Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus agalactiae predominate in mastitis cases in dairy herds from southern La Guajira, Colombia
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.30972/vet.3719609Keywords:
Bacteria, somatic cell count, cattle, raw milk (Source: MeSH, DeCS)Abstract
The aim of this study was to determine the occurrence of bovine mastitis and its relationship with milking practices, pathogenic bacteria, and somatic cell count in dairy herds from southern La Guajira, Colombia. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted using non-probability convenience sampling. Factors influencing the hygienic and sanitary quality of milk were characterized by applying a data collection instrument in seven dairy herds. A total of 104 milk samples were collected, and somatic cell counts were determined by flow cytometry. Pathogenic microorganisms causing clinical and subclinical mastitis were identified through bacteriological tests. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, and associations between mastitis-related factors and somatic cell count were evaluated using the chi-square test (p < 0.05). None of the evaluated herds implemented good milking practices. Based on somatic cell count, 63 % of mammary quarters were classified as healthy (10,000 to <200,000 cells/mL), 18 % had subclinical mastitis (200,000–500,000 cells/mL), 12 % had clinical mastitis (500,000–1,000,000 cells/mL), and 7% showed severe infection with counts exceeding 1,000,000 cells/milk. Nineteen bacterial isolates were obtained, of which 14 (73.6 %) were phenotypically identified as S. aureus and 5 (26.4 %) as S. agalactiae. The lack of good milking practices may contribute to the occurrence of both clinical and subclinical mastitis. S. aureus was the predominant pathogen, followed by S. agalactiae, highlighting the need to strengthen good milking practices and mastitis monitoring programs to improve udder health and milk quality.
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