Veterinary - General

WOAH Report Highlights Growing Disease Pressure and Veterinary System Gaps

Wed, 13 May 2026 19:46:50 GMT

A perfect storm may be gathering over the global food system.

As unprecedented outbreaks of bird flu, African swine fever, foot-and-mouth disease, and New World screwworm spread across regions, the financial systems meant to prevent and contain these threats are shrinking.

That is the central warning from the World Organisation for Animal Health’s (WOAH) newly released 2026 State of the World’s Animal Health report , which argues that global investment in prevention is failing to keep pace with a rapidly expanding biological risk profile.

According to the report, more than 20% of global animal production is lost to preventable disease every year, yet animal health receives less than 0.6% of total global health spending. At the same time, approximately 75% of emerging infectious diseases in humans originate in animals.

For food-animal veterinarians in North America, many of the report’s themes already feel familiar. Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in dairy cattle, growing antimicrobial stewardship pressure, increasing biosecurity demands, workforce shortages and concern around emerging and transboundary diseases all feature prominently in WOAH’s assessment of global animal health trends.

“Animal health systems are the first lines of defense against the next pandemic,” said WOAH director general Emmanuelle Soubeyran during a panel discussion accompanying the report release.

Global Animal Health Funding Declines as Disease Risks Increase

One of the report’s strongest warnings centers on what WOAH describes as a rapidly contracting financing landscape. Despite the growing importance of animal health systems, they remain chronically underfunded globally.

Official Development Assistance, government-funded international aid intended to support the economic development and welfare of lower- and middle-income countries, fell to $174.3 billion in 2025 — a 23% decline that WOAH says represents the largest annual contraction on record and effectively erases a decade of growth in global development aid.

Meanwhile, less than $1 billion annually reaches veterinary services and zoonotic disease prevention worldwide. According to WOAH, that amounts to less than 2.5% of an already shrinking global health aid budget.

WOAH estimates bringing veterinary services worldwide up to international standards would cost approximately $2.3 billion annually — a figure the organization contrasts against the trillions of dollars in economic losses associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The choice before governments, funders, partners and private sectors is not between spending and saving,” Soubeyran says. “It is between planned investment in animal health systems and protecting our health and minimizing losses.”

Veterinary services are prevention infrastructure, not simply regulatory oversight. That framing has increasing relevance for North American food-animal veterinarians, whose responsibilities now often extend well beyond traditional clinical work to include biosecurity planning, disease surveillance, movement documentation, antimicrobial stewardship, emergency preparedness and producer communication.

HPAI, African Swine Fever and Emerging Diseases Continue Expanding

The report paints a picture of disease systems becoming increasingly interconnected as climate change, globalization, wildlife movement and changing production systems alter how diseases emerge and spread.

The human and economic cost of this underinvestment is already visible:

Avian Influenza: Between 2025 and early 2026, over 2,100 outbreaks were recorded in 64 countries, resulting in the loss of 140 million poultry.
The Cattle Shift: HPAI is now recognized as an emerging disease in bovines, requiring international reporting as it jumps species barriers.
Parasitic Spread: New World screwworm is moving northward through Central America with tens of thousands of cases, while Lumpy Skin Disease has reached Western Europe for the first time.
Regional Crises: Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) has recently caused unprecedented outbreaks in Southern Africa.

Outbreaks no longer remain localized events. In an increasingly interconnected livestock and trade system, delayed detection in one region can rapidly create wider food system, trade and public health consequences.

Veterinary Preparedness and Biosecurity Deliver Economic Returns

A major theme running throughout the report is that governments and industries continue spending far more responding to disease crises than preventing them.

One highlighted example compares the United Kingdom’s response to FMD outbreaks:

In 2001, an underprepared response cost the UK an estimated £8 billion and resulted in the culling of more than 6 million animals.
In 2007, after improved preparedness investments, another outbreak was contained in just 58 days at a cost of approximately £47 million.

These examples demonstrate the measurable economic return of surveillance systems, preparedness planning, laboratory capacity, vaccination programs and coordinated veterinary services.

“Preparedness begins before the crisis,” says Paolo Tizzani, veterinarian and epidemiologist with WOAH.

WOAH Warns Veterinary Staffing Shortages Could Delay Outbreak Detection

The report also identifies veterinary workforce capacity as a growing vulnerability globally.

According to WOAH data:

18% of countries assessed showed declining veterinary capacity,
22% showed declining paraprofessional capacity.

During the panel discussion, WOAH officials specifically referenced declining rural veterinary presence as an emerging concern.

“When animal health systems are under-resourced, diseases can be detected late,” Tizzani says. “They have the possibility to spread more widely.”

Workforce shortages are no longer simply a labor issue, but increasingly a biosecurity and preparedness concern. Without sufficient veterinary staffing, laboratory support, surveillance infrastructure and field-level reporting capacity, outbreaks become harder to identify and contain early.

Prevention and Vaccination are Key

WOAH warns AMR could contribute to more than 39 million human deaths globally by 2050 while also creating major economic losses in animal production systems. The organization strongly positions prevention-oriented herd-health approaches — including vaccination, surveillance, biosecurity and improved disease management — as critical tools for reducing antimicrobial use.

This discussion aligns closely with ongoing stewardship initiatives across dairy, beef and pork sectors, including increased focus on veterinary oversight, preventive medicine and judicious antimicrobial use.

Only a small proportion of AMR-related research funding currently goes toward animal vaccines, despite their role in reducing antimicrobial demand. Still, the report points to examples where prevention-focused systems have dramatically reduced antibiotic use. Norway, for example, was able to reduce antibiotic use in its salmon industry by 99% through sustained investment in vaccination and preventive health programs.

Animal Health as Critical Infrastructure

WOAH consistently frames animal health systems as critical infrastructure tied directly to economic resilience, food security, public health and trade stability. They also push back against oversimplified narratives that place disease emergence solely on livestock production itself. Instead, WOAH officials emphasize the growing complexity of interactions between wildlife, livestock, humans, ecosystems, climate pressures and global trade systems.

“One Health will remain an aspiration until animal health systems are genuinely built into how we plan and invest,” Soubeyran says.

