Investigation of Antibiotic Usage for Dairy Cattle and Antibiotic Residues in Milk in Coconut Triangle
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Date
2013
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Journal ISSN
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Publisher
Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka
Abstract
Dairy cattle farming in coconut triangle play an important role in the dairy industry of Sri
Lanka. Antibiotics are widely used for the health management of these lactating cows.
However, the improper usage of antibiotics leads to antibiotic residues in milk which have
several adverse effects on human health. Further, antibiotic residues may interfere with bacterial
starter culture used for production of value added dairy products such as yoghurt, curd and
cheese. Therefore, this study was carried out to identify the most commonly used antibiotics in
dairy cattle, to screen milk for antibiotic residues and to study the factors affecting mastitis in
dairy cattle of coconut triangle. Stratified random sample of 200 farmers, 20 veterinary offices
and 20 pharmacies were selected from Kurunegala and Puttalam districts. Data on farmer
information, management system, farmers’ knowledge on antibiotic usage, use of antibiotics in
feed and as treatments and hygienic practices in farm were collected using a pre-tested
structured questionnaire. A total of 72 milk samples were collected from cows recently treated
with antibiotics and antibiotic residues in milk samples were tested by Twinsensor® and
Delvotest® commercial kits. According to the results antibiotic residues were found only in
15.9% milk samples whereas majority (84.1%) of tested milk samples were negative. Out of the
reported diseases, mastitis is the predominant bacterial disease (87%) which antibiotics are
mainly used. Information from farmers, Veterinary offices and pharmacies revealed tetracycline
as the highest using antibiotic. Sulfa trimethoprim, cloxacillin, bacitracin and neomycin are
antibiotics which are highly used for treatment in mastitis as combinations. According to binary
logistic model, hygienic practices, routing testing for mastitis, average milk production, source
of income, were significant factors for the occurrence of mastitis. Therefore, it can be concluded
that there is a risk of contamination of milk in coconut triangle with antibiotic residues and
further studies are needed for the quantification of antibiotic residues. Since antibiotics are
heavily used in mastitis, milk contamination with antibiotics can be prevented by reducing the
antibiotic usage for prevention and control of mastitis.
Description
Keywords
Animal Sciences, Dairy cattle, Dairy Industries, Milk Production, Antibiotic