Calf's sex, parity and the hour of harvest after calving affect colostrum quality of dairy cows grazing under high tropical conditions.

High-quality colostrum is an important factor influencing neonatal calf health, and quality assessment is essential to obtain good health results. This research evaluated the effects of the calf's sex, the parity of the cow and the hour of colostrum harvest after parity on the fat, nonfat solids, protein and Ig contents in Holstein colostrum for cows under high grazing conditions in the tropics. The effects of the calf's sex and parity on somatic cell count (SCC) at the first milking postpartum were determined.