Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Natural transmission of bovine leukemia virus in dairy calves by dehorning.
- Journal:
- Canadian journal of comparative medicine : Revue canadienne de medecine comparee
- Year:
- 1985
- Authors:
- DiGiacomo, R F et al.
Plain-English summary
A study looked at how the method of dehorning dairy calves might spread bovine leukemia virus, which can affect their health. Researchers found that Holstein calves that were dehorned using a specific technique called gouge dehorning had a higher chance of developing antibodies to the virus three months later compared to calves that were not dehorned at all. This suggests that using a dehorning tool that had been contaminated with blood could lead to the virus being passed from one calf to another. Overall, the findings indicate that this method of dehorning can indeed transmit the virus.
Abstract
Gouge dehorning was evaluated as a mode of transmitting bovine leukemia virus in Holstein calves at a commercial dairy. Significantly (p less than 0.05) more calves dehorned by the gouge method developed antibodies to bovine leukemia virus, as measured by agar-gel immunodiffusion, three months after dehorning, than calves not dehorned. The field use of a blood-contaminated dehorning device resulted in transmission of bovine leukemia virus.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2994866/