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Background This study aimed to evaluate whether different methods of providing eubiotic feed additives to neonatal calves, during the preweaning period, can improve the calves’ health, performance, ruminal fermentation, and metabolic status. Forty-four (3-day-old) Holstein–Friesian dairy calves (22 female and 22 male) were divided into four treatment groups for the duration of the 8-week trial. The eubiotic feed additive consisted of a combination of probiotic Lactobacillus spp. (multiple-strains at a dose of 250 mg/calf/day) and phytobiotics containing rosmarinic acid, as the main bioactive compound (at a dose of 50 mg/calf/day). The groups were named: CON (control, without eubiotic in either the milk replacer or the starter feed), MR (eubiotic in the milk replacer), SF (eubiotic in the starter feed), MRS (eubiotic in both the milk replacer and the starter feed). The individual intake of starter feed and the fecal scores were measured daily, and body weight and biometric measurements were taken weekly until calves were 56 days of age. Blood samples were collected on day 3 and then every 14 days to determine concentrations of insulin-like-growth-factor-I, β-hydroxybutyrate, non-esterified fatty acids, and blood urea nitrogen. Ruminal fluid was collected on days 28 and 56 for short-chain fatty acids, NH3-N, and pH measurements. Results The body weight of the calves of the MR treatment group was higher compared to all other groups on days 28 and 56. Including the eubiotic feed additive in the milk replacer increased average daily gain, starter intake, and total dry matter intake from day 29 to day 56 and the overall experimental period compared to the CON group. The calves with MR treatment had lower fecal scores from days 3 to 28, a number of parasite oocysts/cysts per gram of feces on day 28, and the occurrences of fecal consistency scores of 3 (mild diarrhea) and 4 (severe diarrhea) were 3.2 and 3.0 times lower, respectively, compared with the CON group. The MR group had higher ruminal concentrations of short-chain-fatty-acids, propionate, and butyrate on day 56 than the CON group. Adding eubiotics into milk replacer resulted in the highest concentrations of blood insulin-like-growth-factor-I and β-hydroxybutyrate from days 29 to 56 and the overall experimental period. Conclusion The addition of eubiotic feed additives into the milk replacer can improve health, performance, ruminal fermentation, and biochemical blood indices in dairy calves during the preweaning period.

Simple Summary Inflammation of the mammary gland (mastitis) is an important disease of dairy sheep. Mastitis management depends mainly on the diagnosis. Conventional diagnostic methods including somatic cell count, California Mastitis Test, and microbial culture have limitations. Therefore researchers are looking for new diagnostic biomarkers of mastitis including specific proteins produced by the liver in case of disease (acute phase proteins), unique genetic sequences (miRNAs), or antimicrobial peptides produced by immune cells during inflammation (cathelicidines). Abstract This review aims to characterize promising novel markers of ovine mastitis. Mastitis is considered as one of the primary factors for premature culling in dairy sheep and has noticeable financial, productional, and animal welfare-related implications. Furthermore, clinical, and subclinical mammary infections negatively affect milk yield and alter the milk composition, thereby leading to lowered quality of dairy products. It is, therefore, crucial to control and prevent mastitis through proper diagnosis, treatment or culling, and appropriate udder health management particularly at the end of the lactation period. The clinical form of mastitis is characterized by abnormalities in milk and mammary gland tissue alteration or systemic symptoms consequently causing minor diagnostic difficulties. However, to identify ewes with subclinical mastitis, laboratory diagnostics is crucial. Mastitis control is primarily dependent on determining somatic cell count (SCC) and the California Mastitis Test (CMT), which aim to detect the quantity of cells in the milk sample. The other useful diagnostic tool is microbial culture, which complements SCC and CMT. However, all mentioned diagnostic methods have their limitations and therefore novel biomarkers of ovine subclinical mastitis are highly desired. These sensitive indicators include acute-phase proteins, miRNA, and cathelicidins measurements, which could be determined in ovine serum and/or milk and in the future may become useful in early mastitis diagnostics as well as a preventive tool. This may contribute to increased detection of ovine mammary gland inflammation in sheep, especially in subclinical form, and consequently improves milk quality and quantity.

Due to increasing bacterial antibiotic resistance and the consumers’ tendency to choose organic products, cattle farmers are interested in alternative methods of calf diarrhoea treatment. This is a major challenge for veterinarians. Few methods of non-antibiotic treatment that bring satisfactory results have been reported in the related literature so far. In this article, the authors compare different non-antibiotic methods of diarrhoea prevention and treatment in calves. Among the alternatives discussed are herbs, probiotics, prebiotics and synbiotics, lactoferrin, and bacteriophages. It was found that the best results could be achieved through the use of pro-, pre- and synbiotics. However, the authors would like to point out that with the expansion of knowledge about the practical use of broad-scale bacteriophages, they could be the best alternative to antibiotics.

Simple Summary Inflammation of the mammary gland (mastitis) is an important disease in dairy cows. Among factors affecting the incidence of mastitis, mineral deficiencies are mentioned, since they strongly influence the immune system. Consequently, these deficiencies result in weakened immunity, which increases the risk of any infectious disease. The reviewed minerals (calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, selenium, copper and zinc) interact differently with the immune system; nevertheless, their deficiencies invariably increase the risk of mastitis occurrence in dairy cows. Abstract The aim of this paper is to describe the association between selected dietary minerals and mastitis in dairy cows. Minerals are a group of nutrients with a proven effect on production and reproductive performance. They also strongly affect immune system function. In particular their deficiencies may result in immunosuppression, which is a predisposing factor for udder inflammation occurrence. The role of selected dietary minerals (including calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, selenium, copper and zinc) has been reviewed. Generally, minerals form structural parts of the body; as cofactors of various enzymes they are involved in nerve signaling, muscle contraction and proper keratosis. Their deficiencies lead to reduced activity of immune cells or malfunction of teat innate defense mechanisms, which in turn promote the development of mastitis. Special attention was also paid to minerals applied as nanoparticles, which in the future may turn out to be an effective tool against animal diseases, including mastitis. To conclude, minerals are an important group of nutrients, which should be taken into account on dairy farms when aiming to achieve high udder health status.

This research paper addresses the hypothesis that the incidence of various bovine mastitis pathogens is subject to change over time and across regions. The aim of the research was to determine the pathogen species that are currently the etiological agents of mastitis in Polish dairy herds. This comprehensive study was conducted in the period 2009-2017 and included all the Polish provinces, distinguishing between those with high and low numbers of dairy cattle. Over eight years 38,852 quarter milk samples were obtained from 22,587 cows with clinical and subclinical mastitis from herds located in all 16 provinces in Poland. Milk samples were cultured using standard microbiological methods. Most of them were positive for microorganisms but there was also part of bacteriologically negative and contaminated samples. Gram-positive catalase-negative cocci and staphylococci were the most prevalent pathogens. The growth of other microorganisms such as Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacilli, yeasts and algae was observed at lower frequencies. There were differences in the prevalence of microorganisms depending on the region. In the eastern part of the country a higher number of Streptococcus agalactiae infections than in other regions was observed. This paper provides the latest data on microbial species, frequency of their occurrence and regional location within Poland. The knowledge of mastitis pathogens enables appropriate treatment and to make prevention recommendations for the herds.