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Prevalence of Neospora antibodies in beef cattle in New Zealand
B S Tennent-Brown1, W E Pomroy, M P Reichel
1Institute of Veterinary Animal and Biomedical Sciences, Massey University, Private Bag 11222, Palmerston North, New Zealand.
Aim:
To estimate the prevalence of Neospora infection in a sample of New Zealand beef cattle.
Methods:
The prevalence of Neospora caninum infection in New Zealand beef cattle was estimated by collecting blood at slaughter from 499 beef cattle from 40 different farms at 2 slaughter plants in the North Island and 1 in the lower South Island . Sera were tested using an ELISA against Neospora tachyzoite antigen.
Results:
The prevalence of seropositive cattle was 2.5% (n=120), 3.6% (n=166) and 2.3% (n=213) at the plants surveyed, the overall prevalence being 2.8%. The serologically positive cattle came from 9 farms, 3 of which had more than 1 positive animal. The highest prevalence recorded amongst animals from 1 farm was 4/13 (31%), in a group of young steers.
Conclusion:
Neosporosis appears to be present at a lower level in the New Zealand beef cattle population than in the New Zealand dairy cattle population. Nevertheless, from the high seroprevalence evident amongst young cattle on 1 farm, we suggest that Neospora may be a cause of infertility in beef cattle in this country.
