Cupric Oxide Needles Research Articles

A preliminary study of copper supplementation in alpacas (Lama paces)

Supplementing three alpacas with Cu as cupric sulphate (10 mg Cu/kg liveweight) as a single oral dose resulted in no change in the mean plasma Cu concentrations over 30 days while a single oral dose of cupric oxide needles (2.5 g) given to three alpacas caused a small but significant increase in the mean plasma Cu concentrations during days 10-30 following treatment. The mean plasma Cu concentrations of four untreated animals ranged from 4.2 to 5.9 micromol/l over the study. The Cu as cupric sulphate was excreted in the faeces within 5 days while the cupric oxide needles significantly elevated the faecal excretion for over 30 days.

Cupric-oxide needles effective as oral copper supplement in cattle

Increasing copper levels in 120 growing beef heifers, ages 6 to 9 months, was attempted with copper injections and with oral administration of cupric-oxide needles. The weaned Hereford heifers were randomly allocated to three groups, including one with no supplementation. Study results indicate that oral administration of copper-wire particles was effective, cheap, safe and convenient in preventing or treating copper deficiency. Such a deficiency can retard growth in cattle.

Cupric oxide needles for grazing cattle consuming low-copper, high-molybdenum forage and high-sulfate water.

Oxidized copper wire, commonly referred to as copper oxide needles (CuON), was evaluated using purebred Hereford cows and their calves. Thirty-seven cows were allocated to Cu treatments of 0, 25 or 50 g CuON (79.9% Cu in CuON) with 12, 12 and 13 cows per treatment, respectively; calves within cow treatments were allocated to treatment of 0 and 20 g CuON. Single oral doses of CuON were given at the start of a grazing trial that lasted 92 d. Cows and calves were weighed and blood samples were taken on d 0, 28, 63 and 92; liver biopsies were taken on d 0, 28 and 92 of the grazing trial. Cattle were consuming grass forage with mean concentrations on d 0, 28, 63 and 92 of the grazing trial ranging from 1.6 to 5.5 mg/kg DM for Cu, 2.5 to 5.5 mg/kg DM for Mo and 1.3 to 1.5 g/kg DM for total S. The water consumed by cattle contained 947 mg sulfate per liter (SE = 13.2, n = 4). Body weight of cows and calves was not influenced (P greater than .05) by CuON. Liver Cu was higher (P less than .01) in treated cows and calves but was not different (P greater than .05) between cows dosed with 25 or 50 g CuON. Treatment of cows and calves with CuON had no influence (P greater than .05) on the concentration of Fe or Mo in liver or plasma, the concentration of Cu and ceruloplasmin activity in plasma, or the concentration of Zn in liver. Plasma Zn did not differ (P greater than .05) in cows, but it was higher (P less than .05) in the calves suckling cows treated with CuON. It was concluded that dosing cows and calves with CuON resulted in a higher Cu content of liver but did not adversely influence the metabolism of Fe or Zn or modify the concentration of Mo in the plasma or liver of cows or calves.

CUPRIC OXIDE NEEDLES FOR GRAZING CATTLE – GROWTH AND METABOLIC INTERRELATIONSHIPS

Cupric oxide needles (CuON) provided as oral doses, 20 g for cows and 4 g for calves, at the start of an 85-d grazing trial had no influence (P > 0.05) upon body weight. At day 85 the concentration of Cu in liver was higher (P < 0.01), while that in blood serum was not influenced (P > 0.05) in cows or calves dosed with CuON. Doses of CuON had no effect (P > 0.05) upon the concentration of Zn in blood serum, nor did they (P > 0.05) modify the accumulation of Fe in liver tissue, of cows or calves. Key words: Cattle, cows, calves, grazing, copper, cupric oxide needles

Susceptibility of North Ronaldsay sheep to copper from cupric oxide needles.

Three housed North Ronaldsay sheep were treated with copper in the form of cupric oxide "needles", two at the manufacturer's recommended dosage rate and the third at twice this level. Sheep of this breed are especially sensitive to high dietary intake of copper. Pre- and post-dosing blood samples were monitored for changes in packed cell volume and changes in content of plasma copper, bilirubin, AST and SDH. Weight changes were also recorded. The animal dosed at twice the recommended level died on day 19 post-dosing of acute copper poisoning. The two dosed at the standard rate remained healthy and put on weight steadily throughout the six months following treatment. Two Welsh Mountain sheep dosed at the standard rate and maintained and examined in the same way likewise showed no signs of copper toxicity.

