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Milk emission and udder health status in primiparous dairy cows during lactation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 September 2009

Alberto Tamburini ,
Luciana Bava ,
Renata Piccinini ,
Alfonso Zecconi ,
Maddalena Zucali  and
Anna Sandrucci
Alberto Tamburini*
Affiliation:
Animal Science Department, Università degli Studi di Milano, via Celoria 2, 20133Milano, Italy
Luciana Bava
Affiliation:
Animal Science Department, Università degli Studi di Milano, via Celoria 2, 20133Milano, Italy
Renata Piccinini
Affiliation:
Veterinary Pathology, Hygiene and Public Health Department, Università degli Studi di Milano, via Celoria 10, 20133Milano, Italy
Alfonso Zecconi
Affiliation:
Veterinary Pathology, Hygiene and Public Health Department, Università degli Studi di Milano, via Celoria 10, 20133Milano, Italy
Maddalena Zucali
Affiliation:
Animal Science Department, Università degli Studi di Milano, via Celoria 2, 20133Milano, Italy
Anna Sandrucci
Affiliation:
Animal Science Department, Università degli Studi di Milano, via Celoria 2, 20133Milano, Italy
*
*For correspondence; e-mail: [email protected]
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Abstract

To investigate the relationships between milk flow traits and udder health status in primiparous cows, 74 primiparous Holstein cows were randomly selected in 5 herds and monitored monthly throughout the whole lactation. A total of 2902 quarter milk samples were collected for bacteriological analyses and the determination of lysozyme, N-acetyl-β-glucosaminidase (NAGase) and somatic cell count (SCC). Milk flow curves of the whole udder of each cow were registered with continuous electronic milk flow meters. Teat conditions and teat thickness changes during milking were assessed monthly. Quarters, udders and cows were classified as healthy, latent, inflamed and subclinical depending on SCC and the results of bacteriological analyses. Lysozyme in milk, teat apex score and teat thickness change did not vary with udder health status while NAGase in milk significantly increased as udder health status worsened (P<0·001). Milk production (P<0·001) and time of plateau phase (P<0·05) were significantly lower in subclinical cows in comparison with the others. Animals with a high frequency of bimodal curves in the first 100 days in milk showed the worst udder health status during the whole lactation (P<0·01). Moreover, cows classified as subclinical in the first 3 months of lactation had higher peak milk flow than healthy cows (3·81 v. 3·48 kg/min; P<0·05) and shorter duration of plateau phase, expressed both as minutes and as percentage of time of milk flow (pTPL; P<0·001). Multivariate logistic analysis showed udder health status to be associated with duration of plateau phase, time of milk flow, bimodality and duration of overmilking phase. With short time of plateau phase (pTPL <25%), short time of milk flow (<5 min), presence of bimodality and long overmilking phase (>0·8 min) there was an increased risk of poor udder health status. These milk flow traits can be predictive indicators of udder health status; time of plateau phase, expressed as percentage of time of milk flow, can also be a useful parameter for animal selection.

Keywords

Milk emissiondairy cowsudder health
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Dairy Research , Volume 77 , Issue 1 , February 2010 , pp. 13 - 19
Copyright
Copyright © Proprietors of Journal of Dairy Research 2009

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