Influence of collapsing teat cup liners on teat tissue in dairy cows

Effects of the unilateral collapse load of the teat cup liner were examined in 2 experiments. One teat was milked with a collapse plane which was kept constant in relation to the long milk tube (treatment) and another with a regularly changed collapse plane (control). Treatments were applied for 6 ( 1(st) experiment) or 7 d (2(nd) experiment), before they were either switch ed between teats (first experiment) or applied at other teats (second exper iment). In both experiments both treatment periods were separated by a 4 (1 (st) experiment) or a 3 days (2(nd) experiment) adaptation period during wh ich only the control treatment was applied. In the 1(st) experiment total s omatic cell count was recorded at day 1, 3 and 6 of each period in a pre-mi lking cistern milk sample and in an after milking stripping sample. The sam ples were analysed for total somatic cell count. In the 2(nd) experiment th e content of teat sinus was stripped for sampling 2 h after cluster removal at day 1,4, and 7. These samples were analysed for neutrophils, monocyte-m acrophages and lymphocytes. An effect of constant unilateral collapse plane on the variables could not be diagnosed.