Background: Premilking udder preparation is essential for harvesting high-quality milk as gently, completely, and\nquickly as possible. The associations between characteristics such as teat-end shape and premilking stimulation on\nmilking characteristics and machine milking-induced changes to the teat tissue condition have not been rigorously\ninvestigated. The primary objective was to investigate the interactive effects of manual premilking stimulation (i.e.,\npreparation lag time) and teat-end shape on total milk yield, two-minute milk yield, milking unit-on time, and time\nin low milk flow rate. Our secondary objective was to study the association of manual premilking stimulation and\nchanges to the teat tissue condition after machine milking (i.e., short-term changes). In a longitudinal prospective\ncohort study, 384 milking observations from 129 cows were analysed. Holstein cows were housed in sand-bedded\nfree-stall pens, fed a total mixed ration, and milked 3 times a day. Cows were classified by teat-end shape into 1 of\n3 categories: pointed, flat, or round. Individual cow milking characteristics were recorded with electronic on-farm\nmilk meters. The duration of manual stimulation, preparation lag time, and presence of short-term changes were\ndocumented for each milking observation. General linear mixed models were used to study the interactive effects\nof preparation lag time and teat-end shape on milking characteristics.\nResults: There was an interaction between preparation lag time and teat-end shape for two-minute milk yield and\ntime in low milk flow rate. The preparation lag time effect was modified by teat-end shape, while no interaction\nwas observed for total milk yield or milking unit-on time. A generalized linear mixed model revealed that\npreparation lag time was associated with short-term changes in teat tissue condition, where the odds of short-term\nchanges decreased as preparation lag time increased.\nConclusions: In summary, cows with different teat-end shapes may require different premilking stimulation\nregimens. Increasing preparation lag time benefits teat tissue condition during machine milking. Further research is\nwarranted to optimize individual premilking stimulation in dairy cows.
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