A suspected case of polioencephalomalacia in a 4-month old Holstein calf

A 4-month-old Holstein heifer calf presented to the Cornell University Farm Animal Emergency Service for an acute onset of abnormal behavior and possible seizure activity. The herdsman had noticed that the calf had separated from the rest of the herd, was uninterested in feed, and was standing with its head elevated and its neck extended. The referring veterinarian had treated the calf with thiamine, oxytetracycline, penicillin, vitamin E and selenium but the calf did not improve over 24 hours so it was referred in to Cornell. On presentation the calf was dehydrated, obtunded, ataxic, lacked menace responses but retained pupillary light reflexes (PLRs) bilaterally. The calf was started on IV crystalloid therapy as well as IV thiamine (vitamin B1) and IV oxytetracycline. After 4 days in the hospital the calf’s clinical signs improved and it was discharged from the hospital with a presumptive diagnosis of polioencephalomalacia