Posted by arnx

Researchers at the Michigan State University in East Lansing observed as early as 1981, that providing light even at night to a nursing mother cow increases her milking capacity. According to the researchers, light from the pasteurland during the day is not adequate for a nursing mother cow. To make her milk abundant, provide her with light from a fluorescent lamp all night. The researchers saw that if a nursing cow gets 16 hours’ light, her milk increases by 6%-7% or more or less 1.5 kilo milk, compared to the pasteurizing cow that gets light for only 9-12 hours daily.

Cows provided with extra light ate 6% more than those not lighted — this is perhaps the reason for their having more milk. And milk from extra light contained prolactin about 1.5 to 1.8 times more than those cows that had only 9-12 hours of natural light. Prolactin is a kind of hormone that increases milking for nursing mothers — human or animal. The researchers also saw that when the weather is cold, prolactin in nursing cows was decreased.

Source: Phil. Farmers’ Journal, photo courtesy of mbfarviewfarm.com