1. health and fitness
2. disease

Practical KNOWLEDGE
Kelly Perfield, PhD, Elanco Animal Health
Coccidiosis in dairy calves and heifers1,2
What is coccidiosis?
Coccidiosis is an infection of the large and small intestines caused by protozoan parasites.
In the host animal’s intestinal cells, coccidia undergo developmental, reproductive cycles
(see life-cycle diagram on reverse).
How do animals get coccidiosis?
s )NFECTEDANIMALSSHEDINFECTIVEOOCYSTSINFECES
s .ONINFECTEDANIMALSBECOMEINFECTEDBYCONSUMINGOOCYSTSFROMFECALCONTAMINATED
pasture, feed, water, bedding and by grooming contaminated hair coats
s 0ROTOZOANPARASITESMAYREMAINDORMANTFORWEEKSORMONTHSINSOILWATERANDVEGETATION
thriving in a moist, moderate, airy environment
How does coccidiosis affect cattle?
s #OCCIDIOSISCANDECREASEWEIGHTGAIN
s 4HEINFECTIONDESTROYSCELLSLININGTHELOWER')TRACTCAUSINGAREDUCTIONINNUTRIENTABSORPTION
thereby reducing feed efficiency
What are some of the signs?
s $IARRHEAWATERYTOSOMETIMESBLOODY
fecal soiling on the tail
s $EHYDRATIONREDUCEDFEEDINTAKE
WEAKNESSDEPRESSION
How do you diagnose coccidiosis?
s -OSTDIRECTANDEFFECTIVEDIAGNOSISISTHROUGHMICROSCOPIC
examination of feces from suspect animals to determine
presence of coccidia oocysts and quantitative evaluation
of oocysts per gram of feces
s +EYSTOSUCCESSFULDIAGNOSES
)FMORTALITIESOCCURCONDUCTACOMPLETE
postmortem examination
3AMPLEMULTIPLEANIMALSIMMEDIATELYWHEN
diarrhea appears
What animals are at a high risk of
developing coccidiosis?
s #ALVESAFTERWEEKSOFAGEANDUPTOMONTHSARE
most vulnerable
-OSTOUTBREAKSAREPREVALENTINANIMALSYOUNGERTHAN
1 year
s /VERCROWDEDCONlNEDANIMALSFREESTALLBARNSFEEDLOTS
small pastures)
s !NIMALSINhSTRESSFULvSITUATIONSWEANINGPENMOVES
SHIPPINGDIETWEATHERCHANGES
)NFECTIONSAREFREQUENTDURINGMANAGEMENTCHANGESAND
temperature fluctuations
s !NIMALSNOTPROVIDEDWITHANEFFECTIVECOCCIDIOSISCONTROL
program or without an effective ionophore included in
their diet
2EPEATSAMPLING
Economic impact: The cost of coccidiosis worldwide is estimated at $400 million (U.S.)
Cost estimate includes animal death loss to coccidiosis, veterinary expenses and treatment of clinical coccidiosis, but
does not include losses due to subtle impaired growth, impacts on feed efficiency, and effects of subclinical coccidiosis.
(Jolley and Bardsley, 2006)
FDA approval for use of
Rumensin in calves and heifers
s2UMENSINISAPPROVEDFORTHECONTROL
and prevention of coccidiosis
s2UMENSINISAPPROVEDFORINCREASED
rate of weight gain
s2UMENSINMEETSTHE53&OODAND
$RUG!DMINISTRATIONSSTRINGENT
standards for efficacy and safety
s/NAVERAGE2UMENSINPROVIDESA
RETURNONINVESTMENTINCALVES
and heifers
.!$!%LANCO!NIMAL(EALTH
Calf and heifer claim
&ORCONTROLANDPREVENTIONOFCOCCIDIOSIS
and for increased rate of weight gain.
