HOW TO ADMINISTER TEATSEAL® (& DRY COW ANTIBIOTIC TUBES)

WHAT IS TEATSEAL? • Teatseal is a non antibiotic teat sealant for the prevention of mastitis in the dry

period and around calving.

• Teatseal is administered into the teat canal like dry cow tubes but there are some major differences:

– Hygiene is even more important;

– Teatseal can also be used in rising 2-year-old heifers pre-calving to prevent calving mastitis – talk to your vet.

• This training course is designed to inform you about hygienic administration of Teatseal and

dry cow antibiotic tubes. • Check out the Best Practice video on the website for a demonstration. • For further information, your VetEnt vet is the best source of advice.

WHY IS HYGIENE SO IMPORTANT? • A clean teat is not a sterile teat. Even clean teats are contaminated with

millions of bacteria, which must be removed before administering dry cow products.

• ALL intramammary treatments must be hygienically infused – they are not formulated to kill bacteria introduced by poor technique.

• Failure to use the highest possible hygiene standards can introduce

bacteria into the udder and cause serious mastitis or death.

DO...

• DO wear gloves – bare skin spreads more bacteria than gloves

• DO clean your gloved hands in water with disinfectant between animals

• DO dry hands with paper towels after cleaning – do not re-use towels

• DO replace gloves as needed

DON’TS • DON’T give any treatment if animals are wet or

excessively dirty – reschedule for another day

• DON’T put animals on a feed pad or stand them in a race immediately before or after using Teatseal or dry cow therapy

• DON’T run animals out of the shed.

• DON’T use a tube if the tip gets dirty - discard it

• DON’T assume a clean teat is sterile.

• DON’T assume a spray with meths is good enough.

1. PREPARATION • Teats, hands and tubes must be clean and dry • NEVER place tubes directly in water – put the whole container in warm water. • Check for mastitis first – record any cows with mastitis and do not use Teatseal.

• Agree on a routine administration technique to avoid mistakes: – Clean teats and administer treatment(s) one teat at a time, treating the teats furthest from you first: Front left, front right, hind right, hind left. Follow same order each time, treating the cow’s front teats first to avoid re-contaminating treated teats. • Have paint available to mark treated animals.

• Have teatspray available for spraying after Teatseal insertion.

1 4 3 2

2. CLEANING TEATS • Preferably use the alcohol teat wipes provided

• Otherwise use balls of cotton wool soaked in 70% meths + 30% water, but

squeeze excess meths out from the balls to help the teats dry out

• Using a new wipe for each teat, clean the teat end, especially the tip and the opening until the wipe comes away clean

• Sometimes several wipes are needed per teat

• Teats should be dry after cleaning, do not spray with anything before insertion – droplets hanging from the teat end harbour bacteria (even alcohol droplets)

ENSURING A STERILE TEAT END • If the teat is dirty, use a first teat wipe to clean, concentrating on the lower half of

the teat.

• Using a second teat wipe, treat one side of the teat wipe as the disinfecting side, and the other side as the ‘dirty’ side in contact with your hand.

• Keep the clean side of the teat wipe against the teat end and with your thumb on the ‘dirty’ side of the teat wipe, rub the teat end vigorously with a section of the teat wipe.

• Repeat this 3 or 4 times, moving to a clean section of the teat wipe. The teat end should look clean with no traces of organic matter.

• If needed, take a new teat wipe and repeat the process to ensure the teat end is sterile.

Click on the video for a demonstration →

3. INSERTING TEATSEAL • Insert the tube immediately after cleaning the teat.

• Ideally keep one hand holding the teat between cleaning and

infusing to prevent unsettling the animal.

• Remove the cap without touching the tip - do not use your mouth.

• Insert the tip partially into the orifice– 3mm at most.

• Position the tube so it is in line with the teat to avoid damaging the delicate internal lining.

• DO NOT massage Teatseal up the teat canal into the udder.

