STUDIES ON SUBCLINICAL INTRAMAMMARY INFECTIONS IN BOVINES WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO SOMATIC CELL COUNT (SCC) AS A MASTITIS MARKER
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Date
2001
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AAU, Anand
Abstract
Intramammary infection (IMI) is considered a potential threat to dairy farmer, dairy industry as well as to the milk consumers. Of the two versions of the disease, subclinical IMI accounts for a majority of losses incurred on account of udder infections. The present study was conducted during September 1999 to February, 2000 at the Department of Veterinary Medicine, College of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry, Gujarat Agricultural University, Anand with a view to find out the incidence of subclinical IMI among cows and to work out the efficacy of somatic cell count as well as California mastitis test in detecting cases of insidious IMI by using bacteriological culture examination as reference test. An important part of the present investigation was to study the effects of various factors on somatic cell counts in milk samples from healthy quarters. On screening of 46 lactating cows belonging to the herd maintained at Livestock -Research Station, Anand, the overall incidence of subclinical IMI was observed to be 73.91 per cent. Quarterwise incidence was recorded at 43.47 per cent. Among infected quarters, rear and left-side quarters exhibited greater involvement. More frequent infection of single quarter was noticed than multiple quarters. Cows in their second lactation showed highest incidence of subclinical IMI. Similarly, cows in their early stage of lactation were found to be more frequently associated with insidious intramammary infections. Such infection was found to be more common among HF x J x K crossbred cows than other crosses. In cows which were administered dry-cow therapy at the end of their preceding lactation, quarterwise infection rate was found to be 43.75 per cent. Out of 80 infected quarters, 48 showed monomicrobic infection whereas mixed infection was observed in remaining 32 quarters. On microbiological culture examination, a total of 80 bacterial isolates were recovered which comprised of 24 isolates of CNS, 17 of Micrococcus spp., 11 each of E. coh'and coagulate-positive staphylococci, 6 each of Klebsiella spp. and Bacillus spp., 4 each of Str. agalactiae and Str. uteris, 3 of Enterobacteriaceae family (other than E. coli and Klebsiella spp.), one each of Str. dysgalactiae and Pseudomonas spp. Among 32 fungal isolates, 9 isolates of yeast (Candida spp.), 7 of A. niger, 5 of Aspergillus spp., 4 each of A . fumigatus and Penicillium spp., 2 of Curvularia. spp. and one isolate of Chaetomium spp. were recovered on culture.
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VETERINARY MEDICINE, A STUDY