## 1 Introduction  
The dairy industry is among the most developed and lucrative food industries. According to the FAO [1], over 6 million people consume milk at a global level. The vast majority of the milk produced comes from cows (81%), while goat, sheep, and camel milk production combined reach 4% only [2]. In the European Union (EU), the annual milk production in 2021 was 161 million tons, with milk other than cow's milk representing 5%of the total production even though in Mediterranean countries, non-cow milk represents a higher percentage, up to 56.7% in the case of Greece [3]. Milk ranks highly among other foods and is regarded as the most ideal source of vital nutrients for human beings from infancy to old age since it not only has excellent sensory qualities and all the nutrients needed for rapid growth but also has the potential to prevent or lessen the risk of many diseases caused by nutritional deficiencies. However, due to its unique properties and composition (i.e., high nutritional and moisture content and neutral pH value), milk can serve not only as a unique growth medium for a complex of microbial flora such as lactic acid bacteria (LAB) [4; 5] but also as a source of infection such as _Propinobacterium_, _Staphylococcus_, _Streptococcus_, _Salmonella_, _Listeria_, _Escherichia_, _Corynebacterium_, _Brevbacterium_, and others [5; 6]. According to the European Commission's Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) [7], for the period of 2020 until mid-2023, most alerts regarding microbiological and (microbiological) toxin risks in milk and dairy products were about not only _Listeria_, _Salmonella_, and STEC _E. coli_ but also _Enterobacteriaceae_, Staphylococcal enterotoxins and _Pseudomonas_ which are regulated by EU legislation. Although data are not available for all notifications, a good share includes cheese from raw or thermized milk, while there are available data for other pathogens that are not monitored yet but are linked to outbreaks related to the intake of milk and dairy. Scientific interest has been mostly attracted by pathogens, which are related to several diseases such as scarlet fever, gastroenteritis, Q-fever, diphthe, tuberculosis, and brucellosis which can be transmitted via milk and dairy products [8]. The extensive use of pasteurization and the application of control measures has minimized public health risks. However, there are still outbreaks that are mostly related to the consumption of non-processed milk or dairy products--mostly from small ruminants that have been produced from milk that has not been treated in the appropriate manner (i.e., not pasteurized or heated at low temperature). Even though the use of pasteurized milk is extensive, there are several--mostly traditional--dairy products, including cheese, butter, and cream, which are produced by raw milk, thermized milk, or milk processed with any other heat treatment less effective than pasteurization. Therefore, raw caprime and ovine milk can be potential carriers of foodborne pathogens that could be linked to serious health risks. A recent meta-analysis study showed that the most prevalent genera are _Listeria_ spp., _Penicillium_ spp., _Salmonella_ spp., _Staphylococcus_ spp., and _Escherichia_ spp., but data on the frequency of microbial contamination in cheese from small ruminants' milk (goat and sheep) are few [9]. The main sources of milk contamination are poor livestock salubriousness and herd health conditions, mastitis ubiquity, and improper milking and conservation practices [10]. In domestic animals, despite extensive under health management and proper milking practices, mastitis is still a hot issue since it is the most prevalent disease of dairy animals, with great economic impact because of its negative effect on the health and welfare of animals and the adverse effect on the yield and quality of the produced milk [11]. Mastitis is induced by bacterial intramammary infection (IMI).