Relationship Between California Mastitis Test Reaction and Bacteriological Analyses of Stripping Samples

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Abstract
Quarter stripping samples were examined to compare the relationship between the degree of inflammation as indicated by the leukocyte count or the California Mastitis Test [CMT] reaction and the types and number of bacteria found in the sample. Both pathogenic and non-pathogenic isolations were made on 1,036 quarter milk samples. The percentage of quarters from which a pathogen or nonpathogen was isolated was determined for each individual test reaction. At least 1 type of potential pathogen was found in 6.0, 6.5, 27.3, 64.7, and 71.3% of the quarters showing negative, trace, 1, 2, and 3 mastitis test reactions, respectively. The nonpathogens were found more frequently in quarters with low mastitis test reactions (negative, trace, and 1) than in quarters with high mastitis test reactions (2 and 3). There appears to be a relationship between the CMT reaction of a particular quarter and the types of bacteria isolated from that quarter. Comparisons also were made between bacterial counts and leucocyte counts. A general relationship appeared to exist, but only a small portion of the leukocyte variation was associated with variation in bacterial numbers.