Effects of High and Low Somatic Cell Counts on the Milk Composition and Yield of Saanen Goats

This study was carried out to determine the effects of high and low somatic cell counts (SCC)on milk composition and yield of Saanen goats. The goats were divided into 2 groups and put into trials during the 1stmonth of their lactation. The 2 groups were selected as those with ≤500 cell/mL(low SCC group (E)) and ≥500 cell/mL (high SCC group (T)) with each group consisting of 10goats. It was observed that the T group hada high SCC, which resulted in a significant effect on milk yield, compared to the T group with a low SCC (P<0.05; 1.34vs2.02 kg/day-1). Similarly, the milk samples that were taken from group T had lower (P<0.05) levels of milk lactose and Solids not fat (SNF) percentages than group E (milk lactose=4.15 and 4.65 %, SNF=8.41and 9.23% respectively). However, the effects of SCC on the fat and protein percentages of the milk were not significant (P>0.05). This study also displayed a statistically significant negative correlation between SCC and lactose content (-0.607), as well as daily milk production (−0.673) and SNF (-0.850). Keywords: High and Low Somatic Cell Counts; Saanen Goats.