[Suckling calves with symptoms of swayback]

Within a 1-year period, three calves from the same herd developed ataxia of the hind limbs and urinary incontinence at about 6 months of age. Signs progressed and the calves were slaughtered 1-8 months after the onset of signs. The calves belonged to a suckling beef herd of 35 cattle. Blood samples from 11 cattle of different ages were collected and glutathione peroxidase and copper levels were measured. Glutathione peroxidase levels were below the normal range in all cattle and copper levels were below the normal range in 7 of ll cattle. Pathological examination of an affected calf revealed a Wallerian type of degeneration of myelinated nerve fibres in the lateral and ventral spinal cord tracts. In addition, the hepatic copper content was very low. Copper deficiency is a well-known cause of swayback in young sheep and goats. To our knowledge, this is the first report of a possible association between a swayback-like syndrome and copper deficiency in calves.