| METAPHYLACTIC TREATMENT FOR "HIGH-RISK" CATTLE
Q. What is "metaphylaxis" or "mass medication"?
A. Metaphylaxis (also called "mass medication") is the pro-active treatment of "high-risk" cattle upon arrival at the feedlot,
pre-conditioner yard or stocker operation. As the name "mass medication" implies, the cattle are treated as a group rather than as individuals,
and all are treated before they show clinical signs of Bovine Respiratory Disease (BRD).
Q. Why has metaphylaxis become so popular?
A. In a little over a decade, metaphylaxis has become the protocol of choice for controlling BRD in feeder and stocker cattle.
It lets you treat groups of cattle for BRD at the same time you handle them to administer vaccines, implants and endectocides. Cattlemen believe
it controls the disease while it is still in the incubation phase, before it clinically manifests itself and reduces performance. It provides
incoming cattle a chance to get back on feed and water before taking on BRD pathogens. This promotes weight gain and a more robust immune
system. It means fewer animals need to be pulled and treated later. This advantage results in: reduced labor requirements involved in diagnosis
and individual handling. reduced hospital pen requirements, reduced subsequent antibiotic costs, and drug residue concerns.
Q. What makes "high-risk" cattle at high risk of developing BRD?
A. Metaphylaxis is usually considered cost effective in the following situations: lightweight cattle of unknown origin;
cattle purchased from a sale barn where they have been commingled with other cattle; cattle that have traveled a long distance (especially
those experiencing more than 3% shrinkage); cattle that have been exposed to stress caused by dehorning, castration, weaning, or unfavorable
weather conditions; cattle where vaccination, deworming, or nutritional history are suspect.
Q. When do high-risk cattle stop being at high risk?
A. Is it Day 2? Day 4? Day 6? You may not find a precise answer, but you do know that initial stress and pathogen exposures
don't stop after just a few days. Treatment for high-risk cattle shouldn't stop then either. Until now, discussions involving metaphylaxis
have been short-sighted because antibiotics approved for metaphylaxis only lasted two to four days. With the approval and introduction of
TETRADURE™ 300 (oxytetracycline) Injection, cattlemen have a metaphylactic antibiotic that protects high-risk cattle against BRD* for 7 to
8 days.
Q. What antibiotics are approved for metaphylaxis?
A. This may surprise you, but there are only three injectable antibiotics approved for this indication. TETRADURE 300 is a cost-effective alternative to the previous options, Micotil® (tilmicosin) and Nuflor® (florfenicol). Using any other
product for metaphylactic treatment of high-risk cattle is an extra-off-label use, and carries the risks and liability inherent with such
use.
Q. What is TETRADURE 300?
A. TETRADURE 300 is a ready-to-use injectable antibiotic indicated for treatment of cattle at high risk of developing BRD
caused by Mannheimia (Pasteurella) haemolytica - the major cause of BRD in high-risk cattle. Its unique 300 mg/mL concentration and
13.6 mg/lb. bodyweight dosage allow TETRADURE 300 to deliver unmatched antimicrobial power and duration of protection from a single treatment.
Q. How is TETRADURE different from Micotil or Nuflor?
A. TETRADURE features a patented, long-acting composition that sets a new standard of protection for metaphylactic treatment
of high-risk cattle. The result is 7 to 8 days of control - much longer than either Micotil or Nuflor. Trials comparing TETRADURE to Micotil
on high-risk steers resulted in no significant or economic difference in re-pull rates, mortality, rate of gain, ADG, or other major measures
of performance.
Q. If this is preventive medicine, how is it different from vaccination?
A. Traditionally, there was a hard line drawn between preventive therapies (usually biological products, such as a vaccine,
a bacterin or a serum) and remedial treatments (usually a pharmaceutical product, such as an antibiotic). But in cases of obvious and serious
risk, certain antibiotics are approved for metaphylactic administration (a particularly serious example was the use of certain antibiotics
for people at high risk of exposure to anthrax). From a mode-of-action perspective, an antibiotic doesn't stimulate an immune response (the
animal doesn't produce antibodies), but it can control the growth of the disease-causing pathogen, and keep it from doing damage until the
animal has adjusted to its new environment and ration, is drinking, eating and gaining weight, and has an immune system that is robust enough
to fight off the pathogen by itself.
Q. Is TETRADURE 300 an effective broad-spectrum antibiotic?
A. When used at a lower dosage rate, TETRADURE is an outstanding first-line treatment for broad-spectrum control of all
major causes of BRD - plus control of footrot, pinkeye and other bacterial infections. In trials comparing TETRADURE to Nuflor on yearlings
with clinical signs of BRD, a single treatment with TETRADURE delivered results similar to a two-treatment protocol with Nuflor, and with
a much greater return on investment.
Click here for more information about TETRADURE 300 or for a TETRADURE product label.
Legals: ®Merial is a registered trademark of Merial.
™TETRADURE is a trademark of Merial.
®Nuflor is a registered trademark of Schering Plough Veterinary Corp.
®Liquamycin and LA-200 are registered trademarks of Pfizer Inc.
®Micotil is a registered trademark of Elanco Animal Health.
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Pierce Lane, Lane Cattle Company, LLC, Lowndesboro, Ala.
