Incidence of Infectious Bovine Keratoconjunctivitis

During 2003 an unusual number of calves showed signs of Infectious Bovine Keratoconjunctivitis (IBK), with 39.6% of the herd infected at the Rhodes Farm. Infectious Bovine Keratoconjunctivitis (IBK), commonly known as pink eye, is a contagious disease caused mostly by the bacteria Moraxella bovis, although other agents have been identified as a cause of IBK. Previous studies have shown that factors such as increased sunlight exposure, dust, tall grasses, and high populations of face flies (Musca autumnalis) facilitate M. bovis infection. Some of the symptoms associated with pink eye are reddening of the eyeball, swelling of the eyelid lining, followed by watery discharges. The study of this bacterial infection is important due to its effects on cattle performance, specifically weight gain. This preliminary analysis of data collected in the summer and fall of 2003 reveals the severity, persistence, and incidence of the disease. The analysis of the data also suggests a heritability (h2 = .180), which is similar to the narrow sense heritability obtained at the USDA Meat Animal Research Center, Clay Center, NE, taking into consideration the small size of our data