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The Carotene and Vitamin A and Proximate Composition of Portions of the First Milking Postpartum¹

Animal Industries Department, Storrs Agricultural Experiment Station, Storrs, Connecticut

ABSTRACT

The carotene and vitamin A content and the proximate constituents of successive 2-lb. increments of the first milking postpartum have been studied on 24 cows. These represented two managerial groups of which one was milked for an average of 8.8 days prepartum, while the other was milked only postpartum. Some of the cows in each of the above groups received a basal ration only and the others received the same basal ration plus 1 million U.S.P. units of vitamin A daily for 30 days prepartum. The following trends were observed:

1. Per cent protein, lactose and ash and specific gravity showed a significant negative trend with successive increments of colostrum. The per cent of protein and of ash and specific gravity decreased at a significantly greater rate in the cows milked postpartum than in those milked prepartum. Quantitatively the changes were relatively minor.
   
2. Per cent fat, carotene and vitamin A showed a significant positive trend with successive increments of colostrum. In the cows milked postpartum, the increase in per cent carotene and vitamin A was significantly greater than that found in cows milked prepartum. The addition of supplementary vitamin A had no effect on the trends for carotene but caused a more rapid rate of increase in the percentage content of vitamin A than that observed in cows receiving the basal ration alone.
   
3. The carotene content per gram of fat showed a significant negative trend with successive increments of colostrum, whereas no significant trends were observed in the content of vitamin A per gram of fat.
   

¹ This work was supported in part by the Big-Y-Foundation, Norwich, Conn., and Chas. M. Cox Co., Boston, Mass.