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The major cause of mastitis at Lackham is now Streptococcus uberis. This is a particular problem in herds that are housed in straw yards. There is a particular need to pay attention to cow cleanliness throughout the cows life, including the dry period. We know that infections by Staphylococcus aureus are extremely difficult to treat and often become chronic hence leading to high cell counts. The bacteriological cure rate for these infections is often as low as 30 % on many farms.

To combat the continuing problem the following measures have been implemented to control Strep uberis infections:

  1. All straw yards are cleaned out fortnightly. A paste of hydrated lime and water is applied to the first application of straw via the straw spreader. Fresh straw is applied daily.
  2. Calving boxes are cleaned out after every calving.
  3. "Countdown" premilking teat dip is used on all cows.
  4. Applied or similar is applied daily to the udders after milking.
  5. High risk cows are milked as closely as possible to a 12 hour pattern by changing the milking routine.
  6. The combined therapy of Tylan 200™ injections followed by Tetra Delta™ is routinely used.
  7. Where ever possible, affected cows are kept separately from the herd and are milked last.

In practical terms the use of intra-mammary tubes with Tylan 200™ injections has shown to reduce the cell count in some of these chronically affected cows. Nevertheless, culling is generally the only way to 'cure' them.

Cows that have had 3 quarter cases in one 12 month period should be culled as indeed should cows that have had 5 cases in any quarter in a lactation.

Persistent high cell count cases (more than 3 consecutive readings over 200,000) should also be considered for treatment 1 drying off or culling depending upon the individuals history, breeding and stage of lactation.

Most mastitis tubes are broad spectrum. Some, such as Tetra Delta™, Synulox™ and Leo Yellow™, contain corticosteroids which reduce inflammation. Unless a specific resistance problem develops it is best top stick to one normal tube with others only used in non-responsive problems.

Udder mint and other preparations may help by stimulating the udder's own defence mechanisms.

Massage and stripping out are also beneficial. Remember that these bacteria can contaminate the milkers hands and the clusters.

Sub-clinical mastitis can be diagnosed by using the Californian Milk Test. This is a quick and cheap method for indicating that the cell count is high from any one quarter. It may also be used to indicate when milk from a treated quarter should be returned to the tank after antibiotic withdrawal times have been adhered to.

The Five-Point Plan for controlling mastitis

  1. Hygienic teat management, including adequate teat preparation and post-milking disinfection, combined with sound housing management, including frequent scraping, use of plenty of straw for bedding and adequate ventilation.
  2. Prompt treatment of clinical mastitis; including early detection, appropriate therapy and recording of all clinical cases.
  3. Dry cow therapy; including abrupt drying off and use of a long-acting dry cow preparation.
  4. Culling cows with chronic mastitis; including culling of persistent offenders. (refer to the mastitis culling policy at the end of this policy).
  5. Maintenance of the milking machine; including testing the machine twice a year to rectify operational faults and the use of equipment capable of meeting the modern hygienic milking requirements.

The milking parlour regime:

Always wear a clean washable overall, cap and gloves.

Wash your hands before milking and regularly during milking.

Thoroughly clean teats of all cows before milking, by dry wiping each cow with a clean paper towel (preferably medicated). Only very dirty udders should be washed and those washed must be dried. Keep the tails of cows trimmed to prevent udder contamination.

Foremilk all cows where practical; a stream of milk onto a strip cup; inspect milk for clots.

Apply pre-dipping on all cows (using pre-dipping disinfectant just before milking) at times when environmental mastitis is deemed to be a risk. Teats must be wiped before the cluster is attached.

Identify all cases of mastitis as soon as possible with daily use of the strip cup to detect clots in the milk. Also check for suspicious clots in the main filter in the bulk tank.

Treat affected quarters immediately, using appropriate intra-mammary tubes of antibiotic and complete the full course as recommended.

Record all clinical cases of mastitis in detail.

Keep infected or antibiotic treated milk out of the main system and away from uninfected cows by using a separate unit with either a bucket or a dump line. Milk the infected or treated cows last.

Remove the clusters immediately after the cow has stopped milking and keep them clean at all times.

Disinfect teats of all cows after milking by spraying them with a suitable preparation.

Keep cows standing out of the lying area for at least half an hour after milking to allow teats to close up, hence reducing the opportunity for new infections.

Keep the milking area clear of dung and other soiling at all times.

Wash down all milking equipment with hand-hot detergent/disinfectant solution immediately after milking.

Follow external cleaning immediately with the appropriate internal plant cleaning routine.

Wash dawn floors, walls, and all fixed equipment within the milking area at the end of each milking.

Test the milking machine at least twice a year and rectify faults, such as vacuum fluctuation, liner slip, stray electricity and any malfunction which could lead to teat end injury. Liners should be replaced at least twice a year.

Scrape all slurry from the cubicle house, yards and passageways at least twice a day.

Ensure adequate ventilation in the house to prevent humidity which would accelerate infection.

Keep the bedding dry and fresh using plenty of dry straw to reduce the environmental mastitis challenge. Use lime as necessary.

Keep accurate records of service and calving dates easily available to ensure cows are dried off at the right time.

Dry all cows off abruptly. Long-acting dry cow therapy should be administered routinely to all cows in the herd, to help protect cows and pregnant heifers against mastitis, including summer mastitis.
For effective use of dry cow therapy, the following routine is recommended:

  1. All teats should be clean and dry - use anti-bacterial wipe before inserting the tube (clean the furthest pair of teats first, followed by the nearest pair, then insert the tubes in the reverse order);
  2. Massage the whole udder immediately after the infusion;
  3. Dip the teats;
  4. Dry cow therapy should not be given at milking time to avoid the risk of dry cow tubing milking cows! Also it should be a separate task to ensure proper hygiene.

Cull all chronically infected cows with persistent mastitis and high cell counts.

Maintain proper udder immune function by feeding balanced rations in terms of vitamins and minerals. Diets based mainly on silage could be deficient in vitamin E and the trace element selenium.

Ensure that relief milkers and students maintain high standards of hygiene and milking technique.

Summer mastitis needs specific control measures if it becomes a problem:

Mastitis Culling Policy

The following will be considered for culling:

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