What is the Impact of Implementing Whisper® Technology in a Feedyard? By: Dr. Kev Sullivan, Production Animal Consultation, Australia
Whisper® technology, the electronic stethoscope and accompanying software, has been used in seven feedyards in Australia for the past twelve months or so. The technology enables hospital crews to make an objective diagnosis on respiratory pulls. In the past, the diagnosis was based on observation and possibly rectal temperature. The pen checker would pull an animal based on observations including depression, appetite and respiratory distress. Once in the hospital, treatment decisions were based on parameters such as rectal temperature, days on feed, weight gain or loss, the opinion of the crew, volume of dose, syringability, withholding period, and cost. While these are all valid parameters, the limitations of these methods have been known for many years. Whisper® has added another dimension to the suite of diagnostic tools which enables feedlots to improve the respiratory case definition by objective analysis of lung sounds. Lung sounds are given a score of 1 – 5. A Whisper® score of 1 is normal, 2 is mildly acute, 3 is moderately acute, 4 is severely acute and 5 is chronic. By using the technology, the feedyards were able to tailor the treatment schedules based on the severity of the disease and not only reduce the number of animals receiving antibiotics but also finesse the antibiotics chosen to reduce overall medicine cost. When Whisper® was first introduced, some training was needed before a consistently high percentage of good sounds was obtained. The target was to be 90% or better every day. Once the crew was comfortable and confident using Whisper®, protocol changes were implemented. Prior to using Whisper®, one feedlot treated animals based on its DART (depression, attitude, respiration, and temperature) score. Historically they treated 65% of cases with Draxxin, 25% of cases with Engermycin, and 10% of cases with Moxylan. Three percent of cases received no treatment. After implementing Whisper®, the feedlot changed their protocol as follows. -With a Whisper® score of 1 there was no treatment. -With a Whisper® score of 2, Engermycin 100 (Oxytetracycline 100 mg/ml), dosage 1 ml/10 kg IV, IM or SC, was administered and repeated in two days. -With a Whisper® score of 3 or 4, Draxxin, dosage 2.4 ml/100 kg SC, was administered once and the animal was sent to the “go home” pen. -With a Whisper® score of 5, Moxylan (Amoxicillin 150 mg/ ml), dosage 1 ml/20 kg IM, was administered daily for 3-5 days. pacdvms.com 51
