7 Simple steps to make Selective Dry Cow Therapy common practice for your herd.

From 28th of January 2022 blanket use of antibiotic dry cow tubes will be prohibited. This regulatory change means that veterinary proof will be required when administering antibiotic treatment.

Selective Dry Cow Therapy will inevitably become mandatory; therefore, it is important that simple steps are taken early to make this common practice for your herd.

Selective Dry Cow Therapy (SDCT) means selecting suitable animals to receive antibiotic treatment at drying off, allowing the remainder to receive teat sealer only.

Key Considerations for SDCT:

  • Carry out regular milk recording (minimum of 4 per lactation) with at least one test 30 days before drying off. Your herd should maintain a monthly bulk tank SCC of less than 200,000 cells/ml.
  • Regularly check your Milk Recording SCC profile to identify cows with an SCC of greater than 100,000 cells/ml throughout their lactation.
  • It is critically important to record your mastitis cases. Cows with no history of clinical mastitis may be considered suitable for teat sealer only. Cows with records of clinical mastitis and/or an SCC of greater than 100,000 cells/ml should receive the appropriate antibiotic treatment. Record your cases of mastitis and treatment(s) on www.icbf.com. Simply select ‘Record Events’ ‘Health & Disease’
  • Using the California Mastitis Test (CMT) on all cows that have been selected to receive NO antibiotics at dry off will act as added ‘security’.
  • Good hygiene practices at drying off are paramount for successful SDCT
  • Strict selection and regular data recording will ensure responsible antibiotic usage
  • Discuss and plan SDCT with your vet

Are you recording your dry off date and treatment?

The drying off process is of great importance. By recording a cows’ dry off date you are completing her lactation on your HerdPlus and Milk Recording reports. As a result, her lactation details will be available for pedigree certificates, sales catalogues and your Annual Report.

Recording dry off treatments will enable you to spot trends and changes in the performance of your herd and better select cows suitable for SDCT in the future.

For more information about recording dry offs click the link