If the time has come to build a new heifer facility on your farm, it is wise to do your homework before the construction crew moves in

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...

"In the best-case scenario, we'll lose only 2 to 3 percent of our harvested forage tons to fermentation shrink," noted John Goeser, Rock River Laboratory, at the Penn State Dairy Nutrition Conference

An estimated 6.5 million fulltime employees in California – including those who work on dairies – will begin earning three days per year of paid sick time off from their employers under the...

Not long ago, calf care was a bit of an afterthought, and many young animals received a standard serving of milk that was adequate for survival and some growth

Decades ago, cows gave far less milk and reproduction came easy. Today's cows produce high volumes of milk, but are still expected to calve back consistently. There was a downward trend for fertility until...

Organic dairy product consumption continues to grow, but so does the price of organic cattle feed, cutting into margins for dairy producers. Thus, a new study has revealed that a fair and consistent milk...

Since the early 2000s, automated heat detection has played an important role in reducing breeding and associated labor costs by eliminating the need for reproductive synchronization protocols

Farms getting 100 pounds of milk per day from their cows are doing a lot of things right. Like what, you might ask?

Hemorrhagic bowel syndrome (HBS) was first detected in the early 1990s in dairy herds. Since that time, it has become a more common issue in the industry affecting all breeds of cattle and especially Brown...

Despite slower economic growth overall in the U.S., the agricultural sector is finally on the upswing. Real GDP (gross domestic product) rose 1.9 percent in 2013, down from the 2.8 percent growth rate...

Steady growth in the number of Jersey herds in the U.S., particularly among large dairy owners in the West, naturally leads to the question of how do they do financially? It's not an easy question to answer,...

It was obvious who the clown was in this federal court case: an evil one whose underhanded methods were exposed for the world to see. Last week in a federal District Court in Washington, D.C., HSUS (Humane...

Dairy farms in the U.S. can't be clumped into one cookie cutter mold, as new Census of Agriculture data shows that the dairy industry is still comprised of farms of varying shapes and sizes

The dairy product sector has seen great transformation. At one time, milkmen were delivering glass bottles of milk and a few other limited products

When it rained, it didn't pour in California last year. As a result, the California Department of Water Resources (CDWR) has officially declared 2013 the driest year since records began being kept in 1895

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...

Tracking feed inventory is a valuable strategy for any size farm, especially with the growing unpredictability of Mother Nature and a more volatile commodity market

Those in production agriculture know that animal mortality on farms is inevitable. But how much death loss is normal?

Renae Konkler Scheiderer always read the personal classifieds in her dad's Hoard's Dairyman for giggles. However, in the April 25, 2000, issue, one ad caught her eye. Al Scheiderer had given his email...