Review Article Corresponding Author: Anil Pawar, Assistant Professor, Department of Zoology, D.A.V. College for Girls, Yamunanagar (Haryana); Mobile:919467604205; Email: sumanil27@yahoo.co.in Received: 16.6.2014 Revised: 11.7.2014 Accepted: 29.7.2014 Int J Cur Res Rev | Vol 7 • Issue 5 • March 2015 48 BOVINE MASTITIS AS AN EVOLVING DISEASE AND ITS IMPACT ON THE DAIRY INDUSTRY Ahmad Arif Reshi 1, 2 , Ishraq Husain 2 , S. A. Bhat 1 , Muneeb U. Rehman 2 , Rahil Razak 2 , S. Bilal 2 , Manzoor R. Mir 2 1 Bhagwant University, Sikar Road Ajmer, Rajasthan, India; 2 Division of Veterinary Biochemistry, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences & Animal Husbandry, SHER-E-KASHIR University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology (SKUAST), Kashmir, India. ABSTRACT Worldwide, mastitis is emerging as a major challenge in dairy development, on account of being the cause for severe wastage and undesirable milk quality, besides breed development, nutritional management, control of infections and internal parasitic diseases. The major factors found to be important and affecting the prevalence of subclinical mastitis included flock size, regional agro climatic conditions, distinctive socio-cultural practices, marketing of milk and its byproducts, literacy level of the animal owner, feeding system and administration. The continuing presence of the disease may be attributed to poor practices which includes unhygienic conditions, improper milking practices, faulty milking equipment, lack of veterinary medicines, poor housing besides breeding strategies for ever-increasing milk yield. It is important to be aware of the fact that being an infectious disease, all methods of commercial milk production may provide suitable breeding conditions for mastitis organisms and thus spread mastitis from cow to cow. On account of insights provided by a considerable body of evidence it is suggested that to increase exposure of cows to mastitis organisms and thereby get infected, several management and environmental factors interact to- gether which compromise the cows natural resistance to disease help organisms in gaining entrance through the teat canal to milk secreting tissues of the udder where they cause infection. The incidence of disease is thus result of interplay between the infectious agents and management practices emphasizing the importance of udder defense. Key Words: Mastitis, Subclinical mastitis, Clinical mastitis, Dairy farms, Milk Corresponding Author: Dr. Ishraq Hussain, Assistant Professor, Division of Veterinary Biochemistry, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences & Animal Husbandry (F.V Sc & AH), Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences & Technology (SKUAST-K), Shuhama, Alustang, Srinagar-190006, Jammu & Kashmir, Ph: 0194-2262375(O), 09419444936(M), 0194 2262207(Fax); Email: vbcbiochemistry@gmail.com Received: 06.01.2015 Revised: 28.01.2015 Accepted: 25.02.2015 INTRODUCTION Bovine mastitis defined as ‘parenchymal inflammation of the mammary gland’ is characterized by a range of physical and chemical changes of the milk and patho- logical changes in the udder glandular tissues (Radostits et al., 2000). Mastitis, one of the most widespread and common diseases is characterized as an endemic disease affecting dairy herds worldwide (Halasa et al., 2007). It is the most cost intensive production disease in dairy in- dustry, causing a considerable financial burden in terms of medical treatment, reduced fertility, extra labor and reduced milk yield (Schroeder et. al., 2010). Worldwide, mastitis is one of the most widespread and expensive diseases affecting the dairy business (Petrovski et al., 2006). Mastitis, a multi-etiological complex dis- ease associated with dairy production is the most costly production disease inflicting major economic losses to dairy industry worldwide, especially in developed coun- tries (Seegers et al., 2003). Economic losses associated with mastitis derive mainly from a reduced milk produc- tion, discarded milk, early cow replacement costs, re- duced cow sale value and to a lesser extent, from the culling of continually infected cows, veterinary services, cost of veterinary treatment, drugs, labor and penalties on milk quality (Seegers et al., 2003). The continuing incidence of the disease in spite of ex- haustive research and the implementation of various mastitis control strategies over the decades may be at- tributed to deficient management, improper milking pro- cedures, faulty milking equipment, inadequate housing and breeding for ever-increasing milk yield (Pyorala et al., 2002). It is important to be aware of the fact that being an infectious disease, all methods of commercial milk production provide suitable breeding conditions for mastitis organisms and thus spread mastitis from cow to cow. The incidence of disease is the result of interplay be- tween the infectious agents and management practices stressing proper udder defense strategies. According to Kennedy and Miller (1993) mastitis is expressed by tis- sue injury caused by tissue invasive or toxigenic organ- isms, which become dominant due to upset of balance IJCRR Section: Healthcare Sci. Journal Impact Factor 4.016