Abstract
Use of antibiotics for white diarrhea was evaluated in neonatal Japanese Black cattle. 89 calves under three-week of age which presented white diarrhea were examined for clinical symptoms, blood chemistry, microbiological profiling and drug sensitibility of isolated microbes. There was no significant correlation between stool conditions at the initial examination, the number of E. coli, antibiotic sensitibility of isolated E. coli, body temperatures and the duration of treatment. The cattle which did not receive vaccines against white diarrhea and which presented atony of the abomasum at the initial examination required significantly longer treatment. Rotavirus was isolated periodically from feces, but its isolation did not show a significant correlation with the duration of treatment. E. coli O157 was not isolated throughout the study period. Drug susceptibility of E. coli isolated from diarrheal stool was slightly variable depending on attending veterinarians and regions. Moreover, there was no difference in the duration of treatment between the groups treated and untreated with antimicrobials. This study showed no positive indication as to whether or not to use antibiotics for treatment of white diarrhea in calves.