Animal health systems can no longer be treated as background infrastructure that only becomes visible during emergencies. For food-animal veterinarians in North America, that transition is already well underway.

Whether through HPAI surveillance in dairy cattle, African swine fever preparedness planning, antimicrobial stewardship, movement documentation or producer biosecurity support, food-animal veterinarians are increasingly functioning as frontline public-health and food-system infrastructure.

“Animal health must be financed as a global public good,” the report concludes. “The benefits generated cross every border, and the risks of underinvestment are shared by all.”

Beef-on-Dairy Calves May Scour Less than Holsteins, New Research Shows

Mon, 11 May 2026 18:44:36 GMT

Beef-on-dairy calves have long been a solid income stream on many dairies, turning into a steady payout when they leave the farm and move into beef systems. More recently, farmers have also started to notice these calves often require fewer individual health treatments than their purebred counterparts, adding to their overall profitability.

Researchers like Melinda Kovacs, a master’s student at the University of Guelph, have started to take a closer look at how these calves perform early in life, when most health challenges tend to show up. One pattern that keeps surfacing is that crossbred calves tend to have fewer digestive issues than Holsteins, especially scours.

In her work, Kovacs found beef-on-dairy crossbred calves have lower diarrhea rates, fewer days with scours and fewer repeat treatments than Holsteins during the rearing phase.

“Producers were finding that the health of these crossbred calves was improved,” Kovacs explained during a recent “The Dairy Health Blackbelt Podcast” episode. “They were finding less health challenges, or these animals were able to recover from disease a little bit better than the purebred calves.”

Fewer Scours Cases Stand Out

The study followed approximately 640 calves housed at a single calf-rearing facility over about 18 months. Kovacs analyzed records from 446 Holstein calves and 194 beef-on-dairy crossbred calves.

Using twice-daily health scoring, Kovacs and her team monitored diarrhea and respiratory disease while also collecting weekly body weights, milk intake and starter feed intake data.

When she compared the two groups at the conclusion of the study, one health challenge stood out immediately.

“We found that the Holstein calves had a higher incidence of diarrhea compared to the crossbred calves,” Kovacs says. “We also found that translated to fewer days with diarrhea.”

Beef-on-dairy calves_Suanne Blackwell

(Suanne Blackwell)

The same trend appeared when she evaluated severe diarrhea cases.

“This is what we were expecting based on kind of our communication with producers,” Kovacs says. “That the crossbred calves would have less diarrhea in the preweaning or the rearing phase.”

For dairy farmers and calf raisers, fewer scours cases can influence nearly every part of calf performance. Diarrhea remains one of the most expensive calfhood diseases on dairies due to treatment costs, lost growth, labor demands and long-term health setbacks.

Crossbred Calves Needed Fewer Repeat Treatments

Kovacs also examined therapeutic interventions and found another difference between the groups.

“We did find that the Holstein calves had a higher hazard of being treated multiple times for both diarrhea and respiratory disease,” she says.

Respiratory disease rates themselves were similar between breeds, but the need for repeated treatment was higher in Holsteins. That finding could become more important as dairy and calf-rearing operations focus on reducing antibiotic use while still keeping calves healthy and performing well.

“Perhaps there’s a greater ability of these crossbred calves to recover from diseases compared to Holstein calves,” Kovacs adds.

Why Are Beef-on-Dairy Calves More Resilient?

(Farm Journal)

The study wasn’t designed to pin down exactly why the differences are showing up, but Kovacs thinks genetics likely play a role.

“In the dairy industry, we see a lot of inbreeding depression with the Holstein animals,” she says. “And I think perhaps we have some heterosis or hybrid vigor in these crossbred animals.”

Selection pressure may also contribute to the performance gap. Dairy genetics have focused on milk production traits, while beef genetics have emphasized growth and muscling.

“In the dairy industry, we’ve been genetically selecting for obviously higher milk production, whereas in the beef industry, we’ve been selecting for more growth traits,” Kovacs says. “So perhaps these crossbred calves are benefiting from the growth traits compared to the Holstein calves.”

She also found crossbred calves gained weight faster during the rearing phase.

“The crossbred calves did have higher growth rates, so higher average daily gains,” Kovacs says. “They were about [15 lb.] heavier than the Holstein calves when they were finished this rearing phase.”

Differences Continued Through Harvest

Kovacs and her team later expanded the project to follow some calves from birth through harvest at approximately 13 months of age. She wanted to better understand how calfhood health and management influence later feedlot and carcass performance.

Beef_carcasses

“Right now, there’s kind of a big disconnect between all of the different components of the industry, between the dairy farm of origin, the rearing, the feedlot and the abattoir,” Kovacs says.

The performance differences continued beyond the early rearing phase.

“The crossbred calves, I believe, were about [120 to 124 lb.] more in body weight compared to the Holsteins,” Kovacs says. “Which does have significant implications in terms of the cost benefit of these animals.”

She also identified differences in ribeye area and carcass composition, suggesting the advantages weren’t limited to early growth but carried through to how the animals finished at harvest.

More Research Still Needed

Even with the encouraging results, Kovacs says dairy producers should not assume crossbred calves require less attention or lower-quality care.

“With my findings, we see that they’re maybe more resilient or robust,” she says. “But I think those producers still need to be offering the best care to those calves to ensure their success.”

Kovacs adds that much of the existing calf research has historically focused on purebred Holsteins, leaving major knowledge gaps around nutrition and management requirements for beef-on-dairy calves.

“A lot of research that’s been done in the past has focused on purebred Holstein calves,” Kovacs says. “So, we don’t really know if the requirements of these crossbred calves for both maintenance and growth are the same as for a purebred Holstein calf.”

As beef-on-dairy programs continue to expand across the dairy industry, producers are paying closer attention to which calves stay healthier and perform better from start to finish. This research suggests fewer scours cases early in life may be part of the advantage, adding to the overall profitability of beef-on-dairy calves.

For more on beef-on-dairy, read:

Waiting for the Vet: How to Manage Udder Vein Lacerations on Farm

Mon, 11 May 2026 13:56:00 GMT

Few situations on a dairy are more alarming than finding a cow actively bleeding from an udder vein laceration. Blood loss can happen quickly, and in severe cases, the situation can become life-threatening before a veterinarian arrives.

