The Council for Dairy Cattle Breeding releases updated dairy sire summaries in April, August, and December. The science of sire summaries has changed in recent years. More traits, especially for health, longevity, and efficiency can now be evaluated and included for selection.
In this recorded Badger Dairy Insight webinar, UW-Madison Division of Extension Farm Management Outreach Specialist Jim Versweyveld discusses onboarding and training for dairy employees and discusses how interactive learning experiences can help build confidence by allowing dairy workers to actively participate in their own training.
Handling cows is necessary to harvest milk and provide animal care, but these interactions also present a risk of injury to personnel. Inappropriate cow handling threatens animal welfare, milk production, and public trust in dairy farming. But how can the industry best teach these skills? Interactive learning experiences can help build confidence by allowing dairy workers to actively participate in their own training.
An alternative to this is indoor calf housing, where renovated old barns can be utilized, taking advantage of the existing structure. Adapting an old building to house calves involves several steps:
The contribution of the dairy production system to climate change is small compared to electricity generation or transportation. The U.S. EPA’s 2022 report showed that the contribution of the agriculture sector to the total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the U.S was around 10% on a million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MMtCO2e) basis in 2020 (Figure 1), and about 39.5% of this 10% is represented by livestock methane emissions from the enteric fermentation and manure management.
When it comes to health issues on a dairy farm, lameness is usually a main concern along with mastitis and reproductive issues. Lameness includes any abnormality which causes a cow to change the way she walks.
The sheer volume of information collected on a dairy farm may seem daunting to keep track of, but proper recordkeeping can play a vital role when making decisions. One area that may not receive as much attention is animal health events, especially hoof health. How would your current animal health records rate if they were compared to the requirements established by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 21CFR530.5?
Nutrition affects more than just the cow’s digestive system. The effects of an imbalanced diet can be seen throughout the animal’s body. Of particular interest are concentrates, such as grain-based feed ingredients, that typically contain high amounts of sugar and starch.
Dairy cow housing facilities are a double-edged sword regarding hoof health and lameness. Built right and managed properly, housing facilities can limit the problem and aid recovery.
Hoof health is essential for not only the overall health of the animal, but also for her welfare. Digital dermatitis (DD), or hairy heel warts, is an extremely painful condition for dairy cattle, reducing their ability to walk to and from the milking parlor, or to the feed bunk. Based on USDA NAHMS 2017 data, 16.8% of all cows and 2.6% of bred heifers have lameness on a dairy operation.
Synchronization protocols evolve rapidly as newer procedures are tested and improvements are made. To help veterinarians and industry professionals deal with rapid change and make informed decisions related to synchronization protocols, the Dairy Cattle Reproduction Council (DCRC) has created synchronization protocol sheets for dairy cows and dairy heifers.
During the summer of 2023 Northwest Wisconsin experienced several hail events. Large hail and 60 mph straight line winds came through the Rice Lake area of Barron County on July 20, 2023. On July 24, a hail event also caused damage in central St. Croix County.
