Larger dairy cows don’t necessarily mean they will feed efficiently. Size and yield in dairy cows are not genetically correlated, says Lou Armentano, a University of Wisconsin dairy nutritionist. Source: Dairy Herd Management, December 8, 2016. But we are currently selecting for big cows, reducing positive [genetic] pressure on yield while selecting against feed efficiency. … [Read more...]
Verify clostridia before implementing prevention strategies
Sheila McGuirk, University of Wisconsin emeritus professor of veterinary medicine discussed clostridial disease during a recent Dairy Girl Network winter calf webinar. She explained that clostridial disease in calves almost always is caused by an overgrowth of Clostridium perfringens. She said calves sometimes die even before they develop diarrhea. If diarrhea does break, it … [Read more...]
Effective strategies for winter calf raising
Winter weather is coming any day now. Luciene Ribeirio offers recommendations for improving results when raising calves in the winter. This content could be used in newsletters, blogs or websites. Veterinary clinic staff members and sales representatives can consider identifying a target group of customers where winter problems are well-known. Then, send the article by e-mail … [Read more...]
BQA injection guidelines reviewed
As the cattle industry scurries to get the paper trails in place for the upcoming VFD requirements, it is a good time to review the importance of proper injection site practices for vaccines, vitamins, minerals, injectable antibiotics and NSAIDs. This article will make good content for blogs, newsletters and websites. Source: Beef, November 2016. Be systematic about how you … [Read more...]
Just add water, plenty of it
Cattle need adequate water in winter to process additional feed that keeps them warm during winter. This article is a good topic to help gin up lively discussions. Source: Beef, October 31, 2016. 'In winter, we often don’t think about water requirements for cattle, but the body’s demand for water is important whether it’s hot or cold,' says Terry Mader, Mader Consulting, … [Read more...]
Winter brings lousy conditions, literally
“Lice are the forgotten winter parasite,” Jerry Bertoldo said. “They tend to ‘bloom’ during the initial surge of cold weather. Lice will be more obvious after calves are weaned, although their exposure may have happened as early as the calving pen,” he said. Source: Dairy Herd Management, November 10, 2016. Bertoldo said visual diagnosis of lice is challenging because they … [Read more...]
AAEV hosting BVDV webinars
Research about BVDV and management practices continues. Although we have good working knowledge of BVDV, losses remain substantial across the production channels. Julia Ridpath, PhD, studies BVDV and related pestiviruses at the USDA’s National Animal Disease Center (NADC) in Ames, Iowa. Webinars presented by her are available through the American Association of Extension … [Read more...]
Documentary gets personal with Washington dairies
Milk Men is the title of a new documentary released by Portland State University Professor Jan Haaken. It takes a deep look at how the dairy industry has changes from the perspectives of small and large dairy producers. The trailer and movie can be viewed online now. Source: Progressive Dairyman, October 28, 2016. From a 100-cow organic dairy and a 2,400-cow dairy in … [Read more...]
How the VFD applies to anaplasmosis
Anasplasmois is caused by Anaplasmo marginale, a blood parasite. The parasite is transferred between animals by blood contamination, often caused by blood-sucking insects. It is common in the South and in some parts of the country, clinical anaplasmosis can occur year-round. The new Veterinary Feed Directive allows for treatment. Source: Progressive Cattleman, November, … [Read more...]
Robotics make milking easier in Kansas dairy
A Palmer, Kansas, family dairy operation spent five years researching robotics and deployed a system a year ago. Duane Meier reflects on the positive results of the effort. Source: Dairy Herd Management, October 21, 2016. Now, six people are taking care of 720 cows with more time to actually manage the cows and take care of 600 acres of crops. Milk production increases are … [Read more...]
Breakers, boners, leans and lights
Cull cows, bulls and cull dairy cows make up about 20 percent of the beef available for consumption in the United States. About half of this group, or 10 percent of the beef supply, comes from cull beef cows. The USDA market news service reports on four classes of cull cows (not destined to be replacements). Learning a bit more about these classifications can impact overall … [Read more...]
Fetal programming affects how beef calves perform
“If cows have less stress during pregnancy, they have a better calf crop,” Ron Scott, director of beef research for Purina Animal Nutrition, says. “And, not only does it affect the calf crop right then, but close-outs at the feedyard, it influences fertility of the replacement heifers. And all of that has to do with the type of environment that calf had when its mama was … [Read more...]
Select the right bull
Bulls can rapidly change a herd. However, it is important to select the right bulls to make sure progress is made, says Burke Teichert. Bull selection, combined with choosing cull cows can positively or negatively impact operation profit so it needs to be done strategically. Source: Beef, October 6, 2017. Teichert offers 5 tips when selecting bulls: Cull the right … [Read more...]
50th World Dairy Expo ends
Here are some photos and moments from the World Dairy Expo that took place last week in Madison, Wisconsin. If you could not attend or have never been there, these will help you experience it minus the ice cream, milk and cheese samples. Source: Dairy Herd Management, October 7, 2016. There are plenty of sights to take in while attending the 50th World Dairy Expo in … [Read more...]
Updated Journal of Dairy Science
We’ve linked to the most recent issue so you can view abstracts. Note the issue is divided into sections to guide you through the studies. Consider reviewing the interpretive summaries to get an overview of key content. Cow characteristics and their association with udder health after different dry period lengths is worth reviewing in the Production: Health, Behavior, and … [Read more...]
