Still born calf

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Remember - abortions JUST HAPPEN some times. For no clinical reason. Just like people.
I, personally, would not run to have an autopsy done. But, I know I have a superb health program.
"Generally" it is advised to get an autopsy, if you have "an abortion storm" - multiple dead calves.
Remember, $hit happens. Don't start to panic yet. Even if you get it autopsied, and they FIND something (that's unusual!!), I do not know if there is anything you can do at this time to protect the rest of the cows. Not sure about that. Ron might know.

 

[sim.-ang.king]

Necropsy don't cost a lot. Last one I had done 2 years ago cost $80 at the UofI. How much is a dead calf, or open cow worth?

 

[Bright Raven]

Remember - abortions JUST HAPPEN some times. For no clinical reason. Just like people.
I, personally, would not run to have an autopsy done. But, I know I have a superb health program.
"Generally" it is advised to get an autopsy, if you have "an abortion storm" - multiple dead calves.
Remember, $hit happens. Don't start to panic yet. Even if you get it autopsied, and they FIND something (that's unusual!!), I do not know if there is anything you can do at this time to protect the rest of the cows. Not sure about that. Ron might know.

No need to panic. There could be a 100 causes. However, if it is convenient and cheap, it sure would be nice to know if he has a pathogen in his herd that needs to be vaccinated against. Jeanne, that is something he could do if he finds it is a pathogen that he is not vaccinating against.

 

[CattleMan1920]

We had a heifer abort a Baldridge Colonel calf last year, no reason, just happened, only one in the herd. We rarely see it happen.

 

[76 Bar]

The Fetal Protection 5 component is modified live virus. BUT NOT THE L5 component.

But of course. The assorted Lepto vaccines with or without borgpetersenii are universally a killed product. You missed my point. The Titanium 5 L5 HB (and I failed to note) the Vista 5 L5 respiratory components are ML and hence to avoid untoward reproductive repercussions, are to be used according to the respective manufacturer's protocol. Not the case with the killed versions. The apparent trade off with the latter is purported to be a lesser efficacy.

 

[Bright Raven]

The Fetal Protection 5 component is modified live virus. BUT NOT THE L5 component.

But of course. The assorted Lepto vaccines with or without borgpetersenii are universally a killed product. You missed my point. The Titanium 5 L5 HB (and I failed to note) the Vista 5 L5 respiratory components are ML and hence to avoid untoward reproductive repercussions, are to be used according to the respective manufacturer's protocol. Not the case with the killed versions. The apparent trade off with the latter is purported to be a lesser efficacy.

I did misinterpret your post. When you posted that Titanium 5 L5 HB was "Live", I thought you meant the Leptospira component. To my knowledge, there is NO "Live" vaccine preparation of Leptospira. They are all killed bacterins. Sorry.

 

[76 Bar]

Sorry.

Apologies accepted. :tiphat:
Staying current with the ever changing vaccine protocols and assorted efficacies is mind boggling to even the most astute and dedicated. Infuriating to have to drill down.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

But, does anyone know - IF, an abortion is due to Lepto or IBR, etc. Can vaccinating now make any difference for the rest of the herd? I know you would want to make sure you had complete protection for next time, but, how about now?
And, yes, if you have a naive herd, you would have to use Killed vaccines on the pregnant cows.
I use MLV (BoviShield 5L5 HB), and as long as I am within a 12 month period, it doesn't make any difference what stage of pregnancy the cow is in. (I just re-verified that Saturday at our Annual Meeting with a vet speaker).

 

[Bright Raven]

1. But, does anyone know - IF, an abortion is due to Lepto or IBR, etc.

2. Can vaccinating now make any difference for the rest of the herd? I know you would want to make sure you had complete protection for next time, but, how about now?

1. According to a report in Beef magazine, only 25 to 35 percent of fetal necropsies identify the cause of the abortion or still birth. It further stated that the condition of the fetus and complete information is essential.

(Reference: Beef Magazine.
The key to correcting the problem of abortions is to identify the cause, so abortions can be prevented in the future. However, the success rate for accurate bovine abortion diagnosis is only in the range of 25-35%
Mar 29, 2007)

2. Regarding vaccination. That is only going to help going forward. Obviously, if another member of the herd is infected, the vaccination is too late and trestment will be necessary.

I can understand why you said you would not send a fetus or stillborn off for necropsy. In many cases, you are not going to get a determination of the cause. There are numerous pathogens that are involved in causing abortions or stillbirths. Some leave a fingerprint as to what pathogen was the cause but most don't.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

That is what I was implying. Rarely does anyone get answers on stillborns. The quality of the specimen and placenta is key. Over the nearly 50 years, yes I have had a few abortions, but never had one autopsied.