Antibiotic use in Animals

[cakadu]

I found the following article in the AnimalNet newsletter produced by the University of Guelph:

ANTIBIOTIC FEARS REQUIRE RESPONSE
October 22, 2001
The Edmonton Journal
A10
According to this editorial, the latest studies in the New England Journal
of Medicine, in which antibiotic-resistant salmonella was found in ground
meat and poultry, underlines the urgency of determining just how much danger
the use of antibiotics in farm animals poses to humans.
The World Health Authority has already called for a ban on antibiotics used
to fatten livestock. Organizations like the American Medical Association
warn that overuse of the drugs is breeding antibiotic-resistant bacteria
that could leave people defenceless. The European Union has banned the use
of antibiotics to boost growth or protect healthy livestock, allowing their
use only to treat sick animals.
The editorial says that scientific evidence and public opinion are mounting
to justify stricter controls on the use of antibiotics in pigs, chickens and
cattle.
Health Canada and the agriculture industry need to respond positively and
promptly.
Both Health Canada and its big brother, the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration, say they're working on the problem. Health Canada says
certain drugs like erythromycin, that once were used to fatten farm animals,
are no longer allowed to be put in animal feed. The FDA has talked about a
drug-by-drug review to decide whether any should be withdrawn from use in
animals.
The editorial concludes that producing food that is demonstrably healthy and
safe has become a market advantage, particularly for overseas sales. We need
to keep that Canadian advantage.


How do you feel about this type of article? Can the rise in antibiotic resistance be traced back primarily to animals and the food we eat? What about taking antibiotics incorrectly or at times when they are of no real benefit?

[pandiana]

The article that you site above is just one of hundreds that have been sounding the alarm for the past 2 decades.

Yes, the indiscriminant use of antibiotics is a major cause of producing drug resistant strains of bacteria. Improper administration, incorrect dosage and length of treatment have been targeted as the major factor in producing drug resistance. The result is a gradual erosion of our number one defence against bacterial infections.

No, this is not a problem with livestock alone, although it no doubt contributes to it in a major way. However, the perscribing of antibiotics to humans in order to treat symptoms 'just in case' is considered as a contributing factor. The more antibiotic that is exposed to more strains of bacteria, the higher the probability of inducing drug resistance. It is a numbers game.

What can be done about it? This is probably more to the point.

On the human side of the problem, what doctor or parent wants to risk missing an potentially lethal infection such as meningitis (even though diagnosis is unclear and lab results may take hours or days)when it could be stopped early with treatment? When symptoms disappear in 24 hrs who wants to fight with the patient to finish of the bottle.
Those of us treating sick livestock face the same dilemma. I can't really see this changing very soon.

On the other hand, the prophalactic use of antibiotics either in water, feed or the mass treatment of healthy animals is very risky and should be reviewed. Unfortunately, economics rears its ugly head once more. With more animals concentrated in smaller areas the risk of infections increase greatly. With margins narrow, who can afford to risk a major outbreak? If the use of antibiotics in cattle becomes restricted, it would seem to me that the way we feed and house livestock would have to be totally restructured. Who will pay? The result would mean a huge increase in overhead and ultimately a rise in the cost of food production.

[cakadu]

I wonder how long it will take things to collapse in on themselves. A further article in Animal Net talks about Cipro (humans) and Baytril (primarily poultry) both manufactured by Bayer. Both of these belong to the family of antibiotics known as fluoroquinolones, which are currently some of the most potent antibiotics that we have out there.

I think that there is another angle to this and it is the money that the drug companies themselves make. Last year the U.S. government recommended that the two fluoroquinolones being used widely - sarafloxacin manufactured by Abbott Laboratories and Baytril by Bayer, Abbott voluntarily withdrew from the market. Bayer, who has the largest share of this market refused and vowed to fight. Who is actually benefitting?

[cakadu]

Whoops, got ahead of myself in the second paragraph in my last posting. The government recommended that the two drugs be taken off the market, Abbott did so voluntarily, Bayer vowed to fight. There's economics at play on many sides here.

[Deb]

Humans do use too many antibiotics on themselves, but this is changing. My doctor won't give me antibiotics unless it is a serious bacterial infection. There are signs at the clinics stating the question of antibiotic resistance.

All those recent cases of flesh-eating disease in BC has me spooked a little. And the increasing numbers of hospitals with a super-bacteria that are not responding to any of the anti-biotics we have now.

We have millions of animals in feedlots and barns in Canada who are being given anti-biotics that we humans use. We eat the animals. No doubt thousands of treated sick animals are sent to slaughter before the drug has left their system. I know that a dairy farmer, sleepy one morning, forgets for an instant that the cow he is milking has been treated with penicillin and there goes the milk into the pipeline and into his bulk tank. Does he empty the whole bulk tank for fear of being caught? Some will, some won't.

We know that insufficient doses of anti-biotics, or not finishing off a prescription will encourage anti-biotic resistance.

Maybe we should look at how organic livestock producers do their thing and at least take a step towards those methods. We don't have to become organic overnight, that's impossible, economically, but a tiny move to reduce anti-biotic use would be smart.

[charlene]

I tend to agree that we should be looking a little closer at organic practises and maybe sharing abit of both worlds, depending on the farm situation. Although our farm is not officially certified organic, we try to operate as close to the standards as possible.

Back in 1992, we attended an organic seminar in Manitoba, and a vet suggested use of a certain product, which he said he felt stimulated the baby calves immune system, due to the mineral content. Well we offerred it to the baby calves that first year and have not looked back. Because we shared our success with other beef producers, a demand soon grew for the product. We now actually import it and sell it through various dealers across Western Canada. This product is only approved as a feed additive, but it seems to offer the calves something.

The benefit we found is valuable to our operation. We feed Star Lake Beef Diatomaceous Earth and find that the baby calves that are usually chewing on dirt and old manure now leave it alone. They come out of the calf huts with white faces and mouths instead of black ones like they did in the past.

We have found that by offerring this product, the calve don't even touch the dirt anymore. As a result, we have not had to be treating for coccidiosis or scours anymore. Could just be good luck for the past 10 calving seasons, but other farms are confirming the successes in their herds.

It is amazing that something so simple could cause such a wonderful impact in farmers calf herds. We find that calves overall are healthier when they haven't eatten dirt and we haven't had to use any antibiotics on them. We also quit scour guarding the cows, shortly after we began seeing results. We ofcourse don't reccomend people start changing their routines, we just want to share what has worked for us.

I do realize that management plays a major role in troubles that arise. We are fortunate to have a closed herd and raise our own replacements. We have also vowed never to bring in a baby calf if a cow looses one. We would rather have that cow go dry than risk bringing in new bugs etc, that could cost you a fortune in the long run.

My personal opinion is that drugs in general are being pushed a little too much now a day. They want you to needle for this, needle for that all as a precaution. My belief is that their immune system is loosng the programing or something and not able to build up antibodies on it's own any more. It is like we are breeding it right out of them, because we offer a needle or medication for most things. I could be wrong, but that is what I feel.

I know when a doctor gives you antibiotics, they warn that it will be killing both the good and bad bacteria in your body. Some doctors are now suggesting that you take acidophilus along with the antibiotic, so that it is keeping the healthy flora/bacteria in your system.

If anyone has any questions about the use of Star Lake Beef Diatomaceous Earth, I would be happy to share our knowledge with you or answer any questions. My e-mail is charlene@starlakebeef.com. We also created a website where you can read more information. www.starlakebeef.com