The Effect of Probiotics on Colostrum and Clinical Condition of the Newborn Calves in the Treatment of Mastitis in Cows
The author studied the effect of “Difumast” and “Vetom-3” on the biochemical composition of colostrum and as a consequence on the body of newborn calves. The experiments were performed in LLC NPKF “Agrotech- Garant Berezovsky” on 4 groups of red-and-white cows with subclinical mastitis in dry period (2 experimental groups and 2 control groups). The cows of the first group was treated with “Difumast” according to the instructions. The cows of the second group were treated with “Vetom-3” once. The third group consisted of the cows with healthy udder. The fourth group was formed of the cows with subclinical mastitis. Post-calving colostrum was studied at the moment of the first milk yield and on the fifth day of lactation. Healthy animals and cows with subclinical mastitis without treatment served as the basis for comparison. The clinical status of newborn calves was controlled during a week. It was found that the incidence of dyspepsia in the group of calves fed with colostrum from sucker cows with subclinical mastitis was 3.8 times higher than in the control group of calves fed with colostrum from sucker cows with healthy udders. The incidence of dyspepsia in calves fed with colostrum from sucker cows which underwent the course of treatment with “Difumast” and “Vetom-3” in the dry period decreased 1.9 times and 2.7 times, respectively. This was reflected in the number of cases of dyspepsia in newborn calves. Colostrum was researched for immunoglobulins, serum proteins, lactose and lysozyme activity. It was discovered that the concentration of serum albumin and immune globulin in milk of the first milk yield from the diseased cows was 1.49 and 11.2 g/l higher, and the concentration of lactose was 15.8 g/l lower in comparison with milk from the healthy cows. There were not significant intergroup differences in the content of total protein, serum proteins. The level of total protein and serum albumin were 26.15 and 0.6 g/l higher and the content of lactose was 19.5 g/l lower in the colostrum of the diseased cows on the fifth day of lactation. The lysozyme activity of colostrum of the first milk yield from the healthy cows was at 49.61 %, that from the mastitic cows was 11.45 % lower, that from the cows treated with “Difumast” was reduced by 15 % and that from cows treated with “Vetom-3” was at the level of 52.45 %.