Abstract
Goat breeding is one of the least developed agricultural sectors in Serbia. This is reflected in the fact that the total number of goats in Serbia is less than 200,000, as well as the fact that no goat milk production has been recorded by the statistics. Over the last decade, there has been great interest of breeders for intensive breeding of highly productive goats, which resulted in imports of breeding goats. In the same period, several herds of the Alpine breed and German fawn goats were formed, while their production results in the growing conditions in our country have not been fully studied yet. During the first three lactations in the period 2003-2009, the following parameters of milk yield were studied: length of lactation, milk yield in one lactation, percentage and the milk fat yield, and percentage and the total protein yield. The average lactation period was 247 days for the first, 260.6 days for the second and 266.8 days for the third lactation. The average of milk yielded was constantly increasing from the first (594.51 kg) towards the third lactation (761.96 kg), showing statistically highly significant differences (P<0,001). What was also observed is that the order of lactation has not significantly affected the percentage of proteins in milk, whereas the total protein yield in lactations was influenced by the order of lactation due to the differences in average milk yield in lactations.
Highlights
The milk yield and composition of goat milk depends on the breed of goats, but is heavily influenced by physiological and environmental factors
What was observed is that the order of lactation has not significantly affected the percentage of proteins in milk, whereas the total protein yield in lactations was influenced by the order of lactation due to the differences in average milk yield in lactations
The total milk yield, milk fat and proteins depends on the duration of lactation, i.e. there is a positive correlation between the length of lactation and the total production of milk and milk fat (Grossman et al, 1986)
Summary
The milk yield and composition of goat milk depends on the breed of goats, but is heavily influenced by physiological and environmental factors. - Colostral period and stage of lactation. Anifantakis and Kandarakis (1980) state that the percentage of fat and protein is high in colostrum and in milk in the first phase of lactation, while it is significantly lower in the middle of lactation, to be increased again in the last stage of lactation while the quantity of produced milk is significantly reduced. The percentage of lactose remains within a rather narrow range during the whole period of lactation, whereas the concentration of minerals increases with the duration of lactation (Mioč, 1991). - Gravidity dramatically reduces milk yield according to Salama et al (2005), and without kidding, lactation can be prolonged for 2 to 4 years. It was found that milk production was the lowest in the first lactation, gradually increasing until the fourth, and sometimes until the sixth lactation, after which it declines
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