Farm-level risk factors for digital dermatitis in dairy cows in mountainous regions.

Reduction of risk factors for bovine digital dermatitis (BDD) is crucial in current disease control. However, risk factors that might arise especially in mountainous regions are unknown until now, and an adapted BDD control program is consequently missing. The objective of this observational case-control study was to identify farm-level risk factors for BDD in dairy herds in mountainous regions. To investigate predictors for the occurrence of BDD, 100 farms were visited and information about herd characteristics and management practices, potentially relevant explanatory variables for either introduction or establishment of BDD, were gathered by completing a questionnaire with the farmer or herd manager. Within-herd prevalences of BDD assessed during 3 routine claw trimmings with an interval of 6 mo before the survey were used to define cases (BDD within-herd prevalence of ≥26% during each claw trimming) and controls (no BDD cases in each of the 3 routine claw trimmings before the survey). Data were analyzed using 2 separate binomial generalized linear models according to either establishment or introduction of BDD. After prescreening, 15 of 23 explanatory variables were included in the final analysis, which showed 3 variables related to introduction and establishment, each being significantly associated with the occurrence of BDD within a farm. Results of model 1 (i.e., aspects related to BDD introduction) revealed that access to mountain pastures during the summer season (odds ratio, 95% confidence interval: 0.12, 0.04-0.35), participation in dairy shows (0.32, 0.11-0.94), and the number of new animals introduced into the farm during the last 2 yr (1.28, 1.12-1.52) were significantly associated with the occurrence of BDD. Model 2 (i.e., aspects related to BDD establishment) showed that cows kept in freestalls were at higher risk for BDD compared with those kept in tiestalls (20.65, 1.59-649.37). Furthermore, number of days between diagnosis and treatment of a BDD lesion (10.31, 3.55-81.21) and the amount of concentrate feeding (median 5 kg) per cow and day (7.72, 2.46-6.47) were positively associated with BDD occurrence. In conclusion, the findings of this study provide a set of risk factors that are associated with BDD status within herds in mountainous regions. These results may help in development of adapted control programs for BDD in dairy cows.

Associations of antimicrobial use with antimicrobial susceptibility at the calf level in bacteria isolated from the respiratory and digestive tracts of veal calves before slaughter.

OBJECTIVES: Antimicrobial drugs are frequently administered in veal calves, but investigations on associations with antimicrobial susceptibility of bacteria are scarce and convey partly contradictory findings. The aim of this study was to investigate associations of antimicrobial use (AMU) during the fattening period with antimicrobial susceptibility shortly before slaughter. METHODS: Detailed treatment data of 1905 veal calves from 38 farms were collected prospectively during monthly farm visits for 1 year (n = 1864 treatments, n = 535 visits); 1582 Escherichia coli, 1059 Pasteurella multocida and 315 Mannheimia haemolytica were isolated from rectal and nasopharyngeal swabs collected before slaughter and subjected to antimicrobial susceptibility testing by microdilution. Associations of antimicrobial treatments with resistant isolates were investigated at the calf level. RESULTS: Associations of AMU with antimicrobial resistance were observed using generalized linear models. For E. coli, the odds of being resistant were increased with increased AMU (OR 1.36 when number of treatments >1, P = 0.066). Use of tetracyclines was associated with resistance to tetracycline (OR 1.86, P < 0.001) and use of penicillins was associated with resistance to ampicillin (OR 1.66, P = 0.014). No significant associations were observed for P. multocida (use of aminoglycosides: OR 3.66 for resistance to spectinomycin, P = 0.074). For M. haemolytica, the odds of being resistant were increased with increased AMU (OR 4.63, P < 0.001), and use of tetracyclines was associated with resistance to tetracycline (OR 6.49, P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Occurrence of resistant bacteria shortly before slaughter was associated with AMU in veal calves. Prudent and appropriate use may contribute to limit the selection of resistant bacteria on veal farms.

Screening of Antimicrobial Activity of Essential Oils against Bovine Respiratory Pathogens - Focusing on Pasteurella multocida.

