The Florida International Dairy Academy Milk Quality course is designed to enable students to learn the basics of milking procedures and routines, mastitis identification, prevention control and treatment, dry cow treatments, and milk quality management. The information provided will allow students to increase their knowledge and skills on how to improve the milk quality of a dairy herd.  By the end of the course, students should be able to understand the steps necessary to have a good milk quality management program in a dairy farm.

The course is ideal for individuals who have been working with dairy cows and are looking to increase their knowledge of milk quality management, or those that have had some training but want a refresher and some updated information on milk quality management.

Module 1:

1. Identify different types of cow facilities

2. Understand cow’s senses and learn low-stress handling and good dairy stockmanship

3. Understand how milking equipment work

4. Increase knowledge, understand, apply and improve the steps of milking procedures, milking routine, and udder hygiene

Module 2:

1. Increase knowledge, understand and identify udder infections in dairy herds

2. Increase knowledge and understand the importance of somatic cells and somatic cell counts

3. Increase knowledge and understand the importance of proper mastitis diagnosis

Module 3:

1. Increase knowledge and understanding of milk quality management and the key parameters of a good milk quality management program

2. Understand how to evaluate bulk tank, somatic cell counts, bacterial contamination and milk off-flavors/odors

3. How to improve milk quality

Instructor: Dr. Izabella Toledo

For more information about our program and other course offerings, visit our website at https://animal.ifas.ufl.edu/fida/.
Please contact us through the following email if you have any questions or concerns: FIDA@ifas.ufl.edu.