Travels with Headcase

Recently in Nursing school, my colleague Summer mentioned  the use of rBGH (growth hormone) in livestock.

Having grown up in Montana on a small ranch, I was curious about mastitis. My family raised cattle and milked our cows by hand, but rarely ever had outbreaks of mastitis…so my ‘Luddite suspicion’ was that cows were getting mastitis because modern milking machines are being too rough on their teats, OR they are milking them too much!  This is not the case at all.

a girl and her cow...

“The primary cause of mastitis in cattle, goats and sheep are well-recognized groups of microorganisms: Streptococcus sp., Staphylococcus sp., Pasteurella sp. and coliforms, Escherichia coli, Enterobacter sp., and Klebsiella sp.” These organisms like wet, warm, dark places found in dirty bedding and crowded quarters. (Mastitis, 2008)  Of course, the same bugs people get diseases from! The rGBH must be creating an environment where the pathogens overtake the normal flora of the glands and ducts of the teat. See image below:

While the article never mentions milking machines, it did say that prevention of mastitis requires your animals’ quarters be clean and dry. (Mastitis, 2008)

**Care for some Air and Light, Florence?**

So in the end, whether you are caring for animals or people, the rules for cleanliness are the same – absolutely necessary.

Now I finally understand the purpose for my constant barn cleaning regimen over the years – It wasn’t just mom trying to find me a way to stay out of the house; it was animal nursing, trying to actively prevent diseases in our animals.

source:

Mastitis in the Ewe Swartz, Helen A., Ph.D, State Sheep, Goat and Small Livestock Specialist. June 10, 2008. Retrieved on May, 2010 from: http://www.case-agworld.com/cAw.LUmast.html