Automatic milking, a better understanding

"In 2000 the book Robotic Milking, reflecting the proceedings of an International Symposium which was held in The Netherlands came out. At that time, commercial introduction of automatic milking systems was no longer obstructed by technological inadequacies. Particularly in a few west-European countries, systems were being installed at an increasing rate. However, it was recognised that the changeover from 'traditional' to automatic milking affected the farming operation, herd management and control of milk quality profoundly and that many of the implications were still unknown. So, new challenges in various fields of dairy farming and new research areas emerged. Since this previous International Symposium, much has happened. In general automatic milking has been adopted as a realistic alternative for milking in the 'traditional' milking parlour. Systems have gradually been improved and, maybe even more importantly, farmers have become more familiar with their potential and limitations, both technically and in herd management. The number of farms milking with an automatic milking system has worldwide increased to more than 2.200 by the end of 2003 . From 2000 to now, the level of scientific knowledge on various aspects and consequences of automatic milking has increased largely as well because of research efforts all over the world. A significant share of these efforts has been made within the framework of a EU-granted project on the implications of the introduction of automatic milking on dairy farms. Some seven research institutes and six industrial companies from six countries joined their expertise and experience in order to facilitate a widespread adoption of automatic milking without undesirable side effects. This book reflects the knowledge on automatic milking generated all over the world in the last few years. Its contents can therefore be regarded as the present state of knowledge in the field of automatic milking, for a better understanding."

Table of Contents:
Preface 7; Symposium organization 9; OVERVIEW; Automatic milking: State of the art in Europe and North America 27; Kees de Koning & Jack Rodenburg; SOCIO-ECONOMIC ASPECTS; Milk in the news 41; Ulrike Maris & Keith Roe; Socio-economic aspects of automatic milking 46; Erik Mathijs; Motivations of Dutch farmers to invest in an automatic milking system or a conventional milking parlour 56; Henk Hogeveen, Kees Heemskerk & Erik Mathijs; Economic efficiency of automatic milking systems with specific emphasis on increases in milk production 62; K.M. Wade, M.A.P.M. van Asseldonk, P.B.M. Berentsen, W. Ouweltjes & H. Hogeveen; The economic implications of automatic milking: a simulation analysis for Belgium, Denmark, Germany and The Netherlands 68; Erwin Wauters & Erik Mathijs; Energy consumption on farms with an AM-system 75; Kees Bos; Evaluation of the AM-system adopting and using farmers - In case study of Japanese dairy farms - 77; N. Hatakeyama; Expectations of automatic milking and the realized socio-economic effects 78; T. Jensen. FARM AND SYSTEM HYGIENE; Farm hygiene and teat cleaning requirements in automatic milking 83; Karin Knappstein, Nele Roth, Betsie Slaghuis, Reina Ferwerda-van Zonneveld, Hans-Georg Walte & Joachim Reichmuth; The cleaning of automatic milking systems 94; Erik Schuiling; Investigation of different cleaning frequencies in automatic milking systems 101; Christel Benfalk & Mats Gustafsson; Induction of milk ejection during teat cleaning in robotic milking systems 106; Rupert M. Bruckmaier & Heinrich H.D. Meyer; Evaluating cleanliness of udders with an image processing system 111; D.W. Ordolff; Different locations of instant cooling in the automatic milking system and the effect on milk quality 116; Mats Gustafsson & Christel Benfalk; Teat cleaning efficiency before milking in DeLaval VMS[trademark] versus conventional manual cleaning 117; Martin Melin, Hans Wiktorsson & Anders Christiansson; Cleaning effects of teat cleaning in robotic milking systems by use of poppy seed as