Latest News From Diagnostics

The past few winters have thrown many curve balls at cattle producers. In addition to causing stress, these conditions are tough on cattle’s overall health, making deworming this spring even more important.    

The American Association of Bovine Practitioners is making the name change, as it more accurately reflects the issue.

Is the U.S. pork industry prepared for a Japanese encephalitis virus outbreak? Here's how a newly developed diagnostic test could help.

Livestock producers and veterinarians are urged to practice good biosecurity practices to prevent transmission of the disease. Five states have also issued restrictions on dairy cattle movement.

How well do you package samples to make sure they arrive safely and in testable condition at the diagnostic lab? Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Lab provides helpful directions to help you make that happen.

Hernias addressed in the field need to be small, and the calf needs to be young, says Amanda Hartnack, DVM, MS, DACVS. She details how to decide when in-field surgery will work and when it's best to change course.

A producer asked Beef Cattle Institute experts to address how to give medical care to an animal in the field. Options listed: darting, roping, trailering or walking to a facility, doing nothing. What would you choose?

Somatic cell count averages for 2022 were highest in the year's late fall and winter months. Below are some considerations for managing mastitis as the weather changes.

New animal health company, EmGenisys, has created what it says is the first non-invasive and objective method to evaluate bovine embryo health to improve the success rates of embryo transfer and in vitro fertilization. 

Manure analysis can provide telling insights into what nutrients actually are being digested in a ration.

Services provided by animal health diagnostic center veterinarians and staff help practitioners in the field improve the quality of care and treatment they provide to all farm animals, whether livestock or pets.

This article, developed by Margaret Masterson, DVM, The Ohio State University, covers surgery basics for supernumerary teats, slow milkers, teat obstructions, teat spiders, fistulas and teat lacerations.

By using precision technologies such as automated milk feeders and pedometers combined with machine learning, dairy producers can detect illness earlier and make informed decisions about treatment.

Providing assistance too early during stage II labor may result in an increased risk of metritis.

Infectious bovine keratoconjunctivitis can take a toll on cattle, especially calves. Three bovine veterinarians provide their insights on diagnosing the problem and when to use and not use antibiotics for treatment.

Check out the photographs of nine common problems Dr. Ahmed Tibary, Washington State University, says he most often sees in the sperm of bulls that fail breeding soundness exams.

To help producers obtain a lower SCC, it is important to know what you are up against in the herd and how to treat for specific problems, says Peter Edmondson, DVM.

It has been said the act of diagnosis is the most difficult undertaking of human beings. Medical errors seem inevitable, but there are small steps we can take to address many of the contributing factors. Here are three.

Similar to human fingerprints, cow noses are detailed, nearly unique, difficult to change, and remain the same over the life of an individual, making them ideal long-term markers of identity.

The prevailing hypothesis is that P3 necrosis begins with damage to the hoof’s white line following excessive toe-tip wear after transportation, or handling events on abrasive flooring like concrete or gravel.

Mentoring by experienced practitioners provides a framework for success by helping young veterinarians practice better medicine, develop relationships with clients and deal with hardships inherent in the business.

Calves with a hydration status of less than 8% dehydrated and relatively normal mentation can be treated with oral fluid therapy. With severe dehydration – generally above 8% – you likely need to provide IV therapy.

Bovine veterinarians share some of their best practices, ideas and recommendations for conducting in-field necropsies effectively and efficiently.

Answer: The Feedlot Health Management Services team diagnosed this case as right-sided congestive heart failure, an acquired cattle disease resulting from chronic alveolar hypoxia and subsequent pulmonary hypertension.

Since the early 2000s, death losses have topped up to 15%, averaging 6% to 8% on many U.S. dairies.

Presentations during the event focused on diagnostic tools that recent graduates could take home and put right into practice.

Join DVMs Bob Larson and Jennifer Koziol at 7 pm Central, March 9, for a free, one-hour webinar on best practices for breeding soundness exams. This program has been submitted for 1 hour of CEC, approval pending.

The most common metabolic disease in U.S. dairy cows is ketosis. Research shows one case costs a producer an average of $298.

There are two main families of lice: biting (or chewing) and sucking lice. Biting lice feed on skin and skin secretions, while sucking lice have a long, piercing mouthpiece that allows them to draw and feed on blood.

Bulls should be thoroughly evaluated before each breeding season.

Bovine veterinarian Andrea Lear says the therapy she chooses is based on the animal's age, degree of dehydration present as well as her clinical assessment.

Bulls should be thoroughly evaluated before each breeding season, regardless of their age.

If you're looking to improve upon your assessments, treat semen evaluation as a diagnostic tool, then look at management, environment, and genetics to help improve overall bull, herd, and industry cattle fertility.

New technology in temperature detection and logging provide veterinarians an opportunity to establish consulting programs around thermal audits of their producers’ operations as well as improve animal care.

Genetic sequencing allows for the identification of the specific DNA footprint of a disease, which will allow for improved disease surveillance when illness is detected in a herd.

There are many different causes of abdominal distension as well as many possible predisposing underlying factors for those causes. Four practical steps can help you figure out individual cases you find on the farm.

Here’s what you can do about it.

The images depict a heifer calf that had been on feed for 78 days, at which time it was found dead in the pen. Two other post-mortems from the same pen were found to have similar lesions.

These images depict a steer calf that had been on feed for 87 days, at which time it was found dead after a period of losing weight through the winter months.

The images depict a heifer calf that had been on feed for 78 days, at which time it was found dead in the pen. Two other post-mortems from the same pen were found to have similar lesions.

Stay up to date with the Post-Mortem series here.

These images depict a steer calf that had been on feed for 87 days, at which time it was found dead after a period of losing weight through the winter months.

The Wisconsin Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (WVDL) has a new director as of September 1, 2018.

South Dakota Governor Dennis Daugaard promotes public-private partnership for updating the state's Animal Disease Research and Diagnostic Laboratory.

Jerry Torrison, DVM Ph.D, has been appointed as the new director of the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine (CVM) Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory.

For fun and education, our "Name that condition" series challenges readers to identify unusual, or perhaps not so unusual, lesions, injuries or other signs of morbidity in cattle.