- Subacute necrotising haemorrhagic enteritis
- Dull and lethargic, abdominal pain, straddling gait, profuse diarrhoea, rapidly dehydrated
- High mortality rate
- Treatment has little effect
- Control by vaccine with multivalent clostridia toxoids
Rotavirus
- Type A (zoonotic), B, and C
- Affects and attaches to the tip of the villi of SI cells
- Depression, anorexia, diarrhoea, dehydration
- Detect in faeces by ELISA or PAGE
- Supportive treatment, correcting dehydration
- Vaccinate ewes
Coronavirus
- Similar to rotavirus
- More severe but shorter incubation
Picornaviruses
- Mild cardiac respiratory, neurologic, and cutaneous disease
Bunyaviridae family viruses (schmallenberg)
- Malaise and enteric disease
- Main presentation is arthrogryposis and abortion
Adenovirus
- Pneumoenteritis with respiratory signs following enteric signs