Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t8hqh Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-30T20:43:08.354Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The association between clinical mastitis and milk yield in dairy cows

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 September 2010

S. Lucey  and
G. J. Rowlands
S. Lucey
Affiliation:
AFRC Institute for Research on Animal Diseases, Compton, Newbury, Berkshire RG16 0NN
G. J. Rowlands
Affiliation:
AFRC Institute for Research on Animal Diseases, Compton, Newbury, Berkshire RG16 0NN
Get access

Abstract

A study of 1514 lactations that occurred between 1977 and 1982 in 790 Friesian, Ayrshire and Holstein crossbred cows was undertaken. One thousand and eighty-four of these lactations were used to consider the association between the occurrence of clinical mastitis and changes in milk yield, and to illustrate a technique that enables the previous lactation history of a cow to be used for estimating changes associated with the disease.

The lactation curves were described using the model y(n) = anbe−cn from which values for peak yield, persistency, rate of decline at week 25, and recorded and extrapolated 305-day yield were calculated. A significant correlation between successive lactations of the same animal was observed for each of these variables. Pairs of successive lactations free from clinical mastitis were then compared by regression analysis with lactations in which the preceding lactation was free from the disease whilst the second lactation of the pair was infected.

Significant reductions in peak yield, recorded and extrapolated 305-day yield were found when mastitis occurred before the week of peak yield. A reduction in recorded 305-day yield was also observed when the disease occurred between peak and 10 weeks after peak. Mastitis later in the lactation had no significant effect.

The mean reduction in recorded 305-day yield of 540 kg when mastitis occurred before peak for a cow with a mean yield of 4830 kg, was higher than previous estimates. No evidence of recovery was observed in subsequent lactations that were free of clinical infection, indicating that once a cow has contracted mastitis it may not achieve its full milk-yield potential in the next lactation.

Type
Research Article
Information
Animal Production , Volume 39 , Issue 2 , October 1984 , pp. 165 - 175
Copyright
Copyright © British Society of Animal Science 1984

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Blosser, T. H. 1979. Economic losses from and the National Research program on mastitis in the United States. J. Dairy Sci. 62: 119–127.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bunch, K. J., Heneghan, D. J. S., Hibbitt, K. G. and Rowlands, G. J. 1984. Genetic influences on clinical mastitis and its relationship with milk yield, season and stage of lactation. Livest. Prod. Sci. 11: 91–104.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cobo-Abreu, R., Martin, S. W., Stone, J. B. and Willoughby, R. A. 1979a. The rates and patterns of survivorship and disease in a university dairy herd. Can. vet. J. 20: 177–183.Google Scholar
Cobo-Abreu, R., Martin, S. W., Willoughby, R. A. and Stone, J. B. 1979b. The association between disease, production and culling in a university dairy herd. Can. vet. J. 20: 191–195.Google Scholar
Crowe, A. and Crowe, A. 1974. Mathematics for Biologists. Academic Press, London.Google Scholar
Epidemiology Unit, Central Veterinary Laboratory. 1981. Mastitis surveillance scheme: July to December 1980. Vet. Rec. 109: 27.Google Scholar
Forster, T. L., Ashworth, U. S. and Luedecke, L. O. 1967. Relationship between California Mastitis Test reaction and production and composition of milk from opposite quarters. J. Dairy Sci. 50: 675–682.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Janzen, J. J. 1970. Economic losses resulting from mastitis. A review. J. Dairy Sci. 53: 1151–1161.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
King, J. O. L. 1969. The effects of different bacterial infections causing mastitis on the yield and quality of cow's milk. Br. vet. J. 125: 57–62.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lamb, R. C. and McGilliard, L. D. 1967. Usefulness of past records to estimate the breeding values of dairy cattle. J. Dairy Sci. 50: 1459–1467.Google Scholar
Lucey, S., Rowlands, G. J., Russell, A. M., Foster, S. R., Wicks, B. T., Parsons, S. T. A. and Stimpson, P. M. 1983. Use of COSREEL, a computerised recording system for herd health management of two dairy herds. Vet. Rec. 113: 294–298.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Natzke, R. P., Everett, R. W., Guthrie, R. S., Keown, J. F., Meek, A. M., Merrill, W. G., Roberts, S. J. and Schmidt, G. H. 1972. Mastitis Control Program: effect on milk production. J. Dairy Sci. 55: 1256–1260.Google Scholar
Rowlands, G. J. 1982. The use of herd health records in veterinary investigation. In Epidemiology in Animal Health, pp. 63–72. Society for Veterinary Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, Reading.Google Scholar
Rowlands, G. J., Lucey, S. and Russell, A. M. 1982. A comparison of different models of the lactation curve in dairy cattle. Anim. Prod. 35: 135–144.Google Scholar
Rowlands, G. J., Lucey, S., Russell, A. M., Wicks, B. T. and Stimpson, P. M. 1983. The use of the COSREEL veterinary codes by two veterinary surgeons in practice. Vet. Rec. 113: 336–339.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Russell, A. M. and Rowlands, G. J. 1983. COSREEL Computerised recording system for herd health information management. Vet. Rec. 112: 189–193.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sikka, L. C. 1950. A study of lactation as affected by heredity and environment. J. Dairy Res. 17: 231–252.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Venkateswara Rao, M., Katpatal, B. G. and Bisht, G. S. 1980. Predicting succeeding complete lactation from the past records of a preceding lactation. Indian J. Anim. Sci. 50: 11–15.Google Scholar
Wood, P. D. P. 1967. Algebraic model of the lactation curve in cattle. Nature, Lond. 216: 164–165.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wood, P. D. P. 1970. A note on the repeatability of parameters of the lactation curve in cattle. Anim. Prod. 12: 535–538.Google Scholar
Wood, P. D. P. and Booth, J. M. 1983. Variation in milk cell counts during lactation of British Friesian cattle. Anim. Prod. 36: 335–339.Google Scholar