The number one problem for the cattle producers is Bovine Respiratory Disease (BRD). Bayer HealthCare LLC is rolling out a new way to fight BRD in introducing Zelnate to the US beef cattle industry. Bayer Technical Services Veterinarian Dr. Larry Hawkins said one of the reasons Bayer is excited about Zelnate is the seriousness of BRD.
“Over 65 percent of the treatments given in the cattle industry are because of respiratory disease in cattle,” Hawkins said.
The disease often referred to as “shipping fever” is a complex disease. It comes from a combination of a virus, bacteria and stress. Hawkins said BRD has become the number one disease for the cattle industry. BRD causes economic losses, as well as emotional hardship for cattle producers.
“It’s their livelihood, it’s their business,” Hawkins said. “They’re animal caretakers, they take it as a personal attack when their cattle get sick. They think they have done the best they can possibility do, as far as vaccines, as far as purchasing the best cattle that they can come up with in many cases, then those animals get sick and they want to provide for them in the best manner.”
With BRD being such a serious problem, Bayer Animal Health is really excited about this new product they are able to offer cattle producers with Zelnate. Dr. Hawkins said clinical trials with Zelnate shows that it reduces mortality in cattle and it also reduces the amount of lung tissue lost when animals are infected with BRD. That’s an important economic factor in potentially reducing the need for antibiotics. Dr. Hawkins said its important producers have every tool available in the battle against BRD.
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