Battling Staph

D and L Meadows

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Every year around this time when its cold and wet, we battle staph in our milking herd of goats. Nothing serious, just randomly comes and goes. We bed deep with straw and keep it as dry as possible. We've tried a disinfectant in the wash water, individual paper towels to wash, and nu-stock. Nothing really seems to cut it. Any suggestions?
 

Beekissed

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You might consider milking dry? This lady explains it on this vid....


Another thing many dairies are doing is placing ACV in the water....has found it has helped drastically reduce mastitis.


A good emollient rubbed into the teats can also help for prevention....one such that would be good is castor oil. It's a natural antibacterial, antimicrobial, antifungal that also removes inflammation from the tissues while speeding healing of wounds and tiny fissures that may be present. Most preparations for mastitis include castor oil and aloe, so you could just make your own or mix both into some bag balm for a thicker solution.

This article says you can reduce staph infections by 50% by washing teats AFTER milking...says it's usually transmitted by hands and rags.


If you aren't already, you could try using sea kelp meal for your loose mineral, mixed with salt. That's supposed to be good for preventing mastitis as well.

Maybe even, instead of straw, you could try a working DL for your bedding....it tends to promote good bacteria instead of bad and will also help control moisture levels more efficiently.

Plenty of good ventilation in the sheds will also help...winter time tends to be a breeding ground for germs due to folks trying to conserve heat and keeping out drafts, but a good passive air flow in at the bottom and out at the top can help move stale, moist air out of shelters and barns.
 

D and L Meadows

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Thank you so much Beekissed!! Very helpful info!
State regulations for grade A does not allow dry milking. Grrr..
We will try castor oil with aloe and washing off after milking. Good idea.
We used to feed kelp, but stopped because it was SO expensive and we went through it so fast.
Not sure what DL is...
Yeah, we are really struggling with the moisture part....we just built a 42x96 hoop barn and have major condensation issues we are still trying to fix. Talk about using a lot of straw! So I'm sure that's not helping any either. Hopefully we can get that under control and the castor oil and washing after milking clears it up! Thanks again!
 

Baymule

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DL is Deep Litter. Bee and I both practice Deep Litter in our barns, she has it honed to a fine art. We also practice DL in our chicken coops.


You could actually spray the ground with raw milk mixed with water to jump start the microbiological action. The raw milk/water mix is also wonderful for pastures. The ratio for pastures is 3 gallons raw milk to 17 gallons water.

Probably regulations would prevent you from DL, but it sure is a nice system for the health of your animals.
 

Mini Horses

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Hoop houses are moisture magnets if you use it for their barn. My herd beds on pine shavings, in wooden barn, tin roof and plenty of ventilation. If your hoop set up has no open areas at top, the heat & moisture from your goats can create a lot of moisture. Can't see what you have, just know there needs to be top vents. Animals & plants work differently in hoop houses.

Wash your own hands between does.

I do wash teats before and after milking. I do NOT use a rag or share wipes. And, yes, I use wipes. Also have a spray for after....I spray on the wipe and then wipe onto the teat. It's called "Fight Bac". The thing with using wipes after is that it helps close the orifice and resanitizes the teat. Nothings is 100% so we do all we can. I've not had issues with staph or mastitis.

I drink the milk raw.
 
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D and L Meadows

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Thanks Mini Horses and Baymule!
Yeah, all hoop barns for housing animals are suppose to have ridge vents. We were greenhorns at the time and didn't know that. We went to FarmTek and they sold us a MooTel hoop barn specifically for housing animals, but no ridge vents. (DUH!!) We got the kit and put it up ourselves. We only have the condensation problem when it freezes at night and warms up in the day. FarmTek won't stand behind their product so now we are having to spend more money on a huge exhaust fan in the peak and three ceiling fans, plus renting a scissor lift because the peak is only 22 feet high. (LOL) Hoping that takes care of it. We talked to someone who deals with condensation problems Its rather complicated putting ridge vents in now that the barn is done. Two very nice things about it though.....It is much brighter and much much cooler in the summer. It is made out of different fabric than greenhouses. Anyway, don't buy from FarmTek unless you make sure they sell you the right thing.
I'm not sure about the regulations on the DL. I'll have to check that out.
Thanks so much for all the suggestions!!
 

babsbag

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As far as hoop barns it all depends on where you live. I have a 30x48 one from FarmTek and other than losing it in the snow last year...my fault...I love it. One end is open so moisture isn't an issue for me. Not sure about the staph, I haven't had to deal with it.
 

D and L Meadows

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Ok. Yeah, where we live, it's very high humidity. We talked to another dairy that milks cows around here and both sides were open and he still had issues. He ended up putting ridge vents in, but he had a Silverline barn, which is a lot easier. On both ends of our barn we have a 14x14 rollup door. So we get quite a bit of ventilation, but it still wasn't enough because the barn is so big with so many animals. But other than that, we are very happy with it, even on rainy days, it's still cheerful inside.
 

Mini Horses

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You have almost 100 does? WOW. I can see why you would see moisture in there! Body heat alone.....do you also pasture them?

I read you are Class A, so do you market your milk to a company or do you sell direct?

Do you keep a certain breed or use mixes?
 
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