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...
It's that feeling of hope. The red-carrier Holstein (carrying one copy of the recessive red gene) was bred to a Red and White bull (carrying two copies of the red coat color gene). There was a 50-50 chance...
Gone are the days where every youth at a dairy event resides on a farm. There was a time when nearly every youth showing at a fair, competing in dairy judging or competing in quiz bowl lived and worked...
In an ideal world, every calving would happen unassisted and result in a perfectly healthy, active calf. However, as all dairy producers know, that sometimes is not the case. "We can have a critical impact...
School lunch programs have become a political hot button as of late. Washington is gridlocked, as two opposing forces attempt to steer the future direction of the National School Lunch Program
Tractors hit the road with renewed vigor over the holiday weekend in America's Dairyland. As is the case in many dairy states with a cropping emphasis, the pressure is on to apply manure, work ground and...
For a good part of my childhood and most of my high school and college years, I have been the employee at my parents' 150-cow dairy in Valley Center, Kan. Like most farm children, I headed up calf care
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...
While the 2001 National Research Council (NRC) has been an ally of nutritionists for years, Bill Weiss' research and experience have proven that some of the minimum levels set in the NRC guidelines are...
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
To treat or not to treat is a question whose answer once seemed obvious: treat every clinical mastitis case found, and treat every cow at dry-off. But things have changed. Public perception is intensifying...
Garrett Oetzel, University of Wisconsin, presented "Cows and their calcium", in our Monday, March 10 webinar. For 30 years our presenter has studied the topic. With development of a new calf and the onset...
Maybe it was the inch or so of rain that had fallen during the previous several days, or maybe the perpetual optimism that goes with being a farmer of any kind. Either way, there was no panic about the...
"Bacteria must be kept away from the teat ends. Fundamentally, 99 percent of the time mastitis occurs when the ability of the teat end sphincter to control bacteria is exceeded. To control mastitis, the...
Dairy portion outlined in Hoard's Dairyman webinar. By Patti Hurtgen, Online Media Manager One of the earliest discussions on the farm bill took place on Monday, February 10, when Hoard's Dairyman presented...
Digital dermatitis, commonly known as hairy heel warts, is a major cause of lameness on dairy farms. Digital dermatitis was identified in the early 1970s, came to the U.S. in the 1980s and has been a management...
DDGS prices have actually gone up since last summer. If the price goes down for a commodity whose processing waste is a by-product feed for cows, then the price of that feed will go down too, right? So...
Fall 2011 PDCA showmanship scorecard changes are slow to be adopted. Old habits are hard to break. Forming new habits helps reinforce positive actions, but breaking old ones, can be challenging. In the...
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...
