Case history: Necropsies on Toggenburg goats culled from a small farm in the Manawatu district of New Zealand, performed at Massey University (Palmerston North, NZ) over a period of 29 years (1991-2019), revealed soft tissue mineralisation, particularly of cardiovascular tissues. The farm spans 10 acres and runs between 15 and 30 Toggenburg goats. The goats are predominantly on pasture comprising a variety of types.Pathological findings: Necropsies were performed on all adult goats (n = 45) that died or were euthanised. Histopathology was performed on 42 goats (93%), of which 33 (73%) included sufficient tissues diagnostically relevant to soft tissue mineralisation. The most significant gross findings were in various arteries, with the aorta most commonly affected, followed by the heart and lungs. The aortic intima showed prominent, multifocal to coalescing, raised, wrinkled, white plaques. Microscopically there were multiphasic lesions of mineralisation, chondroid, and osseous metaplasia in the elastic arteries, aorta, heart and lungs. A lumbar vertebra from one goat had prominent, basophilic, fibrillar, tangled matrix lining Haversian canals and lamellae.Laboratory findings: Blood samples were collected from 15 adult goats in the affected herd and from 10 adult Toggenburg goats from an unaffected herd. Samples were collected by jugular venipuncture at 2-month intervals for 12 months (April 2018-March 2019). Concentrations of calcium, phosphorus, 25-hydroxyvitamin D-2 and D-3 (25OHD(2), 25OHD(3)) in serum were analysed. The concentration of total 25OHD in serum was 34.2 (95% CI = 18.9-49.4) nmol/L (p < 0.001) higher in goats from the affected herd than in goats from the unaffected herd. Serum 25OHD(2) concentration was 46.2 (95% CI = 39.2-53.2) nmol/L higher (p < 0.001) in goats from the affected herd compared to the unaffected herd. Serum Ca concentrations in affected goats were 0.101 (95% CI = 0.005-0.196) mmol/L higher (p = 0.039) than unaffected goats, but remained within the reference range. There was no evidence of a difference in serum 25OHD(3) and P concentration between the herds.Vegetation survey: All paddocks on the property were surveyed every 2 months along evenly spaced line transects, and then further traversed perpendicularly to form a grid. No known calcinogenic species were identified. Known plant sources of vitamin D identified on the farm included mushrooms (species not defined), Dactylis glomerata, lichen, pine pollen, and algae.Diagnosis: Soft tissue mineralisation and enzootic calcinosis.Clinical relevance: Veterinarians are alerted to the possibility of either enzootic calcinosis in goats and the potential occurrence of calcinogenic plants in New Zealand; or chronic vitamin D toxicosis of non-plant origin.

Three outbreaks of photosensitisation in 4–5-monthold lambs were investigated near Palmerston North, New Zealand. The first outbreak was at AgResearch Grasslands, the second at Massey University and, the third, on a private lifestyle block. In the first outbreak in January 2010, about 80% of 120 Romney cross Poll Dorset lambs grazing rotationally in four small paddocks, none of which had any shade, were affected. Clinical signs included loss of wool covering, reddening, scabbing and mild oozing of plasma from the skin of the dorsal surfaces but not the edges of the ears, as well as an upwards curl of the ear-tips. In a few severely affected lambs, the ears were badly deformed with dry gangrene affecting the curled-up tips (Figure 1). Analysis of serum from severely affected, mildly affected and unaffected lambs revealed γ-glutamyl transferase and glutamate dehydrogenase activities and bilirubin and vitamin B12 concentrations within the laboratory reference ranges. The first grazed paddock comprised chicory (Cichorium intybus), the second lucerne (alfalfa, Medicago sativa), and the third perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) and white clover (Trifolium repens); these paddocks appeared virtually weed-free. The fourth paddock, where the lambs had been grazing when the photosensitisation first became evident, comprised predominantly chicory with some white clover, however many weeds were present, including hemlock (Conium maculatum), lotus (Lotus pedunculatus, formerly L. uliginosus or L. major, and sometimes referred to as greater bird’s-foot trefoil), silky cudweed (Gamochaeta calviceps), yarrow (Achillea millefolium), redroot (Amaranthus powellii), hedge mustard (Sisymbrium officinale), and broad leaved