Udder morphology traits were measured and subjectively assessed by the use of linear scores in 266 ewes of Tsigai (T), Improved Walachian (IW) and Lacaune (LC) dairy breeds.Animals were recorded repeatedly within and between lactations, therefore 772 sets of measurements and linear scores were collected in total.Udder measurements included: udder length, udder width, rear udder depth, cistern depth, teat length, teat angle, sum of cistern cross-section areas scanned by the ultrasound technique from the side and from the bottom in a water bath.Linear scores were assessed for: udder depth, cistern depth, teat placement, teat length, udder attachment, udder cleft, and udder shape from the aspect of machine milking.Analysis of variance was conducted by the mixed procedure of SAS statistical package.The model included effects of experimental day, parity, days in milk, random effect of animal and residual error.Subsequently, correlations between random animal effects for udder measurements and linear scores were computed for individual examined breeds separately.Subjectively assessed linear scores for udder depth, cistern depth, teat position and teat size showed high correlations with actual measurements of the respective traits on udder in all examined breeds (r p = 0.65-0.80).Linear scores for cistern depth and teat position were highly correlated (r p = 0.84; 0.77 and 0.90 for T; IW and LC ewes), suggesting that they are nearly identical traits.Linear score for udder shape was significantly correlated with the linear score for udder attachment in all examined breeds (r p = 0.79; 0.80 and 0.78 for T; IW and LC).In T and IW assessments of the udder shape were also highly correlated with linear score for udder height (r p = 0.84 resp.r p = 0.79) while in LC this correlation was close to zero.In LC assessment of the udder shape was more dependent on teat position (r p = -0.37)and cistern depth (r p = -0.30).

Negative effects of subclinical mastitis on milk production were described in dairy cows, goats and partly in lambing ewes. Great changes in milk composition are regularly observed at mastitis. Somatic cell counts (SCC) can be an appropriate indicator of subclinical mastitis and milk quality in sheep. The objective of this paper was to determine a relation between SCC and the milk production and quality in lambing ewes of Tsigai (T) and Improved Valachian (IV) breeds during sucking (S) and milking (M) periods. A trial was conducted on lambing ewes of T and IV breeds in the Ist to the 3rd lactation in 1993 and in the Ist to 4th lactation in 1994. The lambing ewes were housed and managed under the same conditions over the experimental period. Milk samples for determination of SCC (Fossomatic 90, mfd, by Foss Electric Co., Denmark) and contents of solids (% S), proteins (% P), fat (% F) and lactose (% L. Multispec infrared analyzer) were taken by ewe milking in S period after intravenous application of oxytocin (5 i.u./ewe) and as part of milk recording at morning hand milking in M period. Milk samples were taken in such a way to be representative ones of the ewe's whole milk yield. Daily milk production (MP) was also recorded in individual ewes on the day of milk sampling; in S period, it was calculated from a milk quantity produced within a 4-hour interval and milked after the second oxytocin application, in M period from the yield obtained at morning and evening milk measuring. Calculation of linear phenotype correlations (r) was used to evaluate the relation between SCC and MP, or the content of basic components. Transformed SCC data (log(10)SCC) were used for regression analysis. Tab. I shows average values of SCC, milk production and composition in ewes in S and M periods in relation to the particular control milk measurings (CMM). Analyses of 369 and 497 milk samples in 1993 and 1994, revealed average SCC per lactation (S + M periods) at a level of 364 x 10(3)/ml and 1091 x 10(3)/ml, log(10)(SCC) 2.25 and 2.68, resp.; 18.1% and 19.8% S; 4.98% and 5.33% P; 7.41% and 8.78% F, and 4.78% and 4.79% I,. Average MP per lactation amounted to 1,077 mi in 1993 and 987 mi in 1994. There was a significant indirect relation for T and IV breeds between log(10)(SCC) and MP (Tab. II) both in S and M periods (P < 0.05 to 0.001). The phenotype correlation coefficient ranged from -0.160 to -0.309. The correlation coefficient between log(10)(SCC) and MP over the years 1993 and 1994 in aggregate (regardless of the breed) amounted to -0.291 in S period and to -0.192 in M period (P < 0.001, Tab. III, Figs. 1 and 2). According to the aggregate data over 1993 and 1994 (Tab. III), log(10)(SCC) is statistically significantly (P < 0.001) directly related to % P (r = 0.431 in S period - Fig. 5 and r = 0.361 in M period - Fig. 6) and also to %F (0.520 - Fig. 3 and 0.293 - Fig. 4) and indirectly related to % L (-0.347 - Fig. 2 and -0.314 - Fig. 3). Statistically significant relations (P < 0.001) between log(10)(SCC) and % S, % P, % F and % L were determined in T and IW breeds, while r values were higher in S period in most cases (Tab. II). The results indicate potential differences in the evaluated relations when the years or lactation stages are compared (S or M period, Tab. III).

Determination of somatic cell counts (SCC) becomes more and more important also for ewe's milk. SCC can be a useful indicator of milk quality for milk processors while it can be a mastitis indicator for sheep keepers and an important selection criterion for breeders when ewe populations more resistant to mastitis are produced. As hardly any information about individual variability of SCC in dairy breeds of sheep kept in Slovakia is in fact available, we formulated the objective of our study to acquire basic information about factors influencing SCC variability, namely in lambing ewes of the Tsigai (C) and Improved Valachian (ZV) breeds. Somatic cell counts (SCC) were determined in 866 milk samples of lambing ewes of the C and ZV breeds in 1993 and 1994, during lamb sucking and during milking period. An instrument Fossomatic 90 (Foss Electric, Denmark) was used for analysis. The ewes were housed and kept in identical conditions. Milk samples were taken in current operational conditions after milking of the particular lambing ewes, with oxytocin applications during lamb sucking and from hand milking during milking period. Nine and/or ten control samplings were done in 1993 and/or 1994 (4 and/or 5 samplings during lamb sucking, 5 during milking period). To evaluate the acquired data on SCC basic variation-statistical methods and analysis of variance were used as well as a package of mathematico-statistical programs STATGRAPHIC. As the distribution of basic data on SCC was asymmetric, the data were transformed by means of decadic logarithm (log(10) SCC) before their use in the analysis of variance. Tab. I shows the basic variation-statistica1 data on somatic cell counts. Figs. 1 and 2 indicate the relation of SCC and lactation stage in 1993 and 1994. Average SCC varied from 270 to 1,897 thous./ml during lamb sucking and from 268 to 2,139 thous./ml during milking period. As seen in Tab. II, the differences between the control sampling were statistically significant only in 1994 (P < 0.001). A trend of increase in SCC was observed at the end of both sucking and milking periods (Figs. 1 and 2). An overall evaluation of lactation (Tab. I) brought about the average SCC at 364 thous./ml in 1993 (log(10) SCC - 2.25) and at 1,091 thous./ml in 1994 (log(10) SCC - 2.68). The indicator log(10) was significantly influenced by breed (P < 0.001) only in 1994 (C - 2.61; ZV - 2.75). The effect of lactation number and number of sucking lambs did not have any significant influence on SCC (Tab. II).