Cowpox symptoms and diagnosis, cattle treatment and prevention
Some infectious diseases in cows can also be transmitted to humans. The danger of vaccinia is that the disease harms cows, reduces productivity and makes production less profitable. Consider the causes of the disease, characteristic symptoms, features of the treatment of vaccinia and preventive measures that should prevent the occurrence of infection on the farm.
What is this disease
Cowpox is a viral disease caused by a virus from the genus Orthopoxvirus. The pathogen can be transmitted from animal to human. In cows, smallpox is noted only on the udder. The disease appears during the stall period or in the spring, often in young dairy cows and recently calved.
Smallpox in cows is acute, subacute and chronic. The acute form lasts 3 weeks, with obvious symptoms. Subacute lasts 21 to 25 days; characteristic symptoms such as a rash may not occur. It may recover without treatment after 3 weeks if the infection is mild.
Smallpox is the worst disease in calves, as their immune systems are still imperfect and cannot resist infection. If the calves are left untreated, pathogens enter the respiratory and digestive systems, causing gastroenteritis and bronchopneumonia. In severe cases, the death of young animals may occur. Therefore, if suspicious symptoms appear, animals should be examined by a veterinarian.
Causes of cattle
The main carriers of the pathogen are sick animals. Viruses are transmitted through secretions from the nose and mouth that enter the skin. Contributes to the development of the disease, weakening of immunity due to lack of vitamins in the winter. The virus can be transmitted by blood-sucking insects and rodents. Especially often, the virus enters the cow's body through micro-damage to the skin.
Smallpox spreads en masse in the herd due to unfavorable conditions of keeping - cold or heat, high humidity in the room, dirt, lack of fresh air. Unbalanced feeding and lack of movement also contribute to lower immunity in cows. These factors, together or separately, lead to a weakening of the protective functions of the animal organism.
Symptoms of smallpox in cows
The incubation period for cowpox lasts 3-9 days, after this time, symptoms characteristic of the infection begin to appear. On the first day, small red spots appear on the udder, in the mouth and on the nasal mucosa. For the next 2-3 days, compacted nodules form on the site of roseola.
Over another 3-4 days, the nodules turn into fluid-filled blisters. On day 10-12, they turn into purulent vesicles. After 2 weeks of developing symptoms, they become covered with dark crusts that crack and bleed. In appearance, the rash on the udder in cattle is round or slightly elongated, with a pronounced center and clearly defined.
Other symptoms of virus infection: loss of appetite, depression, fever, fever, aggressiveness, decreased milk yield. In animals, the mucous membranes of the mouth and nose are edematous, the lymph nodes are inflamed. Since touching the inflamed areas of the udder causes pain for the cow, she tries to keep the person away during milking. The gait may change, as the animal spreads its legs so as not to touch the udder.
Diagnosis of the disease
The rash on the udder with smallpox has a characteristic appearance, so with some experience it is not difficult to identify it. However, to rule out the likelihood of other infections, the symptoms of which are also rashes, tests are necessary.
To do this, take a sample of the blood of a sick animal, the contents of the bubbles, smears from the inflamed areas.
The material is examined in a laboratory, where the presence of the virus will be confirmed or denied. If the diagnosis of smallpox is confirmed, the degree of development of the disease is also determined. After confirmation of the disease, sick individuals are immediately separated from healthy ones.
Features of the treatment of the disease
There are no special drugs that would destroy the smallpox virus in cows. Treatment is reduced to supportive therapy.
Medicinal methods of struggle
Animals are given antibiotics if there are secondary infections. They cannot destroy the virus. So that the cow's body can fight the virus, they are given lactic acid and the drug Vetom 11. The dosage and treatment regimen is prescribed by the veterinarian and is based on the severity of the disease.
Udder ulcers are treated with 3% Chloramine solution, potassium iodide and brown. The use of funds stops the further spread of the rash on the udder. Inflamed areas are lubricated with petroleum jelly, zinc or ichthyol ointment. Means dry out the rash, speed up the regenerative processes. Ointments based on glycerin and vegetable oils soften the crusts to prevent cracking and bleeding. The nasopharynx of cows is washed with a 3% boric acid solution. Feed the cows during the treatment period with liquid mixtures, then give wet mash. Drink water ad libitum. Saturation of the body with fluid contributes to a speedy recovery.
Folk remedies and recipes
Folk remedies are also used in a complex, in addition to the main therapy. These include feeding the cows blackberry leaves, elderberry leaves, tops and chives. The udder and other pockmarked areas are treated 2 times a day with a herbal decoction of elderberry and sorrel.
Folk remedies are too weak against the smallpox virus, so you should not rely only on their effect. Medicines should be the main treatment.
Preventing the epidemic
When an infection occurs on the farm, it is necessary to separate sick animals from healthy ones and conduct a thorough study of the entire livestock. Also disinfect the barn, stalls, equipment with formaldehyde (2%), caustic soda (4%), calcium oxide (20%). Feeders and milking devices - sodium hypochlorite (1 in 100).
The place where manure is deposited must be disinfected with chlorine, the litter must be burned. Animals can be returned from quarantine only 3 weeks after recovery.
Can I drink milk from sick animals?
Fresh, untreated milk milked from sick cows must not be drunk. But it is believed that it may be usable after pasteurization or boiling. Milk should be milked as usual so that there is no stagnation and mastitis does not develop. If it is problematic to do this manually, a catheter should be used. Milk can be fed to calves, but only after preliminary boiling.
Smallpox vaccination
Cows are vaccinated in 2 types - against smallpox strain and against mixed smallpox. In the first case, vaccination allows the animal to acquire lifelong immunity against infection, in the second, it does not work constantly, only a few months, then re-vaccination is required.
Other prevention measures
When new animals are purchased, they are first quarantined for a month. If symptoms have not appeared during this time, cows can be transferred to a common herd. It is necessary to regularly disinfect stalls and equipment, do daily cleaning.
In spring and autumn, whitewash the walls of the room with lime, carry out treatment against insects and rodents. Keep drinking bowls clean, avoid stagnant water in which the smallpox virus multiplies favorably. The barn and stalls should be dry, warm, spacious, any discomfort that the poor conditions of the animal cause increase the risk of illness. Feed the animals with complete feed to avoid hypovitaminosis.
Smallpox in cows, if detected early, can be cured, and the animals will be healthy again, return to the productive process. Treatment should be prescribed and supervised by a veterinarian. The use of medicines is mandatory, folk remedies do not have any noticeable effect. Recovered cows acquire lifelong immunity.
