Management

Review calving procedures

Create written protocols for your employees to follow in the calving area and review them annually to make sure all employees are following your guidelines. ... Full story.

Get a good milk sample

Proper milk sampling is an overlooked, yet important contributor to the accuracy of milk test results, especially when it comes to high-producing, early-lactation cows. ... Full story.

Get help with managing flies and odors

In case you missed it, a recording of the recent Penn State Technology Tuesdays webinar “Flies and Smells, A Management Challenge,” is now available. ... Full story.

Economics of heat stress

Heat stress decreases milk production, feed intake and reproduction and increases the risks of lameness and culling. Here are some estimates of the economic losses. ... Full story.

Heat stress webinars coming up

Mark your calendar for two heat stress webinars coming up next month. ... Full story.

Podcast offers advice on cow cooling

It's important to keep cows cool, regardless of the season. Don't let an unseasonably warm spring catch your high-producing cows off guard. ... Full story.

Calving pain deserves attention

An article in the latest Miner Institute Farm Report discusses what signs to look for and what the research says about controlling pain around the time of calving. ... Full story.

Recording of resting areas webinar now online

Learn more about the design and management of resting areas for dairy cows, and find out what topic is up next in the Technology Tuesdays Webinar Series from Penn State. ... Full story.

Linking lameness and fertility

It's well-known that lame cattle can have reduced milk production and increased disease incidence, but the effects of lameness can also negatively affect fertility and reproduction. ... Full story.

Webinar to focus on resting area design

The next webinar in the Penn State Technology Tuesdays webinar series will look at the design and management of freestalls, tie stalls, and bedded pens. ... Full story.

Etiologies of toe lesions

Toe lesions are an extremely common lesion in cattle. They reduce performance significantly and often become chronic lesions. Part of the reason for this is due to the fact that lesions occurring in the toe have the potential to involve the 3rd phalanx, explains cattle lameness expert Jan Shearer, DVM, MS, Iowa State University. “When this happens affected animals can develop very chronic and painful kinds of conditions,” Shearer says. ... Full story.

Do more with your milk test records

Upcoming web seminars will show you how to use four customized spreadsheets from Penn State to analyze your dairy's test day data. ... Full story.