DON'T LEAVE YOUR LINERS TOO LONG
The arrival of winter is a good time to change the teat cup liners in the dairy plant.
Dairy Australia Countdown Downunder project leader, Dr John Penry, said liners should be changed every four to six months, or after 2500 cow-milkings, whichever comes sooner.
"The age of liners is calculated in terms of cow-milkings, and the Countdown Downunder Farm Guidelines show how to calculate liner life in cow milkings; but if you haven't changed them in the past six months, now is the time," Dr Penry said.
"As a rule of thumb, if you notice an improvement in milking performance after replacing liners, the old ones were used for too long.
"Using liners for too many milkings increases risk of teat end damage and concurrent mastitis infection. Subtle and progressive damage can occur over several weeks and may only be detected by careful examination and scoring of teats and teat ends.
"The liner is the most important part of the milking machine as far as the cow is concerned, because it is the only part of the plant in direct contact with the teat during milking," he said.
Cows are attached to machines for 50-100 hours every lactation, so there is plenty of opportunity for teat damage if there is any problem with the milking system.
Trying to squeeze a few more weeks or months from the liners in a dairy is almost always a poor option.
As liners age, their shape, tension and surface condition changes gradually. Both the internal surface and milking performance of liners tend to deteriorate more quickly once they reach their designated use-by date.
When replacing liners, always change all four liners within a cluster at the same time to maintain similar mounting tension and milking characteristics between the four teat cups.
Make sure you purchase a liner that matches your teat cups.
"Don't be tempted by what's on special or what looks roughly similar to the one you are using," Dr Penry said.
Time management tip: On the date that you change the liners, mark the date for the next liner replacement on your calendar.
For more information refer to Countdown's Farm Guideline 6: Monitoring milking machine function, available at: Monitor Milking Machine or phone Countdown Downunder (03) 9620 7283.
Countdown Downunder is an example of your levy at work. For more information on this and other examples of your levy at work visit http://www.dairyaustralia.com.au
