This week is forecasted to be hot in nearly every dairy producing part of the country. Month-long predictions have much of the same with above average temperatures expected for all of July
Finely tuned rations, stringent milking procedures, and compliance to sound reproductive protocols all lead to well-run dairies. In journalism, the same can be said of a watchful eye that carefully reviews...
In the span of just over a week, my two oldest cows both passed away. Both developed conditions that sprang up and were treated meticulously — only to no avail
Our wedding anniversary is in June, on Flag Day to be exact, and two of our children were born in June as well. I was even told by my husband, while in labor with our two youngest children, "This isn't...
I don’t have kids. I mean, I have 500 Jerseys that are basically like toddlers, so maybe I do? However, I am a farm kid. So, allow me a moment to remind farm parents of
Two months. It’s been just over two months since I made the bold step of quitting my full-time, steady, and equally rewarding job as a youth 4-H educator (which I loved, by the way)
As humans, we often make extra food purposely, so that we have leftovers to eat the next day. That same philosophy doesn’t work for dairy cows, who need fresh feed daily
My experience has been that animal activists are the worst. They take tiny grains of truth and twist them into the most spectacular lies. It’s annoying but effective
I distinctly recall my fifth-grade teacher Mr. Z. He was a fun and interactive guy, and one of his favorite sayings was “until the cows come home.” He would tack it onto the end of any sentence...
June is coming . . . did you read that ominously, like from Game of Thrones? You should have because June is almost here, and it’s looking like it’s going to be a battle. Online, at least
When I look at my soon-to-be 14-year-old daughter, I often think back to myself at that age. Truthfully, though, Cassie oozes so much more confidence than I ever did as a teenager
If you’ve been following my blogs or my social media, you know what mental health in agriculture means to me. In fact, two of the most honest and open things I’ve ever put out into the world...
When my mind races from all that is going wrong in our world, I have to slow down my breathing and think of the greatest lessons we will learn from this global pandemic
“If you can feed B vitamins at an economical price, do it!” encouraged Mike Hutjens. That was one of the messages viewers received as the University of Illinois nutrition icon
Over the last month, all kinds of conferences, sports games, and special events have been canceled. Unfortunately, holidays and life events can’t just be put on pause