A few factors play a big role in the quality of colostrum. While breakfast may be our most important meal of the day, for calves, that first feeding of colostrum is the most critical meal of their lives....
Young farmers need opportunities to develop leadership skills. We all know that dairy farmers wear many hats. I spent the last several days wearing my leader hat. First, while finishing Phase III of the...
Another tight year for dairy producers raises the question, how does one best manage break-even costs? Managing fluctuation is an important part of today's global economy. Farms that successfully direct...
National organization continues to develop skills of young people. National FFA Week concludes tomorrow. This weeklong celebration of FFA happens every February, and in honor of the occasion, I recently...
My daughter, Caitlin, decided to return to the farm after graduating with a degree in diversified agriculture to manage our herd health and reproduction programs
Calf jackets can provide much needed warmth for young animals on cold days. A few mild days in the Midwest made it feel like spring was on the way, but since it is only February, we can be fairly certain...
Learning is a lifelong process and the Young Dairy Leaders Institute helped speed up that process. Today, I hop on a plane to finish Phase III of the Young Dairy Leaders Institute in sunny Phoenix, Arizona....
It's as important in human nutrition as it is in dairy cows. As dairy producers and industry people, we spend a lot of time worrying about the tiny bugs located in our cows' digestive tracts. We focus...
Outside perspectives can benefit your herd in many ways. We recently took my nephew Michael out to our family's dairy barn for the first time. At just under four months of age, Michael couldn't say what...
Understanding immunity promotes calf health. Vaccinations are designed to stimulate the immune system. They aren't cures, but tools to help the calf defend its body from viruses, bacteria and parasites....
Farms with more cows prove that animal welfare is still a priority. The average herd size for dairy farms in the United States keeps growing while the number of farms continues to decline. This trend is...
An array of factors help this Illinois dairy farm maintain a below average somatic cell count month after month. When it comes to milk quality, Sycamore, Ill., dairyman Bill Deutsch focuses both inside...
There are real benefits for herds that can achieve a 25 percent pregnancy rate. One common goal all dairy producers share is getting cows bred in a timely fashion. What is a realistic target for which...
Colostrum offers newborn calves benefits beyond immunity, including critical energy used early in life. Carrying around a few extra pounds of holiday weight gain, some of us in colder climates may joke...
The crops are in, and it's time to decide how to use what's available. Winter is in full swing now, and it is time to start thinking about how to most effectively use the forages in the bunker. Bob James,...
Proper timing of forage availability can ease the rocky transition of weaning. Weaning time is easily one of the more difficult management challenges for producers with calf and heifer feeding programs....
One Wisconsin city rings in the New Year by dropping a big piece of cheese. It's a bird, it's a plane, it's an . . . 80-pound Styrofoam cheese wedge . . . falling from the sky . . . at midnight? Yes, it...
Gadgets and devices aid – not replace dairy management. All that cool technology that people use to communicate, record exercise levels and monitor their sleep patterns, now are being applied to...
Make a ride in the cattle trailer safer for your young bovine passengers by following these AABP guidelines.There are times we need to get our livestock from Point A to Point B, and that process often...
The old saying goes, "the first step to fixing a problem is knowing you have one." I would argue the second step is knowing what and how significant that problem is