Administration of essential oils as natural plant products with antimicrobial activity might be an alternative to antibiotic treatment of bovine respiratory disease. The aim of this study was to analyse the in vitro antimicrobial activity of 11 essential oils against Pasteurella multocida isolated from the respiratory tract of calves using microdilution with determination of minimum inhibitory and bactericidal concentration as well as agar disc diffusion. Additionally, antimicrobial activity against Mannheimia haemolytica and bacteria in the Mannheimia clade was assessed by agar disc diffusion. Seven essential oil mixtures were also tested against all bacterial isolates. P. multocida was strongly inhibited by cinnamon cassia and lemongrass oil followed by coriander, winter savory, thyme, clove, and peppermint oil in the microdilution assays. Eucalyptus, wintergreen, spruce, and star anise oil showed lower activity. Comparison of both methods revealed an underestimation of cinnamon cassia oil activity by agar disc diffusion and conflicting results for wintergreen oil in microdilution, which precipitated in broth. Cinnamon cassia, thyme, wintergreen, lemongrass, and winter savory oil all showed strong antimicrobial activity against M. haemolytica. Bacteria in the Mannheimia clade were mostly inhibited by cinnamon cassia and thyme oil. Pasteurella isolates were more susceptible to inhibition by essential oils than Mannheimia isolates. Essential oil mixtures did not show stronger antibacterial activity than single essential oils. In conclusion, cinnamon cassia and lemongrass as well as coriander, winter savory, and thyme oil are promising candidates for treatment of P. multocida-associated bovine respiratory infections.

Evaluation of candidate data-based welfare indicators for veal calves in Switzerland.

Welfare assessment protocols have been developed for dairy cows and veal calves during the past decades. One practical use of such protocols may be conducting welfare assessments by using routinely collected digital data (i.e., data-based assessment). This approach can allow for continuous monitoring of animal welfare in a large number of farms. It recognises changes in the animal welfare status over time and enables comparison between farms. Since no comprehensive data-based assessment for veal calves is currently available, the purposes of this review are (i) to provide an overview of single existing data-based indicators for veal calves and (ii) to work out the necessary requirements for data-based indicators to be used in a comprehensive welfare assessment for veal calves in Switzerland. We used the Welfare Quality Protocol® (WQ) for veal calves and the Terrestrial Animal Health Code from the World Organisation of Animal Health for guidance throughout this process. Subsequently, routinely collected data were evaluated as data sources for welfare assessment in Swiss veal operations. The four WQ principles reflecting animal welfare, i.e., 'good feeding', 'good housing', 'good health' and 'appropriate behaviour' were scarcely reflected in routinely available data. Animal health, as one element of animal welfare, could be partially assessed using data-based indicators through evaluation of mortality, treatments, and carcass traits. No data-based indicators reflecting feeding, housing and animal behaviour were available. Thus, it is not possible to assess welfare in its multidimensionality using routinely collected digital data in Swiss veal calves to date. A major underlying difficulty is to differentiate between veal calves and other youngstock using routine data, since an identifying category for veal calves is missing in official Swiss databases. In order to infer animal welfare from routine data, adaptations of data collection strategies and animal identification are required. Data-based welfare assessment could then be used to complement on-farm assessments efficiently and, e.g., to attribute financial incentives for specifically high welfare standards accordingly.

Prevalence of Painful Lesions of the Digits and Risk Factors Associated with Digital Dermatitis, Ulcers and White Line Disease on Swiss Cattle Farms.

The first aim of this study was to calculate the prevalence of painful lesions of the digits ("alarm" lesions; ALs) in Swiss dairy herds and cow-calf operations over a three-year study period. The following ALs were included in the calculation: the M2 stage of digital dermatitis (DD M2), ulcers (U), white line fissures (WLF) of moderate and high severity, white line abscesses (WLA), interdigital phlegmon (IP) and swelling of the coronet and/or bulb (SW). Between February 2020 and February 2023, digit disorders were electronically recorded during routine trimmings by 40 specially trained hoof trimmers on Swiss cattle farms participating in the national claw health programme. The data set used consisted of over 35,000 observations from almost 25,000 cows from 702 herds. While at the herd-level, the predominant AL documented in 2022 was U with 50.3% followed by WLF with 38.1%, at the cow-level, in 2022, it was DD M2 with 5.4% followed by U with 3.7%. During the study period, within-herd prevalences of ALs ranged from 0.0% to a maximum of 66.1% in 2020. The second aim of this study was to determine herd- and cow-level risk factors associated with digital dermatitis (DD), U and white line disease (WL) in dairy cows using data from 2022. While for DD, analysed herd-level factors appeared to have a greater effect on the probability of its occurrence, the presence of U and WL was mainly associated with the analysed cow-level factors. The risk for DD increased with a higher herd trimming frequency. Herds kept in tie stalls had a lower risk for DD and WL and a higher risk for U compared to herds kept in loose housing systems. Herds with predominantly Holstein Friesian cows as well as Holstein Friesian cows had a higher risk for the occurrence of DD compared to herds and cows of other breeds. With increasing parity, cows had a higher risk of developing U and WL, whereas for DD, parity was negatively associated with prevalence. Cows trimmed during the grazing period had a higher risk of U and WL than cows trimmed during the housing period. These findings may contribute to improve management measures affecting the health of the digits in farms with structures similar to those evaluated in the current study, such as small herds with frequent access to pasture. Further research is warranted to demonstrate how measures addressing the current results combined with those of individual herd risk assessments might contribute to an improvement in the health of the digits in the respective dairy herds.

