Animal Health: Preventative early diagnosis

Focusing treatment on ‘cell count millionaires’ was rarely economical, yet it was these cows which vets and farmers often focused on.

“Yes, you can make an impact on bulk cell counts by drying them off and taking them out of the system, but if you concentrate on treating these cows, you often ignore those that could more readily and economically be helped,” said Mr Biggs.

Melting pot

Cows with cell counts under 500,000 were a ‘melting pot’ of infection and would only go on to become the next cell count millionaires if left untreated, with underlying causes being ignored.

Even 200,000 SCC cows could be masking ‘hidden infection’, said Mr Biggs, giving an example of a cow with three low cell count quarters at 50,000, an overall cell count of 200,000, and one infected quarter at 650,000.

“Most cows in the early stages of infection only have one bad quarter,” said Mr Biggs. “So use the California Milk Test to identify them. Try to pinpoint the offending bug. Treat and manage it accordingly to damp down infection.”

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