What groups of cattle are most at risk?
• Generally, the younger the animal, the more susceptible to infection they are. It is possible for a calf as young as 17 days of age to show signs of infection. Older cattle that are under stress, malnourished and/or exposed to high levels of the infective form of the organism can exhibit clinical signs of disease. What are the clinical signs of coccidiosis? • Severe cases are generally of an acute nature. These can be recognized by a sudden reduction in feed intake, depression, weight loss, bloody diarrhea and may result in death. Only 5% of cases are acute. It is important to note that not every acute case will exhibit blood in the manure. Mortality in severe cases ranges from 5-20%. • Mild, subclinical cases may exhibit poor appetite, reduced daily gains, increased incidence of secondary respiratory diseases and a decrease in response to therapy with or without any abnormal change in manure. How does infection and resistance occur? • Coccidia are normal, low level inhabitants of th
