Good Practice based on Current Knowledge

• Maintain a good mastitis recording system and monitor records regularly;
• Provide encouragement, training and recognition for the herdsman/woman;
• Do not aim at highest possible milk yields;
• Limit your antibiotic use to a minimum, but use them when they can be of help (e.g. Streptococcus agalactiae infection in the herd; first and second lactation cows with clinical, non-chronic mastitis that is sensitive to antibiotics);
• Breed heifer calves from healthy cows with good longevity and conformation;
• Maintain good foot health and a closed herd policy;
• Keep your herd free of BVD (Bovine Viral Diarrhoea) and other contagious diseases that may impair immune function;
• Don’t stress your cows: keep the cows in stable groups, keep a separate heifer group for introduction into the milking herd, allow adequate space and good housing conditions, don’t let the cows suffer from energy deficit in early lactation and keep a good herdsman/woman;
• Keep the milking machine serviced and follow the rules of good milking hygiene; and
• Keep the housing conditions as clean and dry as possible: don’t use wet straw, bed as often as you can, assess the cleanliness of your cows regularly during the housing period - if they are dirty, find out why.

• Sample all cases of mastitis for bacteriology in order to identify the causative agents (see Practical Advice in the recommendations for the conversion period);
• Eradicate Streptococcus agalactiae infections as soon as they are identified (ask your vet for advice);
• If Staphylococcus aureus is present in the herd, plan a strategy to minimise it: use scrupulous milking hygiene, both pre- and post-dipping the teats and disinfecting the clusters after high SCC cows, cull chronically infected cows, use targeted antibiotic dry cow therapy, separate infected and high SCC cows into their own milking group; and
• Practise a closed herd policy: if you have to buy in replacements, isolate them for a minimum of 7 days, sample all quarters for bacteriology or require a proof of mastitis status before purchase, include in the main herd first when udder health status clear; also speak to your vet about other diseases, including BVD, mentioned above.

• Maintain good housing hygiene: dry and clean bedding daily, respond to changes in weather by increasing bedding when very wet, make sure that you use dry straw, scrape the floors more often, increase straw yard size if needed, avoid water troughs in the bedded area, train the heifers to use cubicles correctly etc.;
• Do not allow the cows access to bedding until 30 minutes after milking; and
• Make sure that the minimum space (1.2 sqm.100 kg BW) is allowed in all cow groups.

• Maintain a system of a monthly individual cow SCC recording to identify chronically high SCC cows and to cull or treat them;
• Minimise contagious mastitis;
• Withdraw the milk long enough after a case of clinical mastitis, even when alternative medication with no withdrawal period is used: use the Californian Mastitis Test to determine when the milk is ready to go back to the tank or use a quarter milker;
• Consider putting high SCC cows to be suckled by calves until SCC levels reduced (test with CMT; see Practical Advice in the guidelines for the conversion period); and
• Maintain your bulk tank SCC well below 300,000 cells/ml continuously: continuous levels of 280,000 – 300,000 cells/ml should prompt action to find out the cause for these high levels.

• Use CMT or other cow side tests to identify suspected cases/quarters immediately;
• Consider installing an in-line mastitis detection system if you are renewing your parlour;
• Always use udder creams (Uddermint™ or Golden Udder™) or cold water massage (minimum of ten minutes per treatment) and frequent stripping to alleviate the pain of swelling and local symptoms in the udder.