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The health status and indicators of nonspecific resistance in neonates calves

At present the problem of gastrointestinal diseases of newborn calves is relevant. Losses are to death, weight loss, poor feeding, costs time and money to treat sick animals. Sometimes the incidence of calves in individual farms reaches 90–100 %, and death – 20–40 %. Calves that recover from the symptoms of diarrhea, 50 and 60 days of age with body weight at 16-20 kg less than those who are not ill, and after recovery 2 5 months of age, they often suffer from pneumonia. Later they reduced fertilization and productivity lost as a breeding.

It is known that non-contagious and infectious disease of the newborn calves developed against a background of low immune defense, which cause a number of abiotic factors: inadequate feeding of breeding stock, feeding low-quality (low immunoglobulin contaminated with microorganisms and toxins) colostrum, late feeding colostrum, violation of the structure of the mucous membrane of the small intestine in calves caused by lack of protein in the last 2–3 months of gestation.

Calves that are born on the farm, kept in a specially equipped place in the same room with cow's where they feeding colostrum or milk three times a day. Passages and floor dry and maternity departments premises were kept newborns daily sprinkled with lime, and the walls whitewashed weekly.

The farm calves are born with well – developed muscles, weighing 30–35 kg. Some experimental calves born late in the evening or at night and the first colostrum they received with a delay of 5–8 hours. Some calves signs of disorders of the digestive system functions appear 3–5, sometimes 6–7 days after the birth of surviving satisfactory general condition of the animals.

If diarrhea enhance the overall condition of calves was depressed, they decreased appetite, sometimes manifested anorexia. In some calves appeared signs of dehydration, dry hair and skin.

The obtained results allow us to conclude that a violation technology feeding colostrum for newborn calves, obtained from healthy cows even adversely affect the physiological status of newborn calves. Disorders of digestion in abomasum and intestine lead to decrease assimilation of imunoglobulins, causing the development of immunodeficiency state in newborn calves. Against this background, there is overgrowth and develops non-specific infection, clinical symptoms which are characteristic of associative infections.

To study the nonspecific resistance of newborn calves held us determine some of its parameters (total protein content and total Ig). 15 newborn calves were divided into 2 groups: the first (11) – calves feeding colostrum in time, the second (4) – those who feeding first colostrum with a delay of 5–8 hours. The blood of all newborn calves was getting up 3 day of life.

The study of blood serum of calves which feeding first colostrum afterthought after birth (5–8 h, 4 calves ), it was found that its content of total protein ranged from 53,4 to 58,3 g/l and an average – 54,8±2,1 g/l. This amount of total protein in serum of calves immunodeficiency characteristic of the animals (less than 55 g/l). The remaining calves fed colostrum within one or two hours, the average protein content was 65,2±2,30 g/l ( variation from 58,4 to 66,8 g/l).

Along with a low content of total protein concentration of immunoglobulins on the 3 day of life in newborn calves from first group was also quite low, only 14,5±2,30 g/l (12,3–15,7 g/l), which confirms development in these animals immunodeficiency state (less than 18 g/l). In calves, the first time feeding colostrum Ig concentration ranged from 18,8 to 23,5 g/l and averaged 22,4±2,40 g/l.

One of the causes of gastrointestinal diseases in newborn calves economy is obviously a violation of the rules of feeding newborn calves, in particular – late feeding them first colostrum. Consequently, the calves developed immunodeficiency state, as evidenced by the results obtained by our research.

Key words: total protein, immunoglobulins, immunodeficiency, colibacteriosis, rota- and coronavirus infections, diagnostics system Bio-X.

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