The first priority is staying calm enough to control the bleeding and stabilize the animal.

While udder vein injuries are among the more dramatic bleeding emergencies producers may encounter, many of the same principles apply to other significant lacerations on farm. Rapid bleeding control, minimizing movement and protecting the injured area can all improve outcomes while waiting for veterinary care.

Udder veins are particularly vulnerable because of their size. High-producing dairy cows require significant blood flow to support milk production, which means damage to those vessels can result in substantial blood loss in a short amount of time.

According to Dr. Erika Nagorske, these cases are memorable because of how quickly they escalate.

“Their udder vein goes from their udder up toward their chest right on their belly line,” Nagroske says. “It is garden hose-huge because dairy cows milk so much and need a lot of blood flow.”

Control the Cow First

As with many emergencies, the first step is containment.

Move the cow into a safe, confined area where she is less likely to panic, move excessively or injure herself further. A chute or small pen is ideal if available. Limiting movement helps reduce additional trauma and makes it easier to assess the source of the bleeding.

This same principle applies to many lacerations, particularly those involving limbs or areas where movement can repeatedly reopen the wound.

If the cow is already weak or beginning to wobble, minimizing stress becomes even more important. Heavy blood loss can cause animals to deteriorate quickly.

(Erika Nagorske)

Apply Pressure Immediately

Direct pressure is the most important first response.

Use clean towels, cloths or any absorbent material available and apply firm pressure directly over the source of bleeding. Even temporary clotting can slow blood loss enough to buy valuable time before veterinary care arrives.

For smaller lacerations elsewhere on the body, pressure alone is often enough to reduce bleeding until the veterinarian arrives. In more severe injuries, especially those involving larger vessels, additional intervention may be needed.

“If you have hemostats or true vet tools on hand, great. Otherwise, vise grips,” Nagorske says. “And it sounds very archaic, right? But it’s either we’re looking at either a dead cow or not a dead cow.”

If trained and comfortable doing so, producers may be able to carefully clamp above and below the damaged portion of the vein to slow bleeding until the veterinarian arrives.

Avoid Unnecessary Movement

Once bleeding is somewhat controlled, keep the cow as quiet and still as possible.

Walking the animal unnecessarily or repeatedly moving her between locations can worsen blood loss or disrupt clot formation. The goal is stabilization, not treatment.

Nagorske notes these situations can become especially difficult if the cow goes down before bleeding is controlled.

“That’s what’s hard about those bad bleeders,” she says. “They lay down, then you can’t get to the source of bleeding.”

What Not to Do

In high-stress bleeding emergencies, well-intentioned actions can sometimes make the situation worse.

Do not leave the cow uncontained
Do not repeatedly remove pressure to check the wound
Do not force the animal to walk long distances
Do not delay calling the veterinarian
Do not assume bleeding has stopped completely just because it has slowed

Keeping the animal calm, controlling bleeding and minimizing additional trauma can make a substantial difference in the outcome.

Be Prepared

Udder vein lacerations are not everyday events, but preparation matters.

Having towels, clean cloths and basic restraint or clamping tools accessible on the farm can make the initial response more effective while waiting for veterinary care. Reviewing emergency protocols with employees ahead of time can also help reduce panic during high-stress situations.

Most importantly, call the veterinarian immediately. Rapid intervention gives the cow the best chance of recovery and can prevent a serious situation from becoming fatal.

From Defense to Damage: Cattle Bunching on Dairy Farms

Mon, 04 May 2026 16:28:11 GMT

As temperatures rise and fly pressure builds, cattle bunching becomes a familiar sight. Often dismissed as a seasonal nuisance, it is actually a vital signal to interpret. What begins as a defense against stable flies quickly triggers a cascade of production and welfare challenges.

The economic impact is significant. Research indicates milk production declines by 0.6 kg per cow daily for every stable fly per leg. Furthermore, the presence of bunching itself is associated with a 0.45 kg daily loss. By the time this behavior is visible, production losses are already well underway.

Bunching is a predictable response to environmental stressors. While fly pressure is the primary trigger, factors like heat load, airflow and pen design determine the behavior’s intensity. Once a threshold is exceeded, bunching appears quickly and can spread across an entire pen.

Ultimately, bunching is not the problem; it is clinical evidence the system and the herd are already under immense pressure.

Why Do Cows Bunch?

Stable flies (Stomoxys calcitrans) are blood-feeding insects that target the lower legs, delivering repeated, painful bites. Cows respond with a sequence of defensive behaviors: stomping, tail flicking and eventually, clustering.

This clustering is not random; it’s strategic.

By grouping tightly, cows reduce the number of flies landing on any one individual — a dilution effect. Animals compete for positions toward the center of the group, where exposure is lowest, creating the characteristic movement often observed in bunched pens.

Behavioral changes begin early. Around five flies per leg, cattle reach what is commonly considered an economic injury level, with measurable impacts on both behavior and production. More recent work suggests the threshold for behavioral change may be even lower under field conditions.

This is a coordinated response to discomfort, and in modern dairy systems, that response comes with trade-offs.

How Cattle Bunching Impacts Health and Performance

What begins as protection can quickly become part of the problem.

As cows bunch, they create localized conditions that amplify other stressors:

Airflow between animals is reduced, limiting the effectiveness of ventilation and cooling systems.
Heat builds within the group, increasing the risk of heat stress even when barn-level conditions appear acceptable.
Feeding behavior is disrupted. Cows are less willing to leave the group, and competition at the bunk increases. Reduced dry matter intake can occur before any visible drop in milk production.
Resting behavior is reduced. Increased fly pressure raises standing time, and bunching compounds this effect. Reduced lying time leads to less rumination and contributes to increased lameness risk over time.
Hygiene deteriorates. Clustering often occurs in areas with higher manure accumulation, increasing exposure to mastitis pathogens.

A behavior intended to reduce fly bites ends up amplifying heat stress, disrupting intake and compromising welfare.

Why Bunching Varies Between Pens

One of the more telling aspects of bunching is how uneven it can be. Within the same barn, under the same management, one pen may bunch consistently while another remains relatively unaffected. Bunching is strongly influenced by microenvironmental conditions that can differ across short distances.

