Cell count – a benchmark for healthy udders
Milk always contains a certain number of cells. In a healthy cow, this cell count is well under 100,000 cells. Milk with an increased cell count (over 100,000 cells) comes from unhealthy udders, which:
While automatic cell counting procedures succeed in determining the cell count in the milk being tested, the RAIDEX milk cell test is a reliable method for monitoring the health of each cow's udders, which is also easy to apply in the cowshed. Above a value of approx. 100,000 cells/ml the test solution visibly reacts with the milk sample.
The time required for testing one udder (four quarters) is less than a minute. One bottle (1000 ml testing solution) is sufficient for approx. 100 applications.
When should you perform the milk cell test?
The test solution should be stored in a safe place well away from heat, light and cold temperatures. Solutions that have become cloudy due to the cold must be warmed before use in order to restore their effectiveness.
In partnership with the University of Hohenheim, we have identified the factors required to produce the most precise and cost-effective milk cell test possible.
Conventional milk cell tests contain a chemical indicator. This is normally a dye which is used to determine a particular pH value by changing colour.
However, due to the high pH value of conventional milk tests, this attribute is useless and the function of the indicator is reduced to that of a very expensive dye.
However, in order to improve the readability of the test results in the white testing bowls, a dye is required as a contrast medium.
Conventional milk cell tests are set to a very high pH value of approx. 11. This demands a great deal of care in handling the testing solution. In our research, we discovered that the indicator has no influence on the precision of the test and the effect of the high pH value tends to be negative.
For many years we have had a colourless test in our range, alongside the conventional milk cell tests, and this is easy to read in a black testing bowl (also available from us). In studies, this test revealed and showed even the slightest differences.
We have built on this result: By adding dyes, which are also used in other areas for marking animals, we have created a cost-effective alternative to the conventional tests.
The result can also be read in a white testing bowl - yet without colouring it. In addition, the RAIDEX milk cell test 2003 is pH neutral, making it easier to handle.
How to perform the RAIDEX milk cell test:
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* Round bottles supplied with spray cap