Dairy Farm Management

Dairy farm management is the management of animals to increase the production and quality of milk and its products. The milk yielding capacity depends upon the quality of cattle breeds on the farm. The selection of a good breed that has high yielding potential and is resistant to diseases is very important. Therefore, for good yield potential, dairy farm management includes the following main processes.

First is taking good care of the cattle. They should be housed well and kept comfortably. The place should be maintained in a disease-free environment with adequate supply water. The next important thing is the selection of proper cattle feed. For this proper scientific procedure should be followed for choosing the feed cattle with special emphasis on its quality and quantity. Stringent cleanliness and hygiene of cattle and handlers should be maintained while milking, storage, and transport of the milk. Now ease these processes have the mechanized which reduces the chances of direct contact of the produced with the handlers. However, types of machinery have to be inspected regularly and proper records have to be maintained to check to performance and identify the defects. Regular checkups of the cattle by the veterinary doctor should be done to identify early symptoms of diseases and maintain the overall health of the cattle. Out of the total milk obtained every day only 39% is consumed directly while the rest of the milk is generally converted into various milk products such as curd, cheese, ice cream, cottage cheese or paneer, khoya, butter, ghee, milk powder, etc. India ranks first in world milk production. There are many breeds of cows are in the world which is categorized into milk breed, draught breed, and dual-purpose breeds.

Milk breed

These breeds are reared only for the yield of milk. The females have large udders for example Sahiwal, Deoni, Red Sindhi, Gir, etc.

Draught breed

These breeds are called beasts of burden and are raised mainly for ploughing and for transportation. The males are strong and sturdy while the females have small udders and produce very little milk for example Halliker, Nagori, Malvi, Khillairi, etc.

Dual-purpose breeds

These are used to serve both the purpose of yielding milk and ploughing for example Haryanavi, Ongole, Kankrej, Tharparkar, etc.

To increase milk production and fulfill the demands of the dairy industry apart from these indigenous breeds some high yielding exotic breeds of foreign origin have also been introduced. In order to meet the high demand for exotic animals and have minimal maintenance and good climate acclimatization, many exotic animals are crossbred with indigenous breeds.

Nutritive value of milk

The energy value for cow milk is 67 kilocalories per 100ml. Whereas, energy value for buffalo milk is 117 kilocalories per 100ml. Protein from cow milk is 3.2 % and buffalo milk is 4.5%. Fat in cow milk is 4.1 to 5.3% and buffalo milk is 6.5%. Carbohydrate from cow milk is 4.5% and buffalo milk is 5.0%. Vitamins present in milk include A, D, E, Thiamine, Riboflavin, Niacin, Pyridoxine, Pantothenic acid, Biotin, Cobalamin (B12), Ascorbic acid. Minerals include calcium, sodium, Potassium, iron, copper, phosphorus, chlorine, and sulfate.