View source for Teat

{{Short description|Projection from mammary glands from which milk flows}}
{{for multi|the rubber mouth piece of a baby's feeding bottle|Baby bottle|the human body part|Nipple}}
{{confuse|Teet}}
[[File:Cow udders02.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Teats protruding from the [[udder]] of a [[cow]]]]
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-17369-0004, Barby, Bauer eine Melkmaschine präsentierend.jpg|thumb|upright=0.9|Part of a milking device that fits over the teats of a cow.]]

A '''teat''' is the projection from the [[mammary gland]]s of [[mammal]]s from which [[milk]] flows or is ejected for the purpose of feeding young.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/teat#English|title=teat - Wiktionary|website=en.wiktionary.org|access-date=12 August 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/teat|title=Definition of TEAT|website=www.merriam-webster.com|access-date=12 August 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/teat|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170812212644/https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/teat|url-status=dead|archive-date=August 12, 2017|title=teat - definition of teat in English - Oxford Dictionaries|website=Oxford Dictionaries - English|access-date=12 August 2017}}</ref>  In many mammals, the teat projects from the [[udder]]. The number of teats varies by mammalian [[species]] and often corresponds to the average [[Litter (animal)|litter]] size for that animal.<ref name="Frandson2013">{{citation|title=Anatomy and Physiology of Farm Animals|date=1 April 2013|author1=Rowen D. Frandson|author2=W. Lee Wilke|author3=Anna Dee Fails|pages=449–451|publisher=John Wiley & Sons|isbn=978-1-118-68601-0}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.earthlife.net/mammals/milk.html|title=Mammalian Milk|website=www.earthlife.net|access-date=12 August 2017}}</ref> In some cases, the teats of female animals are [[milking|milked]] for the purpose of human consumption.

The quality of some domesticated animals is determined by the establishment of desired characteristics, such as teat size and placement.<ref>{{cite web|title=Teat Structure Chart|url=http://abga.org/abga-education/teat-structure-chart/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160208120508/http://abga.org/abga-education/teat-structure-chart/|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 8, 2016|publisher=American Boer Goat Association|access-date=2017-11-22|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Blackburn|first1=Lorrie|title=More on Teats|url=http://www.npga-pygmy.com/resources/conformation/teats.asp|publisher=The National Pygmy Goat Association|access-date=2017-11-22|archive-date=2017-12-07|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171207020525/http://www.npga-pygmy.com/resources/conformation/teats.asp|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Number and positioning in other animals==
The number and positioning of [[mammary gland]]s and teats varies widely among mammals. The protruding teats and accompanying glands can be located anywhere along the two [[milk line]]s. In general, most mammals develop mammary glands in pairs along these lines, with a number approximating the number of young typically birthed at a time. The number of teats varies from 2 (in elephants and anthropoids) to 18 (in pigs). [[Marsupial]]s usually have 4 to 12 teats,<ref name="Lombardi2012">{{cite book|author=Julian Lombardi|title=Comparative Vertebrate Reproduction|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tXvjBwAAQBAJ&q=teats|date=6 December 2012|publisher=Springer Science & Business Media|isbn=978-1-4615-4937-6}}</ref> but the [[Virginia opossum]] has 13, one of the few mammals with an odd number.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://digitalcollections.fiu.edu/wild/transcripts/possums1.htm |title=With the Wild Things – Transcripts |publisher=Digitalcollections.fiu.edu |access-date=2013-04-05 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130323001102/http://digitalcollections.fiu.edu/wild/transcripts/possums1.htm |archive-date=2013-03-23 }}</ref><ref>Stockard, Mary (2005) [https://web.archive.org/web/20100701012225/http://www.awrc.org/Baby%20Opossums.htm Raising Orphaned Baby Opossums]. Alabama Wildlife Center.</ref> The following table lists the number and position of teats and glands found in a range of mammals:

{| class="wikitable"
!Species<ref>{{cite book|author1=Cunningham, Merle |author2=LaTour, Mickey A. |author3=Acker, Duane  |name-list-style=amp |title=Animal Science and Industry|isbn= 978-0-13-046256-5|publisher=Pearson Prentice Hall|year=2005}}</ref>
!Cranial teats<br/>([[Thorax|thoracic]])
!Intermediate teats<br/>([[Abdomen|abdominal]])
!Caudal teats<br/>([[Groin|inguinal]])
!Total teats
|-
|[[Goat]], [[sheep]], [[horse]]<br/> [[guinea pig]]
|0
|0
|2
|2
|-
|[[Polar bear]]
|4
|0
|0
|4
|-
|[[American black bear]], [[Asian black bear]], [[grizzly bear]]
|4
|0
|2
|6
|-
|[[Camel]]
|0
|0
|4
|4
|-
|-
|[[Cattle]]
|0
|0
|4
|4
|-
|[[Cat]]
|2
|2
|4
|8
|-
|[[Dog]]
|4
|2
|2 or 4
|8 or 10
|-
|[[Mouse]]
|6
|0
|4
|10
|-
|[[Rat]]
|6
|2
|4
|12
|-
|[[Pig]]
|4
|4
|4
|12
|-
|[[Elephants]], [[Anteaters]], [[anthropoids]] (including [[human]]s)
|2
|0
|0
|2
|}

==Disease of teats==
A number of diseases can affect the teats of cattle.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Ruegg|first1=Pamela L.|title=Diseases of Bovine Teats and Skin - Reproductive System|url=http://www.merckvetmanual.com/reproductive-system/udder-diseases/diseases-of-bovine-teats-and-skin|website=Merck Veterinary Manual|access-date=2017-11-22|archive-date=2017-10-18|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171018155540/http://www.merckvetmanual.com/reproductive-system/udder-diseases/diseases-of-bovine-teats-and-skin|url-status=dead}}</ref>
*[[Pseudocowpox]]
* Warts caused by [[bovine papillomavirus]]
*[[Teat-end hyperkeratosis]]
*[[Dermatitis]]
*[[Frostbite]]
*[[Udder sores]] or necrotic dermatitis

Goats are also affected by diseases of the teats.<ref>{{cite web|title=Mastitis and Ketosis: Health Problems of Lactating Does|url=http://www.tennesseemeatgoats.com/articles2/mastitisketosis.html|website=www.tennesseemeatgoats.com}}</ref>

==Etymology==
Teat is derived from the Old French or Dutch word, "tete" or the Greek word τιτθύς.<ref>Schrevelius' Greek Lexicon, Translated Into English, with Many New Words Added, Retrieved 11 August 2018</ref> An alternative, but possibly not unrelated, would be the Welsh word "teth" or the Old English, "titt" which is still used as a slang term. The words "teat" and "tit" share a Germanic ancestor. The second of the two, tit, was inherited directly from [[Proto-Germanic]], while the first entered English via [[Old French]].<ref>{{cite web
| last = Harper
| first = Douglas
| author-link = Douglas Harper
| title = teat
| work = Online Etymological Dictionary
| date = 2001–2010
| url = http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=teat
| access-date = 15 August 2011 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web
| last = Harper
| first = Douglas
| author-link = Douglas Harper
| title = tit (1)
| work = Online Etymological Dictionary
| date = 2001–2010
| url = http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=tit
| access-date = 15 August 2011}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Nipple]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Glands]]
[[Category:Mammal anatomy]]
[[Category:Nipple]]
[[Category:Secondary sexual characteristics]]