Congestive heart failure in finishing cattle on the rise

Congestive heart failure in finishing beef calves used to be known as “brisket disease” and only described in cattle populations at higher elevations of over 5,000 to 7,000 feet. However, deaths from congestive heart failure have been recently reported in feedlots at low and moderate elevations. It has been estimated that congestive heart failure is responsible for 4% of feedlot mortality causing significant economic losses to the feedlot industry because the majority of these deaths occur late in the finishing period right before slaughter. There also appears to be more impact on the…