National judging winners share their good-fortune stories. For those competing at the highest level, dairy judging is serious business. Hours and years of practice and preparation go into the one contest...
Researchers are delving into animal personalities and the effects they have on production. They have personalities. For anyone who has managed cattle or spent much time around them at all, it is pretty...
Are we teaching youth a variety of dairy skills? As a 4-H member I remember attending monthly local 4-H dairy meetings. Held at a leader's farm, all members, from first year to the very experienced, were...
Legendary dairy cattle judge and professor Fred Foreman passed away on July 22, leaving behind a grand legacy of teaching and passion for the dairy industry. He was born on a small farm in Kansas, but...
Enclosed spaces can be death traps. Farmers are busy people with a long list of tasks to complete and a shortage of daylight. However, a little extra time to think through a situation could save a life....
A PCR assay can enhance your milk quality diagnostics. The incorporation of a robust diagnostic strategy has been promoted heavily in recent years as a way to identify the predominant pathogens causing...
Judges not only evaluate cattle, they are communicators. You had success in judging contests as a youth. Now, you'd like to move onto the next level and judge dairy shows. What should you know? I spoke...
Simply guessing as to the cause is part of the problem. Death loss is a challenge to every producer. Minimizing early removals from the herd should be the goal, but it starts with an understanding of the...
Educational games share agriculture's story. "Corn is grown in every state and on six continents." That is just one of the agriculture facts state fair attendees could learn in the American Farm Bureau's...
If robots are the next evolution of milking cows on a large scale, then the future is here already. Except it is happening slowly and not at all in the U.S. . . . yet
Shades, fans, misters and water make milk production possible even in the desert. Few places in the U.S. are as deadly an environment for cows as Arizona, but milk producers there have become masters at...
When combined with the five slip-ups below, fluctuating temperatures and wet spring conditions can often lead to an uptick in the rate of scours and respiratory illness we see on farm, noted Sam Leadley...
Life does truly go full circle. Last Wednesday, I had the opportunity to be on the speaking docket with Scott Armbrust, D.V.M., at the Livestock Genetics Export Seminar in Madison, Wis
April is National Grilled Cheese Month. Just the thought of warm melting cheese on hot buttered toast stimulates the taste buds. Delighted customers foster the continued consumption of dairy products....
When it comes to finding sick cows, tie stall herds have the upper hand. As we have transitioned our dairies from this individual care system to managing groups, illness detection has become one of our...
It's over half of the frozen desserts consumed. There was a time when ice cream was just for the affluent. With the advent of insulated ice houses in the early 1800s, it could stay cold. Ice cream is a...
Export-focused powder facility will be built in Turlock, Calif. California's shortage of milk processing capacity got a shot in the arm yesterday with the announcement by Hilmar Cheese Company that it...
By improving heat detection efficiency, reducing heat detection errors and honing our inseminating skills, we can get more heifers bred. When it comes to heifer fertility, reproductive experts say to focus...
