Results
Udder Health
Eighty-one percent of the producers reported practicing pre-milking teat disinfection. The most popular method of drying teats prior to milking (practiced by 80% of the producers) was use of individual paper or cloth towels. Post-milking teat disinfection was practiced by 137/147 (93%) of the producers. Approximately 92% and 7% of the producers practiced dry cow therapy on all quarters of all cows, and selective dry cow therapy respectively. Partial insertion of the teat cannula during administration of the dry cow therapy products was reported by 74% of the producers.
The majority of producers (78%) did not record the number of cases of clinical mastitis occurring on their farms. Sixty percent of the producers reported using intramammary tube products routinely to treat cases of clinical mastitis; and 52% said they practiced partial insertion of the teat cannula during that treatment. Twenty-eight percent of the producers reported using products from multi-dose containers for intramammary treatment of clinical mastitis. Only 14% of the producers had attended an informational meeting on mastitis control or a related topic during the 2 years prior to the study.