Differences in airflow can create pockets where flies accumulate. Manure buildup increases local breeding pressure. Variations in shade, moisture or surrounding environment can further influence where flies — and therefore cows — concentrate.

Over time, these small differences become consistent patterns. The same pens bunch, often in the same locations, day after day. Cows are responding to environmental gradients that are easy to overlook but highly relevant to their comfort.

How to Diagnose the Cause of Cattle Bunching

When bunching behavior appears, a structured evaluation can help identify the underlying cause:

1. Fly pressure

Assess leg counts or trap counts where possible. Even relatively low counts can be meaningful, and increases beyond five flies per leg indicate significant impact.

2. Heat load

Review temperature-humidity trends and observe when bunching occurs. Heat amplifies both fly activity and cow response.

3. Airflow

Look for uneven ventilation or dead zones within the pen. These often correspond directly with bunching locations.

4. Stocking density

Overcrowding increases competition and accelerates clustering once cows begin to group.

5. Pen-level variation

Compare affected pens with those that remain stable. Differences in surroundings or management often explain the pattern.

This approach reframes bunching from a nuisance behavior into a diagnostic entry point.

When to Act on Cattle Bunching

One of the most useful aspects of bunching is how early it appears. Cows respond to environmental stressors faster than most monitoring systems detect them. As a result, bunching often appears before changes are obvious in bulk tank data or performance metrics. That creates an opportunity to act sooner.

When bunching emerges at consistent times or in specific areas, it provides a reliable signal that conditions have shifted. Adjusting fly control, improving airflow or modifying cooling strategies at that point can prevent escalation and limit cumulative losses.

Cattle bunching is a visible signal the system is under pressure. The goal is not to stop cows from bunching, but to understand why they are doing it and respond before defense turns into damage.

The Veterinarian Who Wants Everyone at the Table

Thu, 30 Apr 2026 20:57:12 GMT

The air in the farm office is thick with the scent of antiseptic and damp earth. Outside on a folding plastic table, slippery, pink reproductive tracts are laid out like a strange anatomy lesson.

This isn’t the sterile, hurried vet visit most expect. There is no rush to finish, no ticking clock. Instead, a crowd gathers. Workers, owners and managers lean in, drawn by a curiosity that usually gets buried under the weight of a daily chore list.

Michelle Schack doesn’t start by lecturing; she starts by inviting.

“We did a little in-the-office training where we talked about why what we were doing was important, and then we went outside. I had repro tracts and their AI guns, and they practiced,” Schack recalls. “I had three repro tracts, and I cut one open for us to look at. I explained to them the structure of the cervix.”

In moments like this, the hierarchy of the farm dissolves. Schack isn’t positioned as the untouchable expert at the center of the room. She is a facilitator, a guide and — crucially — a student.

“They were so excited to do this, and they had a lot of questions, really good questions,” Schack says. “We were all talking together. We were sharing things. I learned things. The breeders learned things. The owner learned things. We all were learning together.”

(Photos provided by Michelle Schack)

The Silicon Valley Roots of a Cow Vet

Schack’s journey to the dairy barn began in an unlikely place: the Bay Area of California. Growing up in the Silicon Valley, her world was surrounded by tech companies and not a lot of agriculture.

Her first connection to animals wasn’t through livestock but rather through a suburban 4-H group where she raised nine guide dog puppies for the blind. It was here, starting in the second grade, that she inadvertently began training for her future career — not just in animal care but also in the art of public advocacy.

When she reached the University of California, Davis, for her undergraduate degree, she assumed being a small animal vet was the only path. But after shadowing a practitioner, she realized she felt restricted by the 15-minute appointment model and the sterile walls of a clinic. She began to look for something that allowed for more space, more complexity and a deeper connection to the food system.

“I started exploring — asking, ‘Well, what else is there?’ I realized that there were all different kinds of vets, and I could do all different kinds of things,” she recalls. “I really just kept coming back to the cows. The cows were my favorite the whole time.”

By her third year of veterinary school, her choice was clear, though she was in the extreme minority. Out of her graduating class of 140, there were four students who tracked food animal medicine.

The High Cost of the Telephone Game

This instinct to pull people toward the table comes from seeing what happens when communication breaks down. In the dairy industry, the real problem is often a lack of communication — a high-stakes game of telephone that breaks down as the message gets passed further along the line.

“I think very often we speak to the farmers and then the farmers speak to their employees. But along the way, some of the messages are lost, especially as our farms get bigger,” Schack explains.

She doesn’t see this as a lack of effort but rather as a reality of the grueling environment.

“The employee on the farm has a very challenging job. Typically it’s very repetitive, very physical, in all weather, and it’s very common for them to just get stuck in a routine,” Schack says.

When employees are stuck in a routine without understanding the biological “why” behind their tasks , the animals are the ones who pay the price. Her response is simple: Change how the message is shared. It has become one of the most rewarding parts of her work.

“When I get to work with the people and the owner and the manager, and I can see them all connect, that’s a day that I’m very excited for. That’s my favorite part of my job,” Schack explains.

(Photos provided by Michelle Schack)

The Missed Piece: Collaborative Medicine

This experience shaped a simple belief: A veterinarian who only talks to cows is only doing half the job. In Schack’s view, the vet is just one piece of a massive, integrated team.

“It is common for cattle veterinarians to show up, check cows and go home. When you don’t make the time for the rest of the team, then you’re going to get left out of certain conversations,” she notes. “Producers are working with a whole team of people. When we all work together, we can do so much more.”

She defines that team broadly, including the nutritionist, the slaughterhouse, the semen sales rep and even the person who installed the fans and misters. This teamwork requires a specific kind of humility: the ability to recognize that the person delivering 40 calves a day might know more than the person with the medical degree.

“There are maternity workers that have been working in maternity for 40 years, and all they do all day is deliver calves. They are experts, and to pretend that they aren’t or to overpower them is not smart. They know a lot, and we should be listening to what they have to say,” Schack says.

Starting Earlier: Bridging the ‘Milk Gap’

Schack’s passion for education eventually led her to look even further back in the chain of understanding: to the children in her own community. After visiting her children’s kindergarten class to talk about her job, she was struck by a profound realization.