Cupric oxide needles in the prevention of bovine hypocuprosis.

Cupric oxide needles in the prevention of bovine hypocuprosis.

Studies in the prophylaxis of induced copper deficiency in sheep grazing reseeded hill pastures

ABSTRACTThe paper reports an experiment conducted with 50 Scottish Blackface and 10 South Country Cheviot ewes all suckling twin lambs and grazing, from parturition for some 18 weeks, pasture previously shown to cause a molybdenum-sulphur induced copper deficiency. The objectives were to examine the efficacy of various means of prophylaxis and the susceptibility of the two genotypes to copper deficiency.The treatment of ewes at parturition with copper, either as an injection of 90 mg copper as copper methionate or orally with cupric oxide needles (3·2 g copper), delayed the onset of signs of copper deficiency in their lambs but did not prevent completely the development of hypocupraemia or hypocuprosis.The treatment of lambs with a single injection of 15 mg copper as copper calcium edetate at about 6 or 10 weeks of age was not effective in preventing the development of hypocupraemia. Four injections (1 × 5 mg and 3 × 15 mg) at approximately equal intervals maintained normocupraemic values in lambs, but the most effective treatment, as judged by plasma and liver copper concentrations and by live-weight gain, was the administration of cupric oxide needles (1.6 g copper) to lambs at about 6 weeks of age.The between-genotype comparison indicated that the Cheviot ewes and their lambs were as severely affected by the induced copper deficiency as were the Blackfaces.

Use of cupric oxide needles in the prophylaxis of induced copper deficiency in lambs grazing improved hill pastures.

Cuprix oxide needles as a single oral dose were administered to ewes in the prepartum period, and to one member of each pair of twin lambs at between three and five weeks of age when grazing hill pastures improved by liming and reseeding. Lambs derived from dosed or undosed ewes and treated at three to five weeks of age were maintained in normocupraemia and showed no signs of ill-thrift. Lambs derived from dosed or undosed ewes but not themselves dosed showed hypocupraemia and ill-thrift. The lambs derived from the dosed ewes took longer to become hypocupraemic, but showed only a transient benefit from the ewe treatment. The dosed ewes showed a delay in the onset of hypocupraemia compared with the undosed ewes but there were no definable differences in performance between the two groups.

6.10 Cupric Oxide Needles in Hypocuprosis in Sheep

The work of Dewey (1977), in Australia, showed that the oral administration of cupric oxide wire (CuON), in lengths of between 5-10 mm and a mean diameter of 0.5 mm, at a dosage rate of 10 g in a gelatin capsule to mature sheep, produced a steady increase in liver copper (Cu) concentrations over 16 days to levels over 1000 mg/kg DM above the initial levels. The 'needles' lodged primarily between the abomasal folds and, by 64 days, were no longer detectable. In grazing conditions, a dose of 20 g was administered to sheep. At neither dosage level were deleterious effects noted. Suttle (1981) administered 0.5 g CuON to hypocupraemic ewes maintained on a Cu-deficient diet and alleviated hypocupraemia for 111 days when the diet was supplemented with molybdenum (Mo) and sulphur (S), and 301 days when the diet was not so supplemented.

Cupric oxide needles in the prevention of swayback

Cupric oxide needles in the prevention of swayback

Effectiveness of orally administered cupric oxide needles in alleviating hypocupraemia in sheep and cattle.

The oral administration of a small dose of cupric oxide "needles" (CuOn), providing 0.5 g copper, to hypocupraemic ewes maintained on a copper-deficient diet alleviated hypocupraemia for 111 days when the diet was supplemented with molybdenum and sulphate and for 301 days when the diet was not supplemented. The same amount of copper given as cupric sulphate was approximately half as effective. The administration of a large dose of CuOn, providing 40 g copper, to hypocupraemic steers and heifers alleviated hypocupraemia for not less than 41 days, at which time a substantial reserve of copper (428 mg) remained in the liver. The absorbability of copper in CuOn was estimated to be 8.3 per cent and 3.8 per cent (depending on diet) for sheep. It was calculated that enough absorbable copper could be provided in a single dose to meet the net copper requirements of ewes for several years. This new form of copper therapy demands a totally different approach from that associated with parenteral copper usage.