Ep. 165 - Methods of Processing Recycled Manure Solids Bedding on Midwest Dairy Farms I: Associations with Bedding Bacteria Counts, Milk Quality, Udder Health and Milk Production - Sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim

Have You Herd? AABP PodCasts

AABP Executive Director Dr. Fred Gingrich is joined by AABP President Dr. Sandra Godden. This episode of Have You Herd is sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim and their portfolio of 3600 mastitis coverage. Find out more at this link.

Dr. Godden was an author on the paper published in the AABP peer-reviewed journal, The Bovine Practitioner. The journal’s target audience is practicing cattle veterinarians, providing research that is clinically relevant, and is available open-access in a searchable format where you can download PDF’s of articles at this link.

We start our conversation by discussing recycled manure solids as a bedding for dairy cows and why producers may find this bedding choice attractive. Godden encourages veterinarians to get involved in the discussion to assist producers with their milk quality programs, including bedding choices and how to best make them work for that farm. This study investigated four different processing methods of recycled manure solids on 29 Midwest dairy farms: green, digested, mechanically drum composted and hot air drum dryers. Godden discusses the methods of this study and offered practical tips for veterinarians to submit bedding samples for quantitative cultures of pathogens of interest. The number one tip is to be consistent so you can compare your results.

This study looked at the relationship between recycled manure solids processing methods and bedding bacteria counts, bulk tank bacteria counts, udder health and milk production. This study identifies some of the potential risk factors associated with the various processing methods but Godden reminds us that mastitis is a multi-factorial problem and veterinarians should be familiar with complete investigations on farms to ensure that all factors, including bedding type, are included.

Links:

Godden, S., Royster, E., Crooker, B., Timmerman, J., & Peña Mosca, F. (2023). Methods of processing recycled manure solids bedding on Midwest dairy farms I: Associations with bedding bacteria counts, milk quality, udder health and milk production. The Bovine Practitioner, 57(1), 10–20. https://doi.org/10.21423/bovine-vol57no1p10-20
University of Minnesota Laboratory for Udder Health

Bedding culture submission and interpretation guide