Assessment of the occurrence and cause of bloody urine in cattle and management practices in Cheliya, Jibat, and Dire Inchini districts of the West Shewa Zone, Oromia, Ethiopia

Background: A study was conducted to assess the causes of bloody urine and management practices in cattle from the Cheliya, Jibat, and Dire Inchini districts of the West Shoa Zone, Oromia, Ethiopia. Materials and methods Two kebeles from each of the three districts were selected based on bloody urine case reports, and a total of 215 cattle-owning households were selected for the questionnaire survey. Field observations were performed to screen for possible causes of bloody urine in the study areas. Six animals with symptoms of bloody urine were clinically examined, followed by postmortem and histopathological examinations. Results The questionnaire survey results showed that 72.1% (n = 155) of the households had at least one bloody urine case in their cattle herd. Among the three districts, more bloody urine cases were reported in the Cheliya district (95.0%), compared to 67.4% in Jibat and 53.5% in Dire Inchini. About 33.0% of the households reported the death of at least one cattle due to bloody urine; 58.8% of which were from the households in Cheliya, while 40.8% in Jibat, and 4.7% in Dire Inchini district. The occurrence of bloody urine was related to the dry season, feed shortage, access to bracken fern-infested pasture, and a known history of eating bracken fern. There was a high infestation rate of bracken fern (Pteridium aquilinum) in the grazing areas. All six suspected cattle exhibited chronic wasting and hematuria. Centrifugation of the urine samples revealed hematuria. Postmortem examination revealed petechial hemorrhage, papillomatous formations, thickened areas of mucosa, and white/red nodules on the urinary bladder. Conclusions Severe infestation of the bracken fern in the study areas, chronic hematuria, and wasting and postmortem findings in the bladder were all suggestive of bracken fern poisoning. Therefore, an immediate and integrated approach should be implemented to prevent cattle from accessing infested areas, remove this plant from grazing areas, and replace it with appropriate forage.