Mastitis: Mastitis Control Flashcards
What are the 6 methods of monitoring/investigating mastitis?
- In parlour- fore milking, CS
- Clinical case records
- Somatic cell counts
- Bulk tank bactoscan
- Bacteriology
- Multiplex PCR
What is the benefit of PCR over bacteriology for mastitis?
- Higher %
- Some never grow in culture
- Higher aetiological agent recovered
- Mixed infection more commonly identified
- Culture-negative samples can be detected
How can mastitis be monitored in parlour?
- Fore milking
- Visual changes in the udder/cow
- Teat/udder feel
- Cow response to palpation
- Californian mastitis test
- In line detectors- filters, electrical conductivity
What can be found on clinical exam with mastitis?
Palpate udder, supramammary lymph nodes, teat ends
Mammary signs of systemic disease
* Photosensitisation
* Mycoplasma wenyonii
What can be monitored on clinical case records for mastitis?
Number of clinical cases per 100 cows/year
* target < 30
Annual incidence- % herd affected
Reccurence rate
Seasonality
Stage of lactation
Milking cow tube usage per 100 cows per year < 140
When is mastitis most common annually?
Highest in winter
What can individual cell counts show?
- Monthly average- outbreaks of infection
- Rolling average- sub clinical infection trend
- Seasonality
- Age
- Severity of problem
- Identifies high cell count in herd- identified chronically infected
- Stage of lactation
- Plan strategies for individual problem cows
How can SCC be interpreted?
- Under 100,000 infection likely
- 100-200,000- likely 1/4 infected with minor pathogen
- Over 200,000- infected quarter with minor pathogen
No real relationship with SCC and mastitis- different pathogens have different effects
- What pathogens are likely to cause high herd cell count?
- What are ‘quick’ fixes for high SCC?
- Strep aureus, strep aureus, strep agalaciae, strep dysgalactiae
- Prevent milk from entering tank, identify them, dump milk, tail tape, treat
What is the treatment plan for chronic high cell count cows?
Identify pathogen- C&S
Treat during lactation
* Extend courses of intra-mammry therapy for Staph aureus and Strep uberis
* Systemic tylosin, penethamate
* Miniblitz- all high cell count cows together and treat together
Dry off and treat- better bacteriological cure rate
* Dry cow intra-mammary AB anf systemic AB
Cull chronicall infected, older cows
What is bactoscan?
Actual count of bacterial numbers in milk
* Bacteria growing in milking plant
* High levels of mastitis
* Dirty udders/teats
Carried out by milk processor
Hygenic quality of the milk
Measured weekly
What can cause a raised bactoscan problem?
- Poor housing hygiene
- Poor premilking teat preparation
- High levels of mastitis on the farm
- Poor plant cleaning
What is bulk milk bacteriology useful for?
- Very useful for identifying problems in herds with too high bactoscan
- Useful in first line investigation
- Milk from mastitic cows may not be included
- Transport on ice
What does bulk tank bacteriology expose?
- Total bacterial count
- Cell count
- LPC thermoduric count and pseudomonas
- Coliform count
- Total staphlococcal count
- Straph aureus
- Identify other pathogenic bacteria
LPC is lab pasturisation count
What are the main problems of individual cow bacteriology?
- Contaminated samples
- Some pathogens only intermittently shed
- No growth cow- had AB treatment
How should a milk sample be collected?
- Wear gloves
- Clean and disinfect and dry the teat
- Discard 10-15ml of foremilk
- Clean each teat end and orifice for 15-20 seconds- 70% alcohol
- Sample close teats then far away ones to avoid contamination
- Keep the sample container as close as possible to the horizontal
- Teat-dip afterwards
How can bacteriology be interpreted?
- Pure growth of bacteria- causal- good technique
- Major pathogen and minor- major causal
- More then three bacteria- contaminated sample
- No growth- intermittent shed (S. aureus)
What is the 5 point plan for mastitis control?
- Post milking teat disinfection
- Dry cow therapy
- Prompt treatment of clinical cases
- Cull chronic cases
- Maintain and use milking machine properly
What is the 5 point plan for mastitis control?
- Post milking teat disinfection
- Dry cow therapy
- Prompt treatment of clinical cases
- Cull chronic cases
- Maintain and use milking machine properly
What parlour routine should be implemented to control mastitis?
- Wear gloves
- Milking order/managment of high cell cows
- Fore-milking
- Pre-milking teat disinfection
- Ensure good milking machine function
- Post-milking teat dipping
- Post-milk loafing time
- Maintain good teat condition
What are contagious mastitis causing pathogens?
- Staphylococcus aureus
- Streptococcus agalactiae
- Streptococcus dysgalactiae
Cow to Cow during milking
How can staphylococcus aureus be treated?
- Treat for longer periods
- Base on C&S
- If near end of lactation- dry of early
- During lactation- extend therapy- 5-8 days of intramammary ABs, ± systemic
- Cull chronic
- What is the source of E.coli
- When does it cause infection?
- How can it be managed?
- Faeces, bedding
- Dry period and early lactation
- Housing, hygiene and comfort, pre-milking teat disinfection, loafing times, dry cow managment, vaccine?
- What is the source of streptococcus uberis?
- When does it cause mastitis?
- How is it managed?
- Environmental pathogen bedding manure
- Dry period, early lactation- persistent infections
- Housing, premilk disinfeciton, parlour hygiene, loafing, effective therapy, dry cow managment, vaccine?
What records do you need for a mastitis investigation?
- Clinical cases
- Tube usage
- Bulk tank SCC
- Bulk tank bactoscan
- Individual cell count records
Bacteriology
What should be analysed when investigating mastitis problem?
- No of clinical cases
- % herd affected
- Recurrence rate
- Seasonality
- Stage of lactation
- Numbers of heifer calving down with high SCC
- % protected in dry period
- % treated in dry period
What nutrition is worth investigating for mastitis problems?
- Dry cow nutrition
- Mineral status
- Evidence of NEB
- Evidence of SARA
- Milk fever problems
