Bovine ephemeral fever: Three Day Sickness in cattle

Symptoms in most cattle involve:

• Sudden onset of fever- as high as 41℃ compared to the normal temperature of about 38℃ with the temperature returning to normal within 36 hours
• The first sign in milking cows is a sudden and severe drop in milk production by about 50%
• Cows in advanced pregnancy may abort; this could be because of the fever, rather than a specific effect of the virus
• Animals will stop eating and drinking and will become depressed
• Drooling saliva
• Stringy nasal discharge
• Watery eyes
• Shivering
• Swollen joints with occasional swelling of the jaw
• Reluctance to move (particularly the heavier animals)
• Very stiff with a shifting lameness. Lameness may not become apparent until the second day of illness

By day three the affected animal is usually standing again and will begin to eat, however, lameness and weakness may last for another two to three days. In the vast majority of cases, the disease runs a short course, followed by rapid and complete recovery; however, the disease can vary in severity. Some animals may show only slight symptoms for about 24 hours, while a small number may stay down for many weeks. The disease is usually milder in calves under 12 months of age.

Varying Cases

In dairy herds, it is the highest producing animals that are usually the most severely affected. Yield should return nearly to normal after about three weeks, but cows affected late in lactation often dry off. Mastitis sometimes develops, with a marked rise in the somatic cell count (We can offer a remedy for Mastitis Relief).

Bulls and fat cows tend to show more severe signs than other cattle. These such animals lose condition rapidly and are slow to regain their body weight. A proportion of bulls will suffer temporary infertility lasting from three to six months from the high fever. Permanent infertility can occur though is uncommon.

A small proportion of animals that go down may suffer a permanent paralysis due to damage to the spinal cord. this is either caused directly by the effects of the virus or, due to falling awkwardly when the Three Day Sickness hits.

Deaths from ephemeral fever are uncommon and rarely occurs in more than 1% of the herd, and is usually a result of misadventure or being down for too long a period.

How Homeopathy can help with Three Day Sickness in Cattle

When we lived in South-east Queensland we had a lot of experience with a number of cattle each year coming down with three-day sickness, with our clients also reporting three-day sickness among their herds. The best results are always from treating at the first signs with the Heal with Ease three-day sickness remedy. It’s a special blend designed specifically to treat three-day in cattle which can help pull the three-day up quickly and minimise production losses.

Administering Treatment

We offer two different options for administering this remedy:

• Dropper – drop recommended dosage into a bottle of water and shake, then administer onto the nose of the sick animal where they lay.
• Sprayer – spray directly onto the nose of the sick animal where they lay.

Treatment like this results in most animals up and around within a short period of time. Follow-up treatments may be done the next day if necessary.

As with all our remedies, the 3 Day Assist is a safe natural option with no withholding periods.

Order your Three Day Sickness remedy to have on hand at the first signs here.

To book in for your stocks first Healing Plan click here. To book in for your farm’s/property’s first Healing Plan click here. For more information about Healing Plans click here.

To see our recommended remedies for your farm, stock and property click here.