Persistence of Mycoplasma bovis in the Mammary Gland of Naturally Infected Dairy Cows

Abstract

Observations on persistence of Mycoplasma bovis intramammary infections, the effect of the infections on milk production in the current lactation and in subsequent lactations, and the risk of M. bovis infected cows housed and milk together with infected cows, were made on 4 New York State dairy herds with outbreaks of mycoplasma mastitis. The dairy management at each farm decided to maintain several infected cows in the herd, milking them either last or with a separate milking unit, because a majority of the cows had either high milk production or were registered with a high genetic value. The results of their decisions plus implications for dairy practitioners will be discussed in this presentation.