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The Effect of Periparturient Treatment with Fenbendazole on the Milk Production of Cows

Effekten av behandling medfenbendazol etter kalving på melkeproduksjonen

Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica volume 30, pages 247–252 (1989)Cite this article

Abstract

Cows and heifers from 22 herds were used in a trial to determine the effect on milk yield of anthelmintic treatment given at calving. Alternate animals were treated with either fenbendazole suspension or a placebo. Cows given fenbendazole showed a mean reduction in milk yield of 221 kg in the subsequent lactation compared with the placebo-treated cows, a difference which was statistically significant. In heifers no significant effect of the treatment was found on milk yield. When looking at the pooled data from both cows and heifers, the reduction in milk yield of the fenben-dazole-treated animals was 151 kg, which also was statistically significant. The results indicate that anthelmintic treatment of dairy cows cannot be generally recommended in Norway.

Sammendrag

Kyr og første kalvs kviger fra 22 besetninger ble brukt i et forsøk for å bedømme effekten av an-thelmintisk behandling like etter kalving på produksjonen i den påfølgende laktasjonsperiode. Annet hvert dyr fikk behandling enten med fenbendazol eller placebo. Kyr som ble behandlet med fenbendazol hadde en statistisk signifikant nedgang i melkeproduksjonen på 221 kg melk i forhold til placebo-behandlede dyr. For kvigene hadde behandlingen ingen signifikant effekt. For materialet fra kyr og kviger sett under ett var den gjennomsnittlige reduksjonen for de fenbendazol-behandlcde dyra 151 kg, og dette var statistisk signifikant. På grunnlag av disse resultatene kan en generelt ikke anbefale behandling av melkeku her i landet.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by The Agricultural Research Council of Norway (NLVF). We would like to thank Professor O. Syrstad from the Agricultural University, Department of Animal Genetics and Breeding, for his advice both during the planning stage of the project, and in the evaluation of the data. We are also greatly indebted to Dr. K. Liestøl, University of Oslo, Institute of Informatics, whose help was invaluable during the statistical evaluation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Section of Parasitology, Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences, Norwegian College of Veterinary Medicine, P. O. Box 8146, Dep. N-0033 Oslo 1, Oslo, Norway

    Jorun Tharaldsen & Oddvar Helle

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  1. Jorun Tharaldsen
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  2. Oddvar Helle
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Tharaldsen, J., Helle, O. The Effect of Periparturient Treatment with Fenbendazole on the Milk Production of Cows. Acta Vet Scand 30, 247–252 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1186/BF03548028

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/BF03548028

Keywords

  • trichostrongylids
  • cattle
  • anthelmintic

Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica

ISSN: 1751-0147