lactuació

Lactuació is a term found in some veterinary and dairy science texts to denote the process and management surrounding milk production in mammals. In this usage, it encompasses both the biological aspects of lactation and the practical strategies used to sustain or optimize milk yield and composition. The concept can apply to dairy cattle, goats, sheep, and other milk-producing species, though its prevalence varies by region and author.

Etymology and status. The word is not consistently standardized in dictionaries. It appears to derive, at least in some regional texts, from roots related to milk (lact-) and action or process (actuació). In standard Catalan, more common terms for the same idea are lactació or producció de llet. Because lactuació is not universally recognized, its precise definition can differ between sources, and it may be treated as a synonym, a historical variant, or a narrow technical sense in individual writings.

Scope and usage. In practice, lactuació may refer to two closely related phenomena: the biological lactation triggered after parturition, governed by hormonal regulation and mammary gland physiology; and the applied management of lactation, including nutrition, milking frequency, dry period planning, udder health, and environmental conditions that influence milk yield and quality.

Limitations. Given its variable status in reference works, readers should verify definitions within a given text and prefer standardized terms such as lactació or milk production when aiming for broad clarity.

See also: Lactació, Milk production, Dairy management, Udder health.