Milk and its many uses An introduction to milk Years ago, a cow’s milk was produced for the sole purpose to be suckled by her calf. Utilisation of cow’s milk as a source of food was well developed by the 19th century with the dairy being an important part of the farm, producing milk, cream, butter and cheese. A good example of a farm dairy can be seen at Acton Scott. Over time cattle have been selected for milk production or beef. Further…
An update on Ridgeway Science and more from Bridgit Muasa’s research in Africa… Ridgeway Science Still Open for Business! We are experiencing unprecedented times at the moment but we would like to assure you that we have measures in place to ensure that there will be no interruption in our services. We continue to be able to send ELISA kits to meet your needs and receive any samples for in house testing. Over the past month we have shipped consignments…
International Women’s Day: Female African Dairy Farmers The numbers on a poster on the Health For Animal website marking International Women’s Day on the 8th March, caught my attention: two thirds of the 600 million poorest livestock keepers globally are women. 90% of the income they earn is ploughed back into their family or society. In East Africa, dairy is the biggest industry for female livestock keepers. This is a population of small holder farmers that produce milk for their family and…
Progesterone profiles in dairy cows: what can they tell us? The previous article in this series from Ridgeway Science reviewed the dairy cow oestrus cycle and we’re following that with a more detailed look at the progesterone-dominated luteal phase of the cycle, reported by Blavy and colleagues in 2016. What is Progesterone? Progesterone is a steroid hormone and is produced by the corpus luteum in the ovary after ovulation. If a cow becomes pregnant, the corpus luteum will be maintained…
What does oestrus detection have to do with economics and carbon footprints? Oestrus detection Last week’s article identified the importance of accurately detecting oestrus so that time and money are not wasted unnecessarily. Wastage can occur on any scale. From the micro level – a straw will be wasted if a cow not in oestrus at AI, to the individual cow level where, for example, a cow is culled due to fertility issues related to failure to detect oestrus to…
The Oestrous Cycle The cows reproductive cycle is termed the oestrous cycle and consists of several phases including a luteal phase (after ovulation the corpus luteum is formed) and a follicular phase (luteolysis and ovulation)1. A healthy cow typically has a cycle between 18-25 days long, during which the progesterone levels increase and decrease systematically. What Is Progesterone? Progesterone is a steroid hormone and is produced by the corpus luteum in the ovary after ovulation. If a cow falls pregnant,…