Studies on the Experimental Production and Prevention of Bloat in Cattle. I. Influence of Intrarumen Administration of Fresh Eggwhite on Production of Bloat

The role of protein, and quantitative changes in ruminal motility and eructation associated with bloat in cattle, were investigated.Intrarumen introduction of fresh eggwhite produced moderate bloat in cattle fed dehydrated alfalfa hay, either orally or by placing it in the rumen.Pressure in the rumen exceeded 15 ram.mercury above the atmosphere in two-thirds of the cases, when dehydrated alfalfa was fed before the intrarumen administration of eggwhite.Bloat in the rumen resulted from a stable foam which reduced frequency of eructation for 90 minutes after administration of eggwhite.Proteins may be important in the etiology of bloat from legumes. Editor.For the past several years, it has been demonstrated repeatedly that the development of a stable foam within the rumen is an important factor in the etiology of bloat on legun~e forages (7,8,12,13).Presumably, the foamy ingesta tends to block the cardia, interfering with eructation.Surface-active materials, such as methyl silicone, turpentine, or vegetable oils, have been shown to prevent development of bloat and to relieve this condition (2, 5, 7, 8).A number of agents have been proposed as causative factors in developing a stable foam within the rumen.Quin (12) and Lindahl et al. (11) have reported that saponins may be an important factor in bloat on legumes.Hungate et al. (7) have demonstrated the presence of a particular type of slime-producing microorganism in the rumen, and they suggest that this contributes to formation of a stable foam.Johns (8) and Ferguson and Terry (6) have suggested the possibility that protein or protein-degradation products in the rumen are responsible, at least to some extent, for the formation of a frothy ingesta.The present study was undertaken to investigate the possible role of protein in the development of bloat, and quantitatively to examine changes of ruminal motility and eructation associated with the presence of a mass of foamy ingesta within the rumen. EXPERIME:NTAL PROCEDURE Influence of eggwhite adminis'tral,ion on intrarumen pressure. Three dryJersey cows, previously shown to be susceptible to bloat, were fed dehydrated,