Membership of the WeCAHN expert beef network includes beef cow-calf veterinary practitioners, laboratory diagnosticians, veterinary college researchers, provincial ministry staff including veterinary epidemiologists, and representatives from the Canadian Cow-Calf Surveillance Health Enhancement and Productivity Network and the Canadian Integrated Program for Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance (CIPARS) feedlot program.
Latest additions to WeCAHN beef network reports
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Fall 2024: Beef Health Topics
Calving season and pregnancy testing benchmarking, vaccination, treatment using remote delivery devices, and culling decisions:
The Canadian Cow-Calf Surveillance Network – productivity and health summary 2018 to 2022 LINK
Remote Delivery Devices to Administer Animal Health Products LINK
Beef Cow-calf Vaccine Project LINK
Johne’s Disease Risk Factors LINK
Johne’s Disease in Beef Cattle: Overview LINK
1. 2nd May 2024: Updates on H5N1 beef safety studies: "USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is announcing results from its testing of retail ground beef. FSIS collected 30 samples of ground beef from retail outlets in the states with dairy cattle herds that had tested positive for the H5N1 influenza virus at the time of sample collection. The samples were sent to APHIS’ National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) for PCR testing. On May 1, NVSL reported that all samples tested negative for H5N1. These results reaffirm that the meat supply is safe." LINK
2. Beef Cattle Vaccine Project: An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. A team of western experts including beef veterinarians and producers drafted guidelines for vaccine use in western Canadian beef cow-calf herds, and created user-friendly information including podcasts, webinars, videos, infographics, and factsheets. LINK
What's new in the information library
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Foreign Animal Disease Preparedness and Prevention for Cattle
Dr. Karin Orsel, a professor in epidemiology and infectious diseases from the University of Calgary, has some up close and personal experience with the impacts of bovine infectious diseases of cattle that currently don’t exist in Canada.
These foreign animal diseases, such as foot and mouth disease, are kept out of Canada only by the strength of our farm biosecurity and through the ongoing monitoring and reporting of any of signs of concern to veterinarians for further investigation. Her experiences highlight the importance of vigilance and traceability in the cattle sector to ensure the health of our cattle and the security of our food systems.
Update: Beef cow-calf vaccine project overview
Dr. Joyce Van Donkersgoed, a beef veterinarian and epidemiologist, shares recent results from producer and veterinarian surveys regarding beef cattle vaccination. She also provides a number of beef health vaccination planning resources and decision-making tools developed by a research team of cattle experts to support the valid veterinary-client-patient relationship.
Zoonotic diseases of cattle
Dr. Sylvia Checkley, veterinarian, epidemiologist and associate professor in ecosystem and public health at the University of Calgary, discusses the diseases of cattle that can be transmitted to people (zoonotic diseases). These should be on the radar for anyone working regularly with cattle or calves - producers and veterinarians alike.
Hepatic necrosis in beef calves Spring 2022
In the spring of 2022, roughly 2 dozen cases of severe hepatic necrosis were identified in neonatal beef calves were identified by the Diagnostic Services Unit at the University of Calgary Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, and Prairie Diagnostic Services. A short summary of the investigations to date follows.
Severe Foot Lameness in Weaned Calves, Winter 2023
In early 2023 two lots of weaned calves (one over-wintered bulls, one assembled feeder steers) were identified experiencing severe foot lameness, with common features of coronary band vasculitis and hoof wall separation. A short summary of the investigation to date follows:
Latest additions to WeCAHN beef surveillance projects and programs library
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Emerging issues
Information on emerging beef health problems including antimicrobial resistance, emerging diseases, and zoonoses
Infographics and summaries
Short summaries of beef health and surveillance topics
What do other people do: International beef surveillance, research, and foreign animal diseases
Foreign diseases in cattle, international cattle surveillance, and research