CRYPTOSPORIDIOSIS: AN EXISTING PROBLEM

The article presents the results of the analysis of the main etiological factors of the occurrence of digestive disorders in young cattle in the conditions of farms with the use of industrial milk production technologies. Research was carried out during 2023 in the conditions of livestock farms of the Poltava region, specializing in the production of marketable milk. Different groups of cattle are raised in the studied farms. The main attention was focused on the study of the clinical condition of calves of different age categories. Young cattle in the first months of life were especially carefully studied. The identification of potential infectious and invasive agents in the fecal masses of sick calves was determined using Rainbow Calf Scours-BIO K 288 test strips. Koproscopic studies were also performed in calves aged up to 25-30 days. As a result of the conducted studies, two main groups of etiological factors were established, which became the cause of disorders of the gastrointestinal tract in young calves of different ages: protozoa and infectious agents (microorganisms and viruses). In none of the farms did we establish the influence of factors of non-infectious origin on the occurrence of disorders of the digestive tract. During the studies, the following infectious agents were identified that provoked diarrhea of varying intensity and severity during the postnatal development of calves, in particular: Rotavirus (17.3%), Coronavirus (3.9%), Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and microscopic fungi (2.2%). Among the pathogens of parasitic etiology, the simplest Cryptosporidium spp. (56.7%). We also established a sufficiently diverse picture of the manifestation of clinical signs in sick animals. The first clinical signs were established already on 3-4 days. Their maximum manifestation was recorded for 5-6 days. Sick calves had varying degrees of depression, ruffled wool, contamination of the rear part of the body with feces, lack of appetite, pronounced intestinal peristalsis. Changes in motor function and dependence were observed. Animal stool had an unpleasant, putrid smell. Sick animals were exhausted, their live weight decreased sharply due to dehydration. With a prolonged course of the disease, the death of animals was registered on the fifth day. Therefore, as a result of the conducted complex of studies, the main etiological factors that caused disorders of the gastrointestinal tract in calves, especially in the first month of life, were established.