Abstract: [Objective] To evaluate the therapeutic effect of a Chinese herbal powder on subclinical mastitis in dairy cows and explore the feasibility of its use as an alternative to antibiotics. [Methods] A randomized controlled trial was conducted,dividing 90 dairy cows with subclinical mastitis into a treatment group （Chinese herbal powder containing Astragalus membranaceus,Taraxacum officinale,etc.）,an antibiotic group（ceftiofur sodium）,and a control group （untreated）,with 30 cows in each group. After 30 days of treatment,the therapeutic effects were analyzed through indicators such as somatic cell count （SCC） in milk,milk production,milk composition （fat,protein,lactose）,and clinical symptoms （breast swelling,temperature,and area of hard lumps） using ANOVA,t-test,and χ² test. [Results] After 30 days of treatment,the SCC in milk of the treatment group decreased by 73.8% （from 489×10³ to 128×10³ 个/mL）,which was not significantly different from the antibiotic group （75.8%,P=0.062）,but significantly better than the control group （17.4%,P<0.001）. Milk production increased by 15.8% （from 24.6 to 28.5 kg/day）,significantly higher than the antibiotic group （7.2%）,and the effect lasted longer （10.1% higher 30 days after drug withdrawal,P<0.01）. The recovery rate of milk fat content （+14.2%） and milk protein content （+14.6%） was 3 to 5 days faster than that of the antibiotic group. Clinical symptoms improved significantly：the rate of breast swelling regression was 73.3% in the treatment group compared to 46.7% in the antibiotic group （P=0.015）,the recovery time of temperature was shortened by 45.2% （3.2 days vs 5.8 days,P<0.001）,and the area of hard lumps in the udder was reduced by 82.7% （vs 57.1% in the antibiotic group,P=0.018）. [Conclusion] The therapeutic effect of the Chinese herbal powder on subclinical mastitis is comparable to that of antibiotics,and it has advantages in the sustainability of milk production recovery,the speed of milk composition improvement,and treatment cost （reduced by 57%）,providing an effective solution for reducing antibiotic use in the livestock industry.

Key words: Chinese herbal compound powder, subclinical mastitis in dairy cows, antibiotic alternative, therapeutic effect