• Spray the teats with teat spray at the strong mixing ratio.

• Mark treated cows with paint.

COMBINATION THERAPY • This is where cows receive both dry cow therapy and Teatseal. • Administer both products to one teat at a time.

1) Clean teat.

2) Insert dry cow antibiotic first.

3) DO Massage dry cow antibiotic up teat into udder.

4) Re-clean the teat with a teatwipe.

5) Then insert Teatseal.

6) DON’T massage Teatseal up teat.

7) Spray teats with teatspray.

...Repeat with the other 3 teats.

4. AFTERCARE

• Examine all treated animals daily for two weeks.

• Look for general signs of illness.

• Look for difficulty walking (painful mastitis).

• Inspect udders closely, especially heifers.

• Bring any sick animals in immediately for treatment – consult your vet.

5. AT CALVING Teatseal will stay in the teat until calving. It should be removed by hand prior

to the first milking.

• Strip treated cows 10-12 times at first milking, starting at the top (nearest the udder) of the teat to milk it all down.

• Teatseal particles may take up to seven days to be flushed from the canal – ensure the filter sock is in the milk line.

• Be able to differentiate between mastitis and Teatseal particles – Teatseal particles are waxy and can be rolled into a ball, mastitis flecks break up when squeezed.

REMEMBER • Hygiene, Hygiene, Hygiene!

• Discard contaminated tubes

• Never place tubes in water

• Follow a set routine: Front left, Front

right, back right, back left.

• Record all treatments

• Record all blind teats or mastitis cases

• Mark treated animals 1 4 3 2

QUESTION 1

Why is hygiene so important when administering dry cow tubes?

A) Because you might introduce bacteria into the udder

which can cause mastitis B) Because clean teats look nice C) So you don’t catch mastitis bacteria from the cow

ANSWER: A) HYGIENE is the most important thing to

remember when inserting dry cow tubes.

QUESTION 2

How far into the teat canal should you insert the tube at most?

A) 1 mm B) 3 mm C) All the way Answer: B) Only insert the tube enough to hold it in –

3mm at the most.

QUESTION 3

What should you do if you drop a tube and contaminate the tip? A) Carry on using it B) Wipe it thoroughly with clean teat wipes before use C) Discard it and use a new one ANSWER: C) The tube end must be absolutely clean and

sterile.

QUESTION 4

Should you start at the cow’s front or the back teats? A) Front B) Back C) Doesn’t matter

Answer: A) Start at with the Front Left teat (the furthest

away from you), then Front Right, Back Right, Back Left.

QUESTION 5

When do you consider a teat end clean enough?

A) It looks clean B) After wiping it once C) When the teat wipe comes away clean after vigorous

cleaning

ANSWER: C)

QUESTION 6

After administering Teatseal, you should massage it up the teat into the udder, true or false?

A) True B) False Answer: B) False. DO NOT massage Teatseal up into the

udder. If doing combination therapy, only the dry cow antibiotic should be massaged up.

QUESTION 7

After cleaning the teats, you should spray them with alcohol or teat spray, true or false?

A) True B) False

Answer: B) False. After cleaning with a teat wipe or cotton

wool ball soaked in meths, insert the Teatseal immediately.

QUESTION 8

You can use one teat wipe per cow, true or false? A) True B) False Answer: B) False. Use at least one teat wipe per teat.

More than one wipe per teat may be necessary to ensure the teat is absolutely clean.

QUESTION 9

Teatseal tubes should be placed directly into warm water to make them easier to administer, true or false?

A) True B) False

Answer: B) False. NEVER place tubes directly into water. If it

is a cold day, you can place the Teatseal bucket into warm water to make Teatseal easier to administer.

QUESTION 10

Who should you ask if you have any questions about administering Teatseal or dry cow tubes? A) VetEnt B) Your neighbour C) Pfizer Answer: A) Your VetEnt vet can provide you with advice

and training.