Using Body Surface Temperature Sensors to Detect a Fever and Its Relationship with the Infection Dynamics of Pathogens Related to Brdc during the Introduction of Calves at a Deposit Ranch

Abstract

In this study, we used body surface temperature sensors (BSTS) to detect fevers in calves to demonstrate the effectiveness of BSTS at the farm level. BSTS were attached to the ventral tails of forty calves when the group was introduced to a deposit ranch in Tochigi prefecture. It was revealed that fevers were caused by the onset of bovine respiratory disease complex (BRDC) in winter and we tried to reveal the relationship between the detection of their fever and microbial infection. At this deposit ranch, it was observed that the number of calves with fevers peaked twice, 4 to 5 days and 13 to 15 days after introduction. The first fever was considered to be due to bovine coronavirus infection, and the second fever was considered to be due to a secondary bacterial infection associated with inflammation. These results show that fevers can be detected by the BSTS. The BSTS revealed the clinical status of BRDC, that a viral fever preceded the fever caused by bacterial infection.