Milk fever

Milk fever, also milk fever or calving fever, is a disease in mammals that may occur around the time of parturition in ewes and by a reduced calcium content of the blood serum ( hypocalcemia ) is caused. It thus differs fundamentally from those occurring in humans at the time of Milcheinschießens on the 3rd or 4th day of the puerperium so-called milk fever, which is caused by a blocked duct.

Importance

This disease has a special meaning in cattle, sheep and subordinate in dogs.

In today's agriculture it is one of the most common diseases of dairy farming dar. Due to the ever -rising milk yield of Einzelkuh the proportion of cattle increases with " milk fever " rapidly. As a rule of thumb may apply, the higher / greater milk production, the greater the likelihood of calcium deficiency.

Etiology

During gestation or pregnancy, the body has a "normal" requirements of calcium. The necessary amount is absorbed from the diet or the food. During lactation, a considerable amount of calcium is removed with the milk. Also to this, the body can adjust this by a greater proportion of calcium is absorbed from food. The recording is controlled hormonally via the parathyroid hormone and is closely related to the phosphate metabolism. The birth of the fruit represents a transition between the two metabolic states is the problem that the uptake of calcium from the diet is not yet adapted to the levy in the milk. This leads to a sudden drop of the calcium level in the blood ( free calcium).

Clinical symptoms

In the body, calcium has several functions. One of them is present in the nervous system and in muscle cells: calcium is necessary in order to impart the action potentials in the contractions of the muscle. Too little calcium can therefore be no longer contract the muscles. In animals which ultimately leads to the fact that the animals are fixed, ie they are no longer to move to get up. For prolonged calcium deficiency leads inevitably to a cardiac arrest (the heart consists mostly of muscle) and thus the death of the animal.

Basically, the symptoms and the course in cattle and dogs is different.

• Cattle: A typical time of occurrence is then immediately after birth to about 2 days. Beginning with a staggering gait, stumbling and Weggrätschen the rear extremities occurs progressively get up for failure ( recumbency ). The classic shape of the solid recumbent chest position with the head to the chest wall is being replaced by a variety of location variations with wildly beating head, which is often an indication of a co-existing phosphate deficiency. The animals have initially an increased heart rate (tachycardia) and in contrast to the description of disease on milk fever, a drop in body temperature (hypothermia ). Often the general condition or consciousness is disturbed to complete apathy ( apathy ). With the progress of time, the muscle contractions and thus also heart rate and body temperature drop from extreme and result in about 75 % of the animals without treatment within hours of death.
• Dogs: especially females are predominantly affected small to medium sized breeds. The disorder manifests itself in contrast to the beef often until 1-2 weeks after birth. Beginning with a slight muscle tremors, anxiety and increasingly stiff gait may progressively lead to convulsions, which then also lead to recumbency. In contrast to the cow 's body temperature often rises to over 40 ° C, and the mind is not disturbed. Some of the chewing muscles are paralyzed and the animals salivate heavily. In serious, unrecognized cases it may also lead to a demineralization of the bones and an overactive adrenal gland.

Prevention

To prevent the disease, various methods are used in the production of milk used. In recent years, attempts have been made by about 10 days before the expected date of performed vitamin D3 injections to increase the calcium level of the animal and prevent a slide in the deficiency state, but there is here a narrow time window. Another approach is to treat the animal during a prolonged prenatal period low calcium feed or food supplement that bind the calcium and make unusable for the digestive system to activate the body's calcium mobilization mechanisms. This so-called Transit feeding seems to prove themselves (over at least three weeks various levels) with precise application. It has furthermore been proven oral input of calcium preparations immediately after birth at risk animals ( = cows with high milk yield ). It is also trying to reduce the amount of potassium in the dry cow ration, since potassium has the greatest influence on the acid -base balance of the animal.

Treatment

The cause of the disease was first discovered in the thirties and forties of the 20th century. Until then, the therapy in the insufflation ( blowing ) of air was in the udder of the animal concerned. The success of the method was due to the increased pressure in the udder, as this less milk was formed and thus reduced the calcium loss.

The current established therapy consists in filling in the calcium level of the blood by means of strong infusions of calcium containing solutions. Depending on the clinical picture and phosphorus is supplied.