tracer 118; B.A. Slaghuis, R.T. Ferwerda-van Zonneveld & A. Mooiweer; Cobalt as a tracer for estimation of residues in milk after application of automatic teat cleaning systems 119; B.A. Slaghuis, R.T. Ferwerda-van Zonneveld, M.C. te Giffel & G. Ellen; Assessment of teats cleaning system efficiency of a milking robot 121; F.M. Tangorra, V. Bronzo, A. Casula, M. Cattaneo, C. Martinazzi, P. Moroni, M. Zaninelli & A.G. Cavalchini; ANIMAL HEALTH; Impact of automatic milking on animal health 125; J.E. Hillerton, J. Dearing, J. Dale, J.J. Poelarends, F. Neijenhuis, O.C. Sampimon, J.D.H.M. Miltenburg & C. Fossing. Effects of automatic milking on body condition score and fertility of dairy cows 135; J. Dearing, J.E. Hillerton, J.J Poelarends, F. Neijenhuis, O.C. Sampimon & C. Fossing; Changes in teat condition in Dutch herds converting from conventional to automated milking 141; F. Neijenhuis, K. Bos, O.C. Sampimon, J. Poelarends, J.E. Hillerton, C. Fossing & J. Dearing; Cow factors related to the increase of somatic cell count after introduction of automatic milking. 148; J.J. Poelarends, O.C. Sampimon, F. Neijenhuis, J.D.H.M. Miltenburg, J.E. Hillerton, J. Dearing & C. Fossing; The influence of an automatic milking system on claw health and lameness of dairy cows 155; B. Vosika, D. Lexer, Ch. Stanek, J. Troxler & S. Waiblinger; Introduction of AMS in Italian dairy herds: Effects on teat tissues, intramammary infection risk, and spread of contagious pathogens 161; A. Zecconi, R. Piccinini, G. Casirani, E. Binda & L. Migliorati; Blind quarters in automatic milking systems - causes and consequences 168; Torben Werner Bennedsgaard, Morten Dam Rasmussen & Martin Bjerring; Changes in cow locomotion in uk herds converting from conventional to automated milking 170; J. Dearing & J.E. Hillerton; A study of the effect of lameness on voluntary milking frequency of dairy cows milked automatically 171; Simon Grove, Torben Werner Bennedsgaard, Morten Dam Rasmussen & Carsten Enevoldsen; Influence of an automatic milking system (VMS[registered]) on milk secretory activity of healthy and diseased udder quarters 172; J. Hamann, H. Halm & R. Redetzky; Risk factors for teat end callosity in dairy farms operating with automatic milking systems (AMS) 174; Ilka C. Klaas, M. Bjerring & C. Enevoldsen; Introduction of AMS in Italian herds: udder symmetry, teat thickness and health in an automatic milking system 175; Luciano Migliorati, Federico Calza, Giacomo Pirlo, Giuseppe Casirani & Alfonso Zecconi. Effects of milking interval on teat condition and milking performance with whole-udder take off 177; F. Neijenhuis, J.E. Hillerton, K. Bos, O. Sampimon, J. Poelarends, C. Fossing & J. Dearing; Milk leakage in automatic and conventional milking systems 179; K. Persson Waller, T. Westermark, T. Ekman & K. Svennersten-Sjaunja; Impact of teat dip composition on teat condition and udder health 181; M.D. Rasmussen, L. Foldager & T.C. Hemling; Animal health of herds converting to automatic milking system 182; F. Skjoth, M.D. Rasmussen, L.A.H. Nielsen & K. Krogh; Quarter milk flow patterns in dairy cows: factors involved and repeatability 183; V. Tancin, A.H. Ipema, D. Peskovicova, P.H. Hogewerf, S. Mihina & J. Macuhova; Study on the incidence of ketosis in dairy cows in an automatic milking system versus a conventional milking system 184; Christoph Wenzel & Alexander Nitzschke; ABNORMAL MILK; Detection and separation of abnormal milk in automatic milking systems 189; Morten Dam Rasmussen; Impact of automatic milking on excretion of antibiotic residues 198; Karin Knappstein, Gertraud Suhren & Hans-Georg Walte; Selection of cows for treatment of udder infections in AMS herds 209; Torben Werner Bennedsgaard, Susanne Elvstrom & Morten Dam Rasmussen; Influence of varying milking intervals on milk composition - a physiological approach on secretion of "normal milk" 215; J. Hamann & H. Halm; Cost of discarding milk with automatic separation of abnormal milk 221; Diederik Pietersma & Henk Hogeveen; The use of spectral photometry for detection of mastitis