Experimental evaluation of milk yield and selected traits of milk quality in Clun Forest ewes

Abstract

In general, it can be stated that the economics of non-dairy sheep breeding in the Czech Republic experienced a worsening trend in recent years. One of the ways to improve this situation is to use some of these breeds also for milk production. One of the possible breeds usable for milk production, especially for the good milk production of mothers, is the Clun Forest (CF). The aim of our experiment was to evaluate the daily milk yield (DMY) and the contents of fat (F), total protein (TP) and lactose (L), pH, titratable acidity (TA), concentration of urea (CU) and somatic cell count (SCC) in CF ewes during lactation. In our experiment, the following means of individual traits for the whole lactation were found:

Effects of Feeding Management System on Milk Production and Milk Quality from Sheep of the Turcana Breed

“…The period of lactation influences the fat and casein content of the analyzed milk samples; this factor had an influence on both milk components, causing a gradual increase in their content. The results obtained in our study are in accordance with the data reported by other researchers [ 8 , 13 , 27 , 30 ]. The values obtained in our study were also compared with those from other studies that analyzed milk from sheep breeds specialized in milk production.…”

“…The values recorded herein are much higher compared to those obtained from milk cheeses [ 27 ]. Regarding the comparison of the amount of milk obtained from non-dairy breeds with the data from our study, the average DMY for the entire lactation period in the case of sheep from both groups was higher [ 8 ].…”

“…We found that both the fat and the protein content were higher than or comparable to the reported data [ 1 , 27 , 29 , 31 ]. Moreover, comparing the values obtained for the fat and protein content of milk from sheep of the Turcana breed with those obtained from sheep of non-milk breeds, the recorded values were higher [ 8 ].…”

“…Representative studies have been carried out on sheep’s milk to evaluate chemical composition, physicochemical properties, and microbiological composition [ 1 , 6 , 7 , 8 ], as well as the content of trace elements and heavy metals [ 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 ]. Moreover, studies have been carried out to capture the effects of other factors on the quantitative and qualitative production of sheep milk, e.g., the effects of the lactation stage and the reproduction period [ 13 , 14 , 15 ], and the influence of exploitation management at the level of farms and micro-farms, namely, the growing and feeding systems, which can improve milk quality [ 5 , 12 , 16 ].…”

“…However, the milk has comparable protein and fat content to that from predominantly milk-producing sheep. Studies have been carried out on the evaluation of milk production in non-dairy sheep, but they were limited to evaluations of the chemical composition and the microbiological and physical properties of milk [ 8 , 19 , 20 , 21 ]. In Romania, the evaluation of milk quality in sheep breeds has been limited to analyses of the chemical composition of the milk [ 13 , 22 ].…”