What specific drug works well for treating bovine piroplasmosis?

July and August are the peak period for bovine piroplasmosis. Once cattle are infected with the disease, it causes very serious effects, and death and other such outcomes may even occur, so prevention and control work for bovine piroplasmosis must be done well. What are the specific drugs for bovine piroplasmosis?

1. Specific drugs for bovine piroplasmosis

1. Berenil, use 3.5-3.8 mg per kg of body weight, prepare as a 5%—7% solution for deep intramuscular injection. For mild cases, 1 time is enough; if necessary, once daily for 2—3 consecutive injections. Water buffalo are relatively sensitive to this drug; generally 1 treatment is relatively safe, and continuous use can easily cause toxic reactions or even death; yellow cattle occasionally show side effects such as restlessness and muscle tremors, which can disappear quickly.

2. Acriflavine, 3—4 mg per kg of body weight, prepare as a 0.5%—1% solution for intravenous injection. If symptoms have not eased, inject again after 24 hours. Sick cattle must avoid intense sunlight for several days after treatment. During injection, never allow the medicinal solution to leak outside the blood vessel.

3. Acaprin, use 0.6—1 mg per kg of body weight, prepare as a 5% solution for subcutaneous injection. Sometimes several minutes after injection, side effects such as restlessness, muscle tremors, drooling, sweating, and difficulty breathing appear (pregnant cattle may abort), and they generally disappear on their own after 1—4 hours. If they do not disappear, atropine can be injected subcutaneously at 10 mg per kg of body weight, which can quickly relieve the side effects.

4. Imidocarb, 2 mg per kg of body weight, prepare as a 10% solution, and inject intramuscularly in 2 divided doses.

5. While choosing the above drugs for treatment, symptomatic therapy should also be used to achieve better results, such as using vitamin B12 to treat anemia; for a medium-sized cow, inject 1—1.5 mL subcutaneously at one time (80—120 mg). If conditions permit, blood transfusion therapy can be used for better results.

2. Symptoms of bovine piroplasmosis

The incubation period is 9-15 days. The disease occurs suddenly, with body temperature rising above 40 degrees C, showing continuous fever. Sick cattle have reduced or lost appetite, and rumination stops. Visible mucous membranes become yellow, with pinpoint hemorrhages, diarrhea or constipation, and urine is red or even soy-sauce colored.

Adult cattle mostly have an acute course. At the beginning of the disease, body temperature can reach as high as 40-42 degrees C, showing continuous fever, reduced appetite, stopped rumination, accelerated breathing, muscle tremors, depressed spirit, and a sharp drop in milk production. Generally within 3-4 days after onset, hemoglobinuria appears, and urine color ranges from light red to deep red, with increased protein content in the urine. Anemia gradually worsens, sick cattle develop jaundice and edema, constipation and diarrhea alternate, feces contain mucus and blood, and pregnant animals often abort.

Bovine piroplasmosis is a seasonal blood protozoan disease that is highly harmful to dairy cows and has a high mortality rate. Special attention must be paid to prevention and control work.