Volume 63 (2013) Issue: 2013 No#2-3

Some viral and bacterial respiratory tract infections of dairy cattle during the summer season

Author(s): Kale M, Ozturk Dýlek, Hasircioglu Sýbel, Pehlivanoglu F, Turutoglu Hulya

Keywords:bacteria, bovine respiratory infections, ELISA, isolation, summer season, viruses

In this research, dairy cattle with respiratory system problems that were brought to a private slaughterhouse in Burdur province were investigated for viral and bacterial infections present in the summer season. The blood samples were collected from 56 animals. The samples were tested for antibodies against bovine herpesvirus 1 (BoHV-1), bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV), bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV), bovine parainfluenza virus 3 (BPIV-3) and bovine adenovirus 3 (BAV-3) by ELISA. Bacteriological cultivation was carried out from lung samples taken after cutting the same animals. The seropositivity rates which were determined for 5 viruses in cattle (BoHV- 1, BVDV, BRSV, BPIV-3 and BAV-3) were 7.14%, 50%, 94.64%, 94.64% and 82.14% respectively. The presence of antibodies against the viruses was as follows; 5.36% of cattle had antibodies against only one virus, 14.29% against two, 30.36% against three, 44.64% against four and 5.36% against five viruses. A total of 36 bacterial agents were isolated from 30 out of 56 lung samples. From the lung samples, only one bacterium was isolated from 39.3% (22/56) samples, and more than one bacterium from 14.3% (8/56). Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus spp. were detected as the most often isolated agents. Compared to bacteria, the rates of viral infections associated with Escherichia coli (BRSV+BPIV-3+BAV- 3+Escherichia coli; 8.92% and BRSV+BPIV-3+Escherichia coli; 5.35%) were higher. As a consequence, it was thought that primary agents which were the viruses and bacteria may have attended as secondary factors in respiratory tract infections of dairy cattle.