Dairy cows struggle to maintain normal blood calcium levels at the start of each lactation. Colostrum and milk both use a large amount of calcium, and the cow must suddenly adjust for this rapid nutrient...
Can you hear a quiet question floating in the spring breezes: "Is it time to lock in feed?" With grain markets down, milk futures up, and crop outlooks rosy - not to mention bad memories that are still...
Few things can irritate a person like finding out they overpaid for a product or did not sell their own for its true value. In the April 8 Hoard's Dairyman "Reviewing forage and feed costs – What's...
The farm bill came very close to passage last year. As part of that comprehensive national farm law, the Dairy Security Act (DSA) would have become the dairy portion of the farm bill
When is chocolate milk not "milk"? I must admit when I first read blog posts that indicated aspartame could be added to milk and hidden from consumers, it both irritated and confused me at the same time....
Your milker Miguel just quit, or you just fired him. He has worked for you for 18 months. Your handbook says employees earn a week (five days) of paid vacation per year, which they start earning after...
On conventional dairy farms, antibiotics have a place in treating sick animals but never in the milk or meat sold by the farm. Consumers can drink milk happily and safely thanks to the efforts put forth...
Mastitis has severe economic consequences costing, on average, $200 or more per case. The disease also impairs cattle well being. While prevention is preferred, there are a number of technologies that...
After reviewing the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) announcement from Tuesday, March 12, it became crystal clear that dairy contributed the largest cost savings for NASS' mandated budget...
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...
For over half a century, the concept of healthy eating has become synonymous with avoiding fat, especially saturated fats, noted Adam Lock, Michigan State University, at the Southwest Nutrition and Management...
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
A degree of closure has come in the sensational animal abuse video case that occurred in Idaho last October. Jesus Garza, 25, one of three employees seen abusing cattle in an undercover video that was...
Of the two dairy producers making the finals of a new contest, one was successful. This morning, Will Gilmer, a dairyman from Sulligent, Ala., was announced as one of the four "Faces of Farmers and Ranching."
When all is said and done, the farm bill basically was extended for one year. That is because language to renew most of its old components was inserted into legislation passed on New Year's Day to avert...
For some time, dairy producers and other industry specialists who closely follow genetic evaluations have agreed that productive life estimates - a measure of how long a cow lives - have been somewhat...
History is constantly evolving, so the records of the past are in continual motion. National Dairy Shrine is working on renovations to the Joe P. Eves Library and displays surrounding it. During World...
Per case, mastitis and metritis rank as the most costly transition disorders. On every dairy, the transition period, the three weeks before to the three weeks after calving, is a critical time for our...
"You understand, farmers never retire," was one of the astute observations that farm family coach Elaine Froese offered to those attending the World Holstein Conference in Toronto, Canada
