Depletion of Antibiotics from the Mammary Gland of Goats

Four intramammary infusion products were tested in 10 normal goats to determine their rates of depletion from milk. The products tested, which are marketed for treatment of mastitis in the bovine, contained the single active ingredient erythromycin, oxytetracycline, penicillin, or cephapirin. Each mammary gland was infused, after the goats were milked, with the maximum recommended dose of test product (dosing frequency and quantity) for administration to lactating dairy cattle. With one exception, no antibiotics could be detected in the milk by the end of the bovine milk-discard period. Penicillin was detectable in the milk of one goat for 72 h after the last dose of product containing this antibiotic was given (60-h withdrawal period). Only the product containing oxytetracycline produced significant adverse reactions in the mammary gland. The applicator tips of the products were too large for atraumatic insertion into the teat opening of some goats. Overall, results of this limited study indicated that some intramammary infusion products can be used to treat mastitis in the goat if instructions for use in the bovine are followed.