$OSERECOMMENDATIONFORCALVES
!PPROVEDRANGEFORCOCCIDIOSISPREVENTION
ANDCONTROLINCALVESnMG
2UMENSINLBOFBODYWEIGHT
$OSERECOMMENDATIONFORHEIFERS
!PPROVEDRANGEFORCOCCIDIOSISPREVENTION
ANDCONTROLINHEIFERSnMG
2UMENSINLBOFBODYWEIGHT
!PPROVEDRANGEFORINCREASEDRATEOF
WEIGHTGAIN&EEDATARATEOFNOTLESSTHAN
50 nor more than 200 mg per head per
DAYINNOTLESSTHANPOUNDOF4YPE#
medicated feed.
&ORADDITIONALPRODUCTINFORMATIONOR
to report a suspected adverse event
associated with the use of this product,
CALL
Prevention is key
How can producers prevent coccidiosis in their replacement animals?
s ,IMITFECALTOORALTRANSMISSIONOFTHECOCCIDIOSISPARASITETHROUGH
environmental management
-INIMIZEEXPOSUREOFANIMALSTOFECALCONTAMINATEDFEEDWATERANDSOIL
2OUTINELYCLEANMATERNITYPENSFOREARLYPREVENTION
!LLINALLOUTHUTCHMANAGEMENTCLEANRELOCATEHUTCHESBETWEENCALVES
-INIMIZECONTACTBETWEENCALVES
0EOPLEINCONTACTWITHCALVESSHOULDROUTINELYWASHBOOTSCLOTHING
0REVENTOVERGRAZINGOFPASTURES
2AISEWATERTROUGHSABOVETHEGROUND
s )SOLATEANIMALSWITHSEVERECLINICALSIGNSSEVEREDIARRHEADEHYDRATION
s )NCLUDE2UMENSININTHECALFSTARTERTOPREVENTCOCCIDIOSIShBREAKSv
Rumensin provides continuous coccidiosis prevention
through three different stages in the coccidian life cycle3,4
3
Rumensin kills coccidia
emerging into the lumen
of the small intestine
Rumensin kills
coccidia before
they invade the
small intestine
Rumensin kills coccidia emerging
into the lumen of the large intestine
2
Rumensin reduces
the opportunity for
reinfection by reducing
oocyst shedding
1
Options for control and treatment: coccidicidal vs. coccidiostatic
Agents are either coccidicidal (cidal), which means they KILL the parasite, or coccidiostatic (static), which do
not kill the parasites, but arrest their development. With coccidiostatic treatment, the live parasites will still
be present in the calf’s intestines.
Rumensin controls the
Agent
Killing action5,6
Trade name
protozoan population
®
-ONENSIN
cidal
2UMENSIN
by killing the coccidiosis
parasites.
,ASALOCID
cidal
Bovatec®
!MPROLIUM
$ECOQUINATE
cidal
static
Corid®
$ECCOX®
Bovatec®AND$ECCOX®AREREGISTEREDTRADEMARKSOF!LPHARMA#ORID®ISAREGISTEREDTRADEMARKOF-ERIAL
The label contains complete use information, including cautions and warnings. Always read,
understand, and follow the label and use directions. Consumption by unapproved species or
feeding undiluted may be toxic or fatal. Do not feed to veal calves.
(800) 428-4441
www.elanco.us
USDBURUM00047
Information summarized from:
1
$AUGSCHIES!AND-.AJDROWSKI%IMERIOSISINCATTLECURRENTUNDERSTANDINGJ. Vet. Med"
2
*OLLEY72AND+$"ARDSLEY2UMINANTCOCCIDIOSISVet. Clin. Food Anim
-C$OUGALD,2#HEMOTHERAPYOFCOCCIDIOSIS).The Biology of the CoccidiaED0,,ONG5NIVERSITY0ARK
0RESS"ALTIMORE
,ONG0,AND4+*EFFERS3TUDIESONTHESTAGEOFACTIONOFIONOPHOROUSANTIBIOTICSAGAINST%IMERIAJ. Parasitol
5
%RNST*6AND'7"ENZ)NTESTINALCOCCIDIOSISINCATTLEVeterinary Clinic of North America: Food Animal Practice
6
-ERRICKS4ECH"ULLETIN2-#
Elanco, Rumensin and the diagonal bar are trademarks owned or licensed by Eli Lilly and Company, its subsidiaries or
affiliates. Rumensin® is a registered trademark for Elanco’s brand of monensin sodium. © 2012 Elanco Animal Health.