Lamb immunity and gut microbiome

By Dr TB Barragry PhD MSc MVB MRCVS

Vet surgeon, pharmacologist and independent consultant

ALMOST 50 per cent of total lamb losses occur in the first 48 hours of life. Several sources of UK mortality data over the past 30 years find average mortality rates of 12-23 per cent.

Newborn lambs have virtually no immunity and a key organ in developing this immunity is the

gut microbiome. The gut micro-biome consists of a population of billions of commensal organisms (good bugs) which provide many beneficial effects for the body, and in fact the gastrointestinal tract is now known to be the largest immune system of the body.

This gut microbiota contains more cells than the entire number of somatic cells in the body and this repository of gut-derived DNA is now established as the principal driver of immune health in the lamb.

A clear immunological link exists therefore between the gut microbiota, the immune system and the presence or absence of neonatal disease.

This gut microbiome is al-most sterile and is highly underdeveloped in the lamb at birth and thus it is no coincidence that the newborn lamb therefore possesses low immunity and is highly susceptible to infection. Augmenting this gut microbiome with probiotic/beneficial bacteria organisms at birth is one way to help enhance immunity and help prevent E. coli infection.

The short window period after birth is a critical time for the neonatal gut to be populated with beneficial bacteria probiotic organisms which will then re-

plicate and promote gut pro-tection and strong immunity.

Any outbreak of neonatal enteric disease in calves and lambs (coliform scours and watery mouth) is the result of an overwhelming imbalance bet-

ween the environmental contam-ination pressure and the low immune status of the newborn animal. An absolute and direct correlation exists between low immunity at birth and Watery Mouth or E. coli infection.

The gut microbiome and the immune system are connected. However, this system can only work if it is attended to by the routine prophylactic use of probiotics and beneficial bacteria immediately after birth. Waiting for disease to occur and then endeavouring to deal with it by antibiotic “firefighting” is a waste of time, money and of the animal’s health and long-term productivity.

Provita Lamb Response is a beneficial bacteria based oral formulation which acts preventatively to augment the gut commensal population of the newborn lamb with protective bacteria, thereby generating gut health and helping to prevent the establishment of E. coli by boosting local immunity.

The product also supplies protective egg powder and Vitamins B & E to further enhance gut protection and stimulate early protection against E. coli, and to stimulate metabolism and growth.

Readily available energy is also provided in the product.