Which statement best describes a common clinical sign associated with anthrax in cattle?

• A. Neurological signs
• B. Skin ulcers
• C. Peracute sudden death with edema and crepitation
• D. Chronic coughing

Answer: (C)

In cattle, anthrax is classically a peracute, fulminant septicemia. The hallmark is sudden death with little or no warning, reflecting rapid bacterial proliferation and toxin-mediated vascular collapse. When carcasses are examined or tissues are pressed, edema of soft tissues (often the neck, chest, or abdomen) is common, and gas produced by the bacteria in tissues leads to crepitation. This combination—rapid, unexpected death plus edema and tissue gas causing a crackling sensation on palpation—is the best description of a typical clinical presentation.

Other signs listed don’t fit the usual pattern: neurological signs aren’t the hallmark of bovine anthrax, skin ulcers are not characteristic in cattle with this disease (cutaneous forms are uncommon in cattle), and chronic coughing points to other respiratory conditions.