Small Ruminants: Diseases of Growing Lambs Flashcards
What are the DDxs for diarrhoea in lambs?
- Nematodirus battus
- Parasitic gastroenteritis
- Coccidiosis
- Cryptosporidia parvum
- Acidosis
- Clostridium perfingens type B (lamb dysentery)
- Clostridium perfringents type D (pulpy kidney)
- E.coli
- Salmonella
- What causes cryptosporidiosis in lambs?
- When are outbreaks common?
- What are the clinical signs?
- How is it diagnosed?
- Protoza- C parvum (not host specific)
- Severe outbreaks end of lambing/calving/intensive systems
- Lambs 3-7 days old, diarrhoea profuse, dehydration
- Stain faecal smear C. parvum, PM histology, check E coli
How is cryptosporidiosis treated and prevented/controlled?
Treatment
* Supportive: house sick animals, leave with dam
* Oral fluids
* Drug treatment- no licensed- off licence
Prevention/Control
* Reduce challange- use different fields/housing for lambing/calving, move to fresh pasture, newborn to clean pasture
* Improve hygiene
* Improve resiliance- lamb nutrition
- What is acidosis and what causes it?
- What are the sequalae?
- Sudden fall in rumen pH due to consumption of rapidly fermentable carbohydrate causing lactic acid production
- Rumenitis, metbolic acidosis, fungal rumenitis and death
- What are the clinical signs of acidosis?
- How is it diagnosed?
- Sudden death, dull depressed reluctant to move, teeth grinding, colic, bloat, ataxic, recumbent. Dehydration, no rumen sounds, diarrhoea
- History and clinical signs, rumenocentesis pH <5.5, rumen liqour no live organs, PM
How is acidosis treated?
- IV fluids 7-10% dehydrates
- Oral fluids by stomach tube
- Multivitamina
- Penicillin daily for 10 days
- Hay
- What can cause rumen bloat in sheep?
- Where can you see distention?
- What are your DDxs?
- How is treatment?
- Grain, oesophageal obstruction, legumes
- Left sided distention
- DDxs- hypocalcaemia, abdominal castrophes, peritonitis, ascites, uroperitoneum
- Stomach tube, dimeticone, consider rumen trochar
- What are the clinical signs of lamb nephrosis syndrome?
- What is the cause?
- How is it diagnosed?
- Clinical signs- 2-12 weeks of age, older lambs tend to lose condition and have diarrhoea
- Cause- Unknown
- Raised urea and creatinine hyperkalaemia, decreased albumin globulin ratio and a metabolic acidosis
PM pale and swollen kidneys are observed and demonstrate toxic tubular necrosis
What are the signs of trace element deficiencies?
What is it associated with?
Non-specific clinical signs, can be difficult to diagnose, often growing
Associated with soil, pasture deficiencies or interactions with other elements
What should be considered when investigating trace element deficencies?
- Consider other causes first i.e poor nutrition
- Which group of sheep to sample ie ewes/lambs
- When : grazing season
- Which samples to take
- Interpretation of results often a bit tricky
- Response to treatment often used
- Flock/group
- What is cobalt a constituent of?
- What are the functions of cobalt
- What are the clinical signs of deficiency?
Ill thrift
- Consitiuent of B12, rumen synthesis of B12
- Red blood cell development, amino acid synthesis, energy metabolism
- Weight loss, anaemia, slow growth, debility, weight loss, watery eye discharge
How is cobalt deficiency diagnosed and treated?
Diagnosis- Co/Vit B12 in blood and liver, response to Co therapy
Treatment-
Group, Co rumen boluses, oral drenches, B12 injections, Co in creep feed, pasture treatment
- What is the function of selenium
- What disease and symtoms can it cause?
- How is it diagnosed and treated?
- Anti-oxidant, immune function
- White muscle disease- ill thrift lambs, weakness, collapse, lame Poor reproductive performance ewe
- Diagnosis- blood sample, Treatment- oral injectable, bolus, selemium salts
When are iodine deifiencies seen in lambs?
New born lambs
Deaths, weakness illness in new born lambs
Lambs thyroid goitre
What causes chronic copper poisoning in sheep?
- Ingestion over a period of time
- Stored in liver lysosomes, capacity suddenly released into circulation
- Maybe precipitated by stress
- Intravascular haemolysis and jaundice
- What are the clinical signs of mannhaemia haemolytica?
- What does PM show?
- What is the treatment?
- How can it be prevented?
- Pyrexia, mucopurulent nasal discharge, cough, increased respiratory rate, depth, dyspnoea, death
- Typical AV consolidation, culture
- Treatment- oxytet, amoxicillin, 5-7 days
- Consider at group risks- metaphylactic treatment, watch for signs. Vaccination helps- heptavac P
