Mom, it’s been 2,555 days since you left us. But who is counting? It’s cliché, but the saying, “There isn’t a day that goes by without me thinking of you,” is so true
It's pitiful past performance invoked indifference among dairy farmers. However, significant updates to the Margin Protection Program for Dairy (MPP-Dairy) should cause everyone to take a second look
The slick haplotype confers cattle with a short and sleek hair coat. In hot, humid climates this type of hair coat makes cows more resistant to heat stress
It’s been estimated that 2 percent of America’s cows are now milked with robots. That number climbs to nearly 15 percent when looking north of the border
I hate crawling under an electric fence. The thought of catching myself on the wire is not a pleasant one, and I would much rather walk around the meadow to a gate before taking a shortcut
It was time. My old truck, Logwagon, was approaching 300,000 miles. John, our mechanic, had hauled it back from a farm call more than an hour away twice
Nearly all Holstein sires can be traced back to two bulls born in the 1960s. Nearly all Jersey bulls can be traced to one of two bulls: Observer (Secret Signal Observer) or Jester (Advancer Sleeping Jester)
A grant-funded project has helped two herds combine high milk production per cow with high components. New York’s Farm Viability Institute provided funding for an 18-month-long project
While local school boards, Parent Teacher Associations, and most recently the Trump administration weigh in on food served in schools, the dialogue around flavored milk is more multifaceted than in years...
Karen Bohnert Not too long ago, my 11-year-old daughter, Cassie, was playing basketball. As an opposing player was trying to throw the ball in to another player, Cassie was guarding her, wildly j
It’s a dad’s job to embarrass their teenage daughters. I dropped the girls off at the 4-H meeting but stayed to be part of the after meeting talk on “Diseases the fair vets look...
Marilyn HersheyOur farm sits right beside a township road. In fact, the road runs right between the main farm and our numerous calf hutches, so we cross the road several times a day. Duane and
While some young dairy enthusiasts grow up participating in dairy cattle judging and quiz bowl contests, students with an interest in dairy products can have a similar experience
We all have learned a lot more about the importance of facilities and cow comfort by studying cows housed in freestall barns, which may include turn-out lots on dirt or pasture
The new year is now two months under our belt. How many of you have kept up on your New Year’s resolutions? The simple resolutions I vowed to work on, and I am thankfully still working on today
Along with many other day-to-day responsibilities of running a dairy farm, managing odors and making efficient use of manure nutrients are becoming more important all the time
Every dairyman and dairywoman should be asking themselves that very question. With milk prices below the cost of production for most of us, it’s challenging to justify the number of calves and heife