An Observational Transversal Study on the Prevalence of Staphylococcal Intramammary Infections After Calving in Primiparous vs. Multiparous Cows Milked Using an Automatic Milking System

摘要

The dry period is a critical period for acquiring new intramammary infections (IMI) and these may still be present at calving. First lactation cows may also have IMIs at calving, and these may be acquired during different stages of their development (Naqvi et al., 2018). Condas et al. (2017) reported a high quarter level prevalence of staphylococci IMI at calving (30%) in conventionally milked herds, and different IMI prevalence between first lactation (35%) and mature cows (25%). The objective of the current study is to compare the species-specific prevalence of staphylococcal IMI at calving in primiparous compared to multiparous dairy cows in herds using an automatic milking system (AMS).