393 Young Scholar Award Talk: Investigation of Pain and Analgesic Strategies in Cattle Undergoing Painful Husbandry Procedures and Disease Conditions

Abstract Cattle are stoic by nature and have long been subject to evolutionary pressure mask pain avoid becoming prey. Quantifying via biomarkers allows researchers capture changes that not easily detected the human eye. Negative public perception of routine husbandry practices such as dehorning castration is growing, increasing need for development relieve suffering in cattle. The objective was quantify associated with induced bacterial pneumonia, scoop hot-iron dehorning, surgical castration, branding, investigate analgesic effectiveness. Calves were experimentally inoculated Mannheimia haemolytica, or cautery dehorned, surgically castrated, branded. Outcome variables collected at baseline following procedures included serum cortisol; infrared thermography (IRT); mechanical nociceptive threshold (MNT); substance P; kinematic gait analysis; a visual analog scale; chute defense behavior scoring; clinical illness score; computerized lung average activity rumination; prostaglandin E2 metabolite; plasma amyloid A rectal temperature. Responses analyzed using repeated measures calf nested treatment designated random effect, treatment, time, their interaction fixed effects. combination reduced levels, decreased force on calves’ right front limb, increased scale scores all support pneumonia cattle painful (P ≤ 0.01). Differences observed calves challenged M. haemolytica treated flunixin transdermal (96.5 kg) those given placebo (85.5 kg), indicating may attenuate specific respiratory disease < Administration bupivacaine liposome suspension block time effective controlling multi-modal approach lidocaine meloxicam (as evidenced differences MNT, cortisol analysis 0.04)). Oral administration branding IRT from control site lying bouts Breed sex effects across wide range should be investigated future studies. long-acting options demonstrate alleviation multiple apparent would beneficial alleviating like well conditions bovine disease.