Time for drying off?

Time to dry off?

Does the dry weather mean it might be time for drying-off?

Points to consider:

• Feed availability
• Milk yield: cows producing less than 5L per day have noticeable changes in milk composition and quality. 
• Cow condition 

• Persistently high somatic cell count (SCC) contributes to bulk tank somatic cell count (BTSCC), which rises during late lactation.
• Teat lesions
• Slow milkers
• Cows producing <10L per day require no special preparation prior to drying-off.  
• Cows producing >10L per day:  for three days prior to drying off, reduce protein intake; for the week after, reduce the green feed intake by utilising maize and hay.  Reduce total DM intake but under NO circumstances withhold water.
• Drying-off abruptly is acceptable.  Milking every other day is strongly discouraged and it is not clear if milking once daily is beneficial or not.

The DO's and DON'Ts of DCT:

• Dry-cow therapy (DCT) should be inserted immediately after the last milking.
• Good technique is important: ensure teats are clean from debris; sanitise teats with teat wipes or equivalent; partial insertion (approximately one third) of the nozzle is best; teat spray is essential after DCT or the last milking for those drying-off with no DCT.
• Allow for each labour unit to treat 25-30 cows per hour, no faster.
• Mark cows and record treatment details.
• Don't leave cows in laneways or yards.
• Put cows in a clean paddock.

WHOLE or SELECTIVE DCT?

Herds that had a mastitis problem this year will most likely need to use DCT on the whole herd; otherwise deciding whether your herd has a level of infection requiring whole herd therapy is best left to the DCT consult.  Selective DCT is for herds with an ‘acceptable' level of mastitis and the criteria for DCT are as follows:

1. Cows over 150,000 ISCC on ANY herd test.
2. Heifers over 120,000 ISCC on ANY herd test.
3. Cows/heifers treated for clinical mastitis.
4. Cows/heifers with teat end lesions.

Selective DCT still leaves the low SCC cows susceptible to mastitis post-drying-off. So the number of cases at drying-off in previous years will be a factor in selecting this option.

Drying-off is an important part of the season and decisions made at this time can impact greatly on the following season.  The DCT consult is a good time to discuss your overall situation.