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Trace element analyses were performed on 144 livers from perinatal calves submitted to the Veterinary Science Laboratory, North Platte, NE. All calves originated from herds in west-central Nebraska and ranged in age from 8 months of gestation up to 6-week-old neonates. Calves were divided into 5 categories based on objectives gross examination and ocular fluid evaluation: abomasal ulcers, abomasal tympany, diarrhea, stillborn and excessive nitrate exposure. Excessive zinc concentrations were found in 4 of the 5 categories. Only in the abomasal ulcer category could a correlation be found; this category routinely was found to have deficient to low normal liver copper concentrations and highest liver molybdenum concentrations. Both excesses and deficiencies of selenium and iron occurred in all categories.

The Nebraska Veterinary Medical Association provided financial assistance to establish an antidote depot system statewide at the 3 University of Nebraska veterinary diagnostic laboratories located in Lincoln, North Platte, and Mitchell. The depot system currently stocks atropine sulfate, methylene blue, activated charcoal, dimercaprol, and EDTA. Antidotes are available to all Nebraska veterinarians. Depot withdrawals are used for emergency treatment only and not for a convenient source of supply to replenish individual inventory. The depot system was designed to assist veterinary practitioners in treating toxicoses during catastrophic occurrences in which available inventories have been exhausted. Since time is of essence in most toxicoses, withdrawals from depot sites normally are made by veterinarians or their authorized representatives. There are no fees for using the depot system, but patrons are required to replace drugs at the specific storage site on an item-for-item basis, in like amount, and at current unit cost. Items are issued and replaced only as intact units.