With so much talk about New Year’s resolutions, it can be overwhelming to think about making such a monumental shift. After all, resolutions are nothing new to dairy farmers. They are setting goals all year long — looking to achieve higher production, stronger crops, and better breeding rates than last year. Ongoing improvement and excellence are just engrained in what dairy farmers do 365 days of the year.
Instead of a single resolution, here are five simple reminders for areas to prioritize with your health and well-being throughout 2025.
Your animals: “Being attentive to your cows’ needs on a daily basis is important, but it’s very difficult to achieve without a real commitment to do so. It should be someone’s job to put the cows first and make sure their needs are met on an individual animal basis. As a veterinarian, the most obvious area that I saw that can use some improvement on farms is taking care of lame cows when they are first seen, not hoping they will improve if ignored until tomorrow.” –Brian Reed, D.V.M., dairy consultant and former veterinarian who contributes animal care columns to the Center for Dairy Excellence.
Your mind: “For those of you operating the farm, the holiday and winter season brings much more than added stress. The cold impacts how everything operates, water is freezing up, increased darkness makes work and repairs all the more frustrating, electric bills go up, not to mention the thought of tax season approaching. Set realistic expectations. We may have idealistic plans, but our lives aren’t a Hallmark movie. Make sure it works for you. Say no to what doesn’t fit the budget, the schedule, the values, and the energy level. Be present in the moment.” –Monica McConkey, a rural mental health specialist at Eyes on the Horizon Consulting, who contributes farm stress articles.
Your farm: “A Michigan dairy producer recently shared how the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) disease impacted his herd. He spoke about elevated temperatures at 5 degrees above normal in 50% of his 500-cow herd. The disease cost him $100,000 in the first month of the outbreak, with the long-term financial loss still playing out. With service providers, custom equipment operators, and feed and milk trucks moving between farms constantly, he said it would be hard to contain the virus if it came to Pennsylvania. That is why we need to change the narrative when we talk about HPAI.” –Jayne Sebright, executive director at the Center for Dairy Excellence, who writes dairy-focused columns.
Your finances: “If you have not considered your risk management plan for 2025, don’t kick the can down the road. Even with the recent decline in prices, producers still have a great opportunity to cover historically elevated floors for the first half of 2025 with the Dairy Revenue Protection insurance program.” –Kathleen Wolfley from Ever.Ag, who contributes Markets & Management updates.
Your career: “When it comes to ‘designing your tomorrow today’ [the theme of the 2025 PA Dairy Summit in February], the pathway to chasing dreams and achieving goals is never linear. The conditions will never be perfect. Success requires a plan, patience, perseverance, partnership, and permission to pivot, plan, and perform.” –Alice Crothers of Long Green Farms, a dairy producer and keynote speaker at the PA Dairy Summit on February 5 and 6.
The Center for Dairy Excellence shares these types of updates throughout the year, featuring a wide range of authors and organizations. Sign up for our e-newsletter to get updates on everything from dairy markets and industry news to biosecurity, mental health, farm safety, and more.
