Factors associated with mastitis epidemiologic indexes, animal hygiene, and bulk milk bacterial concentrations in dairy herds housed on compost bedding

Abstract

a b s t r a c tThe primary objective of this study was to identify compost bedding characteristics associated with mastitis epidemiologic indexes, cow cleanliness, and concentration of selected bacterial populations found in bulk tank milk. Secondary objectives were to monitor the occurrence of environmental mastitis outbreaks, and to describe the profile of pathogens isolated from mastitis cases of cows housed in the CBP system. Three dairies were visited monthly during 1 year. On each visit day, milk samples were collected from the bulk tank and from a sample of mammary quarters for microbiological examination. Milk samples were collected from all cases of clinical mastitis. Flank, leg, udder, and teat cleanliness were assessed using a score chart based on a 4-point scale (1 ¼ clean to 4 ¼very dirty). Bedding samples were collected to estimate concentrations of total bacteria, streptococci, and coliforms, moisture, organic matter, carbon-nitrogen ratio, pH, and density. Mixed models were used to identify factors associated with incidence and prevalence of mastitis, and cow cleanliness. Except for farm A, on which contagious pathogens caused most cases, Escherichia coli, coagulase-negative staphylococci, and environmental streptococci were the most frequent pathogens isolated from clinical mastitis cases. Corynebacterium bovis was the most frequent pathogen isolated from subclinical cases of farms B (17.6) and C (26.0%). Environmental pathogens were isolated from 17.2%, 10.1%, and 14.8% of all subclinical cases of farms, A, B, and C, respectively. No outbreaks of environmental mastitis were observed during the course of the study. Bedding moisture, carbon-nitrogen ratio, pH, and dry density were unconditionally associated with the incidence of environmental clinical mastitis. Nonetheless, bedding moisture remained as a sole predictor in the final model. The odds of a case of environmental clinical mastitis increased 5.7% for each one-unit increase in bedding moisture. The odds of a new case of subclinical mastitis, and of a cow having SCC Z200,000 cells/mL increased 32% and 16% for each one-unit increase in leg cleanliness score, respectively. Overall means for udder, teat, flank, and leg hygiene scores were less than 2.1 for all farms and did not vary among seasons of the year. Bedding wet density was positively associated with all cleanliness scores and bulk milk concentration of total bacteria. Results suggest that managing bedding to remain dry and loose will result in cleaner animals with decreased risk of mastitis.

Microbial Community and Its Association With Physicochemical Factors During Compost Bedding for Dairy Cows

“…The large quantities of animal manure produced in livestock industry lead to serious environmental challenges. Compost bedding (CB) has been increasingly used worldwide to confine dairy cows (Weinberg et al, 2011;Favero et al, 2015;Eckelkamp et al, 2016). CB is typically prepared for improved cow comfort and relieves restrictions in standard stalls (Lobeck et al, 2011;Favero et al, 2015;Eckelkamp et al, 2016).…”

“…Compost bedding (CB) has been increasingly used worldwide to confine dairy cows (Weinberg et al, 2011;Favero et al, 2015;Eckelkamp et al, 2016). CB is typically prepared for improved cow comfort and relieves restrictions in standard stalls (Lobeck et al, 2011;Favero et al, 2015;Eckelkamp et al, 2016). Studies have shown that CB positively effects lactating cows, and may be beneficial for non-lactating cows as well (Endres and Barberg, 2007;Astiz et al, 2014;Biasato et al, 2019).…”

Production of recycled manure solids for bedding in Canadian dairy farms: I. Solid–liquid separation

“…The centrifuge used in this study obtained the lowest treatment capacity despite greatest acquisition cost and energy consumption. In addition, it produced structurefine RMS and a low-quality liquid manure that could lead to negative consequences for farm economics such as mastitis (Hauge et al, 2012;Fávero et al, 2015) and second-rate homegrown feed ingredients (Thomas and Miner, 1996;Leduc and Robert, 1997), respectively.…”

Penyuluhan Pengelolaan Sistem Pemeliharaan Dan Kesehatan Pada Sapi Perah Di Kelompok Ternak Wibawa Mekar, Desa Gunung Manik, Sumedang, Jawa Barat

“…Dampak kerugian penyakit mastits adalah penurunan kualitas dan kuantitas susu. Pengelolaan sistim pemeliharaan kesehatan pada sapi perah meliputi sistim manajemen perkandangan dan pakan, sistim manajemen pemerahan dan sanitasi lingkungan perkandangan (Fávero et al, 2015). Komponen penting yang berperan dalam terwujudnya kualitas dan kuantitas susu yang baik adalah manajemen pemliharaan sapi, sanitasi perkandangan dan higienitas pemerah (Verhaeghe et al, 2015).…”