Castration is one of the most common procedures performed on beef and dairy cattle. The objective of the study was to determine the efficacy of meloxicam oral suspension in reducing pain and inflammation in calves following band or surgical castration. Two identical trials with the exception of the method of castration (Band Castration Study 1 and Surgical Castration Study 2) were conducted. Sixty (60) healthy Holstein calves 4 to 5 months of age (138–202 Kg) were used. Animals received either Meloxicam Oral Suspension at a dose of 1 mg/kg BW (n = 15 Study 1 and 15 Study 2) or Saline (n = 15 Study 1 and 15 Study 2) 2 h before castration. Physiological (Heart Rate, Plasma Cortisol and Plasma Substance P) and Behavioral (Visual Analog Scale (VAS), Accelerometers and tail Pedometers) evaluations were conducted before (day -1) and after Castration (Day 0, 1, 2, 3). Inflammation was evaluated daily by providing an individual animal score (Study1) or with a measurement of scrotal thickness (Study 2). Heart rates were significantly greater in control animals following band and surgical castration. Plasma cortisol and substance P were significantly reduced in animals receiving Meloxicam Oral Suspension. Control animals had significantly greater VAS scores. Accelerometers showed that meloxicam treated animals had a significantly greater motion index and number of steps as well as less % time lying and number of lying bouts. The scrotal inflammation (based on scrotal swelling) was significantly decreased in the meloxicam treated animals compared to the control animals on day 1, day 2 and 3. Meloxicam Oral Suspension was able to significantly reduce the display of painful behaviors and physiological responses to pain in band castrated and surgical castrated calves for up to 72 h following a single oral treatment of 1 mg/kg body weight. Meloxicam Oral Suspension was able to significantly reduce scrotal inflammation in band castrated and surgical castrated calves.

The use of meloxicam oral suspension to treat musculoskeletal lameness in cattle D Nagel,1 R Wieringa,2 J Ireland,3 Merle E Olson1 1Solvet/Alberta Veterinary Laboratories, Calgary, AB, 2Heartland Veterinary Services, Listowel, 3Albadon Farm Ltd, Teeswater, ON, Canada Lameness in beef and dairy cattle is responsible for economic losses and has significant animal welfare implications. It has been proposed that early treatment with analgesics not only reduces acute pain but also leads to reduced long-term sensitization. Fifty-three cattle (309–954 kg body weight [BW], mean: 656 kg) with musculoskeletal lameness were scored for lameness and inflammation, then randomly assigned to a single oral treatment with meloxicam oral suspension (MOS) (28 animals) at 1 mg/kg or saline at 1 mL/15 kg BW. Lameness and inflammation were reevaluated 3 days after treatment, and 26 of 28 (92.8%) MOS-treated animals had a reduced lameness score, while only three of 25 control animals had a reduced lameness score. MOS was effective in treating musculoskeletal disease in cattle. In an accompanying residue depletion study, 22 lactating Holstein cows (BW: 553–927 kg, mean: 713 kg) were used in the study. All 22 animals received MOS at the dose of 1 mg/kg BW once. Milk (500 mL sample from the full milking volume) was collected at approximately 48, 72, 96, and 120 hours after the treatment. Samples were subjected to in vitro analysis for quantification of meloxicam by liquid chromatography and mass spectroscopy. The mean meloxicam concentration at 48 and 72 hours were 30.75 and 2.82 ng/mL, respectively. The meloxicam milk concentration was below the limit of quantification (1 ng/mL) in 15 of 22 animals at 96 hours and in 22 of 22 animals at 120 hours. The milk meloxicam levels in all animals were below the maximum residue limit (Canada: 35 ng/mL; Europe: 15 ng/mL) at the 72-hour sampling. Keywords: meloxicam, lameness, musculoskeletal, residue, milk, cattle