Abstract #M292
Section: Production, Management and the Environment
Session: Production, Management and the Environment I
Format: Poster
Day/Time: Monday 7:30 AM–9:30 AM
Location: Gatlin Ballroom
Session: Production, Management and the Environment I
Format: Poster
Day/Time: Monday 7:30 AM–9:30 AM
Location: Gatlin Ballroom
# M292
Bacterial and dry matter content of bedding substrates utilized on Canadian dairy farms.
Ivelisse Robles*1, David F. Kelton2, Herman W. Barkema3, Greg P. Keefe4, Jean-Philippe Roy5, Marina A. G. von Keyserlingk6, Trevor J. DeVries1, 1Department of Animal and Poultry Science, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada, 2Department of Population Medicine, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada, 3Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada, 4Atlantic Veterinary College, University of Prince Edward Island, Charlottetown, PEI, Canada, 5Faculté de Médecine Vétérinaire, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada, 6Animal Welfare Program, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
Key Words: bedding, dry matter, bacteria count
Bacterial and dry matter content of bedding substrates utilized on Canadian dairy farms.
Ivelisse Robles*1, David F. Kelton2, Herman W. Barkema3, Greg P. Keefe4, Jean-Philippe Roy5, Marina A. G. von Keyserlingk6, Trevor J. DeVries1, 1Department of Animal and Poultry Science, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada, 2Department of Population Medicine, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada, 3Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada, 4Atlantic Veterinary College, University of Prince Edward Island, Charlottetown, PEI, Canada, 5Faculté de Médecine Vétérinaire, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada, 6Animal Welfare Program, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
The objective of this study was to determine the bacteria and DM content of bedding substrates utilized on dairy farms. Seventy-two dairy farms in Ontario, Canada were visited 3 times, 7-d apart. At each visit, composite samples of the unused and used bedding material were collected for DM determination and bacterial culturing of major pathogen groups (gram-positive, gram-negative, and Klebsiella spp.). Bedding substrates were classified by farm as following: sand (n = 12), straw and other dry forage (n = 34), wood products (shavings, sawdust; n = 17), and other (recycled manure solids, compost, digestate, peat moss; n = 10). Tests of bacteria counts and DM content were made between bedding types, as well as between unused and used samples, in a general linear mixed model. DM content of unused bedding varied with type (P < 0.01): sand was driest (92 ± 1.4%), followed by straw (88 ± 0.9%) and wood (85 ± 1.2%), while other types were wettest (39 ± 1.6%). DM content of used bedding was reduced (P < 0.01) for wood (75 ± 1.7%) and straw (77 ± 1.2%), increased for other types (48 ± 2.3%; P < 0.01), and did not change for sand (95 ± 2.1%; P = 0.17). Gram-positive bacteria counts did not vary with bedding type (P > 0.25) in unused (2.4 ± 1.2 ln cfu/mL) and used (16.1 ± 0.9 ln cfu/mL) samples. Gram-negative bacteria counts in unused bedding varied with type (P < 0.01): straw was greatest (12.6 ± 0.6 ln cfu/mL), followed by other types (8.1 ± 1.3 ln cfu/mL), then wood (4.7 ± 0.8 ln cfu/mL), while sand was least (2.4 ± 1.0 ln cfu/mL). Gram-negative counts in used samples were greater (P < 0.01) for other types (16.8 ± 1.1 ln cfu/mL), sand (14.2 ± 0.8 ln cfu/mL), and wood (10.0 ± 0.7 ln cfu/mL), while straw did not change (13.4 ± 0.5 ln cfu/mL; P = 0.17). Klebsiella spp. counts in unused bedding varied with type (P < 0.01): straw was greatest (11.4 ± 0.6 ln cfu/mL), while wood (4.2 ± 0.9 ln cfu/mL), other types (3.7 ± 1.4 ln cfu/mL), and sand (2.5 ± 1.0 ln cfu/mL) were similarly (P > 0.6) lower. Klebsiella spp. counts for used bedding were greater (P < 0.01) for other types (12.3 ± 1.3 ln cfu/mL) and sand (11.2 ± 1.0 ln cfu/mL), while wood tended (P = 0.1) to be greater (5.4 ± 0.9 ln cfu/mL), and straw did not change (11.4 ± 0.6 ln cfu/mL; P = 0.99). Overall, bedding types varied in their DM, particularly between unused and used samples.
Key Words: bedding, dry matter, bacteria count
