title: Association between hygiene scores and somatic cell scores in dairy cattle.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To develop a simple system for scoring hygiene in dairy cattle and determine whether hygiene scores were associated with individual cow somatic cell scores (SCSs).
  
  
  METHODS
  Observational study.
  
  
  METHODS
  1,191 cows.
  
  
  METHODS
  With the aid of a chart containing line drawings and descriptive text, hygiene scores ranging from 1 (clean) to 5 (dirty) were assigned for 5 body areas: tail head, thigh (lateral aspect), abdomen (ventral aspect), udder, and hind limbs (lower portion). To determine repeatability, hygiene scores were assigned to 75 cows twice by 4 experienced evaluators. To determine accuracy and ease of use, hygiene scores assigned by 14 college students to 23 cows were compared with scores assigned by 2 faculty members. To determine association with SCSs, hygiene scores were assigned to each of 1,093 cows by a single observer.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mean correlation coefficients for hygiene scores assigned twice by 4 experienced evaluators were > or = 0.884, indicating high repeatability. Students indicated that the scoring system was easy to use, and mean correlation coefficient for student and faculty member scores was 0.804. Hygiene scores for the tail head, thigh (lateral aspect), and abdomen (ventral aspect) were not significantly associated with SCS. However, hygiene scores for the udder and hind limbs (lower portion) and udder-hind limb composite scores were significantly associated with SCS, with SCS increasing as scores increased.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Results suggest that the hygiene scoring system was repeatable, accurate, and easy to use. However, only hygiene scores for the udder and hind limbs and the udder-hind limb composite score were significantly associated with SCS.
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Science, College of Agricultural, Food, and Environmental Sciences, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN 55108, USA.
authors.forename: Jeffrey K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Reneau
authors.forename: Anthony J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Seykora
authors.forename: Bradley J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Heins
authors.forename: Marcia I
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Endres
authors.forename: Ralph J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Farnsworth
authors.forename: Russell F
authors.initials: RF
authors.lastname: Bey
mesh_terms: D000822:Animal Husbandry / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards; D000818:Animals; D002417:Cattle; D002452:Cell Count / Q000662:veterinary; D003612:Dairying / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D005121:Extremities; D005260:Female; D006920:Hygiene; D007774:Lactation; D008892:Milk / Q000166:cytology*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results