FREQUENT MILKING INCREASES MILK YIELD FROM COWS

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 14, Issue 59, 4 November 1949, Page 3

FREQUENT MILKING INCREASES MILK YIELD FROM COWS

Because of the large dairying industry being carried on in the Bay of Plenty the suggestions of increasing the yield of milk from cows at milking times by the United States Department of Agriculture are of some value and hold much interest. Although New Zealand has progressed far in research work of the dairying industry the one field that has been apparently neglected is in the actual science of milking. However the Americans have tackled this field and their findings are of*mterest. Releasing The Milk According to the Americans the “giving down” of the milk is mostly caused by releasing the milk into the milk cisterns and teats, where it can be drawn, rather than by actual secretion at the time. * As the udder becomes distended with milk, secretion is less active 'and the greater the distention and pressure the more pronounced is the check' upon secretion. This is the principal, if not the only explanation, for. the increase in production obtained by more frequent milking. The increase to be expected by milking cows three times a day instead of twice will vary from about 10 per cent for short periods of a month or so to 20 per cent or more % for whole lactations. Cows milked three times a day produce more consistently. The percentage of butterfat in the milk is not affected. It is believed that one can safely estimate an increase of 20 per cent by milking three times a day instead of twice, and 35 per cent by milking four times instead of twice if the more frequent milking is done for the entire lactation period and if enough feed is provided for the extra milk produced. Whether it will pay to milk cows three times a day instead of twice must be determined by the individual dairyman. The profit depends upon the quantity of production, the lenght of time the extra milkiiig is to be practised, the cost of doing the extra milking, the cost of extra grain that must be fed, and the value of the product. Depends On Richness

For each extra pound of milk produced, one must allow .4 to .61b of grain, depending upon the richness of the milk.

In general, it appears that highproducing cows whose produce ib disposed of at good prices can be milked profitably three times a day, especially when a milking machine is used.. On the other hand, with the low—or medium—producing cows whose product is used for making butter, cheese, or condensed milk, it would not, be profitable to milk more than twice a day.