AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich is joined by Merck Animal Health Technical Services Veterinarian Dr. Deana Hardee for this episode to discuss uses of florfenicol in cattle practice. We start this episode with a brief overview of the different classes of antimicrobials used in cattle and how they might fit into a bovine respiratory disease (BRD) protocol. Hardee discusses how florfenicol might be used as a first-line treatment after following a post-metaphylactic interval that used a macrolide. Florfenicol is not used in human medicine and has a long history of use in cattle.

Hardee also provides some tips to help producers understand its use and the value of following protocols provided by the veterinarian of record. We discuss the importance of reviewing preventive herd health plans to prevent diseases such as BRD and decrease its risk although all cases are not preventable. Hardee reviews the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications (NSAIDs)and their application for treatment of BRD and its effects on the animal. Florfenicol has other uses as well, such as treatment of foot rot in cattle. Finally, we review some of the research that Hardee has been involved with on antibiotic resistance and the judicious use of antibiotics on cattle operations.

 AABP would like to thank Merck Animal Health for support of the Bovine Veterinary Student Recognition Awards providing 18 veterinary students with a $5,000 scholarship administered by the AABP Foundation at the AABP Annual Conference. 

Links:

Nuflor Injectable Solution

Resflor Gold 

Merck Veterinary Manual Use of Phenicols in Animals