Synergetic spin singlet-quintet switching and luminescence in mononuclear Fe(II) 1,3,4-oxadiazole tetradentate chelates with NCBH3 co-ligand.

We report the multi-step synthesis of the tetradentate 2-(naphthalen-2-yl)-5-[N,N-bis(2-pyridylmethyl)aminomethyl]-1,3,4-oxadiazole ligand (LTetra-ODA) along with its corresponding [FeII(LTetra-ODA)(NCBH3)2]·1.5CH3OH (C1) complex, which is the first mononuclear 1,3,4-oxadiazole based Fe(II) spin crossover (SCO) complex, and its zinc analogue [ZnII(LTetra-ODA)(NCBH3)2]·0.5H2O (C2). The spin transition is followed by variable temperature (VT-) X-ray crystallography of [Fe(LTetra-ODA)(NCBH3)2]·1.5CH3OH (C1) at 120 and 220 K. The magnetic susceptibility measurements on the bulk sample recorded from 2 to 300 K show that the complex exhibits a complete abrupt reversible spin transition with a T1/2 of 207 K. The loss of the lattice solvent methanol shifts the T1/2 slightly to around 210 K. The spin transition in solution for [Fe(LTetra-ODA)(NCBH3)2]·1.5CH3OH (C1) was followed using the VT-1H-NMR Evans method in CD3CN, with a T1/2 of 357 K. Solid state VT luminescence studies provide some preliminary evidence of interplay of luminescence and spin transition in the [Fe(LTetra-ODA)(NCBH3)2]·1.5CH3OH (C1) complex.

Field Validation of a Non-carcinogenic and Eco-Friendly Disinfectant in a Stand-In Footbath for Treatment of Footrot Associated With aprV2-Positive Strains of Dichelobacter nodosus in Swiss Sheep Flocks.

A national control program for virulent footrot is currently planned in Switzerland. Since commonly used disinfectants either contain heavy metals or are carcinogenic, the aim of this study was to verify the effectiveness of an eco-friendly and non-carcinogenic candidate disinfectant against aprV2-positive strains of Dichelobacter nodosus. Additionally, the effect of the selective use of long-acting oxytetracyclines was evaluated. A total of 18 farms with confirmed footrot infection, randomly allocated to two treatment groups: (1) with antibiotics (AB; n = 9) and, (2) no antibiotics (NAB; n = 9), were included. Claws were carefully trimmed and scored using a scale from 0 (clinically healthy) to 5 (complete loss of the horn capsule) and a prewash waterbath was implemented on 11 farms. Twice-weekly, repeated whole-flock stand-in footbaths with the candidate disinfectant (6%) were performed. Additionally, animals of group AB with a score ≥ 3 were administered oxytetracyclines by injection. On all farms, 10 days after last treatment, aprV2-positive strains could not be detected by risk-based sampling for real-time PCR analysis after 7-21 (median = 12) footbaths with a minimal culling rate of non-responders on nine farms. Farms without contact to other sheep remained without clinical signs of footrot for a minimum of 245 days (mean ± standard deviation: 293.6 ± 23.6). Antibiotic treatment did not reduce the number of footbaths needed. In contrast, a mean of 3.3 disinfecting footbaths could be saved by implementing a prewash waterbath. At animal level, individual and selective use of oxytetracyclines lead to a higher chance (odds ratio = 9.95; 95% CI: 3.54-27.95; p < 0.001) for a lesion score ≥ 3 to improve to a lesion score < 3 within 2 weeks compared to treatment without antibiotics. The test disinfectant is an effective and eco-friendly alternative for the planned Swiss footrot control program and selective use of oxytetracycline has a beneficial impact on the recovery of animals with lesion scores ≥ 3.

