Here's a quick dairy farming quiz: What three things do all dairies have a constant supply of? Some easy answers are cows, milk . . . and manure. All day and every day, manure never stops coming. The hard...
Our neighbors across the pond in the U.K. have developed a campaign, known as "make mine Milk," to increase milk consumption amongst British citizens. On Tuesday, the newest component of their movement,...
Sexed semen has only been on the market for a handful of years, but has already become a familiar, although not necessarily widespread, tool in the dairy industry. Higher cost and lower fertility are still...
It contains the same nine essential nutrients for childhood development and growth; yet chocolate milk is swiftly being pulled from lunch menus. This fall, though, it is taking on an improved nutrition...
Phosphorus is an essential nutrient for growing crops. But in the wrong place - in excess concentration in streams, rivers, and lakes - it can lead to algal blooms
The romanticism of farmers and cowboys has been portrayed in movies and on television for decades. The strong jaw lines, those rugged looks, wholesome smile, yet a sweet spot in their hearts for their...
A little bit of dairy pageantry may go a long way with a consumer. For 25 years, the Wisconsin State Fair has been the site of the Wisconsin Holstein Futurity. That, in itself, may seem relatively unremarkable....
by Dr. Sheila McGuirk School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin An article a while back about giving probiotics to new calves said to not give it to them until they have had their first 24...
Does feeding a dfm to fresh cows affect performance? Researchers at Ohio State looked into whether feeding a direct-fed microbial, Propionibacterium strain P169, impacted fresh cow performance. They found...
USDA expects ethanol to use the biggest share of 2011 crop. For the first time ever, ethanol plants are expected to use more of the nation's corn crop in 2011 than livestock producers do. If that happens,...
by Michael F. Hutjens The author is an extension dairy specialist at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana Feed additives are ingredients added for a non-nutrient role. (For example, sodium bicarb...
More dairy tales from Tasmania from Washington State University student, Anna Gibson. "Washington State University has been making award-winning cheese and ice cream since the 1930s!" I said in my best...
Guess which costs more: far away by ship or close by truck? Milk-cow-quality alfalfa hay is already over $300 per ton in California which isn't making this a fun summer for dairy producers there. An article...
The article on page 536 of the August 25, 2011 issue discusses costs of raising replacement heifers. It describes both the cash and accrual methods of accounting for heifer values. The figure here is an...
The farm is growing at a rapid pace, and milk is up. Each month the editors receive our test sheets. In the past 12 months, the farm has averaged 474 cows, 387 in milk – 320 Guernseys and 155 Jerseys....
Beginning about 10 years ago, considerable field interest surfaced regarding harvesting corn silage at higher chop heights, primarily in an effort to improve neutral detergent fiber digestibility (NDFD)....
To get a better handle on hoof health, researchers at the University of California-Davis partnered with a hoof trimmer who exclusively trimmed feet at three California dairies. In all, 2,247 sire-identified...
With so much uncertainty in the world, the only constant is market volatility. The extreme swings will be too much for some producers to manage; those who prepare for this new world have the potential...
