Mastitis Treatment
Exposure to mastitis pathogens is one of the key factors that determine the risk of mastitis. Exposure can originate from several sources including the environment of the cow, existing infections, and bacteria naturally found on the skin. Cleanliness of the udder influences the quantity and type of bacteria present on teat surfaces, and dirty teats and udders are considered to be a major source of environmental bacteria in milk. The quality of pre-milking udder preparation is an important component of a milk quality program but must be efficiently and quickly done to decrease the amount of time spent in the milking parlor. The cleanliness of the stalls, whether freestall, tiestall, or stanchion is the next most critical factor for a good milk quality program.
ToDAY®
ToDAY® (cephapirin sodium) allows dairy producers to treat mastitis flare-ups in lactating
cows. Together with ToMORROW® dry cow treatment for mastitis ToDAY® delivers proven
broad-spectrum protection to help reduce mastitis improve milk quality and increase milk production for the whole
herd.
30753 12 tubes/box.
30756 144 tubes/pail
ToMORROW®
ToMORROW® (cephapirin benzathine) provides broad-spectrum mastitis protection
for dry cows. ToMORROW® is approved to deliver powerful bactericidal killing action
against the leading mastitis-causing pathogens: Streptococcus agalactiae Staphylococcus
aureus and staphylococcus strains resistant to penicillin. It features Opti-Sert®
the exclusive easy-to-use syringe tip for partial insertion which helps prevent
contamination from teat surface bacteria and reduces damage to the teat structures.
30754 12 tubes/box.
30757 144 tubes/pail
Key Points for Mastitis Prevention:
- Provide cows with a clean, dry, stress-free environment. Stalls are kept clean and dry on a consistent basis. Alleyways and barn yards are scraped.
- Maintain clean hands or wear disposable milking gloves.
- Check foremilk and udder for mastitis. Milk problem cows last.
- Apply pre-milking teat dip that completely covers the teat skin for 30 seconds or use a sanitizing solution to wash each cow's teats for at least 10 to 20 seconds.
- Dry teats using a single-service paper towel or a clean cloth towel.
- Attach teat cups squarely and securely within one minute.
- Adjust milking units as necessary.
- Shut off vacuum before removing cups.
- Dip teats with a post-milking teat dip. Use a barrier dip if environmental conditions warrant.
Mastitis Management
Mastitis is an infection caused by microorganisms that invade the mammary gland and damage the tissue that produce the milk. When this happens the body's immune system reacts and sends white blood cells, which are a major component of the somatic cell count in the milk, to fight off the infection. Visible signs of mastitis show no visible signs and can only be detected by testing for a high somatic cell count. A cow can get a mastitis infection from many different sources depending on the organism, but bacteria are usually divided into two categories, contagious and environmental.
Mastitis is considered to be contagious when the bacteria are primarily spread from cow to cow during milking. The major contagious pathogens of concern to most herds are Staph aureus, Strep ag, and Mycoplasma bovis. Typically contagious bacteria are spread during milking time and are passed from cow to cow through contaminated milking units, equipment malfunction during milking time and improper milking procedures.
Environmental mastitis comes from microorganisms that our found commonly on any dirty surface that the animal is exposed to throughout the day. While environmental mastitis can readily grow inside the mammary gland, the microorganisms can survive on any surface that has a place for it to grow, such as dirt and manure. Major environmental bacteria are spread by exposing the teat end to the dirty environment and from improper cleaning of the teat end prior to milking. Organisms that are considered environmental include e. coli, Klebsiella and environmental Streptococci.
The first key to having a successful mastitis control practice is to have good milking procedures and to maintain as clean of a living environment as possible. Keeping a consistent and high level of management in both areas at all times is the only way to ensure that mastitis cases are kept to minimum in the herd.
The second key to a successful program is to constantly monitor the herd's milk quality status. Monitoring herd bulk tank somatic cell counts on a daily basis and occasional monitoring of individual somatic cell counts (DHI testing) is the minimal amount of monitoring any herd should be doing at any time. The next step is to take a bacterial milk culture of the bulk tank on a routine basis. This will help identify the type of organisms that were present in your herd the day of the test and will help determine what areas of management need improvement. Intensively managed farms use the California Mastitis Test (CMT) or individual cow milk cultures to determine treatment strategies on a case by case basis.
The final key to a good mastitis management program is treatment. In the past, most cases of mastitis have been treated with antibiotics, but we now know that antibiotics are ineffective against many different types of infections. For contagious mastitis Strep ag can be cured relatively easy with antibiotics, Staph aureus is much harder to control. Currently, there is no effective treatment for mycoplasma. Most environmental mastitis, while effectively treated with antibiotics, may be prevented by maintaining cow cleanliness and an up-to-date vaccination program. In any case, when a problem is identified it is important to go back to the first key and review the farm prevention program.
