A field trial of preshipment vaccination of calves

A field trial to investigate the efficacy of vitamins ADE, a Haemophilus somnus bacterin, a pasteurella bacterin, and two intranasal infectious bovine rhinotracheitis-parainfluenza type 3 vaccines administered to beef calves at least three weeks prior to weaning and shipment was conducted.Over 1000 calves were vaccinated, but of the 692 calves shipped from the ranch of origin, only 276 calves were located in Ontario, or Quebec, feedlots. The average treatment rate was 30%. Neither vitamins ADE, H. somnus bacterin, pasteurella bacterin or the porcine tissue culture infectious bovine rhinotracheitis-parainfluenza type 3 vaccine had a significant effect on treatment rates for respiratory disease. Calves vaccinated with the temperature sensitive infectious bovine rhinotracheitis-parainfluenza type 3 vaccine had a significantly (p < 0.05) lower treatment rate than the nonvaccinated, and the porcine tissue culture infectious bovine rhinotracheitis-parainfluenza type 3 vaccinated, calves. Calves vaccinated with the temperature sensitive infectious bovine rhinotracheitis-parainfluenza type 3 vaccine did not have a significantly reduced treatment rate in comparison to nonvaccinated calves from the same source.