Read more about how farmers and catchment groups can now use state-of-the-art monitoring that detects fish, insects, microbes, aquatic plants, terrestrial plants, and even birds from their genetic material being present in stream water.

Getting the cluster attachment and removal right is crucial during milking. It ensures that the milk is of good quality, prevents harm to the teats, and reduces the risk of mastitis.

The Mastitis Focus report helps you manage mastitis in your herd. This two-page report identifies problem areas and risks to udder health, letting you and your veterinary advisers track changes.

Here you’ll learn about ways to make your herringbone dairy more effective, often for little or no extra cost. The swing-over herringbone is the most common dairy type in New Zealand, used on 69% of dairy farms.

Teat spraying is a method to prevent mastitis in cows, focusing on the correct coverage and preparation of the teat spray solution. If not done properly, it can be wasteful and ineffective.

At the end of lactation, dairy cows require a dry period to allow udder tissue to repair and rejuvenate. The recommendation is that all cows are protected from mastitis during the dry period.

Mastitis management in dairy farming requires constant review and planning to control the condition in your herd.

Apart from milk culture, individual cow somatic cell counts (ICSCCs) are the best method for determining whether cows have subclinical mastitis.

Moving animals on and off a farm has its risks. A common way for cow-associated mastitis bacteria to be introduced into a herd is in the udders of cows that are brought in.

Bulk milk somatic cell count (BMSCC) refers to the concentration of cells (expressed as cells/mL) present in the vat or bulk milk. It is used as an indirect way of estimating the level of subclinical mastitis in the herd.