New teat sealant designed for today’s dry cow management programs.

February 10, 2020

2 Min Read
Merck ShutOut_final.jpg
Merck Animal Health

Merck Animal Health (known as MSD Animal Health outside the U.S. and Canada) has launched ShutOut, an easy-to-administer teat sealant for the prevention of new intramammary infections throughout the dry period — the timeframe when cows are at the greatest risk.

“Given the environmental and physiological changes they experience at dry-off, cows are at an elevated risk for developing mastitis,” said Dr. Brian Miller, ruminant technical services veterinarian, Merck Animal Health. “Pathogen risk is greater, partly due to variability in keratin plug formation, a cow’s natural defense against new intramammary infections during the dry period.”

One study showed that nearly 25% of teat ends remain open as long as six weeks after dry-off, making cows more susceptible to infection, according to the announcement.

A critical component to an effective dry cow management program, ShutOut is a sterile, antibiotic-free barrier designed for ease of use to meet the needs of today’s dairy operations, the company said. A comparative study demonstrated a very syringeable product formulated to stay in place at the time of administration. With a short plunger stroke, dual-tip option and an easy-to-break cap, producers can efficiently treat their cows at dry-off.

According to Merck Animal Health, research reinforces the benefits of internal teat sealants. When used in uninfected quarters, teat sealants have shown to prevent significantly more new infections than using no treatment at all. Research also shows that when there is a dry period infection, a teat sealant used in combination with an antibiotic significantly reduces the severity of the infection more than using an antibiotic alone, the company said.

“Producers can rest easy knowing when ShutOut is administered, it’ll effectively seal the cow’s teats,” Miller said. “ShutOut provides a trusted, physical barrier to prevent environmental organisms from entering the udder.”

Product details

Each syringe of ShutOut consists of 4.0 g of a sterile, antibiotic-free, intramammary paste containing 2.6 g of bismuth subnitrate, according to the announcement. ShutOut is designed with an ergonomically friendly, dual-tip syringe with the flexibility to choose between a short tip or long tip. ShutOut is available in 144-syringe buckets and 24-syringe boxes. Both include biodegradable, disinfectant wipes for udder prep.

To learn more, visit ShutOutForDairy.com.

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