MILKING WITH MACHINES

Manawatu Times, 4 May 1926, Page 8

MILKING WITH MACHINES

DOES IT INCREASE JIASIMITIS ?

Some interesting information for dairy farmers regarding the dreaded disease mammitlo was given in a recent lecture by Mr. J. Gill ,of the Wallaccvillc Laboratory, where experiments relating to th c disease are being undertaken. Mr. Gill insisted that all kinds of mammitis should be regarded as contagious, as they would all spread. Vaccination had been found difficult, as they were many varieties of the germ, and a vaccine made from one strain would be useless to deal with another. If a vaccine consisted of several different strains its power of combating any particular one would be lessened. Mr, Gill detailed thc various experiments carried out by the New Zealand Department of Agriculture, which had found that vaccinated cows got the disease just as easily as one that had not been so treated, and did not get over it any better. He did not think there was much hope of getting a general vaccine which would be of much use against contagious mammitis. If lire vaccine were made from from thc disease in one particular herd only, it might be effective, Mammitis had increased considerably since machine milking had come into vogue. That was due to several causes, one of which was that the machines were always liable to carry disease germs in the teat cups. Another cause was that the vacuum was often too strong. A farmer who milked his herd by machines did not become aware there was any disease until some time had elapsed. A good plan would be to use a small glass vessel, something like a saucer, and before putting on the teat cups to take a sample of milk from each quarter. Thus it would be seen whether there was anything suspicious in the milk. If there were tne cow should bo put out of thc herd at once. The fomentation of the quarters of an infected animal with a brine solution was recommended by , Mr. Gill, and it was pointed out that such an animal should be dried off as quickly as possible. It must also be remembered that a cow with a hard quarter was always a source of danger. Ihe drying off of an affected animal must always be done thoroughly and slowly.