09/12/2000

Growth-Stimulating Implants Provide Added Benefit of Helping Keep Cattle Herds Healthier

AUBURN, Ala.— For more than 30 years, cattle producers have used hormonal implants to safely and effectively stimulate growth and improve feed efficiency in their herds. Now, researchers at Auburn University's College of Veterinary Medicine have discovered that these growth-promoting implants provide another valuable benefit: healthier cattle.

Specifically, a research project funded in part by the Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station shows that, when hit with certain debilitating diseases, cattle that have been pre-treated with the common growth implant Synovex experience milder symptoms and recover more quickly than non-implanted cattle.

Implants are small pellets or devices that are placed under the skin behind the ear of a heifer or steer. Each pellet contains a growth stimulant that is slowly released into the bloodstream and carried to the tissues.

To determine whether these tissue-building implants could also improve herd health, researchers tested the response of implanted and non-implanted Holstein steers to coccidiosis, a disease that causes fever, severe diarrhea and reduced feed intake in cattle.

The implants made a significant difference in the severity of symptoms suffered, said research team member Jay Daniel. The implanted cattle averaged just two days of fever, with a peak of 103.1 degrees Fahrenheit, versus five days of fever and a peak of 103.64 degrees Fahrenheit for the non-implanted group. The implanted steers also experienced five to six fewer days of diarrhea than their non-implanted counterparts and consumed 38 percent more feed.

In control groups of healthy implanted and non-implanted cattle, blood tests revealed that implanted steers had a greater number of immune cells than did non-implanted steers. Daniel said that could help explain why the infected cattle with implants were less severely affected by the disease.

Continuing their study, researchers found that implants also reduced the severity of cattle's response to endotoxemia, a sickness characterized by fever and loss of appetite.

Although the implants had no impact on fever in the infected cattle, steers that had been pre-treated with implants had greater feed intake and less tissue wasting than non-implanted steers. The implanted cattle also exhibited fewer signs of behavioral distress during the illness.

Digestive and respiratory diseases take a heavy toll on the cattle industry every year, costing hundreds of millions of dollars in calf death losses, treatment costs and declines in cattle performance. While implants won't prevent cattle diseases, the AU research to date indicates they can minimize the impact and lead to quicker recovery.

James Sartin, professor of anatomy, physiology and pharmacology in the College of Veterinary Medicine, said further research into the link between implants and cattle health will be conducted through a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

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Office of Ag Communications & Marketing

Auburn University College of Agriculture
Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station
3 Comer Hall, Auburn University
Auburn, AL 36849
334-844-4877 (PHONE) 334-844-5892 (FAX)

Contact Jamie Creamer, 334-844-2783 or jcreamer@auburn.edu
Contact Katie Jackson, 334-844-5886 or smithcl@auburn.edu

09/12/00