“None of them knew how milk gets from the cow to the grocery store. They don’t understand that there’s processing,” she says. “I think most people think cows come in to get milked, it goes in a bottle and then goes to the grocery store. But there are so many steps in between, and I don’t think it’s shared very well.”

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A post shared by Dairy Vet Dr. Michelle (@dairy.doc)

She saw the same disconnect reflected in posts and comments on her social media, where she shares about dairy farming as the “ Dairy Doc .” Concerned that others were filling that knowledge gap with information that may not reflect reality, Schack decided to take action.

“I wrote a children’s book,” Schack says. “Kids are sponges, and they want to know the right answer. So, I wrote a book that’s specifically geared at their level that explains milk processing in a simple way so they can actually see what happens.”

The book, “Milk From Cow to Carton,” is set to release in June. She hopes to get it into the hands of teachers so they have a factual, accessible resource for their classrooms.

(Photos provided by Michelle Schack)

Building Something That Scales

When training demands began to outpace her schedule, Schack and her partners at her veterinary practice looked for a way to scale and maintain that connection.

“We started creating videos for our clients, and they were so well received that pretty soon we had the whole co-op interested in using our training,” she says.

These training videos eventually grew into DairyKind , a national training platform that fills the gaps in on-farm education. The platform offers modules on everything from special needs cow care to calf weaning, ensuring that the “why” is never lost in the shuffle of farm growth.

This work has clarified her own identity. For years, Schack thought her value was her knowledge of the animal. Now, she realizes her value is her ability to connect the people who care for them.

“I thought that I was an animal person. Over the years I’ve learned that I’m not really an animal person, I’m a people person,” she reflects. “My nature is to work with other people and that makes me happy.”

At the end of the day, the work still looks like that first moment in the farm office: a group of people gathered around a table. Schack is there, not just to provide the answers but also to ensure that everyone — from the veteran maternity worker to the kindergarten student — is part of the conversation.

She knows that if you want to improve outcomes for cows, you have to start with the people.

Train for the Why: How Understanding Reduces Treatment Errors on Dairy Farms

Tue, 28 Apr 2026 17:37:20 GMT

Most dairy farms are training their teams.

They’re holding sessions, reviewing protocols and preparing for audits. On paper, the boxes are checked. On the ground, the same issues persist: missed steps, inconsistent execution, repeated corrective actions.

The problem isn’t a lack of training. It’s a lack of understanding.

“When timing is tight, which it usually is on a dairy farm, training becomes about getting through the steps of the job, not building understanding, and it often happens too late or too far apart to really stick,” says Michelle Schack , dairy cow veterinarian and founder of DairyKind , a training resource for dairies.

Across many operations, training is built around urgency. The audit is coming. The team needs a refresher. Protocols are reviewed quickly, often in a single session, with a focus on what to do and what not to do.

This approach creates a necessary foundation but also leaves a critical gap. Employees may know the steps, but they don’t always know why they’re being asked to perform them.

From Compliance to Understanding

“Dip the navel.”
“Don’t stress cows.”
“Give the shot here.”

These instructions are clear, repeatable and easy to audit. But without context, they are also easy to forget, misapply or ignore under pressure.

Training that focuses only on protocols asks employees to memorize. Training that includes the “why” asks them to understand.

“This isn’t a motivation problem. People generally want to do the right thing for the animals they are caring for. This is an understanding problem. We often assume knowledge that was never actually taught,” Schack explains.

When employees understand the biological or physiological reason behind a task, compliance becomes more consistent. Decision-making improves in situations that fall outside strict protocols. The work itself becomes more purposeful. Without that understanding, the same issues repeat.

The result is a cycle many veterinarians and producers recognize: retraining without resolution.

Where Training Breaks Down — and How to Fix It

The gap between protocol and understanding shows up in everyday tasks on dairy farms. In each case, the issue is not the protocol itself. It is what is missing behind it.

Here are some examples of everyday tasks performed on the farm, how they’re trained and improvements that could be made to the training to increase worker understanding and engagement.

Navel Dipping in Calves

Standard training: Dip the navel.
What’s missing: The umbilicus is a direct pathway into the calf’s body. Without proper disinfection, bacteria can enter and lead to systemic infection.
What changes when the “why” is explained: Employees recognize the procedure as a disease prevention step rather than a routine task and consistency improves.

If she happens to be performing a necropsy, Schack will show workers the internal structures to help them better understand why navels need to be dipped.

“You can tell someone to dip navels to prevent infection, but when they see for themselves that the navel connects directly to the liver, it changes how seriously they take that step,” she explains.

Broken Tails in Dairy Cattle

Standard training: Don’t pull tails.
What’s missing: The tail is an extension of the spine, made up of bones and joints. Excessive force can cause permanent injury.
Key issue: Many employees are unaware tails can be broken. Broken tails cannot be corrected after the fact. Prevention depends on handling practices.

“I’ve had conversations with employees that were using a calf’s tail to move the calf who were genuinely surprised to learn that tails can be broken. That moment of realization shifts how they handle calves and cows moving forward,” Schack says.

What changes when the “why” is explained: Handling behavior shifts because the risk becomes concrete rather than abstract.

Stockmanship and Milk Letdown

Standard training: Don’t stress the cows.
What’s missing: Stress activates physiological pathways that inhibit milk letdown. This slows milking and reduces parlor efficiency.
What changes when the “why” is explained: Calm handling becomes directly tied to workflow, time and performance in the parlor.

“Employees recognize that a cow that balks slows down the workflow, but they don’t always connect that to stress. When you make that link, animal well-being stops being abstract and starts being something that not only helps the cows but also makes their job easier,” Schack explains.

Injection Technique (SQ vs IM)

Standard training: Give the shot here.
What’s missing: Route of administration affects drug absorption, tissue damage and treatment effectiveness.
Key issue: Employees may not understand the difference between subcutaneous and intramuscular injections.
What changes when the “why” is explained: Accuracy improves, particularly in fast-paced situations where shortcuts are more likely.

“In a fast-paced environment, people default to what’s easiest, unless they understand why it matters. That’s what keeps accuracy from slipping,” Schack explains.

The Veterinarian’s Role in Making Training Stick

Veterinarians are positioned to translate biology into practical, actionable knowledge. Even short explanations can shift how employees approach routine tasks. However, training is not always viewed as part of the veterinary role. Time is limited. Priorities compete.

