COVERED TEAT CANAL INJURIES IN DAIRY-COWS

Covered teal canal injuries are contusions or ruptures of the teal can al skin, Furstenberg's rosette, or underlying muscle and connective ti ssue in which the outer teal skin is only slightly altered. The conseq uences of these injuries include permanent or intermittent stenoses or adhesions in the teal canal and Furstenberg's rosette. An exact diagn osis may be made by visual examination, palpation, milking, probing, a nd endoscopy. Conservative treatment involves resting the injured teal by a temporary cessation of milking for 3 to 14 days. Milk yield decr eases during resting in one quarter. Milk fat and protein yields and s omatic cell count increase; however. milk yields often return to initi al values within several weeks. Surgery may be performed under endosco pic control. Treatment after surgery may include resting the teat for 3 to 14 days or for 2 x 3 or 3 x 3 days (milk is drained using a steri le milking tube after 3 days of rest on two or three occasions). Admin istration of an intramammary antibiotic is indicated during resting to prevent mastitis. A natural teal canal insert with a composition simi lar to that of the teat canal sebum may prevent canal adhesions: A tea t bandage protects the teat and indicates that it is not to be milked.