Read About Livestock Loss of Appetite

Livestock loss of appetite can have many causes. In most cases, this is an indication that something could be seriously wrong with your animals. Never treat livestock loss of appetite lightly; it could be your first warning about a potentially serious problem with your stock.

One reasonImage for livestock loss of appetite could be the presence of bacterial or viral infections. Parasitic infestation can be another cause of livestock loss of appetite. In each of these cases, the results on a herd of livestock can be devastating. Many bacterial and viral infections are highly contagious and can be quickly spread through the herd. Identifying them early and treating them quickly are of paramount importance in keeping your livestock healthy. Because there can be a wide range of viral and bacterial infections that may be present or parasites that could be infesting your livestock, contact your veterinarian to help you identify whether these are these causes of livestock loss of appetite in your herd.

Another cause of livestock loss of appetite could be exposure to toxic substances. These can include living matter or environmental causes. Toxic substances can include plants that naturally occur in pastures but can be harmful or fatal if ingested by some livestock. Examples of this are bitterweed consumed by cattle or chinaberry eaten by hogs. Environmental causes of toxic substances can include lead poisoning. Peeling layers of lead paint or old farm equipment can introduce lead into the environment. Lead can have a sweet taste to some animals, especially cattle. Lead shot or lead sinkers from anglers can be swallowed by water fowl, also leading to lead poisoning. In the case of lead poisoning, there may be slow and chronic poisoning taking place before itImage manifests itself in livestock loss of appetite.

Certain mineral deficiences in the diet, most notably cobalt, can also cause livestock loss of appetite. Cobalt is found in vitamin B12, and livestock with low levels frequently display significant loss of appetite. When cobalt is introduced into the diets of these animals, normal appetite resumes quickly, usually within about one week.

Livestock loss of appetite should be a cause for concern, since it is often a symptom of a larger underlying issue. Identifying and correcting that issue can be critical to the welfare of your livestock, especially in cases in which infectious diseases are involved. If you notice livestock loss of appetite, contact your veterinarian to discuss the appropriate course of action to identify the cause and maintain your healthy herd.