Producers also influence how training is delivered.

When farms involve veterinarians in training conversations, not just for protocols but for explanation, the information is more likely to be applied. The reasoning carries weight when it is grounded in biology and delivered by a trusted source.

For producers, that may mean asking a simple question during the next visit: Can you help explain the “why” behind this protocol to our team?

Even brief moments of explanation from a veterinarian during a routine visit can have lasting impact. When the biology is clear, the protocol becomes logical rather than arbitrary.

From One-Time Training to Continuous Learning

That shared effort between veterinarians and producers also requires rethinking when and how training happens. Training is often treated as a one-time event. In practice, it functions as an ongoing system.

One-time, in-person sessions cannot reach every employee.

“Between turnover, schedules and time constraints, there is no way one training reaches everyone, so it has to be something people can come back and build on,” Schack says.

No single format is sufficient on its own. In-person training creates engagement. Digital tools provide accessibility. Language accessibility ensures the message is understood. Repetition reinforces it over time.

Every training instance should include:
● What to do and what not to do (addressing common shortcuts/mistakes)
● Why it matters (biological/physiological context)
● What happens if it’s done incorrectly
● Instilling pride in the importance of this task or their job

“When training is consistent and covers why the work matters and the impact of getting it right or wrong, the work becomes something they take pride in, not just something they complete.” Schack says.

Training will always be part of dairy operations. If the goal is lasting change, it cannot stop at protocols.

Protocols create consistency. Understanding creates ownership.

Fatty Liver in Dairy Cows: The Export Problem You’re Overlooking

Mon, 20 Apr 2026 15:29:49 GMT

The transition cow is often discussed as having an energy problem. Cows eat less, demand ramps up and they fall into negative energy balance. While true, this is only part of the story. The bigger issue is a logistical bottleneck: What happens to the fat that gets mobilized? If the cow cannot move that fat out of the liver efficiently, metabolic problems stack up quickly.

Why the Liver Gets Overwhelmed

Around calving, a cow’s dry matter intake drops by 30% to 35%, while energy demand increases sharply. To fill this gap, the cow mobilizes body fat and sends it to the liver. Once there, the fat follows three main paths:

Complete Oxidation: It is burned for fuel to generate ATP (energy).
Ketogenesis: It is converted into ketones.
Export: It is packaged and sent back into circulation to be used for milk synthesis.

When the volume of fat exceeds the liver’s capacity to process it, the system breaks down.

“Lipolysis happens, that adipose tissue is breaking down. Part is going to be used for milk synthesis, part is going to go for complete oxidation and generate ATP and part goes to ketogenesis. The third thing that happens is that triglycerides accumulate, and when the liver cannot keep up, fat builds up in the liver and we start to see metabolic problems in cows,” says Fabio Lima, assistant professor at UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine.

Choline as the Liver’s “Shipping Crate”

The fundamental struggle for the modern dairy cow is her low capacity to export triglycerides from the liver as very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL). Choline is the key ingredient needed to build the VLDL “package” that carries fat out of the liver cells.

“What we know about our modern dairy cows is that they have a low capacity to export triglycerides from the liver as VLDL. That inability to increase fatty acid oxidation or export is what leads our cows to develop fatty liver. Choline has been shown to be a key ingredient to reverse that,” Lima says.

By supporting the synthesis of phosphatidylcholine, a specific fat-transporting molecule, choline ensures the liver can keep up with the surge of fat mobilization.

“The modern dairy cow has been selected for high production. That creates a demand that makes nutrients like choline strategically important. It helps support that level of production,” Lima explains. “Choline is critical for VLDL assembly and hepatic fat export. And it’s critical to reduce fatty liver risk and minimize its impact. Phosphatidylcholine seems to depend on adequate choline, especially during the transition period.”

Why Rumen-Protection is Non-Negotiable

While choline is present in common feed ingredients like soybean meal, canola meal and forages, it is almost entirely degraded by rumen microbes before the cow can use it. Because natural feed sources rarely provide enough absorbable choline to meet the high demands of early lactation, rumen-protected choline is added to ensure the nutrient reaches the small intestine for absorption.

Despite the clear biological mechanism, the dairy industry is still refining exactly how much choline a cow needs. Because rumen dynamics are complex and every cow mobilizes fat differently, providing a one-size-fits-all dose remains a challenge.

“There has been 40 years of research, and we think, ‘Well, 40 years is a lot of research, we’re probably going to get some clear guidance.’ But we’re still not sure. There’s still the rumen dynamics and how much is metabolized, where it goes. All those things that make it difficult,” Lima says.

Rethink Transition Management

Success in the transition period requires looking beyond the feed bunk. The critical question is no longer just “Is she eating enough?” but rather: Is the transition cow able to handle the fat she is mobilizing?

Instead of focusing only on energy intake, it is equally important to consider how effectively the cow can process and move that energy. Supporting liver health through fat export is one of the most direct ways to reduce metabolic disorders and improve performance in the modern dairy cow.

Hidden Pneumonia in Calves: Why More Dairies Use Ultrasound to Catch Respiratory Disease Early

Fri, 17 Apr 2026 20:06:16 GMT

Bovine respiratory disease (BRD) remains one of the most common and costly health challenges in preweaned dairy calves. The challenge is that many cases develop long before calves show visible symptoms.

“By the time calves show obvious clinical signs of respiratory disease, lung damage may already be present,” says Aerica Bjurstrom, regional dairy educator at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. “That’s why tools that help us detect pneumonia earlier can make a big difference in calf health and long-term performance.”

Traditional diagnosis relies on symptoms such as coughing, nasal discharge, or elevated temperature. But these signs often appear late in the disease process. In many cases, calves may look completely healthy while still carrying lung infections.

This form of illness, known as subclinical pneumonia, can reduce growth, feed efficiency and even future milk production.

“The lungs can really act as an indicator organ,” Bjurstrom explains. “Respiratory disease often reflects larger management challenges, such as poor colostrum intake, nutrition issues, or environmental stress.”

The Hidden Pneumonia Problem

Research has shown that pneumonia often develops days before visible symptoms appear.

