Assessment of Milk Production and Milk Quality Traits of Indigenous Goats under Traditional Grazing-Based Systems

Abstract

This experiment compared the milk production and the milk composition of domestic goats raised through the use of the traditional management systems in three tehsils of the District Swat (Kabal, Charbagh, and Matta). Sixty milk samples (20 per tehsil) were taken and collected on the basis of lactating does and the samples were analyzed through the automated milk analyzer to determine fat, protein, lactose, solids-not-fat (SNF), density and pH. Direct measurements were made on the daily milk yield. Most of the milk composition characteristics and milk yield showed significant differences (p < 0.05) between locations. Matta goats had the greatest milk production per day (2.05 L/day) followed by Charbagh (1.29 L/day) and Kabal (1.01 L/day). The content of fat and SNF was greater in Kabal (3.94% and 8.45%), and the content of proteins was the highest in Matta (4.21%). There were no significant variation in milk density and pH, regarding the locations. The effects of feed type and parity were also significant (p < 0.0001) on the milk yield, with the supplementary diets and greater parities being linked with better production. The analysis of correlation indicated that milk yield was positively related to protein, lactose and SNF and fat had a negative relationship with milk yield at all locations. In general, Swat indigenous goats showed to be inconsistent in their potential to produce milk based on location, feeding and physiological parameters. Traditional goat production systems have the potential to be improved in terms of productivity and quality of milk by improving nutritional management and implementing location specific strategies.