Prognostic indicators for toxic mastitis in dairy cows

During a three-year study, 54 cows with toxic mastitis were examined and a number of clinical and laboratory measurements were taken. Twenty-five (46.3 per cent) of the cows died, and in comparison with those which survived, they had a significantly higher packed cell volume (PCV) (P<0.01), longer eyelid skin tent time (P<0.01) and lower rectal temperature (P<0.01). In a model designed to predict the probability of survival, these variables correctly predicted survival in 84 per cent of cases and death in 73 per cent of cases. The cows with toxic mastitis had a significantly higher PCV than a normal cohort of cows sampled at the end of the study.