Impact of post milking teat dipping and Staphylococcus aureus vaccination on somatic cell count and serum antibody titre in Sahiwal cows

The study was carried out at the Livestock Experimental Station, Department of Livestock Management, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad to investigate the effect of lodophore post milking teat dip (Germ IODTM Cenavisa S.A. Laboratories, Fair International Trading Co., Karachi, Pakistan) and Dextran sulphate + aluminium hydroxide (DXS+AL (OH3) adjuvanted Staphylococcus aureus mastitis vaccine on somatic cell count (SCC) and serum antibody titre during a study period of 12 weeks. Twenty Sahiwal cows apparently free of mastitis were selected and put on 4 treatments such as: A =control; B = teat dipping only; C = Vaccination only; D= teat dipping +vaccination. Post milking teat dipping was done for a contact time of 30 seconds/teat. Mastitis vaccine prepared by the Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery was administered IM C 5ml /cow at neck region twice in 4 weeks interval. Milk and blood samples were collected on the day of primary vaccination (day 0) and then on monthly basis. These samples were collected aseptically and transported to Mastitis Research Lab, Dept. of Clinical Medicine & Surgery University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan for the determination of SCC and serum antibody titres using Indirect Haemagglutination Inhibition Test. Maximum reduction in SCC was found due to teat dipping plus vaccination (62.71%; Treatment D), followed by dipping only (53.49%; Treatment B) and vaccination only (52.94%; Treatment C). However, a significant increase of 59.91% in SCC was found in control cows (Treatment A) at the end of trial. Serum antibody titre (Geometric Mean Titre) increased due to teat dipping /vaccination but a gradual decline was found in control cows. The increase in GMT was more prominent in D group and maintained up to the end of the trial.