Studies on rumen magnet usage to prevent hardware disease in buffaloes

Abstract

Buffaloes are an important part of livestock agriculture in Asia since 5000 years, producing milk, meat, hides and draft power [1]. Foreign body syndrome of bovine is still a matter of concern in different veterinary practices all over the world [2-4]. Hardware disease is an alternative term for bovine traumatic reticuloperitonitis and sharp foreign body syndrome. It is usually caused by the ingestion of a sharp object. These foreign objects settle in the reticulum, and can irritate or penetrate the reticular wall causing several complications [5]. Various serious complications originate from hardware disease such as traumatic reticulitis, traumatic reticuloperitonitis (local and diffuse), traumatic pericarditis, reticular abscess, diaphragmatic hernia, hepatic abscess, vagal indigestion, splenic abscess, rupture of left gastro-epiploic artery, pleurisy, traumatic pneumonia and mediastinal abscess [6]. The ingestion and lodgment of foreign bodies is common in bovine due to indiscriminate feeding habits. In addition, industrialization and mechanization of agriculture have further increased the incidence of foreign bodies in the foods of these animals [7]. The incidence of this disease is high in all developing countries especially in Iraq and Egypt, resulting in devastating economic losses. The disease was recorded in 25% of the examined buffaloes in Egypt [2] and in 87% of dairy buffaloes and 93% of buffaloes over 2 years of age in India [8]. This disease is of high economic importance and serious due to severe reduction in milk and meat production, treatment costs, potential fatalities and fetal losses in affected pregnant animals [3, 9, 10]. In addition, this condition may prove lethal for two reasons. First, the bacteria and protozoa can contaminate the body cavity resulting in peritonitis and second, the heart and diaphragm may be punctured causing cardiac failure [11]. Oral administration of a magnet before the age of one year is recommended as a preventive method for this disease [12-14]. After oral administration, most magnets drop firstly into the rumen then move to the desired location in the reticulum following ruminoreticular contractions [14]. In addition, keeping the animals away from construction sites and passing metal detectors or magnets over the animals feed were also recommended as preventive measures of this disease in bovine [5]. Although using of reticular magnets has become a popular preventive routine for hardware disease, especially in the dairy breeds of cattle and buffaloes, there is no report concerning its efficacy as a long term preventive measure of hardware disease in buffaloes. Veterinary World, EISSN: 2231-0916 Available at www.veterinaryworld.org/Vol.7/June-2014/9.pdf