“Ultrasound allows us to see what’s happening inside the lung tissue, even when the calf looks normal from the outside,” Bjurstrom says. “In many cases, pneumonia can be present for days before any clinical signs appear.”

Studies suggest that 50% to 80% of pneumonia cases may remain subclinical for 7 to 14 days before producers notice symptoms. That delay can allow lung damage to progress before treatment begins.

“Sometimes calves with severe pneumonia don’t show obvious symptoms,” Bjurstrom says. “But an ultrasound exam can reveal lung lesions that tell us the disease is already present.”

How Lung Ultrasound Works

Lung ultrasonography allows veterinarians to examine calf lungs in real time using portable ultrasound equipment.

A normal lung appears air-filled on the scan and produces horizontal white lines that move with each breath. These lines indicate healthy lung tissue.

Changes in the image can reveal early disease.

“Comet tails are bright vertical lines that extend down from the lung surface,” Bjurstrom says. “A few may be normal, but severe or diffuse comet tailing can suggest interstitial disease caused by fluid or inflammation within the lung.”

More advanced disease appears as lung consolidation, where portions of the lung fill with inflammatory material instead of air. On ultrasound, these areas appear as solid gray regions.

Veterinarians often use a 0 to 5 lung scoring system to evaluate severity.

“This scoring system helps identify disease before calves begin coughing or showing nasal discharge,” Bjurstrom says. “Early detection allows for earlier treatment and better outcomes.”

Dr. Ollivett demonstrates positioning for thoracic ultrasound scanning on a calf’s right lung.

(Denise Garlow, University of Wisconsin)

Why Early Detection Matters

Even when calves show no visible symptoms, lung damage can affect their long-term performance.

In one study of more than 600 Holstein heifers, calves with lung consolidation detected at weaning were less likely to become pregnant and more likely to leave the herd before first calving.

Another study found calves with significant lung lesions in the first eight weeks of life produced 1,155 pounds less milk during their first lactation.

“These findings highlight why early detection matters,” Bjurstrom says. “Subclinical disease can still influence growth, reproduction, and milk production later in life.”

Improving Treatment Outcomes

Early detection can also make treatment more effective.

“When pneumonia is caught earlier, treatment tends to work better,” Bjurstrom explains. “We’re able to intervene before the disease becomes severe and causes permanent lung damage.”

Ultrasound can also help veterinarians monitor recovery.

“That monitoring aspect is important,” she says. “It helps ensure calves are improving and reduces unnecessary retreatment.”

A Management Tool for Farms

Beyond diagnosis, lung ultrasound is increasingly used as a herd management tool.

“Ultrasound gives producers objective information about lung health,” Bjurstrom says. “That can help guide decisions about treatment, culling, or adjusting weaning timing for calves that may need more time to recover.”

Regular scanning can also reveal herd-level trends tied to management practices.

“When used consistently, ultrasound becomes a benchmarking tool,” Bjurstrom says. “It can help farms evaluate colostrum programs, ventilation, sanitation, and other factors that influence calf health.”

A Growing Tool in Calf Health Programs

Portable ultrasound units have become more accessible and easier to use, making them more common in calf health programs. With proper training, scanning a calf’s lungs typically takes less than a minute.

“The equipment requires an initial investment, but the information it provides can be incredibly valuable,” Bjurstrom says. “Earlier detection can lead to better management decisions, improved calf growth, and fewer losses.”

As dairy farms continue adopting more data-driven management practices, lung ultrasound is giving producers a new way to detect disease sooner and protect the long-term potential of their calves.

“Lung ultrasound helps us move beyond waiting for visible symptoms,” Bjurstrom says. “It allows producers and veterinarians to identify problems earlier and take action before long-term damage occurs.”

More Than Medicine: How Relationships Fuel Dr. Erika Nagorske's Career

Thu, 16 Apr 2026 15:13:12 GMT

Dr. Erika Nagorske’s third baby was born with a head of very curly hair — a surprise, given that none of her other children had a single curl. To a stranger, it is a quirk of genetics. To one of her favorite clients, a producer named Keith, it is a badge of shared history.

When Nagorske was eight months pregnant, she and Keith were backing up a side-by-side in his barn. In the hustle of the day’s work, neither realized the garage door behind them was closed until they hit it with a significant, metal-jarring jolt. Keith was mortified, terrified for the pregnant veterinarian. Nagorske, however, just laughed it off.

“To this day, he’s like, ‘It’s my fault he has curly hair because I jostled him so bad when you were pregnant. I’ll never forgive myself’. We just laugh really, really hard about that,” Nagorske shares.

(Photos provided by Dr. Erika Nagorske)

It is these unplanned, profoundly human moments that keep Nagorske coming back to large animal veterinary medicine day after day. While the medicine is the technical engine of her career, the fuel is the people. In a field often defined by its physical demands and technical complexities, Nagorske has found the most vital tool in her kit isn’t a stethoscope or a thermometer — it’s the long-term trust built through repetition. For her, that depth of relationship is now central to how she defines her work.

“The part of that that I’ve surprisingly come to really love and enjoy is the relationships. Large animal is very different — you see these people every other week or sometimes every week, depending on the operation. So you really get to know them,” Nagorske says. “They know my kids’ names. I know their birthdays. I know when they have their 50^th wedding anniversary. I’m invited to the granddaughter’s wedding who was 10 when I started.”

That kind of connection doesn’t happen overnight. It is built slowly through repeated visits, routine herd work, and moments of urgency when things go wrong. Over time, familiarity turns into trust, and professional interactions begin to take on a more personal dimension.

From City Roots to Cattle Country

This deep connection was not always the expectation. Nagorske grew up in Madison, Wis., far from the day-to-day realities of production agriculture. Raised by a single mother alongside her older brother, her understanding of the world was suburban and city-centered. Like many veterinarians, she knew as early as six years old that she wanted to work with animals, but her understanding of the profession was shaped by what she could see around her.

“My understanding of a veterinarian was very much small animal focused,” Nagorske explains. “We had dogs, cats — she let me get all the hamsters and pocket pets, but I really just wanted a horse and a goat.”

