Introduction: Hardware disease is a common problem found in cattle, but is rarely seen in other ruminants (sheep, goats, etc.). Cattle are prone to ingesting metal objects that can cause problems in the digestive tract, heart and other organs.
Causative Agent: Hardware disease is caused when a cow accidentally ingests a foreign object such as a nail or piece of wire. The metal object will then settle in the reticulum or lower front part of the rumen. Some objects can actually pierce the reticulum and migrate to nearby organs (heart and lungs) causing infection, inflammation, and decreased digestion and organ function. Any type of metal object can cause these problems.
Clinical Signs: Initially, an animal that has hardware disease may arch its back, be reluctant to move, and may grunt when urinating, defecating, or moving. After a couple days, these signs may decrease and the animal may display general signs including diarrhea, weight loss, upper abdominal pain, and anorexia. Lactating and meat producing animals may have decreased production. Once an animal shows these types of general signs it can be difficult to diagnose this problem. Sudden death may occur if the object pierces a critical vessel or the heart.
Diagnosis: Affected cattle will not flex normally over the back when pinched on the withers. They may also act painful when a large bar or board placed under the cow’s sternum is forced upwards putting pressure on the cow’s chest and abdomen. Muffled heartbeats, reduced gut sounds, and rapid breathing may be heard when listening with a stethoscope, and a fever can sometimes be detected with a rectal thermometer. If the animal is examined in the first couple of days after ingestion of a metal object, diagnosis is sometimes easier. In some cases, X-rays can show metallic objects in or near the reticulum. Blood work may be helpful in diagnosing animals after the first few days. The blood work may show an increase in white blood cells and other evidence of infection.
Treatment: In valuable animals, a common treatment can be surgical removal of the objects from the rumen. In other cases, a cow magnet can be force fed to the cow to collect the object(s). Many animals also respond favorably to antibiotics and confinement. Animals that are far along in the disease or have severe inflammation and infection have a poor chance of recovery.
Prevention: Keeping any and all metal objects out of the feeding areas can prevent or eliminate many cases of hardware disease. As a preventative measure, some operations place a magnet in the cow’s rumen to collect any metal objects that are consumed.