The housed period for many farms has begun, while others are continuing to get cows out to grass for short periods during the day.
With cows now being housed, the potential bacterial load placed on them could be much more significant compared to when at grass.
The majority of dairy cows will spend the winter months lying on cubicles, which are a potential source of mastitis if not properly managed.
An effective control for mastitis-causing bacteria on these cubicles is lime.
Lime
Lime is an effective product to control bacteria on the cubicles as it increases the pH of the cubicle bed surface, which suppresses bacterial growth.
It is recommended that 170g hydrated lime/cubicle is used twice daily during the housed period.
All excess dung, dirty or moisture should be scraped off the cubicles before new lime is applied.
With many cows on farms going to be getting selective dry cow therapy (SDCT) it is important that this is done correctly and hygiene levels are maintained during the dry period.
For farms that have cows dried-off using sealer only it is important that each of these cows has a cubicle.
Ideally, there should be extra cubicles in a shed, but at the very least each cow should have a cubicle.
In a situation where you are short of cubicles, cows that only received sealer should get priority access to them.
Cubicle shed
It is also important that you ensure that scrapers in the shed are working properly and are turned on regularly.
Excess build-up of dung is not advised as it increases the number of bacteria present within the shed.
Some part of the shed such as corners can often see a build-up of dung occur. These should be removed regularly.
Using lime is important, but it will not help in a situation with too many other factors, including the number of bacteria in the shed.