milk 228; Martin Wiedemann & Georg Wendl; An on-line somatic cell count sensor 235; D.S. Whyte, R.G. Orchard, P.S. Cross, T. Frietsch, R.W. Claycomb & G.A. Mein. Seeing red: automated detection of blood in milk 241; D.S. Whyte, R.G. Orchard, P. Cross, A. Wilson, R.W. Claycomb & G.A. Mein; Detection of tissue damages caused by milking machines using conductivity measurement 243; Kerstin Barth; Introduction of AMS in Italian dairy herds: The detection of clinical and subclinical mastitis by AMS systems 245; E. Binda, G. Casirani, R. Piccinini & A. Zecconi; Detection of mastitis and poor milk quality in automatic milking 247; M. Hovinen, A-M. Aisla, P. Anttila & S. Pyorala; Proteolysis of milk protein from uninfected glands and glands infected with Streptococcus uberis 249; Lotte B. Larsen, Morten D. Rasmussen, Martin Bjerring & Jacob H. Nielsen; Composition of milk clots 250; Lotte B. Larsen, Morten D. Rasmussen, Martin Bjerring & Jacob H. Nielsen; A method to detect flakes and clots in milk in automatic milking systems 251; B. Maassen-Francke, M. Wiethoff, O. Suhr, C. Clemens & A. Knoll; Making sense of in-line sensing for milk conductivity 252; G.A. Mein, R.A. Sherlock & R.W. Claycomb; Electrical conductivity of milk as an indicator trait for mastitis 254; Elise Norberg & Inge Riis Korsgaard; The change of milk quality during lactations 256; L. Pongracz & E. Bader; Impedance based sensor for mastitis detection in milk 258; Sonia Ramirez-Garcia, Valerie Favry, Kim Lau, Gillian McMahon & Dermot Diamond; Detection of abnormal udder tissue and milk by near infra-red spectroscopy (cow side) 259; R. Tsenkova, H. Morita, H. Shinzawa & J.E. Hillerton; GRAZING; Automatic milking and grazing 263; Eva Sporndly, Christian Krohn, Hendrik Jan van Dooren & Hans Wiktorsson. Integrating Automatic Milking Installations (AMIs) into Grazing Systems - Lessons from Australia 273; R.K. Greenall, E. Warren & M. Warren; Automatic dairy farming in New Zealand using extensive grazing systems 280; M.W. Woolford, R.W. Claycomb, J. Jago, K. Davis, I. Ohnstad, R. Wieliczko, P.J.A. Copeman & K. Bright; Two case studies on farms combining automatic milking with grazing - time budgets, synchronisation of behaviour and visits to the robot 286; Lene Munksgaard & Mette Sondergaard; The influence of three grazing systems on AMS performance 292; H.J.C. van Dooren, L.F.M. Heutinck, G. Biewenga & J.L. Zonderland; How pasturing influences the use of AMS - A survey among 15 dairy farms in The Netherlands 298; H.J.C. van Dooren, M.E. Haarman, J.H.M. Metz & L.F.M. Heutinck; Seven case studies about automatic milking and grazing in private herds 304; Christian C. Krohn; Combining automatic milking and grazing. Practice in The Netherlands 305; H.J.C. van Dooren, L.F.M. Heutinck & G. Biewenga; Is automatic milking possible with a 100 per cent pasture diet? 307; J. Jago, A. Jackson, K. Davis, R. Wieliczko, P. Copeman, I. Ohnstad, R. Claycomb & M. Woolford; An individual cow-calling system to motivate cows to return from the pasture to the milking unit 308; Ewa Wredle, Lene Munksgaard & Eva Sporndly; MILK QUALITY; Milk quality on farms with an automatic milking system 311; Kees de Koning, Betsie Slaghuis & Yvonne van der Vorst; Quarter milking - a possibility for detection of udder quarters with elevated SCC 321; I. Berglund, G. Pettersson, K. Ostensson & K. Svennersten-Sjaunja; Pattern of somatic cell count in milk under automatic milking conditions (VMS) and interactions with milk constituents 329; J. Hamann. Introduction of AMS in Italian dairy herds: Effects on cow performances and milk quality in a herd of the Grana Padano area 335; G. Pirlo, G. Bertoni & R. Giangiacomo; Robotic milking and free fatty acids 341; B.A. Slaghuis, K. Bos, O. de Jong, A.J. Tudos, M.C. te Giffel & K. de Koning; Impact of size distribution of milk fat globules on milk quality affected by pumping 348; Lars Wiking, Lennart Bjorck & Jacob H. Nielsen; Introduction of AMS in Italian dairy herds: Preliminary observations on milk fat parameters for long ripening cheese production