Mastitis is the most economically and welfare-significant disease in dairy goat production, causing pain, reduced milk yield, and in chronic cases, permanent udder damage. Effective prevention and treatment are essential.
Mastitis is a painful inflammatory condition that causes genuine suffering in affected goats. The welfare burden includes not just the acute pain of clinical mastitis but the chronic low-grade discomfort of subclinical infection and the stress of repeated milking with an inflamed gland. A welfare-centered approach to dairy goat mastitis prioritizes pain recognition - goats are stoic animals that may not show obvious pain signs until disease is advanced - and ensures prompt, effective treatment including pain relief when clinical mastitis is identified. Preventive management that maintains goat health and reduces infection pressure is ultimately more welfare-positive than reactive treatment. Culling decisions for chronically infected animals should balance herd welfare against individual animal welfare.