D A I R Y I n i t i a t i v e s N E W S L E T T E R
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Clean Up Your Act

by JEFF RENEAU
University of Minnesota

Recent University of Minnesota research indicates there is a direct correlation between cow cleanliness and SCC. We scored 1,096 cows in nine dairy herds for cleanliness and looked at the scores and SCC for each cow. The study found the cleaner the udders and/or rear feet and legs, the lower the SCC. In addition, a study in the Netherlands showed that herds with bulk tank SCC less than 150,000 had four times fewer dry cows with dirty udders than herds with bulk tank SCC greater than 250,000.

How clean are your cows? If environmental mastitis pathogens are the cause of your high bulk tank SCC, you could lower your herd average SCC 40,000 to 50,000 just by improving cow cleanliness by 1 unit cleanliness score. Many herds in Minnesota could lower bulk tank SCC 100,000 just by having cleaner cows.

Scoring Cow Cleanliness

COW CLEANLINESS SCORING is a subjective method of assessing cow cleanliness. A score of 1 indicates a cow is absolutely clean, while a score of 5 indicates a very dirty cow.

This scoring method is useful because what appears dirty to one person may appear "normal" to another. Being able to put a number to a cleanliness condition will become increasingly important as higher expectations by consumers motivate dairies to further safeguard food quality and safety by improving cow cleanliness.

Get a free copy of the Cow Cleanliness Score Card at www.ansci.umn.edu/dairy/toolbox/ toolbox.htm. See how your cows measure up.

D A I R Y I n i t i a t i v e s N E W S L E T T E R
Volume 12 Issue 1 Spring 2003