Haemorrhagic Septicaemia and Black Quarter: Tests Farmers Should Know

Haemorrhagic septicaemia (HS) and black quarter (BQ) are fast, serious bacterial diseases of cattle and buffalo, and both are most often seen in the rainy season. A vet can take samples for RT-PCR to help confirm which germ is the cause. But a sick animal should be seen at once, because these diseases can kill within a very short time.

How do HS and black quarter differ?

HS is caused by the bacterium Pasteurella multocida. It tends to cause sudden high fever, a swollen throat, neck or brisket, drooling, difficulty in breathing and rapid collapse. Buffaloes are known to be especially hard hit.

Black quarter is caused by Clostridium chauvoei, a germ that lives in soil and enters through the gut or small wounds. It usually affects young, well-fed animals. The classic signs are sudden lameness, a hot painful swelling over a large muscle such as the hind quarter, and skin over the swelling that crackles when pressed because of trapped gas.

Several other illnesses look similar, including anthrax and some poisonings. That is why a vet should examine the animal and decide what samples are needed.

Why is the rainy season a risk?

Wet ground and standing water, crowding under shelters and stress from heat and hard work all make it easier for these germs to spread or take hold. Animals that are grazed together or moved between villages are at higher risk. This is why outbreaks are often reported across a cluster of farms in the same few weeks.

What should you do if an animal falls suddenly ill or dies?

Call your veterinarian immediately. Keep the sick animal apart from others and give it shade and water. Do not let anyone cut open the carcass of an animal that has died suddenly, because some diseases that cause sudden death can spread to people. Wear gloves and wash your hands well if you must touch the animal.

HS is a notifiable disease, so owners should tell their veterinarian or the animal husbandry department about suspected cases. Ask your vet about vaccination and about how to protect the rest of the herd. The lab cannot promise to control an outbreak.

Which tests may the lab run?

For HS the vet may send blood, a nasal swab or tissue for the Haemorrhagic Septicaemia (Pasteurella multocida) RT-PCR. For BQ the vet may send a small piece of affected muscle or a swab for the Black Quarter (Clostridium chauvoei) RT-PCR. RT-PCR (real-time PCR) looks for the genetic material of the germ, so it can name the cause even when the germs cannot be grown. The lab confirms the sample needs and the reporting time when you book.

A Complete Blood Count (CBC) shows how the animal's blood is reacting, for example by changes in the white cells, but it cannot name the disease on its own. A negative RT-PCR does not always rule a disease out, for instance if the sample was poor or taken late, so a registered veterinarian reads every result together with the signs and the post-mortem findings.

Who takes the sample, and how?

A vet should take it. They know how to protect themselves and others, how to choose the right tissue and how to pack it so nothing leaks. The tube or container needs the animal's number, the date and the vet's name. Keep it cool, not frozen, unless the lab says otherwise, and phone the lab before it travels.

What helps your vet most when you call?

A few facts, noted down quickly, make a big difference. Write down how many animals are sick or dead, on which days they fell ill, what they last ate and where they grazed, and whether any animal was recently bought, moved or exposed to floods or standing water. If you can, take clear photographs of any swelling. This picture helps the vet decide whether to suspect HS, black quarter or something else, and which samples to collect. Keep sick animals, their water and their feed away from the others until the vet has seen them.

Read next

Another viral or bacterial illness with skin signs is covered in Lumpy Skin Disease: Testing for Dairy Farmers. For a tick-borne cause of fever and anaemia, read Tick Fever in Cattle: Theileriosis, Babesiosis and Anaplasmosis.

Testing in Bhopal

The lab at C-200, C Sector, Shahpura, Bhopal receives samples taken by your vet, and the lab confirms the method, sample needs and reporting time when you book. Call or WhatsApp +91 88175 01118 before sending anything. Farmers in other districts can send packed samples through their vet, by courier or by bus parcel.