Observations of oxytetracycline treatment effects in a contagious bovine pleuropneumonia naturally infected herd in Zambia

An observational study on the effects of oxytetracycline treatment on contagious bovine pleuropneumonia in a naturally infected herd of 500 cattle was conducted. A total of 68 cattle that showed pneumonia-like clinical signs were treated. Treatment was effected the moment an animal showed signs of illness. A total of 429 cattle were slaughtered after diagnosis of contagious bovine pleuropneumonia and at slaughter, 40.8% (175) had lesions compared to 59.2% (254) that did not have lesions. Out of the total cattle that were treated with oxytetracycline, 57.4% (39) died from contagious bovine pleuropneumonia over a period of 9 weeks while 42.6% (29) survived. Of the treatment group that survived, 37.9% (11) had fibrous lesions indicative of healing, while 62.1% (18) had pathological lesions consistent of active contagious bovine pleuropneumonia (CBPP). Categorisation of carcases with pathological lesions within the treatment group showed 66.7% (12) and 33.3% (6) of acute and chronic lesions, respectively. The CBPP causative agent was isolated through culture and confirmed using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The results obtained suggest that oxytetracycline did not stop the spread or death of cattle in this particular herd with the treatment of a proportion of the herd. However, large scale field trials are needed in order to validate these findings. It is therefore recommended that any antibiotic that will be developed and advocated for use in the treatment of contagious bovine pleuropneumonia should be effective to contain spread within the herd by treating only a proportion showing signs of the disease. Key words: Contagious bovine pleuropneumonia, antibiotics, lung, lesions, oxytetracyline, treatmen, Zambia.