Heifers are the future of your herd. How they are fed and cared for today will directly influence breeding age, health and profitability. The Heifer Resource Center includes articles focusing on key areas for raising heifers and provides links to Web sites that focus directly on heifer nutrition, health and care. Please browse the center and let us know what we can do to further improve it. Send comments to tquaife@food360.com.
Latest Postings:
New heifer management program (Management)
This veterinarian-verified program is designed to simplify heifer development while providing long-term value to dairy producers.
Less mud in heifer pens saves feed cost (Management)
The amount of mud that heifers must wade through to reach the feed bunk can sharply increase their energy intake.
Heifer heat stress studied (Management)
Heifers benefit from shade.
Why do vaccines fail? (Health)
Dick Wallace, University of Illinois extension dairy veterinarian, shared several reasons for vaccination failure during a heifer-management Webinar last month.
Set heifer goals (Reproduction/Breeding)
Dave Fischer, University of Illinois extension dairy educator, outlined three goals of a good replacement-heifer program during a heifer-management Webinar hosted by the University of Illinois last month.
Expansion on a budget (Management)
Expansion is still possible in hard economic times; you just have to be creative.
Aim for zero feed refusal (Nutrition/Feeding)
“There’s no reason (why) we should overfeed heifers,” says Greg Bethard, of G&R Dairy Consulting in Wytheville, Va.
Feed heifers for a smooth transition (Nutrition/Feeding)
Springing heifers have unique nutrient requirements and should be managed accordingly to maximize productivity during their first lactation, says Noah Litherland, University of Minnesota extension dairy nutritionist.
De-oiled distillers grains OK for heifers (Nutrition/Feeding)
Distillers grains that are processed for reduced oil content may be “a viable option” for replacement heifer rations, according to a new Purdue University study.
Double your accuracy (Reproduction/Breeding)
Even if you’re not a data junkie, the latest changes in genetic evaluations are enough to blow your socks off. And if you are a data enthusiast, well, you’ve hit the jackpot with genomic sire evaluations.