Comparison of Antimicrobial Treatment Incidence Quantification Based on Detailed Field Data on Animal Level with the Standardized Methodology of the European Medicines Agency in Veal Calves, Switzerland, 2016-2018.

Precise quantification of antimicrobial treatment incidence (TI) is crucial for benchmarking. Two widespread methods for treatment incidence quantification were compared for agreement. Field data were obtained from 38 veal farms from 2016 to 2018 (1905 calves, 1864 treatments). Calculation of TIswiss for calves was based on detailed treatment records using pharmacokinetic values from the Swiss Veterinary Medicines Compendium. The method published by the European Medicines Agency was used to calculate TI in defined daily doses (TIDDD). For each calf and treatment, TIswiss and TIDDD were calculated on level of the antimicrobial class, drug, application route, and farm. The quotient (Q) of TIswiss and TIDDD was calculated. Divergence in results between the two methods of ≤25% was arbitrarily set as good agreement. The agreement between TIswiss and TIDDD was mostly good. On class level, good agreement was observed for treatments representing 71.5% of the TIDDD, and 74.5% of the total TIDDD on drug level. Poor agreement was mainly observed for tylosin and sulfadimidine. The agreement was better for parenteral than for oral treatments (81.6% vs. 72.3%). For practically orientated calculation on farm level, good agreement was observed (77.5% of the TIDDD). The TIDDD method showed mostly good agreement, especially for parenteral treatments.

Establishment of a Reverse Genetic System from a Bovine Derived Influenza D Virus Isolate.

The ruminant-associated influenza D virus (IDV) has a broad host tropism and was shown to have zoonotic potential. To identify and characterize molecular viral determinants influencing the host spectrum of IDV, a reverse genetic system is required. For this, we first performed 5' and 3' rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE) of all seven genomic segments, followed by assessment of the 5' and 3' NCR activity prior to constructing the viral genomic segments of a contemporary Swiss bovine IDV isolate (D/CN286) into the bidirectional pHW2000 vector. The bidirectional plasmids were transfected in HRT-18G cells followed by viral rescue on the same cell type. Analysis of the segment specific 5' and 3' non-coding regions (NCR) highlighted that the terminal 3' end of all segments harbours an uracil instead of a cytosine nucleotide, similar to other influenza viruses. Subsequent analysis on the functionality of the 5' and 3' NCR in a minireplicon assay revealed that these sequences were functional and that the variable sequence length of the 5' and 3' NCR influences reporter gene expression. Thereafter, we evaluated the replication efficiency of the reverse genetic clone on conventional cell lines of human, swine and bovine origin, as well as by using an in vitro model recapitulating the natural replication site of IDV in bovine and swine. This revealed that the reverse genetic clone D/CN286 replicates efficiently in all cell culture models. Combined, these results demonstrate the successful establishment of a reverse genetic system from a contemporary bovine IDV isolate that can be used for future identification and characterization of viral determinants influencing the broad host tropism of IDV.

Prevalence of BRD-Related Viral Pathogens in the Upper Respiratory Tract of Swiss Veal Calves.

The prevention of bovine respiratory disease is important, as it may lead to impaired welfare, economic losses, and considerable antimicrobial use, which can be associated with antimicrobial resistance. The aim of this study was to describe the prevalence of respiratory viruses and to identify risk factors for their occurrence. A convenience sample of 764 deep nasopharyngeal swab samples from veal calves was screened by PCR for bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV), bovine parainfluenza-3 virus (BPI3V), bovine coronavirus (BCoV), influenza D virus (IDV), and influenza C virus (ICV). The following prevalence rates were observed: BRSV, 2.1%; BPI3V, 3.3%; BCoV, 53.5%; IDV, 4.1%; ICV, 0%. Logistic mixed regression models were built for BCoV to explore associations with calf management and housing. Positive swab samples were more frequent in younger calves than older calves (>100 days; p < 0.001). The probability of detecting BCoV increased with increasing group size in young calves. Findings from this study suggested that young calves should be fattened in small groups to limit the risk of occurrence of BCoV, although an extended spectrum of risk factors for viral associated respiratory disorders such as nutritional aspects should be considered in future studies.

Welfare Assessment in Calves Fattened According to the "Outdoor Veal Calf" Concept and in Conventional Veal Fattening Operations in Switzerland.

