Clinical examination of cattle. Part 1: Adult dairy and beef cattle

Background: Carrying out a thorough and systematic clinical examination is a key veterinary skill. The high value of individual animals, and the sometimes limited access to further diagnostics in the field make this particularly important when working with cattle. Cattle may require a clinical examination after presenting as unwell to reach a diagnosis or to aid development of a management plan. The principles of an individual clinical examination can also be applied to population medicine. Individual animal findings may highlight herd-level risk factors and warrant further investigation. Additionally, a population subset of animals can undergo a targeted examination to determine prevalence of disease in a herd. Finally, a group of animals can be examined as a whole to identify behavioural signs indicative of a problem. At a population level it is important to remember to also thoroughly look at the environment and to examine both farm records and herd data. Aim of the article: In this first article, we will outline an approach to the examination of adult cattle at both an individual and population level. A follow-up article, to be published in a subsequent issue, will cover examination of youngstock and the use of technology and ancillary testing.