Prevalence of Dichelobacter nodosus and Fusobacterium necrophorum on dairy farms in Slovakia

ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of bacteria Dichelobacter nodosus (D. nodosus) and Fusobacterium necrophorum (F. necrophorum) in non-lame dairy cows on eight Slovak dairy herds. In total, 1,631 Holstein Friesian dairy cows were included in the study. Information of the cows was collected from on-farm software included cow ID, lactation number (heifer/cow), year milk yield (kg), and DIM on collection date. The PCR method detected D. nodosus and F. necrophorum on the feet of 1,394 (85.5%) and 373 (22.1%) dairy cows, respectively (p < 0.05). No dairy farm could be found without positive samples for D. nodosus and the majority of the farms were free or had very low prevalence of F. necrophorum (0–9.1%). Statistical difference for the prevalence of D. nodosus and F. necrophorum in different Slovak regions was detected for both strains. Logistic regression revealed an association between both D. nodosus and F. necrophorum identification and annual milk production (odds ratios = 0.69 and 0.32, respectively). Our data demonstrates that D. nodosus is present on the feet of almost every dairy cow what means a potential risk for cattle to develop foot rot. Furthermore, both bacteria are associated with decreased annual milk production.