F156
Diarrhea in Lambs and Kids

Introduction: Diarrhea (scours) is one of the most common causes of death in a newborn animal. The main reason a lamb/kid dies from diarrhea is because of tremendous fluid/electrolyte loss and subsequent dehydration and acidosis. In general, if proper hydration can be maintained, the lamb/kid is likely to survive. Many of the causes of diarrhea are infectious in nature. Others are because of improper nutrition management. This includes feeding milk replacers that are not mixed properly, switching feed abruptly, or feeding too much milk. The rest of this material will focus on the infectious causes of diarrhea.

Infectious Causative Agents:

Type Organism     Age when diarrhea first appears 
Viruses  Rotavirus    2-14 days
 Coronavirus    < 1 month
 Caprine Herpesvirus    < 1 month
 Pestes des petits ruminants    > 1 month
 Rinderpest    > 1 month
Bacteria  E. coli    < 10 days
 Salmonella spp.    Anytime
 Clostridium perfringens    Anytime
 Yersinia spp.    > 1 month
Protozoa  Cryptosporidium    5-10 days
 Eimeria spp.    1-4 months
 Giardia    < 1 month
Nematodes 
 (internal worms)  		  Trichostrongylus spp.    > 1 month
 Ostertagia spp.    > 1 month
 Cooperia spp.    > 1 month
 Nematodirus spp.    > 1 month
 Strongyloides papillosus    > 1 month

* It is not uncommon to have involvement with more than one of the above agents in a case of diarrhea.

Many Diarrhea Outbreaks are Related to the Following:
  1. Contaminated lambing/kidding conditions.
    1. It is always best to allow ewes/does to give birth in clean, large pastures designated specifically for this purpose.
    2. If possible, take mother and young to a second pasture after giving birth.
    3. The worst conditions are small, wet, and dirty areas or corrals.
  2. Poor nutrition for mothers prior to giving birth.
    1. A mother that is thin and on an inadequate protein and energy feed will have poor quality colostrum, weaker newborns with poor immunity, and a lower conception rate after giving birth.

Disease Transmission: Almost all of the infectious organisms are shed in the feces. Fecal contaminated hands, milk bottles, buckets, coveralls, foodstuffs, pens, and the environment are just a few of the many sources for infection. Once a lamb/kid has come in contact with a source of infection, the organism is usually directly ingested. The one exception to this rule often occurs with enterotoxemia where overgrowth of normal gut bacteria seems to be the problem (see page F203).

Diagnosis: All of the organisms listed previously can be identified by utilizing culture and sensitivity, fecal flotation, serology, or histopathology from tissue samples. For many of these procedures, a fresh sample of the diarrhea should be taken to a veterinarian as soon as problems arise. See pages D135 and D228 for information on collecting and handling fecal samples. Other tests require samples taken at necropsy. Contact a veterinarian for details on what samples he/she would like collected when a particular disease is suspected.

Treatment: The most essential aspect of treating diarrhea is maintaining proper hydration of the newborn. To do this, refer to page F145 and utilize the information contained in the table and example. In addition to the information found on page F145, the following information is crucial:

  1. Never mix water or electrolytes with milk. This may inhibit curd formation in the rumen. It is best to feed electrolytes at least 30 minutes before or after feeding milk.
  2. When administering antibiotics, give the products intravenously (IV), intramuscularly (IM), or subcutaneously (SQ). Studies indicate that administering antibiotics orally (per os - PO) may damage the normal flora (bacteria) in the rumen and actually prolong the diarrhea. Antibiotic selection should be based on culture and sensitivity. Refer to page D135 for additional details on cultures and sensitivity. Some of the Eimeria organisms respond well to sulfa containing products such as Albon. The nematode parasites can be treated with drenches and injectable products like Ivomec.
  3. Administer a product to re-establish the normal gut flora. Products such as Probios seem to be very effective.

Prevention: Diarrhea can be controlled using different management practices such as proper colostrum management, good hygiene, sterilization of equipment, proper housing, vaccination, de-worming, and preventing stressful situations. Once each of these areas have been addressed, most diarrhea problems can be kept to a minimum. One key to preventing an outbreak of infectious diarrhea is to immediately isolate the lamb or kid that has diarrhea. Another key is to house lambs/kids of similar age groups together, but away from other groups. Both of these management efforts will greatly reduce the chance of spreading infectious causes of diarrhea from animal to animal.

* Before initiating any treatment, CONSULT A VETERINARIAN!