California Mastitis test is quick and easy to do

The California Mastitis Test (CMT) is a quick and easy “cow-side” test that is useful in detecting subclinical mastitis in quarters by estimating the somatic cell count (SCC) of the milk. The CMT kit consists of a plastic paddle with four separate wells, and a bottle of reagent.

High-SCC cows can do a lot of damage to a herd before they are picked up at the first milk recording, which will usually take place in April, when at least 80% of cows are calved.

Using a CMT on freshly calved cows will identify sub-clinical cows, so that they can be milked separately (to avoid cross contamination to the remainder of the herd), their milk can be excluded from the bulk tank, and their infected quarters are treated.