Impact of mastitis on reproductive performance in dairy animals: A review

Abstract

In present scenario the two most common diseases complexes affecting the dairy cattle worldwide are mastitis and infertility, since both are multifactorial in origin, they increase the culling rate and loss in the profitability of a farm. Other than being a trending animal welfare issue, it has a grave effect on quantity and quality of milk. The reproductive performance of dairy animals is influenced by several factors, and various evidences indicate that mastitis is one of the determinants. The multifaceted nature of both mastitis and reproduction makes it difficult to understand their relationship in detail, thus only a retrospective approach is appraised rather than a controlled clinical study. Thus in this review, information regarding the effects of clinical mastitis on reproductive function and the most probable mechanisms by which mastitis affects reproduction in dairy animals is explained.