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ARS Home » Plains Area » Lubbock, Texas » Cropping Systems Research Laboratory » Livestock Issues Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #401126
Research Project: Environmental and Management Influences on Animal Productivity and Well-Being Phenotypes

Location: Livestock Issues Research

Title: Longitudinal assessment of prevalence and incidence of Salmonella and Escherichia coli O157 in beef heifers sourced and finished in different regions of the United States

Author
item DORNBACH, COLTEN - Texas Tech University
item HALES, KRISTIN - Texas Tech University
item GUBBELS, ERIN - South Dakota State University
item Wells, James - Jim
item HOFFMAN, ASHLEY - Texas Tech University
item HANRATTY, ASHLEE - Texas Tech University
item LINE, DALTON - Texas Tech University
item SMOCK, TAYLOR - Texas Tech University
item MANAHAN, JEFF - Texas Tech University
item MCDANIEL, ZACH - Texas Tech University
item KOHL, KELSEY - Texas Tech University
item Sanchez, Nicole
item Carroll, Jeffery - Jeff Carroll
item RUSCHE, WARREN - South Dakota State University
item SMITH, ZACGARY - South Dakota State University
item Broadway, Paul

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/20/2023
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: The objective was to investigate the influence of heifer origin and region of finishing on the prevalence of Salmonella and Escherichia coli O157:H7. Yearling heifers (n = 190) were utilized in a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement of treatments. After determining fecal Salmonella prevalence, heifers were sorted into 1 of 4 treatments: heifers originating from South Dakota (SD) and finished in SD (SD-SD); heifers originating from SD and finished in Texas (TX; SD-TX); heifers originating from TX and finished in SD (TX-SD); heifers originating from TX and finished in TX (TX-TX). Fecal samples were collected longitudinally throughout the study. Hide and subiliac lymph node samples were collected at study end. Individual animal was the experimental unit for all analyses. The glimmix procedure of SAS was used to evaluate the binomial data, with fixed effects of treatment, time, and treatment × time interaction. Individual animal nested within treatment was included as a random effect. A treatment × time interaction was observed (P = 0.01) for fecal Salmonella prevalence, with prevalence being greatest for TX-TX and TX-SD heifers before transport. From d 14 through study end, fecal prevalence was greatest for TX-TX and SD-TX heifers compared with SD-SD and TX-SD heifers. Salmonella prevalence on hides were greater (P = 0.01) for heifers finished in TX compared with heifers finished in SD. Salmonella prevalence in subiliac lymph nodes tended (P = 0.06) to be greater in TX-TX and SD-TX heifers compared with TX-SD and SD-SD. Fecal E. coli O157:H7 prevalence had a treatment × time interaction (P = 0.04), with SD-TX prevalence being greater than TX-SD on d 56 and SD-SD and TX-TX being intermediate. These data suggest that regionality, and seasonal variation between regions, influence the prevalence of Salmonella and E. coli O157:H7 populations. The initial 14 d after feedlot arrival are critical for pathogenic bacterial transmission, therein presenting a potential timeline for targeted pre-harvest intervention strategies. Although management practices applied between regions were as similar as possible, inherent differences in pen surface composition, diet, and heifer breed type present potential for future research to delineate the impact of these differences.