2025, Vol. 23, No. 2

Sirvi

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The cow reproductive perspective in relation to the colostrum quality and udder health in early lactation
(Estonian University of Life Sciences, 2025) Lusis, I.; Sematovica, I.; Ostrovska, M.
The study aimed to evaluate cow reproductive performance in relation to colostrum quality measured using a digital Brix refractometer and udder health in early lactation. A dataset of 676 cows was collected from one commercial dairy farm in Latvia over 36 months in 2022–2024. Colostrum Brix% was associated with the year and season of the year. The colostrum quality, as measured by the Digital Brix refractometer, was acceptably high, ranging from 23 to 30 in all cows during the study. The main individual factors associated with colostrum Brix% were the number of lactations, the sex of the calf, and lactose content in the first milk recording after calving. No association was detected between colostrum Brix% and the length of the dry period or the last milk recording data. Neither somatic cell count nor colostrum Brix% was associated with reproductive performance, service period, or the number of inseminations.