Milk Somatic Cell Count and Polymorphonuclear Cells in Healthy Quarters of Cows That Underwent Blanket and Selective Dry Therapy: An Italian Case Study

The incidence of mastitis increases with parity in dairy cattle and multiparous cows are often treated at drying off to limit the risk of udder health issues and support mammary gland tissues recovery. Milk somatic cells count (SCC, cells/mL) comprises different white blood cells fractions and is worldwide used to monitor and genetically improve udder health. Nevertheless, only certain SCC fractions increase when an udder inflammation occurs. Considering that antibiotic use for preventive purposes will be forbidden in 2022, we compared two different dry therapy protocols, blanket (BDCT) and selective (SDCT), on different SCC fractions in healthy quarters milk. Multiparous Holstein cows were enrolled in a randomized controlled trial and SCC, neutrophils, macrophages, lymphocytes, polymorphonuclear cells (PMN) and differential somatic cell count (DSCC) recorded after the experimental drying off were available. Significant differences were observed between the two protocols, with more favorable parameters in BDCT than SDCT cows. Results showed that moving from BDCT to SDCT is expected to significantly increase some SCC fractions, such as PMN, in healthy quarters. The baseline SCC level at the onset of lactation was greater in cows under SDCT than BDCT. Although not significant, clinical mastitis prevalence was numerically lower in BDCT (7.32%) than SDCT (8.62%). In this study we referred to a limited number of cows, but still findings will be useful to improve the knowledge on the impact of SDCT on milk SCC fractions in healthy quarters.