dock (Rumex obtusifolius). Sheep had also grazed some plants (Jasminum azoricum, Senna multiglandulosa, and Mirabilis jalapa) along the adjacent garden fence line. The lucerne had been grazed for several years without any photosensitisation issues; besides, the lambs had grazed there some weeks prior. Based on the timing and evidence of consumption, it was concluded that the most likely cause of the photosensitisation was the L. pedunculatus (lotus) in the fourth paddock. The absence of evidence of liver damage also suggested a primary photosensitisation. In the second outbreak in December 2016, about 50% of the unweaned lambs from a small flock of 34 Romney sheep developed photosensitisation. The dorsum of the ears showed varying degrees of alopecia, reddening, scab-formation, and oozing of plasma, but the ear margin in most cases was unaffected. A few lambs also had patchy alopecia and skin reddening on the distal limbs. The lambs had been in the same paddocks since birth. Ewes were unaffected. The grazing in the paddocks, which had no shade, comprised old, established perennial ryegrass and white clover with many weeds present. Weeds included Scotch thistle (Cirsium vulgare), creeping buttercup (Ranunculus repens), hairy buttercup (R. sardous), narrow-leaved plantain (Plantago lanceolata), fiddle dock (Rumex pulcher), hawkbit (Leontodon taraxacoides), dove’s foot (Geranium molle), suckling clover (T. dubium), Poa spp., and clumps of rushes (Juncus spp.). It was observed that the most dominant weed in an adjoining, ungrazed paddock was lotus with its abundant bright yellow, pea-like flowers and scrambling, creeping stolons (Figure 2a). It seemed very strange that an ordinary wire fence could stop the encroachment of lotus into the paddocks with the affected sheep (Figure 2b), so the pasture was examined more closely. This revealed many minute, 2–3-mm-high, dark green immature lotus plants with the characteristic extra pair of leaf-like stipules that Figure 1. Photograph of a severely affected lamb from an outbreak in January 2010 of putative Lotus pedunculatus photosensitisation among 4–5-month-old Romney x Poll Dorset lambs, showing severely deformed ears with dry gangrene affecting the curled-up tips.

Case history: In July and August 2019, 15/40, ≤48-hour-old calves became acutely ill. The calves were all born on-farm, transferred to pens soon after birth, and fed with “gold” colostrum. The hygiene, biosecurity and ventilation in the pens were poor. Of the 15 calves, 11 died or were euthanised and four calves, ≤48-hour-old, that became acutely ill later in the outbreak were treated with cefquinome, a fourth-generation cephalosporin, and recovered.Clinical findings: The affected calves presented with acute recumbency, lethargy, tachypnoea, tachycardia, increased lung sounds, inability to stand or feed, and dehydration without pyrexia.Pathological findings: Gross findings in a calf that died naturally included fibrinous pleuropneumonia, marked oedematous expansion of the interlobular septa, especially in the ventral lung lobes, fibrinous polyserositis and fibrinous polyarthritis. A second calf that was euthanised had strikingly similar lung lesions. Histologically, the pulmonary interlobular septa of both calves were prominently expanded by oedema, dilated lymphatics and the infiltration of numerous neutrophils and macrophages interspersed with small Gram-negative rod bacteria. Likewise, the visceral pleura showed fibrinopurulent inflammation with numerous small Gram-negative rods.Microbiological findings: Microbial culture and matrix-assisted laser desorption ionisation time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry identified Bibersteinia trehalosi in the lung, stifle joint and peritoneal cavity of the first calf and lung of the second.Diagnosis: B. trehalosi acute fibrinous pleuropneumonia and septicaemia.Clinical relevance: This is the first report of the clinical findings and histological lesions of B. trehalosi pleuropneumonia and septicaemia in calves in New Zealand. The pathogen is isolated with increasing frequency from cases of bovine respiratory disease in dairy cows, feedlot cattle and calves in the United Kingdom and North America. The importance of microbial culture in cases such as this with unusual lung lesions in calves <48 hours of age, cannot be over emphasised. Cefquinome was administered to all remaining heifer calves and four calves that became ill later in the outbreak recovered after cefquinome treatment.