ICC Brazil’s ruminant expert Marcelo Pedrosa Carneiro talks about what it takes to prevent and control diseases in beef and dairy cattle

Modern cattle farming, whether beef or dairy, requires the producer to truly act as a conductor to orchestrate the interactions between Animal Health, Nutrition, Genetics, Management, and Environment. These key pillars of efficient livestock support the achievement of satisfactory results in terms of profitability, animal welfare, and food safety for consumers of animal products. Seeking to contribute to this mission, we created the “Safe Management” series, which highlights the key points to ensure the safe handling of livestock. Today, Marcelo Pedrosa Carneiro, ICC Brazil’s ruminant specialist, shares his expertise and begins by addressing the necessary attention to the health of beef and dairy cattle. Read on to see what Pedrosa has to say.

Cattle, whether managed in pastures, feedlots, or mixed systems, are susceptible to several illnesses. Failure to prevent them may lead to a drop in production, in simpler or subclinical cases, or the death of the animal and problems for the consumer’s health.

Therefore, it is important to institute a comprehensive prophylactic calendar on the farm under the guidance of a veterinarian. It must cover the main parasitic diseases and infectious diseases that affect cattle while considering their seasonality and endemicity.

Also, fundamental care must be devoted to calves, which are immunologically defenseless at birth. The first immediate course of action is cutting and disinfecting the navel to block the pathogen entry point into the body. It is also necessary to ensure the intake of colostrum by the calf within the first hours after birth. The calf must remain with its mother for at least 24 hours so that it can ingest and absorb as much of the antibodies provided by the colostrum as possible. After this period, the ability to absorb colostral antibodies through the intestine is drastically reduced.

Even with all this care, it is normal for an animal to become ill at any given time, whether due to an accident, infectious disease, metabolic disorder, or other cause. In such cases, proper treatment should be provided as soon as possible and always under the prescription of a veterinarian, with attention to the withdrawal period of the medicine prior to the destination of the animals and milk to the refrigerated storage and dairy industries.

Animal health and nutrition go hand in hand

While on the topic of animal health, it is vital to care for the quality of water and food provided to cattle to avoid the consumption of pathogens or toxins. The use of specific additives in the diets of animals may be of great help for the prevention and control of some serious diseases.

This is made possible by ImmunoWall®, a natural additive from ICC Brazil. With a high concentration of glucomannans, which are functional fibers present in the yeast cell wall, it acts in the digestive tract protection by adsorbing and eliminating pathogens and mycotoxins. It also stimulates the animal’s immune system and creates a faster and more vigorous response to infection challenges.

Do you want to know more about ICC Brazil solutions that help to prevent and control diseases in beef and dairy cattle? Visit: www.iccbrazil.com/en/linha-produtos.