Herd Health
If fly season has not yet begun in your part of the country, it soon will.
Growth in popularity of natural, organic and “antibiotic free” labeling for meat and dairy products has provided options for consumers and opportunities for producers.
Constant light pollution, particularly in large dairies operating around the clock, can be a problem.
Candidates for extended dry periods are younger, lower risk, healthy cattle.
Using the right data to find and fix the problem is critical.
To avoid the problem in the future, both the genetic and phenotypic bases for calving ease traits will be updated at the same time.
There is still room for improvement to reduce incidence of scours and respiratory disease.
Use of these unique genetic bulls could reintroduce lost genetic variation.
Dry cows should maintain a body condition score in the range of 3.0 to 3.25.
U.S. herds have averaged less than 200,000 cells/mL for the third consecutive year in a row.
Review insurance policies at least annually, if not more often.
The Guide illustrates the interactions of many of the agents that cause mastitis.
The first cohort of 20 students is expected to begin classes in August 2021.
The traits include: Displaced abomasum, milk fever, ketosis, mastitis, metritis and retained placenta.
Using a stepped down approach in milk feeding should drive additional starter intake and reduce post weaning health problems.
Some 15 to 20% of newborn dairy calves develop umbilical cord infections after birth.
Holsteins have the genetic capacity to stay in the herd more than a year longer.
Weight at calving not only determines first-lactation performance, it sets in stone lifetime performance.
Four fifths of Holstein calves born in 2018 now fall in the moderate to high category, which is 6.25 to 12.5%
The accelerated milk replacer provides about twice as much dry matter per calf per day as traditional replacers.
Inbreeding levels in Holsteins is accelerating, particularly over the past 7 years.
When an auto-feeder calf barn proved to be too expensive, this positive-pressure barn equipped with mob feeders is proving to be a viable alternative.
Biosecurity recommendations and protocols should be specific to the farm to address the problems each farm has.
Chopping forage more finely can result in more consistent particle size and greater feed intakes.
Experts are working to secure the nation’s milk supply in case of a foot-and-mouth disease outbreak.
A non-inferiority trial, similar in methodology to the Cornell University study, found no differences in dry cow treatments.
Clean, dry, well-ventilated pens and adequate nutrition are crucial to coccidiosis prevention and control.
Switching from newspaper pomice to compost bedding changed everything for an Oregon dairy farm.