In my previous column, I addressed the cause, prevention and treatment of bloat in cattle fed on pasture. This month I focus on bloat occurring in cattle on feed.

Learn Why Now Is the Time to Head Them Off!
To their detriment many cattlemen pay little heed to whether their calves are getting an essential dose of health-promoting immunity that is naturally available in their mommas’ first milk—called colostrum. Colostrum is chock full of antibodies, which help the body fight disease, along with vitamins and minerals.

Most of you are probably familiar with bloat in cattle. But you may not know the various causes and treatments for it. Bloat in cattle was first diagnosed about 60 A.D. Originally it was believed to be a bellyful of gas caused by a poison.

My trips to China have given me a new respect for experts who are concerned about foreign contagions, such as foot and mouth disease (FMD), arriving on our shores. These illnesses pose the threat of huge economic loss, not to mention emotional devastation of farmers whose herds must be destroyed and buried to stop the spread.