Breathe Easy

Protecting calves from respiratory disease can be a positive for animal well-being and the bottom line.

Calving season is approaching in fall-calving areas and getting those calves off to a healthy start is top of mind for cattle producers. Preventing respiratory disease is best for overall animal health and productivity, and recent studies demonstrate there can be an economic benefit for the cow-calf operation.

The Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association (JAVMA) recently published a study based on a survey of cow-calf producers in multiple states. The study evaluated and compared the costs of vaccines and vaccine administration to calves for disease protection with the medication and labor costs of treating a calf with respiratory disease.¹

The JAVMA study showed, in many cases, the costs associated with prevention — vaccine costs plus the labor cost to administer vaccines — were considerably less than the medication and labor costs to treat disease. Median vaccine cost per calf in the surveyed herds was $6.25, while labor costs were $5 for administering vaccine to calves. Medicine cost to treat a sick calf averaged $11, while treatment labor costs were $15 per calf.¹ This study reveals that the cost per calf to treat respiratory disease is more than twice the cost of preventing respiratory disease.

A proven approach to the young calf’s immune system
A young calf’s immune system is unique in how it responds to viral and bacterial challenges. Calfhood vaccinations can complement what the dam provides through colostrum and help give a calf every chance to be healthy and perform to its potential. Timing and type of vaccine administration play key roles in managing the young calf’s immune response.

A Montana study looked at the effects of timing and sequence of vaccination on the immune response in nursing calves. The study demonstrated that the intranasal vaccine works with the calf’s immune system to prevent respiratory disease caused by bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV) and helps prevent respiratory disease caused by infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR) and parainfluenza-3 (PI₃) virus.²

“The Montana study and research out of North Dakota demonstrated that vaccination at birth can improve future responses to vaccination, while helping provide protection against respiratory diseases from birth to weaning,”³ said Victor Cortese, veterinarian and director of immunology and biologicals with Zoetis.

Cortese concluded with three things a cow-calf producer will see from implementing young calf respiratory vaccinations:^4,5

• Lower pneumonia rates;
• Lower death loss; and
• Greater weight gains.

To develop a vaccination protocol for your young nursing calves, visit with your local veterinarian.

Editor’s note: This article was provided by Zoetis.

¹Wang M, Schneider LG, Hubbard KJ, et al. Beef producer survey of the cost to prevent and treat bovine respiratory disease in preweaned calves. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2018; 253(5):617-623.

²Data on file, Study Report No. 16CARGBIO01, Zoetis Inc.

³Stokka GL, Neville B, Seeger JT, Stoltenow C, Dyer N, Gaspers JJ. Evaluation of the serologic effect of concurrent IBR, BRSV, PI₃ and Mannheimia vaccination and time interval between the first and second dose on the subsequent serological response to the Mannheimia toxoid and BRSV fractions on spring-born beef calves in North Dakota. North Dakota Beef Report 2014; 40-42.

⁴Perino LJ, Hunsaker BD. A review of bovine respiratory disease field efficacy. Bov Pract. 1997; 31:59-66.

⁵Mosier DA, Confer AW, Panciera RJ. The evolution of vaccines for bovine pneumonic pasteurellosis. Res Vet Sci. 1989; 47:1-10.