with primiparous dairy cows 357; F. Abeni, L. Degano & F. Calza; Towards specification in-line monitoring primary milk production 359; P.C.F. Borsboom & J. Dommerholt; Comparison of several methods for quantification of free fatty acid in bovine milk 361; T.K. Dalsgaard, & J.H. Nielsen; Introduction of AMS in Italian dairy herds: A new system for the evaluation of milk fat globule size as affected by automatic milking 362; L. Degano, G. Contarini, O. Formichi, D. Ravera & R. Giangiacomo; Milking with robots: the Swedish experience 363; Torkel Ekman, Charlotte Hallen Sandgren, Mats Gyllensvard, Inger Andersson & Bengt Everitt; Introduction of AMS in Italian dairy herds: Long ripened cheese production from robotic milking 364; R. Giangiacomo, T.M.P. Cattaneo, G. Contarini, F. Abeni & G. Colzani; Effects of an automatic milking system (VMS[registered]) on free fatty acids (FFA) in different milk fractions 365; J. Hamann, F. Reinecke, H. Stahlhut-Klipp & N.Th. Grabowski; Survey of milk quality on United States dairy farms utilizing automatic milking systems 367; Jason M. Helgren & Douglas J. Reinemann; Milk iodine residues: AMS versus conventional 368; M. McKinzie, I. Laquiere, T.C. Hemling & S. DeVliegher. WELFARE; Implications of automatic milking on animal welfare 371; Hans Wiktorsson & Jan Tind Sorensen; A welfare assessment report as a decision support tool in an AMS herd: Practical experiences 382; Jens Hindhede, Tine Rousing, Ilka Klaas & Jan Tind Sorensen; Relationships between time budgets, cortisol metabolite concentrations and dominance values of cows milked in a robotic system and a herringbone parlour 389; D. Lexer, K. Hagen, R. Palme, J. Troxler & S. Waiblinger; Assessment of welfare of dairy cows milked in different automatic milking systems (AMS) 394; I. Neuffer, R. Hauser, L. Gygax, C. Kaufmann & B. Wechsler; Assessment of animal welfare in an AMS herd: Expert evaluation of a decision support system 400; Tine Rousing, Jens Hindhede, Ilka Christine Klaas, Marianne Bonde & Jan Tind Sorensen; Automatic milking and grazing in dairy cattle: effects on behaviour 407; L.F.M. Heutinck, H.J.C. van Dooren & G. Biewenga; Introduction of AMS in Italian dairy herds: Welfare assessment based on metabolic and endocrine responses in primiparous dairy cows 414; F. Abeni, L. Calamari, M. Speroni & G. Bertoni; Indicators of stress in Simmental and Brown Swiss cows during milking in a robotic system compared to a herringbone parlour 416; K. Hagen, D. Lexer, R. Palme, J. Troxler & S. Waiblinger; Effects on feed intake, milking frequency and milk yield of dairy cows of semi-forced or free cow traffic in AMS 417; D.J. Haverkamp, G. Pettersson & H. Wiktorsson; Behavior of high- and low-ranked dairy cows after redirection in selection gates in an automatic milking system 418; G.G.N. Hermans, M. Melin, G. Pettersson & H. Wiktorsson; Image analysis for monitoring unrest or discomfort of cows during milking 420; A.H. Ipema, L. de Haan, J. Hemming & W.G.P. Schouten. Clinical examinations in welfare assessment in herds operating with an automatic milking system (AMS) 422; I.C. Klaas, C. Fossing, M.K. Bonde & J. Hindhede; Measuring welfare in dairy cows - behavioural aspects 423; Jan Olofsson; Improved animal welfare in AMS? 425; Jan Olofsson & Kerstin Svennersten-Sjaunja; Measuring welfare in dairy cows - health aspects 427; K. Persson Waller & J. Olofsson; Introduction of AMS in Italian herds: effects on animal behaviour 429; Marisanna Speroni, Susanna Lolli & Giacomo Pirlo; FARM AND HERD MANAGEMENT; Demands and opportunities for operational management support 433; Wijbrand Ouweltjes & Kees de Koning; Udder cistern evaluation to help the decision making process of assigning the appropriate milking frequency in automatically milked cows 444; M. Ayadi, I. Llach, G. Caja, I. Busto, A. Bach & X. Carre; Effects of milking machine parameters on the mean milk flow rate in a robotic milking system 450; A.H. Ipema & P.H. Hogewerf; Considerations at establishment of automatic milking systems in existing herd facilities 457; Troels