Somatic cell count and quality of milk during pasture turnout of dairy cows

摘要

The aim of the study was to investigate whether spontaneous increase in somatic cell count (SCC) in response to pasture let-out has an effect on milk quality. A total of 35 dairy cows were included. The cows were machine milked twice a day and milk samples were collected for 7 days prior to, and for 5 days following, pasture turnout for analyses of fat, protein, lactose, SCC and Free Fatty Acids. For statistical evaluation of the difference between the values (mean) before the pasture let-out and thevalues at each sampling occasion thereafter, repeated measures of analysis of variance was calculated using the Mixed Model procedure of SAS. There was a marked peak in milk SCC in response to pasture turnout. However, the milk quality was not affectedby the short SCC peak.