Abstract

COMPARISON OF THE EFFECTIVENESS OF DIFFERENT PROCEDURES IN CLEANING COWS' UDDERS AND TEAT CUPS

*Zigo F., Bolger D., Vargová M., Veselits-Lakti?ová K., and Záhumenská J.

ABSTRACT

The use of effective preparations and means for the sanitary treatment of cow’s udder affects the contamination of the skin of the teats therefore reducing the overall bacterial contamination of milk. This study was performed to determine the effictiveness of teats and teat cups disinfection have on microbial load reduction prior to milking. Two farms with different milking hygiene regimes were analysed and compared. The second farm did not perform teat dipping with foam prior to milking in contrast to the first farm. The results indicated that cleaning cows'udders before milking and teats cup during milking has improved the hygiene conditions and reduced microbial load in both farms. However, farm one obtained a greater microbial load reduction than farm two due to performing teat dipping with active foam. This study emphasises the importance of teat and teat cup disinfection prior to milking to reduce the microbial load and hence, reduce the risk of milk contamination.

Keywords: Cows, milking, teat, teat cup, disinfection.