TESTING THE INFLUENCE OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL CLIMATIC FACTORS UPON DONKEY MILK QUALITY.

Our trial was conducted with the aim of emphasizing the influence of environmental factors acting as potential stressors upon donkey milk nutritional traits, within specific climatic conditions of North-West Romania. Milk from fifty jennies from four private farms, in different stages of lactation, from first up to the fifth, weekly collected during a three months period, February-April 2016, was qualitatively and quantitatively evaluated. In experimental areal, temperature, humidity, and wind velocity, were daily recorded. The average temperature of the experimental period (4.95°C±0.19°C) is with 0.8°C bigger compared to the average temperature of the experimental areal in 2010, suggesting the increase of the heat stress upon donkey milk production traits. Donkey milk content in lactose and fat, together with milk pH, increase from first to fifth lactation, while water and protein content decrease. We may consider the lack of correlations between donkey milk pH and fat content, and also between fat and lactose. Positive significant moderate correlations are identified between donkey milk lactose and protein, and also between lactose, protein, and donkey milk pH. Between fat and donkey milk water content, negative significant moderate correlation is identified. Temperature, humidity, and wind velocity have strong influence upon donkey milk fat, protein and water content, and moderate on donkey milk pH, and lactose. This study emphasizes the necessity of adopting suitable managerial practices in donkey rearing facilities, where the farmer is interested in valuating donkey milk. This assertion is based on the increasing of the temperature in the experimental areal, compared to the same period of the previous years, taking into account the negative influence of the heat stress on donkey milk quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]