Effects of weather and other factors on milk production in the Churra dairy sheep breed

Manuel González-Ronquillo,José-Alfonso Abecia,Carlos Palacios,Ricardo Gómez

doi:10.31893/jabb.21025

Abstract

The objective of this study was to investigate the influence of meteorological and other factors on the quality and quantity of milk of the Spanish Churra sheep breed, based on an analysis of 359,808 milk controls from 9,904 ewes on 15 farms in 8 years. Daily milk yield (DMY), fat, protein, and lactose (%), and somatic cell count (SCC) data were obtained from monthly alternating milk controls. Mean, maximum, and minimum temperatures (T) (Â°C), mean relative humidity (RH) (%), wind speed (WS, m/s), mean solar radiation (SR, MJ/m2), and total rainfall (RF, mm) on the day before each milk control day were documented. Year, farm, number of lambing and stage of lactation, and all of the meteorological factors had a significant (P < 0.0001) effect on DMY and milk quality. DMY and SCC differed among seasons (P < 0.001), and maximum DMY and minimum SCC occurred in spring, and minimum DMY and maximum SCC occurred in autumn. Fat, protein, and lactose content differed significantly (P < 0.001) among seasons, and fat and protein contents were highest in autumn. DMY was highest in the second lambing of the ewe and steadily declined in subsequent lambings. SCC increased significantly from the first to the 10th lambing of the ewe. DMY, SCC, and fat content differed significantly (P < 0.001) among years. In conclusion, meteorological conditions had a significant effect on milk quality and production in Churra sheep conditions in a season-dependent manner such that factors such as temperature had the opposite effect on milk production in hot and cold seasons.

Highlights

Milk fat and protein concentrations, and somatic cell count (SCC) have a significant effect on the technical and coagulation properties of milk, having a major impact on the yield and quality in the production of dairy products
This study examined the relationships between meteorological conditions and the production and chemical composition of milk from the Spanish Churra dairy sheep breed in a Mediterranean continental climate
T in summer and autumn did not have a significant effect on Daily milk yield (DMY) or SCC; wind speed (WS) had a significant (P < 0.0001) effect on DMY, fat, protein, and lactose content in spring and summer, and RF had a significant (P < 0.0001) effect on DMY and milk chemical composition, except protein content, in autumn, and on SCC in winter

Summary

Introduction

Milk fat and protein concentrations, and somatic cell count (SCC) have a significant effect on the technical and coagulation properties of milk, having a major impact on the yield and quality in the production of dairy products. Animal diet is one of the main factors that affect milk yield and composition (Nudda et al 2019); environmental factors such as ambient temperature (T), relative humidity (RH), wind speed (WS), solar radiation (SR), and rainfall (RF) can influence the welfare of animals and, can influence the production and chemical composition of milk (Silanikove 2000). T outside the thermoneutral zone can affect the physiological and production performance of lactating dairy sheep, which are the causes of significant losses in livestock production (Das et al 2016; Sejian et al 2018; Mylostyvyi and Chernenko 2019); in addition to T, other factors can contribute to reduced milk yields. Cold T harms the Manchega dairy sheep breed (Ramón et al 2016) and T has a positive correlation with milk production (Abecia et al 2017)

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