The "outdoor veal calf" system was developed to encounter the demand for a veal fattening system that allows for reducing antimicrobial use without impairing animal welfare. Management improvements including direct purchase, short transportation, vaccination, three-week quarantine in individual hutches, and open-air housing in small groups in a roofed, straw-bedded paddock with a group hutch were implemented in a prospective intervention study (1905 calves, 19 intervention and 19 control farms, over one year): antimicrobial use was five times lower in "outdoor veal" farms compared to control farms (p < 0.001), but it was crucial to ensure that antimicrobial treatment reduction was not associated with decreased animal welfare, i.e., that sick animals were not left untreated. Welfare was assessed monthly on the farms, and organs of 339 calves were examined after slaughter. Cough and nasal discharge were observed significantly (p ≤ 0.05) less often in intervention than in control farms, mortality (3.1% vs. 6.3%, p = 0.020) and lung lesion prevalence (26% vs. 46%, p < 0.001) were lower; no group difference was seen in abomasal lesion prevalence (65% vs. 72%). Thus, besides reduced antimicrobial use, calf health and welfare were improved in "outdoor veal calf" farms in comparison to traditional operations.

A Novel Trimethoprim Resistance Gene, dfrA36, Characterized from Escherichia coli from Calves.

Whole-genome sequencing of trimethoprim-resistant Escherichia coli strains MF2165 and PF9285 from healthy Swiss fattening calves revealed a so far uncharacterized dihydrofolate reductase gene, dfrA35 Functionality and association with trimethoprim resistance were demonstrated by cloning and expressing dfrA35 in E. coli The DfrA35 protein showed the closest amino acid identity (49.4%) to DfrA20 from Pasteurella multocida and to the Dfr determinants DfrG (41.2%), DfrD (40.8%), and DfrK (40.0%) found in Gram-positive bacteria. The dfrA35 gene was integrated within a florfenicol/chloramphenicol-sulfonamide resistance ISCR2 element (floR-ISCR2-dfrA35-sul2) next to a Tn21-like transposon that contained genes with resistance to sulfonamides (sul1), streptomycin (aadA1), gentamicin/tobramycin/kanamycin (aadB), and quaternary ammonium compounds (qacEΔ1). A search of GenBank databases revealed that dfrA35 was present in 26 other E. coli strains from different origins as well as in AcinetobacterIMPORTANCE The presence of dfrA35 associated with ISCR2 in Escherichia coli from animals, as well as its presence in other E. coli strains from different sources and countries and in Acinetobacter, highlights the global spread of this gene and its potential for further dissemination. The genetic link of ISCR2-dfrA35 with other antibiotic and disinfectant resistance genes showed that multidrug-resistant E. coli may be selected and maintained by the use of either one of several antimicrobials.

Low pathogenic avian influenza (H9N2) in chicken: Evaluation of an ancestral H9-MVA vaccine.

Modified Vaccinia Ankara (MVA) has proven its efficacy as a recombinant vector vaccine for numerous pathogens including influenza virus. The present study aimed at evaluating a recombinant MVA candidate vaccine against low pathogenic avian influenza virus subtype H9N2 in the chicken model. As the high genetic and antigenic diversity of H9N2 viruses increases vaccine design complexity, one strategy to widen the range of vaccine coverage is to use an ancestor sequence. We therefore generated a recombinant MVA encoding for the gene sequence of an ancestral hemagglutinin H9 protein (a computationally derived amino acid sequence of the node of the H9N2 G1 lineage strains was obtained using the ANCESCON program). We analyzed the genetics and the growth properties of the MVA vector virus confirming suitability for use under biosafety level 1 and tested its efficacy when applied either as an intra-muscular (IM) or an oral vaccine in specific pathogen free chickens challenged with A/chicken/Tunisia/12/2010(H9N2). Two control groups were studied in parallel (unvaccinated and inoculated birds; unvaccinated and non-inoculated birds). IM vaccinated birds seroconverted as early as four days post vaccination and neutralizing antibodies were detected against A/chicken/Tunisia/12/2010(H9N2) in all the birds before challenge. The role of local mucosal immunity is unclear here as no antibodies were detected in eye drop or aerosol vaccinated birds. Clinical signs were not detected in any of the infected birds even in absence of vaccination. Virus replication was observed in both vaccinated and unvaccinated chickens, suggesting the MVA-ancestral H9 vaccine may not stop virus spread in the field. However vaccinated birds showed less histological damage, fewer influenza-positive cells and shorter virus shedding than their unvaccinated counterparts.