Although some seasonal variation in milk quality markers such as bulk tank SCC and SPC is routine in the southeastern United States, there are dairy operations in all southeastern US states that produce high quality milk. However, among producers milk quality varies substantially: in 2012, ~25% of bulk tank samples had SCC > 400,000 cells/mL, and another ~25% of samples had SCC < 200,000 cells/mL (USDA-APHIS report #684.0713). Variability in adoption and successful implementation of mastitis management practices contributes to the variability in milk quality across farms. This research sought to identify farm/farmer characteristics and farmers’ attitudes and perceptions about mastitis and determine how they relate to mastitis management. A mail survey of dairy farms in 7 southeast states with a 29.9% response rate captured information about BTSCC levels, farm characteristics, operator characteristics, farm management practices, information sources accessed by the operators, and operators’ perceptions of and attitudes about mastitis. The same survey was administered also to dairy farms that had discontinued their permits in the previous 3 years. Regression analysis, with operator-reported current year BTSCC as the dependent variable, identified factors that explain 65% of the variation in BTSCC (Table 1) and shows that proactive producers—those who perceive they can control BTSCC, seek information from reliable sources, are directly engaged in dairy activities, and take mastitis management actions before BTSCC exceeds 300,000—have lower BTSCC. The analysis found that dairy size, productivity, operator education level, and having off-farm income were not associated with BTSCC. Comparison of operating and no-longer-operating dairy farms suggests some underlying issues relating to financial motivations and consequences. “Increasing net farm income” as a goal for the dairy operation was assigned greater importance by operators of active dairies than closed dairies (F(1, 574) = 4.177, P = < 0. 041). Also, operators of closed dairy farms assessed their ability to afford actions to decrease SCC more negatively than did operators of active dairies (F(1, 585) = 3.970, P = 0.047) and evaluated the adequacy of their milk quality premiums more negatively than did active dairies (F(1,569) = 4.834, P = 0.028). The survey of open dairies shows a correlation between producers’ confidence in their knowledge of mastitis management procedures and producers’ assessment of their ability to afford to treat mastitis (r_s (607) = 0.379, P < 0.0005). This correlation bolsters the argument for Extension services and veterinarians to continue science-based training of dairy operators and dairy employees as a tool for supporting the sustainability of the dairy industry in the southeastern US Table 1. Determinants of Current Bulk Tank SCC on Southeastern U.S. Dairy Farms

	Coefficient and significance
Farm Structure Characteristics
BTSCC one year ago	*
Has non-dairy farm operations	11,366*
Sole proprietorship or partnership	−15,258***
Operator in parlor during milking	−14,382**
Operator Characteristics
Plan to operate as dairy farm in 2019	−12,933***
Speaks same language as farm employees	11,646*
Farmers’ Attitudes and Perceptions
Responsible for mastitis on my farm	−19,167***
Worried about financial impacts of mastitis	10,548*
Anxiety about mastitis	17,706*
SCC threshold of <300,000 for taking action	−57,012*
State Indicators (with regional avg. as base case)
North Carolina	−52,251*
Virginia	−23,322**
Information Sources
Veterinarian	−26,110**
Extension agent or other representative	−9,047***

***P < 0.01; **P < 0.05; *P < 0.1.