Increased pulsation ratio in rear quarters reduces machine-on time and milking on empty teats.

Dairy cows usually store more milk in the rear quarters of the udder than the front quarters. With conventional machine milking, this leads to an earlier cessation of milk flow in front quarters than the rear quarters and hence unavoidable milking on empty front teats. We tested the hypothesis that an increased pulsation ratio in rear quarters reduces milking on empty front teats as well as machine-on time.