This week, March 10 to 16, is recognized as National Groundwater Awareness week. Groundwater is one of our most valuable resources, needed by people, animals and crops every day
"I am not prepared to accept the fact that feet and leg heritabilities are as low as they currently appear. We need to evaluate the trait better," Gordon Atkins, D.V.M., told those attending the 122nd...
As the landscape of the agricultural farmstead has changed from red barns with a variety of livestock and two-story white farmhouses to more single-focused livestock operations, have the words we use changed...
As we wrap-up our 62nd Round Table series, "Robots milk our herds," the four herds featured in our February 25 issue share advise for others considering robots
Sequestration went into effect on March 1 as a result of the Budget Control Act. And with it, the federal budget will be reduced by $85 billion this year or $1.2 trillion over the next decade if congressional...
Change is one of the great constants in U.S. dairy farming. The industry has been evolving for most of a century, but especially in the last 20 years. Like an ice skater who draws in their arms while spinning,...
Sometimes we are so close to a topic that we often forget the values and assume everyone else is just as familiar with it as those who are so deeply entrenched. My responsibilities include the online content...
Milking and managing cows with robots requires some new management styles. As a follow-up to our February 25 Round Table "Robots milk our herds," these herd owners discuss handling repairs and buying used...
Focusing on "the other bacteria," or emerging mastitis pathogens, Pam Ruegg, University of Wisconsin-Madison, addressed those gathered at the Wisconsin Dairy Field Representative Conference
According to data just released by the American Jersey Cattle Association (AJCA), the number of Jerseys on Dairy Herd Information(DHI) test in 2012 rose for the ninth straight year and their actual average...
At World Ag Expo last week, a giant milk bottle caught my attention. It was filled with hundreds of white ping pong balls with names on them. Each ball, known as a milk drop, represents each dairy producer...
The weather changes every day, there's no way around it. But is it a trend? Factors outside meteorologists, hurricanes and snowstorms can be offered as proof. I'm giving up on "climate consistency." That's...
"You can't just go out there, feed them and squeeze them," was one of the many great financial one-liners Gary Sipiorski shared with a packed audience at the Great Lakes Regional Dairy Conference in Frankenmuth,...
Dairy management programs offered at no cost. No dairy herd is a cookie cutter of the next. Each have their own unique set of fixed costs, feed options and management criteria. Fortunately, there is software...
U.S. Department of Labor numbers show that many more have the opportunity to add value to our food.Who touches your food? We often hear that 2 percent of people have jobs directly related to agriculture....
"Compared to 1944, milk production per cow is up 443 percent," Dale Bauman told attendees at the Great Lakes Regional Dairy Conference in Frankenmuth, Mich
In our February 10, 2013, issue, four producers from Vermont, New York, Wisconsin and California shared their thoughts on feeding high-forage diets to their herds. With the level of detail these producers...
Time and resources limit teaching efforts. Contests should facilitate learning, not just provide scores. by Patti Hurtgen, Hoard's Dairyman Online Media Manager The ability to learn from past experience...
"On the 8th day," Paul Harvey begins, "God looked down on his planned paradise and said, ‘I need a caretaker.'" With that, my Super Bowl party fell silent. Did yours?
