Diagnosis of subacute ruminal acidosis (SARA) by continuous reticular pH measurements in cows

The objective of this study was to determine whether subacute ruminal acidosis (SARA) could be diagnosed by continuous measurements of the reticular pH, as compared with the ruminal pH, using healthy cows fed a control diet and SARA cows fed a rumen acidosis-inducing diet. The reticular and ruminal pH were measured simultaneously by a radio transmission pH measurement system. The mean reticular pH at 1-h intervals decreased gradually from the morning feeding to the next feeding time in both healthy and SARA cows, though the decrease in the ruminal pH was observed to be more drastic as compared with that observed in the reticular pH. The threshold of the 1-h mean pH in the reticulum for a diagnosis of SARA was considered to be 6.3, and a significant positive correlation was observed between the reticular and ruminal pH. No differences in the concentrations of lactic acid, ammonia nitrogen, and volatile fatty acids were noted between the reticular and ruminal fluids in SARA cows. These results demonstrate that the reticular pH can be used to detect SARA in cows, as opposed to using the ruminal pH.