The remaining calves not needed for replacing the dairy cows that have reached the end of their useful life are fed and slaughtered to produce beef. Intensive indoor feeding methods are a feature of beef production in many countries, and in some cases cereals form almost the whole of the diet. Notifiable infectious diseases of cattle include anthrax, foot and mouth, rinderpest or cattle plague, and tuberculosis. Brucellosis is a bacterial disease, now largely eradicated in the west, which is transmissible to humans. Several parasites, including the warble fly and thread-worm, attack cattle, causing parasitic diseases.
Ringworm is a fungal disease of the skin that is transmitted by contact.