A University of Alberta dairy researcher is picking up where scientists left off 40 years ago, trying to solve an ongoing problem with calf health.
Up to 30 per cent of dairy calves worldwide don't get enough vital antibodies before birth to ward off the risk of diarrhea caused by E. coli and other bacteria. The condition can be deadly to the young animals, said Becs Hiltz, a PhD candidate in animal science in the Faculty of Agricultural, Life & Environmental Sciences.
Though calves do get antibodies through colostrum — their mother's milk — they don't develop immunity right away.
"Calves are born with a functional immune system, but it is slow and can take two to three weeks to respond to any sort of disease they may encounter."
In addition, they can only absorb the antibodies within the first 12 to 24 hours of life — something Hiltz wants to change through a better understanding of how the antibodies are absorbed.
The last research exploring that specific function was done in the 1980s.
"I want to start up where those studies left off"
Colostrum quality has since been improved to boost the levels of antibodies fed to calves, but the rates of antibody transfer have not changed, because not enough is known about absorption itself.
"It's not been an issue we've been able to improve our knowledge on, and I want to start up where those studies left off and keep pushing forward," said Hiltz, whose work is part of the ruminant nutrition research program headed by Professor Anne Laarman in the Department of Agricultural, Food & Nutritional Science.
"With advancements in understanding antibody absorption, we could change how every dairy farmer in the world feeds their animals."
