Aqueous antimicrobial film-forming composition for teat treatment by spray application

1. A sprayable aqueous antimicrobial film-forming composition for teats comprising in an aqueous base:

(a) from 1.0 wt.-% to 5.0 wt.-% of a first film-forming polymer, wherein the first film-forming polymer is a polyvinyl alcohol;

(b) from 0.05 wt.-% to 5.0 wt.-% of a second film-forming polymer, wherein the second film-forming polymer is a polysulfonic acid;

(c) from 0.1 wt.-% to 10.0 wt.-% of an antimicrobial agent, wherein the antimicrobial agent is polyvinylpyrrolidone iodine (PVP-iodine);

(d) from 0.001 wt.-% to 3.0 wt.-% of a hydrophobically-modified ethoxylated urethane rheology modifier having polyethylene glycol building blocks and urethane building blocks, and a polymer chain end-capped with hydrophobic groups; wherein the hydrophobic groups comprise a C 8 -C 40 linear alkyl, an aryl-substituted C 2 -C 40 alkyl, a C 2 -C 40 alkyl-substituted phenyl, a C 8 -C 40 branched alkyl, a C 8 -C 40 carbocyclic alkyl, a C 8 -C 80 complex ester, or a combination thereof;

(e) from 0.005 wt.-% to 1.0 wt.-% of an anti-foaming agent comprising a hydrophobic silica and/or silicone;

(f) from 0.05 wt.-% to 4.0 wt.-% of an alkyl ether carboxylic acid having the formula:

R—O—(C 3 H 6 —O) m —(C 2 H 4 —O) n —CH 2 —COOH,

wherein R is an alkyl group having 4 to 10 carbon atoms, m is an integer from 0 to 8, and n is an integer from 0 to 8, and wherein at least one of m or n is not 0; and/or

R—O—(C 2 H 4 —O) n —CH 2 —COOH,

wherein R is an alkyl group having 4 to 10 carbon atoms, and n is an integer from 2 to 8; and

(g) optionally from 0.01 wt.-% to 5.0 wt.-% of an additional antimicrobial agent comprising an alkylbenzene sulfonic acid, chlorhexidine, orthophenyl phenol, lactic acid, decanoic acid, or a combination thereof.

2. The sprayable aqueous antimicrobial film-forming composition of claim 1 , wherein the composition comprises from 0.5 wt.-% to 10.0 wt.-% of the antimicrobial agent.

3. The sprayable aqueous antimicrobial film-forming composition of claim 1 , wherein the composition comprises from 0.5 wt.-% to 7.0 wt.-% of the antimicrobial agent.

4. The sprayable aqueous antimicrobial film-forming composition of claim 1 , wherein the composition comprises from 2.0 wt.-% to 4.5 wt.-% of the first film-forming polymer, from 0.5 wt.-% to 5.0 wt.-% of the antimicrobial agent, from 0.05 wt.-% to 0.5 wt.-% of the rheology modifier, and from 0.02 wt.-% to 0.2 wt.-% of the anti-foaming agent.

5. The sprayable aqueous antimicrobial film-forming composition of claim 1 , wherein the composition reduces the incidence of both contagious mastitis and environmental mastitis in a dairy herd.

6. The sprayable aqueous antimicrobial film-forming composition of claim 1 , wherein the additional antimicrobial agent is an alkylbenzene sulfonic acid.

7. The sprayable aqueous antimicrobial film-forming composition of claim 1 , wherein the composition has a Brookfield viscosity of from 1 cPs to 50 cPs at a temperature of 25° C. when measured using a spindle #2 at 50 rpm.

8. A sprayable aqueous antimicrobial composition for teats comprising in an aqueous base:

(a) from 1.0 wt.-% to 5.0 wt. % of a first film-forming polymer, wherein the first film-forming polymer is a polyvinyl alcohol having a polymethylene backbone;

(b) from 0.05 wt-% to 5.0 wt-% of a second film-forming polymer, wherein the second film forming polymer is a polysulfonic acid;

(c) from 0.1 wt.-% to 10.0 wt.-% of an antimicrobial agent, wherein the antimicrobial agent is polyvinylpyrrolidone iodine (PVP-iodine);

(d) from 0.001 wt.-% to 3.0 wt.-% of a hydrophobically-modified ethoxylated urethane rheology modifier having polyethylene glycol building blocks and urethane building blocks, and a polymer chain end-capped with hydrophobic groups, as a rheology modifier;

(d) from 0.05 wt-% to 4.0 wt-% of an alkyl ether carboxylic acid having the formula:

R—O—(C 3 H 6 —O) m —(C 2 H 4 —O) n —CH 2 —COOH,

wherein R is an alkyl group having 4 to 10 carbon atoms, m is an integer from 0 to 8, and n is an integer from 0 to 8, and wherein at least one of m or n is not 0; and/or

R—O—(C 2 H 4 —O) n —CH 2 —COOH,

wherein R is an alkyl group having 4 to 10 carbon atoms, and n is an integer from 2 to 8;

(f) from 0.005 wt-% to 1.0 wt.-% of an anti-foaming agent, wherein the anti-foaming agent is a hydrophobic silica and/or silicone; and

(g) from 0.01 wt-% to 5.0 wt-% of an additional antimicrobial agent comprising an alkylbenzene sulfonic acid, chlorhexidine, orthophenyl phenol, lactic acid, decanoic acid, or a combination thereof.

9. A method for controlling mastitis in milk producing animals comprising:

providing the composition according to claim 1 , and

applying the composition to the surface of a teat.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the composition is applied by spraying the composition on a teat.