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Effect of management practices and animal age on incidence of mastitis in Nili Ravi buffaloes

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Abstract

Buffalo is an economically important dairy animal in South Asia but mostly ignored in research priorities. In this retrospective study, the effect of management practices and age of animal on the incidence of mastitis in Nili Ravi buffaloes was investigated. A total of 1,560 quarters of buffaloes (n = 390) were screened by visual examination of the udder and milk (clinical mastitis) and California mastitis test (subclinical mastitis). Household data was collected on a predesigned questionnaire and analyzed. The prevalence of subclinical mastitis, clinical mastitis, and blind quarters was 41.8, 13.6, and 9.7 %, respectively. The highest prevalence was noted in the hind quarters and left side as compared to that in the forequarters and right side. This data significantly (p < 0.05) supported the idea that larger herd size has more chances of mastitis, with the highest prevalence (40, 32, and 27 %) in the large, medium, and small herds, respectively. Stage of lactation was significantly (p < 0.01) involved in mastitis, and the highest incidence (43.3 %) was noted in early lactation. Milk production of lactating buffaloes that ranged 6–10 l/day showed a higher rate of mastitis occurrence (p < 0.05). The cleanliness condition of a farm also contributed significantly. Animal age significantly affected the incidence of mastitis. Results revealed that age of the animal has a positive correlation (R 2 = 0.772) with mastitis. This study concluded that some factors alone or in combination with other factors influence significantly the occurrence of mastitis, and to minimize the infection, these factors should be considered. The outcome of the study will be valuable for policy-making for positive management practices and implementation of preventive measures.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge the support of Dr. Ghufran Ullah, Director General (Research), and Dr. Kisroa Kalim, Livestock and Dairy Development Department, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Pakistan, for valuable advice and friendly provision of facilities at Livestock Research and Development Station, D.I. Khan.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no competing interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Veterinary Medicine, China Agricultural University, Yuan Ming Yuan West Road No. 2, Haidian District, 100193, Beijing, People’s Republic of China

    Tariq Ali & Bo Han

  2. Faculty of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Sciences, The University of Agriculture, Peshawar, Pakistan

    Abdur Rahman, Muhammand Subhan Qureshi, Muhammad Tariq Hussain & Siraj Uddin

  3. Gomal College of Veterinary Sciences, Gomal University, Dera Ismail Khan, Pakistan

    Muhammad Shauib Khan

  4. Livestock Research and Development, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Peshawar, Pakistan

    Muhammad Iqbal

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  1. Tariq Ali
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  2. Abdur Rahman
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  3. Muhammand Subhan Qureshi
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  4. Muhammad Tariq Hussain
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  5. Muhammad Shauib Khan
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  7. Muhammad Iqbal
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  8. Bo Han
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Correspondence to Bo Han.

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Ali, T., Rahman, A., Qureshi, M.S. et al. Effect of management practices and animal age on incidence of mastitis in Nili Ravi buffaloes. Trop Anim Health Prod 46, 1279–1285 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-014-0641-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-014-0641-2

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