A new tool to help dairy farmers battle a major endemic disease of cattle has now been launched.
The tool, developed by AHDB Dairy and the University of Nottingham, aims to help farmers make better decision about mastitis management in their herds.
Mastitis is the inflammation of the mammary gland and udder tissue, and is a major endemic disease of dairy cattle.
It usually occurs as an immune response to bacterial invasion of the teat canal by variety of bacterial sources present on the farm, and can also occur as a result of chemical, mechanical, or thermal injury to the cow's udder.
Mastitis treatment and control is one of the largest costs to the dairy industry in the UK, and is also a significant factor in dairy cow welfare.
However, it is hoped the new tool will give farmers and vets a better understanding of the mastitis patterns in the herd.
Udder health
The Mastitis Pattern Tool identifies problem areas and potential risks to udder health and gives farmers and their veterinary adviser a way of tracking progress in the herd.
Dr Jenny Gibbons, Senior Dairy Scientist at AHDB explained: “As an industry, and within dairy businesses we generate an immense amount of data associated with mastitis.
“The challenge comes when trying to utilise this data to make informed decisions to combat mastitis within dairy herds.
“This tool provides a fully automated method of assessing the predominant mastitis infection patterns present on farm, using somatic cell count (SCC) and clinical mastitis records,” she said.
'Effectively track'
The tool produces a mastitis pattern report that allows farmers and vets to assess and prioritise key management areas and potentially detect emerging problems
Professor Martin Green from the University of Nottingham added: “In the past, it was difficult to recognise mastitis problems in herds until an outbreak emerged. But the Mastitis Pattern Tool gives you the ability to effectively track the udder health of your herd.”
The tool uses cow SCC and clinical mastitis treatment records. Milk recording herds are at an advantage as cow SCC information is readily available.
Using the tool, records are converted and merged into a simple output allowing farmers to assess the patterns of mastitis in the herd.
