Yesterday, the U.S. Senate approved (81 to 19) the big tax package that extends Bush-era tax rates and includes a number of other measures. One of those measures would extend the Volumetric Ethanol Excise...
Years ago, bunkers were only known as a military hide-out. Those bunkers were safe. The bunkers on our dairy farms can be anything but. Deaths can and do occur because of poor face management, accidental...
Chinese milk production will reach 67 billion pounds in 2011, up 5 percent from 2010. This is among the forecasts of a USDA Foreign Ag Service GAIN report (Global Agricultural Information Network). China's...
One way that we at Hoard's Dairyman stay up to date on the newest research and tools is to subscribe to extension, research, and producer group newsletters. We gladly pass these newsletters around our...
As a group, the Hoard Guernsey herd had outstanding feet and leg scores, averaging 81.86 points on 342 cows at the most recent classification. There are a number of reasons for their solid feet and legs:...
As a group, the Hoard Guernsey herd had outstanding feet and leg scores, averaging 81.86 points on 342 cows at the most recent classification. There are a number of reasons for their solid feet and legs:...
Where are land prices headed? They are up everywhere except where dairy cows are found. That's the short answer to a more complicated question. Farmland prices jumped 10 percent during the third quarter...
While driving home yesterday, I heard the end of a radio show with some interesting content. It prompted me to look into the topic a bit more. We see leaders as very confident spokespersons. But, the radio...
Once upon a time, all cows were milked by hand and the job got done just fine. Then one day technology brought a new tool for dairy producers to consider: milking machines. The evolution of technology...
Holstein breeders need to set higher goals when it comes to reproduction, said Neil Michael, D.V.M., with Vita Plus when speaking to those attending the fifth annual Dairy Cattle Reproduction Council meeting...
All the hype surrounding methane emissions, greenhouse gases, and odors have left most of our brains spinning. It isn't uncommon for us to think, "Ok, so what am I supposed to do?" In addition, regulations...
The North American 4-H Dairy Quiz Bowl contest was held on Saturday, November 6th in Louisville, Ky. Twenty teams competed in the national double-elimination contest which celebrated its 31st year. High...
Even though it was the smallest cow class of the day, Judge Hank Van Exel and Associate Judge Tom McCauley spent more time deliberating the top end of the extremely competitive Jersey 5-year-old class...
Anchored by high individuals in both contests, the University of Minnesota and Minnesota 4-H won their respective contests by 23 and 32 points respectively at the North American International Livestock...
As the San Francisco Giants clinched the World Series title, I was ecstatic as most long-time central California baseball fans were! 55 years is a long time to wait for a World Series title – years...
Although milk prices in 2011 are forecast to remain near this year's level, higher feed prices are expected to squeeze producer margins, impacting the size of the dairy herd in 2011, according to the USDA's...
This may not be the case at all universities, but we suspect the trend is occurring at other institutions of higher learning. At the University of Wisconsin-Madison, data from Chancellor Biddy Martin's...
"Bogus" is the word that University of California-Davis Professor Frank Mitloehner used to describe the FAO's original estimation of livestock's contribution to greenhouse gasses during his presentation...
With 40 percent of dairy operators over the age of 55, some may speculate some push-back to adapting to new information. The average dairy producer hovers around this age demographic. However, all producers,...
This week, October 3 through 9, marks National 4-H Week - a week to celebrate what 4-H contributes to our family, our community, our country, and our world. At first thought, 4-H may have seemed like a...