Culling open cows effectively
Cull cow weight and price are two of the top factors of profitability in any cow-calf operation. Justin Rhinehart, University of Tennessee Beef Cattle Extension specialist, provides good perspective on the economic importance of open cows in cow-calf operations. Cull timing is presented in detail. Source: Drovers CattleNetwork, October 4, 2016. Open cow revenue generally … [Read more...]
California dairies going nuts
Many California dairies have joined the burgeoning almond industry. The diversification helps with farm economics and even a by-product to feed to the cows. Source: Dairy Herd Management, September 26, 2016. Dairymen are also reaping an added bonus; A complimentary crop that will continue to be viable into the future. That's a by-product to feed their livestock. ‘This is … [Read more...]
Take control of year-round calving in two years
Tightening calving seasons creates management and economic benefits. Done wrong, the benefits turn into costs. Les Anderson, University of Kentucky Extension beef specialist, says takes at least two years for producers to tighten a year-round calving season into a 75-day controlled calving season. Source: Drovers CattleNetwork, September 2016. Anderson offers eight steps to … [Read more...]
BVD war turns 70
After 70 years, BVD still wages war on cattle health and producers’ wallets, writes Wyatt Bechtel. He presents economic losses for dairy, beef, stocker/feedlot and all cattle and calves as documented by studies in the U.S and summarized by Derrell Peel, livestock marketing specialist with Oklahoma State University. Source: Dairy Herd Management, September 2016, page … [Read more...]
Cull cows early and often
Cull cow weight and cull cow price have long been listed as key factors that affect profitability for cow calf producers. Jason Faubion, assistant director of the Ranch Management Program at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas, recommends culling early and often to keep the ranch operating as efficiently as possible. Cows only earn a profit – and therefore their … [Read more...]
2-step calf weaning
Pressure from consumer groups challenges all levels of food animal care. It also makes our industry consider other ways to approach “what we already know.” Our team liked this article as it challenges the nomenclature for shipping fever and introduces a possible solution that more closely fits natural herd behaviors. “There is no event we impose on cattle more stressful than … [Read more...]
Transition time is critical for milk and more
Phil Cardoso, University of Illinois, shared his presentation, “Fine-tuning transition cow care,” with listeners on the monthly Hoard’s Dairyman webinar. He strongly urged producers to limit the change in body condition scores by 0.5 for the entire lactation and dry period. “It is tough, but we really need to minimize the condition shifts.” Source: Hoard’s Dairyman, … [Read more...]
Collectively curing beef’s $35 million bruise
Cattle today are bigger than they were 30 years ago, thanks to improved genetics and better husbandry. In fact, finished cattle have outgrown the trailers used to haul them. Industry consensus and research show that larger cattle being hauled in equipment designed in the last century are creating welfare and product quality issues, resulting in $35-million-plus industry wide … [Read more...]
It’s a lousy time of year
Cooler weather brings a greater risk of lice. The USDA estimates that U.S. livestock producers lose $125 million each year to it. Protecting cattle includes understanding the life cycle of lice, recognizing the potential damage and using effective methods of control. If not controlled, a single adult female in September can result in approximately 1 million lice by … [Read more...]
Baxter Black: The curious cow
We think you’ll get a laugh from this Baxter Black story about on-farm adventures of a cow and a chicken. Source: Dairy Herd Management, September 12, 2016. By Ag Day TV. … [Read more...]
Tail docking on the way out
The National Milk Producers Federation has confirmed that tail docking will not be permitted under the National Dairy FARM Program (Farmers Assuring Responsible Management) as of January 1, 2017. The American Association of Bovine Practitioners has opposed the practice for 20 years and California banned it in 2009. Yet, some owners still engage in it. The Journal of Dairy … [Read more...]
Unique cattle influenza virus studied, named
The executive committee of the International Committee of Taxonomy of Viruses officially announced a new genus, Orthomyxovirdae, with a single species, influenza D virus, because of its distinctness from other influenza types—A, B and C. This is the first influenza virus identified in cattle, explained Professor Feng Li, South Dakota State University. Source: Bovine … [Read more...]
Feeding for the perfect (cow) pie
Dan Gary, an Amarillo, Texas, ranch consultant, suggests that you can use cow-pie-ology to monitor the nutritional status of a cow herd. He relates cow pie configuration to nutrient balance. If nothing else, we believe you’ll get a chuckle out of the discussion of the perfect cow pie. Source: Beef, September 2016. 'There is no better method of determining the nutritional … [Read more...]
World Dairy Expo turns 50
Dairy Herd Management celebrates the 50th anniversary of the World Dairy Expo in this commemorative edition. No doubt about it, the annual event champions much of the progress that strengthens the dairy business, domestic and foreign. When Expo started in 1967, cows averaged just 8,800 lb. of milk per year. We needed no fewer than 13,500 million of them to produce 120 … [Read more...]
Calf weaning methods compared
Steve Boyles, Ohio State University (OSU) Extension specialist, recently compared pasture weaning to drylot weaning in an OSU Beef Cattle newsletter. Boyles looked at a recent study that compared three weaning methods for calves averaging 180 days old: drylot weaning + complete visual and auditory separation from dams pasture weaning + fence-line contact with dams … [Read more...]