Kristensen & Egon Noe; Integration of cow activity in individual management systems: Analysis of individual feeding patterns in automatic milking systems 463; Martin Melin & Hans Wiktorsson; Illumination or guiding light during night hours in the resting area of AM-barns 468; Gunnar Pettersson & Hans Wiktorsson; System capacity of single box AMS and effect on the milk performance 474; Rudolf Artmann. Udder stimulation without milking decreases milk production at the following milking but has no further consequences on milk production 476; A. Bach, I. Busto & X. Carre; The impact of milking interval regularity on milk production 478; A. Bach, I. Busto & X. Carre; Change of udder conformation traits by lactations in a Holstein Friesian herd 480; E. Bader, I. Gyorkos, P. Bader, M. Porvay, E. Kerteszne Gyorffy A. Kovacs & L. Pongracz; Managing the change to automatic milking 482; J.R. Baines; Transfer of data from management systems to central databases 483; M. Bjerring, T. Lind, F. Skjoth & M.D. Rasmussen; Effects of milking frequency and lactation stage on milk yield and milk composition of test day records in robotic milking 484; I. Llach, A. Bosch, M. Ayadi, G. Caja, M. Xifra & X. Carre; Introduction of AMS in Italian herds: Integration and performances in a conventional barn of North Italy 486; M. Capelletti, C. Bisaglia & G. Pirlo; Working time studies in farms with conventional and automatic milking 488; Mats Gustafsson; Managing an automatic milking farm: Minimizing the amount of concentrates in the robot 489; Ilan Halachmi; Influence of incomplete milkings on milk yield under automatic milking conditions (VMS[registered]) 490; J. Hamann, H. Halm, R. Redetzky & N.Th. Grabowski; Influence of cow traffic on milking and animal behaviour in a robotic milking system 492; Jan Harms & Georg Wendl; Effect of a simplification in the entrance and exit procedure for a multiple stall robotic milking system on the cow's time budget for milking 494; A.H. Ipema & P.H. Hogewerf. The difference between the setting and the actual milking time in an automatic milking system 496; A. Kageyama, S. Morita, A. Murakami, H. Kawakami, M. Komiya, S. Hoshiba & M. Tokida; The effects of diet composition and feeding system on cow activity and voluntary milking in an AMS 497; Arie Klop & Kees Bos; Optimization of feed speed in automatic milking system 498; Michio Komiya, Shigeru Morita, Katsumi Kawakami & Mamoru Yokoyama; Analysis of teat cup attachment under practical conditions 500; H. Luther, E. Stamer, W. Junge & E. Kalm; Diurnal changes of oxytocin release during automatic milking 502; Juliana Macuhova & Rupert M. Bruckmaier; Eating and resting behavior of cows in bedded pack type loose housing with an automatic milking system 503; S. Morita, A. Kageyama, A. Murakami, H. Kawakami, M. Komiya & S. Hoshiba; Automatic milking systems - System performance and working time 504; Christoph Moriz; Electricity and water consumption by milking 506; Jan Brogger Rasmussen & Jorgen Pedersen; Survey of automatic milking systems management practices in North America 508; Douglas J. Reinemann, Yvonne van der Vorst, Wilco de Jong & Albrecht Finnema; A protocol for training a dairy herd for automatic milking 509; Jack Rodenburg; Effect of the composition of concentrate fed in the milking box, on milking frequency and voluntary attendance in automatic milking systems 511; Jack Rodenburg, Erik Focker & Karen Hand; The effect of housing on implementation of automatic milking in Israel 513; Ezra Shoshani & Ephraim Ezra; The effect of milking interval on milk yield and milk composition 515; K. Svennersten-Sjaunja, I. Andersson & H. Wiktorsson; A study of practical use of automatic milking system in Japan 516; M. Tokida, S. Morita, M. Komiya & T. Kida. Strategies to improve the capacity of an automatic milking system 517; H.J.C. van Dooren, C.H. Bos & G. Biewenga; The changeover from conventional to automatic milking in dairy cows with and without previous experience 518; Daniel Weiss, Erich Mostl & Rupert M. Bruckmaier; AUTHORS INDEX 523; SPONSORS 529.