You can find some pretty neat things by going through the archives of Hoard’s Dairyman. One gem I recently found was this quote printed inside the majority of books published by W.D. Hoard & Sons Co. in the early 1900s — “He profits most who serves best.”
W.D. Hoard was known for his support of life-long learning and the importance of continued education, especially for farmers. With this mission in mind, his company has gone on to publish over 100 printed resources on a variety of topics ranging from milk quality to hoof health to feed and nutrition in addition to its Hoard’s Dairyman magazine.
How to Treat Common Ailments of Farm Animals was one of the earliest books published, dating back to 1928. This guide was a compilation of veterinarian columns from the magazine, with practical advice on how to treat common illnesses of farm animals. And at this time, this particular publication was not limited to dairy cattle but offered advice for farm dogs, horse, sheep, poultry, and swine as well.
While Hoard’s Dairyman no longer offers a book of the exact same title, it is interesting to compare the treatments back then to some of the health strategies and procedures in the current Practical Organic Dairy Farming book published in 2016.
Another fun find was what we believe to be the first edition of the Hoard’s Dairyman Feed Book, dating back to 1936. We’ve located 13 versions of a related feed and nutrition guide, leading up to the most recent update in 2018 by Mike Hutjens.
While this phrase is no longer printed inside our books, that same mission is very much alive as we work with industry experts to create resources that can best serve the needs of our readers. Never stop learning!
The author is the special publications manager. Aisha is a graduate of University of Wisconsin-Madison with degrees in Life Sciences Communication and Environmental Science. She is responsible for the Hoard’s Dairyman bookstore and creating educational resources for farmers, students, and dairy industry professionals.
