How do cows produce milk?

milk is the food they should take all the offspring of mammals after birth.This food provides the necessary nutrients and immunity for the offspring of the different species.Once the lactation process ends and weaning occurs, mammals stop drinking milk.of the human being, who consumes the milk of other animals.

In this article of Animals and Pets Online we will explain how the cows produce milk and solve questions such as: How long is a cow giving milk? o How much milk does a cow produce per day?

Cow's udder structure

Like the rest of female mammals, cows are able to transform nutrients acquired through the diet into milk for their young.The cow's udder is divided into four compartments, each of them with a nipple that will release milk when the time comes.

Within these compartments there are mammary glands very irrigated with blood vessels, the blood transports the nutrients up to here, where they become Milk.Concretely, the blood reaches structures called alveoli, in each of the four compartments of the udders that make up the mammary gland, leaves the nutrients to form milk and then returns to its usual flow.

To produce a kilogram of milk, mammary glands must pass between 400 and 500 liters of blood, so breastfeeding is a critical period for females, they need an extra supply of nutrients in the diet to produce enough milk for the calf without losing your good health.The amount of milk a cow can produce per day will depend on many factors, such as race, age, health, diet, environmental stress, etc.But they are around 20 liters per day.

Production cycle of cow's milk or lactation

The lactation or milk production cycle is divided into four periods: mammogenesis, lactogenesis, galactopoiesis and involvement.Each of these periods is strictly regulated by three distinct groups of hormones : reproductive hormones (estrogens, progesterone, lactogen-placental, prolactin and oxytocin), metabolism hormones (growth hormone, corticosteroids, thyroid hormones and insulin) and locally produced hormones (prolactin, parathyroid-peptidic and leptin).

Mammogenesis

It begins at 35 days of fetal development of the cow, that is, when it is not yet born, it ends with nipples and well-differentiated ducts.At puberty, females undergo changes at the level of the glands, which get fat, linked to the estrous or heat cycle.

Later, when the cow is in state, growth hormones, sex hormones ( estrogens and progesterone) and prolactin cause growth thickened and thickening of the mammary glands.The true tissue that will be able to generate milk develops.

Lactogenesis

During this period the epithelial cells that will produce the necessary compounds to create milk They begin to differentiate.At this time, the action of two sets of hormones means that milk is not produced until the end of pregnancy , when colostrum or first milk begins to form thanks to prolactin.

Galactopoiesis

Galactopoiesis is the transport of milk from the alveoli, through the ducts, to the nipples.The most important hormone at this stage in the oxytocin .

Involvement

Involvement is the gradual regression of the mammary glands once the period of breastfeeding is over .In the meat industry, it is done an early weaning of the calves, at approximately 3 months.In the milk industry, dairy cows do not breastfeed calves , after they take colostrum or first milk, they are fed a concentrated whey.

Dairy cow's reproductive cycle

Have you ever wondered if cows give milk without having calves? The answer is no. For a cow to produce milk, it must first have produced a pregnancy and its consequent delivery.In addition, the cow does not release milk just like that, it requires a stimulus.The stimulus more natural is the visualization of your calf or the sucking of this nipple.the milk industry, this cannot be done, because the calf's saliva would rise through the ducts, contaminating it and making the milk unfit for human consumption.For this reason, it has been chosen to use other less natural stimuli, such as Massaging the udders .

If the cow suffers stress during milking, it will produce adrenaline that will radically cut milk production.

Since milk production is only activated after childbirth and does not usually last more than 10 weeks , it is necessary for the cow to once a year, to start her estrus shortly after giving light and become pregnant again while still producing milk.That is why the reproductive cycles of dairy cows overlap each other with others, leaving 2 months without ordering (end of pregnancy) and have the breasts prepare for the next cycle.

After delivery, if the cow has had a good feeding, the heat can appear at 30 days, but if it is pregnant at this time it can direct the nutrients to the developing embryo and lower the milk production, so that the farmers wait about 8 weeks to make the assembly or assisted reproduction, and they will continue ordering it 24 weeks more, leaving at the end of pregnancy a period of drying of the udders so that the production and quality of the milk of the next cycle does not decrease.

In summary , the cow gives birth, begins the milking.After 60 days she becomes pregnant again.Milk is ordered 300 days more, approximately.It leaves 50 days of drying of the udders and another birth occurs.

Health problems of dairy cows

Some of the common diseases of cattle are related to the production of milk.The good state of health of the cows is essential to produce milk.The main diseases or ailments suffered by dairy cows usually derive of mishandling and abuse.

The most common pathologies are:

Mastitis: it is the most common problem, it usually appears in cows linked to the milk industry of high production.It consists of an infectious and inflammatory process of the mammary glands and must be treated urgently.It is produced by the obstruction of some duct of the glands or by an infection.
Lameness: lamenesses in Cows is a very common ailment, whether in the dairy or meat industry.It occurs when the facilities where the cows are found are not suitable, such as slippery soils.But the most common cause is the lack of rest of the animals, they don't spend the necessary hours lying down.
Enf childbirth-related diseases: dystocia, placental retention, endometritis, puerperal fever, ketosis and abomasum displacement.

If you want to read more articles similar to How do cows produce milk? , we recommend that you enter our Curiosities section of the animal world.

Bibliography

Glauber, CE2007.Physiology of lactation in the dairy cow.Veterinaria Argentina, 24 (234): 274-281.
JICA.2009.Physiology of lactation.International Cooperation Agency of Japan.Available at: https://www.jica.go.jp/project/bolivia/3065022E0/04/pdf/4-3-1_09.pdf
Rivera, JE, Arenas, FA, Rivera, R., Benavides, LM, Sanchez, Jy Barahona, R.2014.Life cycle analysis in milk production: comparison of two dairy herds specialized.Livestock Research for Rural Development, 6: 1-9.
https://www.afimilk.com/en/needs-solutions/cows/health

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