Wot no milk

 

Wot no Milk

It is that time of the year, cold hands, pink teats, and no milk, Why?

It's all to do with the short day length.

In the temperate zones we have long day periods and short day periods corresponding to winter and summer. Light enters the eye and sends a signal to the pituitary gland.

(The pituitary gland is referred to as the “master gland” because it monitors and regulates many bodily functions through the hormones that it produces, including: growth and sexual/reproductive development and function. glands (thyroid gland, adrenal glands, and gonads)

Short days it produces melatonin ( the sleep hormone). In a goat, it tightens the skin, sends less blood to the small capillary vessels near the surface. (Pink teats) The skin tightening, holds the second follicle hair in place (cashmere and Mohair) and creates the shear line in sheep wool. It also tightens the udder making it harder to store milk thus less milk. How much less? A goat that produces 1 gallon or 4.5 to 5 litres in summer will produce 0.5 to 1 litre per day, or a pint to 2 pints in the winter, Luckily this reduction in milk supply only last 4 months. When not producing milk the energy goes into producing fat on the back. This fat is used for the first 12 weeks to supply milk to the new born kid.

Most crofters use the winter for breeding, when milking has to stop 6 weeks before kidding. Ideally if you manage to kid the goat 6 weeks before the equinox, a useful amount of milk can be maintained until the day length catches up. Prior to kidding the goat is flushed with hormones like prolactin that overrides the sleep hormone.

In spring the day lengthens blood flows to the teat, which turns black and expands giving a greater supply of milk. By the longest day, milk production is at its height, and starts to fall back on 20^th July.

Humans also suffer from the short day effect. The skin tightens, cracks and takes ages to heal. No end of cream can speed up the healing process. Skin becomes pale, the body slows down and wants comfort food.

There is a cure for this, spend winter in New Zealand and Summer in the UK.

But who will break the ice on the water buckets, dig through feet of snow to feed the goats best quality hay and concentrates, just to get a squirt of milk in the dark. Some one short of funds that needs a bottle of Highland park for Christmas!