Characterization of management practices used on Kentucky dairy farms with low somatic cell counts

The objective of this research was to summarize management practices used by Kentucky dairy herds with low SCC. Herds with an annual mean SCC < 250,000 cells/mL were identified from Dairy Herd Improvement Association (DHIA) and milk-cooperative records. A 54-question survey was mailed to 71 producers, with 48 producers (67.6%) responding. Lactating herd size ranged from 25 to 2,000 cows, with a mean (± SD) of 145 ± 297. Mean (± SD) DHIA SCC and producer-reported SCC were 190,333 ± 36,281 (n = 27) and 223,475 ± 71,257 (n = 40) cells/mL, respectively. Housing facilities included freestalls, tie-stalls, compost bedded packs, bedded packs, and no housing. The most common management practices incorporated by these producers were postdipping (100.0%, n = 47), drying teats before attaching milkers (95.8%, n = 46), predipping (91.7%, n = 44), dry treating all quarters of all cows (85.4%, n = 41), incorporating DHIA as an SCC management tool (83.3%, n = 40), using individual towels to dry teats (77.1%, n = 37), receiving bulk-tank SCC (77.1%, n = 37), and trimming hooves at least annually (75.0%, n = 36). When asked to identify the management practice that contributed the most to their low SCC, the most frequently cited practices were (1) keeping cows and facilities clean (n = 31), (2) maintaining dry, clean bedding (n = 14), (3) adhering to a consistent milking routine (n = 10), (4) forestripping (n = 7), and (5) pre- and postdipping (n = 7).