Prediction of respiratory disease and diarrhea in veal calves based on immunoglobulin levels and the serostatus for respiratory pathogens measured at arrival.
Open accessAbstract
Failure of passive transfer is a common problem in calves destined for veal production. At present it is unknown whether the risk for respiratory disease (BRD) or neonatal calf diarrhea (NCD) in the veal herd is associated with total immunoglobulin (Ig) and/or on the serostatus for respiratory pathogens measured at arrival. Therefore, the first objective of this prospective longitudinal cohort study was to determine associations between serum protein fractions as determined by routine electrophoresis (total protein, albumin, alpha-1 and -2 globulins, beta-globulins and Ig's) at arrival and BRD and NCD in the first 3 weeks of the production cycle. The second objective was to determine whether the serostatus (seropositive/seronegative) of seven respiratory pathogens (bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV), parainfluenzavirus-3, bovine coronavirus (BCV), bovine herpesvirus-1, bovine viral diarrhea virus, Mannheimia haemolytica and Mycoplasma bovis) of these arrival serum samples could be associated with the risk of having BRD. The third objective was to determine which of the electrophoresis proteins and respiratory serostatuses were associated with average daily gain (ADG) in the study period. The study population consisted of 150 rosé veal calves housed in a single air-space. The study period ended at day 18 post arrival, when BRD incidence was judged to be too high to further postpone a group treatment. A Cox regression model was used to determine the effect of the studied protein fractions and antibodies on the time to BRD and NCD occurrence. The effect of the studied predictors on ADG was determined by linear regression. Calves with Ig levels under 7.5g/L had an increased BRD hazard (hazard ratio (HR)=1.9 (95% confidence interval (CI)=1.2-3.0)). NCD was only positively associated with the alpha-2 globulin concentration. Calves with a negative serostatus for BCV (HR=1.7 (95% CI=1.0-2.8)) or BRSV (HR=2.0 (95% CI=1.0-3.9)) had an increased BRD hazard. Average daily gain (ADG) was 0.242kg/day (SD=0.142) and was not related to the occurrence of BRD or NCD. Calves with Ig's below 7.5g/L and with increased levels of alpha-2 globulins showed a decrease in ADG. This study showed the importance of providing sufficient colostrum to veal calves and the potential benefit of the presence of BCV and BRSV antibodies at arrival to reduce the BRD hazard in the first 3 weeks.
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Failure of passive transfer of immunity has been reported to occur disproportionately often in male and non-replacement dairy calves, mostly due to inadequate colostrum management on the farm of birth.
“Moreover, failure of passive transfer of immunity has been reported to occur disproportionately often in male and non-replacement dairy calves, mostly due to inadequate colostrum management on the farm of birth [22–24].”
From Effects of age and feeding protocols on the metabolic and physiological condition of unweaned calves during and after long-distance transport (2026) · cites this paper as [22]
The Introduction (page unavailable) reports failure of passive transfer in veal calves and links low IgG to colostral deficiency; it also proposes identifying herds of origin with insufficient colostrum management. But the Results (page unavailable) say all study calves were male, so the paper cannot establish that failure occurs disproportionately often in male or non-replacement calves. Nor does it establish that inadequate management on the farm of birth accounts for most cases. (LLM, conf=0.86)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredHigh rates of morbidity and mortality have been reported in young calves following transport, during and after which calves from multiple source farms are mixed and exposed to novel pathogens.
“This increased vulnerability is reflected in the high rates of morbidity and mortality reported in young calves following transport, during and after which calves from multiple source farms are mixed and exposed to novel pathogens [22, 25, 26].”
From Effects of age and feeding protocols on the metabolic and physiological condition of unweaned calves during and after long-distance transport (2026) · cites this paper as [22]
The Results (page unavailable) report substantial illness after arrival: 61% of calves developed bovine respiratory disease, and 15.3% developed diarrhea. They report one death among 150 calves, not high mortality. Although the calves arrived in batches from two countries and respiratory pathogens circulated during the study, the paper does not establish that calves from multiple source farms were mixed during transport or exposed to novel pathogens as a result. (LLM, conf=0.86)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredElevated concentration of acute phase proteins has been associated with reduced ADG and in surplus calves, increased haptoglobin upon arrival has been associated with a higher hazard of morbidity in calves at a calf-raising facility.
“Elevated concentration of acute phase proteins has been associated with reduced ADG and in surplus calves, increased haptoglobin upon arrival has been associated with a higher hazard of morbidity in calves at a calf-raising facility (Pardon et al., 2015; Goetz et al., 2021).”
From A randomized controlled trial evaluating the effect of providing a rest period during long-distance transportation of surplus dairy calves: Part II. Effect on hematological variables (2024) · cites this paper as Pardon et al., 2015
Differences in the hematological profile of calves after transport might be related to factors such as age at first transport, handling, pretransport nutrition, transport conditions, type of vehicle, transport duration, and recovery time upon arrival.
“Differences in the hematological profile of calves after transport might be related to different factors, such as age of calves at first transport, handling, pretransport nutrition, transport conditions, type of vehicle, transport duration (Schaefer et al., 1997”
From Effects of pretransport diet, transport duration, and type of vehicle on physiological status of young veal calves. (2020) · cites this paper as Pardon et al., 2015
The Materials and methods (Measurements; page not provided) describe blood sampling at arrival, and the Results discuss serum proteins and disease risk. Searches for hematological changes after transport, vehicle type, transport duration, pretransport nutrition, and recovery time found no passage linking those factors to differences in calves’ hematological profiles. (LLM, conf=0.76)
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“This increased vulnerability is reflected in the high rates of morbidity and mortality reported in young calves following transport, during and after which calves from multiple source farms are mixed and exposed to novel pathogens [22, 25, 26].”
- Authors
- Pardon, B., Alliët, J., Boone, R., Roelandt, S., Valgaeren, B., & Deprez, P.
- Affiliations
- Ghent University (BE)
- Veterinary and Agrochemical Research Centre (BE)
- Corresponding author
- Pardon, Bart
- Venue
- Preventive Veterinary Medicine
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2015-06
- Volume
- 120
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 169-176
- ISSN
- 0167-5877 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC7114331
- OpenAlex
- W2067482003
- Cited by
- 116
- References
- 38
- Citations by year
- 2026: 11 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 14 · 2021: 15 · 2020: 17 · 2019: 13 · 2018: 7 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 2 · 2015: 2
- FWCI
- 12.83
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Preventive Veterinary Medicine (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Ghent University Academic Bibliography (Ghent University) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Veterinary › Small Animals › Animal health and immunology
- Life Sciences › Immunology and Microbiology › Microbiology › Microbial infections and disease research
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Animal Science and Zoology › Animal Virus Infections Studies
- Keywords
- veal calves, bovine respiratory disease, neonatal calf diarrhea, failure of passive transfer, serum immunoglobulins, alpha2-globulin, bovine respiratory syncytial virus, bovine coronavirus, bovine herpesvirus 1, bovine viral diarrhea virus, Mannheimia haemolytica, Mycoplasma bovis, serostatus, average daily gain
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Cattle, Cattle Diseases, Diarrhea, Electrophoresis, Immunoglobulins, Prospective Studies, Respiratory System, Cohort Studies, Virus Physiological Phenomena, Bacterial Physiological Phenomena, Risk Assessment, Bovine Respiratory Disease Complex
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