Certain signs of heat stress are relatively easy to notice by simply looking around the barn – rapid breathing or panting, cows bunching, and reduced feed intake, for instance

Standing tightly together or “bunching” is not a new behavior in cows, but it is one that is frustrating for many dairy farmers

In recent years and decades, the near-constant dry weather conditions of the western U.S. have not only made farming more difficult but also caused more frequent and more intense wildfires

All the physical and metabolic changes that take place at calving cause stress on a cow’s immune system and elevate the risk for developing metabolic disorders

You may recall middle or high school teachers using Venn diagrams to illustrate correlations between two different subjects

Cows like routine just like humans do

Once a calf is born, it faces many chances for pathogen exposure. From colostrum collection to feeding equipment and calf housing to older calves, many aspects of a farm contribute to a calf’s pathogen...

Whether building new or remodeling an existing facility, the ultimate goal of cow comfort should be driving the decision-making process

Inflammation is often associated with the symptoms of swelling, pain, redness, and fever. These signs are frequently caused by an infection or tissue damage

Temperature swings and rainy days are often par for the course when it comes to spring. Although warmer weather is welcome after a cold winter, it can leave cattle housed in outdoor yards standing in mud

Although it might be entertaining to see cows running toward the feedbunk and eagerly start eating, this is also a sign that they’re hungry. Unfortunately, they might be so hungry that it’s...

Farmers can best troubleshoot fresh cow issues by tracking health data as well as evaluating pen dynamics. What’s more, automated health monitoring systems have proven to be useful in making earlier...

Do you have a fresh cow protocol for your dairy cows? What do you include in your fresh cow protocol? What are some barriers to implementing these protocols on your farm?

“Milking is a complex interaction where the dairyman, the cows, and the milking unit need to work as one,” said Greg Strait, an extension educator in Pennsylvania’s Fulton County

At calving, cows find themselves in a negative calcium balance. That’s because they are literally drawing from their own calcium stores to put the mineral into milk

I know you’ve heard it before: “‘So-and-so’ is a cow whisperer; they seem to know a cow is sick before the cow does!” If you’re the lucky recipient of such high praise,...

Sometimes, it seems as if there isn’t enough time in a day to get everything done that a person wants to

Completing every cow’s lactation with antibiotic dry treatment has been a standard practice on dairy farms for decades

Just like stress in humans, stress in cows isn’t like other diseases we treat. Instead of being diagnosed the cow is sick or the cow is not, stress is something that amasses as one stress piles on...