Much has been said about needing weight to milk the cow. From rocks to barn cleaner parts to whatever is within reach, different devices have been used to add weight to the cluster to improve milking performance. The question then is “Is weight needed to milk a cow?” The quick answer, unlike Bill Clinton referring to “What your definition of is is,” would be no.
Cows, with proper stimulation, quite freely give us their milk, as a matter of fact sometimes too freely in the case of cows leaking milk in the parlor or barn. What then would cause the need for additional weight to milk this cow as opposed to that one? The answer lies in the tissue, just as my ability to touch my toes upon rising from sleep appears to have diminished over the years, cows tissue in the udder can change due to an endless list of causes.
The goal then, in any milking process, is to minimize our participation in causing changes or damage to the udder and its tissue. Milking fully stimulated cows, aligning units with the udder and milking at designed vacuum and pulsation settings, every milking, all lactation is critical.
Take a look today, does milk flow start and never slow until declining at the end of the milking session?
Do the units hang in accordance with the udder? Or does the hose tend to move the claw to where it wants to be, not where the cow needs it.
Is the vacuum at the teat end set according to manufacturer’s recommendations? Is it periodically checked to assure it is staying inside of designed variations? Is pulsation monitored in a similar fashion?
It really is all about the cow, every day, every time, when her needs are placed at the forefront of the decision making process, truly, the outcomes are always better.
Leave a Reply