A veterinary advisor says vets must now back dry cow antibiotic prescriptions with firmer evidence.
Matt Buckley, animal health veterinary technical advisor at MSD, says the thresholds and data needed are not changing.
“We’ve just been made to be held accountable around that dry cow,” he says.
Buckley says a paper published last year found 12 weeks of SenseHub SCC data before dry-off detected bacteria as well as herd testing.
He says internal teat sealants remain the main protection through the dry period, and the new guidelines also require farms to have an udder health programme.
He says the biggest thing is keeping the conversation going with the vet.
“It’s not just a dry off decision, this is a production decision.”
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