Her early exposure to animals came through these pets and horseback riding camps, not through farms or livestock operations. There was no built-in familiarity with cattle and no lived experience with the systems that define production agriculture. In a world of large animal medicine where many practitioners are born into the lifestyle, this absence of background could have been a barrier. Instead, it became a starting point.

The turning point came not in a classroom, but in a clinic setting that exposed her to a different side of veterinary medicine. While shadowing at a local small animal clinic, she was encouraged to visit a mixed animal practice outside of Madison. There, Nagorske encountered veterinarians whose work extended far beyond the clinic walls. Their day did not revolve around scheduled appointments in exam rooms, but around responding to the needs of farms and producers in real time. This was her first exposure to cattle medicine.

“There were two veterinarians there that did mostly cattle work. And every time they walked in the door to grab supplies, I was like, ‘Where are you going?’ What are you doing?’ Because it just seemed so cool to get your stuff, go out on farm, help the animal and help the producer in an uncontrolled setting,” Nagorske explains.

That experience reframed what veterinary medicine could look like. The work was less predictable, more hands-on and closely tied to the realities of production systems. It introduced a level of complexity and independence that she found compelling.

(Photos provided by Dr. Erika Nagorske)

Learn by Doing

This initial interest quickly translated into action. During a winter break in college, Nagorske took a job on a dairy farm outside Madison. The work was physical, repetitive and unfamiliar. It required learning basic tasks from the ground up while adapting to the pace and expectations of a working operation.

“I started milking cows and feeding calves at a farm outside of Madison and absolutely fell in love with it. And then from there, it really just spiraled into any cattle thing I could get my hands on,” she says.

What began as a temporary job became a defining experience. It gave her the confidence to pursue more opportunities in cattle medicine and reinforced that this was not just an interest, but a viable career path. She eventually pursued the Veterinary Food Animal Scholars Track (VetFAST) at the University of Minnesota, an early-admit program designed to address the shortage of food animal veterinarians.

Entering the field without an agricultural background came with a learning curve that extended beyond technical skills. It involved a psychological hurdle: The fear of being seen as an outsider.

“When I first started, I was so scared to tell people that because I felt like it would just ruin any street cred I had (which was already nothing as a new grad). But now I love to shout that story from the rooftops. If there’s anyone out there that’s wondering if they could do it too, you totally can. You just need the right mentors,” Nagorske says.

Over time, that initial hesitation shifted into a different perspective. Instead of viewing her background as a limitation, she began to see the advantages it offered. Approaching operations without preconceived assumptions allowed her to evaluate problems based on what was in front of her, rather than how things had always been done.

“I think my background almost makes me more flexible. I don’t have any bad habits or preconceived bias to how things should be done, so I’m really able to look at something and decide what actually makes sense,” Nagorske says.

The Realities of Veterinary Practice

As she transitioned into practice — eventually moving to southwest Minnesota with her crop-farmer husband — Nagorske encountered challenges that extended beyond clinical decision-making. In a field that has historically been male-dominated, she often had to navigate the perceptions of those less accustomed to seeing women in large animal roles.

“I had comments about my fingernails being painted, what my husband thinks of my job. Just things that you would never get asked if you’re a man,” she says.

She recalls a moment at a chute when an older male veterinarian questioned if she could handle a thermometer with painted nails. These moments reflected broader perceptions within the field. While frustrating, they became part of the environment she learned to navigate.

“You’ve got to let it roll off your back, because regardless of sexist comments or not, there’s always going to be someone to say something about what you’re doing. Just keep doing your job,” Nagorske advises.

Consistency, competence and reliability ultimately shaped how she was perceived. Over time, those qualities carried more weight than initial assumptions. When she was physically struggling with pregnancy, the producers she served didn’t see her as a liability; they saw her as a partner. She recalls a moment when she was struggling to fix a prolapse while heavily pregnant, and a producer went into his house to bring out a pillow to slide under her belly to help her stay comfortable in the dirt. These acts of kindness proved she was no longer just ‘the vet’; she was an integrated part of their operation’s support network.

(Photos provided by Dr. Erika Nagorske)

Where the Work Becomes Personal

Large animal veterinary practice is built on repetition. Nagorske now spends much of her time consulting on dairy-beef crosses — calves she calls “little pipsqueaks” when they arrive at 250 lb. — and seeing them through until they are finished a year later.

That repetition creates familiarity, and familiarity builds trust. As relationships develop, interactions extend beyond individual cases. Conversations shift from strictly clinical to more personal, reflecting a shared investment in the long-term success of the operation. Nagorske’s role becomes integrated into that system. She is not only responding to problems as they arise, but contributing to ongoing management decisions.

In that context, the veterinarian becomes more than a service provider. These shared experiences, both routine and unexpected, contribute to the sense of connection that defines the role. They highlight a dynamic that is difficult to replicate in more transactional forms of practice.

Pass it Forward

That same emphasis on connection carries into how Nagorske approaches mentorship. She regularly brings veterinary students along on calls, acting as their personal paparazzi to capture photos of them getting bloody to send home to their families.

“I love having students ride with me,” she says. “They ask so many good questions … They’ll ask ‘Why did you do that?’ Instead of saying ‘Well, that’s how I’ve always done it’, it makes you walk back through your decision making and get down to the nitty gritty of the science and the medicine and explain it.”

Working with students reinforces the importance of staying engaged with both the practical and conceptual aspects of the job. One of her biggest priorities is helping students find what a professor at Minnesota called a “safe place to fail.” In a profession of Type A perfectionists, she believes having a support system that allows for mistakes is vital for mental health and growth.

Nagorske has also fostered a large social media presence , using her platform to teach both vet students and producers about the common and unique cases she comes across in the field.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Dr. Erika Nagorske (@docnagorske)

A Career You Build Yourself

Nagorske’s path into large animal medicine developed through a series of experiences that gradually shaped her interests and priorities. It is a career built one relationship at a time.

“Veterinary medicine is so incredible because it totally is what you make it. There are so many opportunities out there,” she says. “If you just feel like something isn’t right, just change. You’re not a tree — you’re not stuck.”

That perspective reflects a broader understanding of the profession. Veterinary medicine offers a range of paths, and individual experiences can vary widely depending on the choices made along the way. In large animal practice, those choices often extend beyond clinical focus to include the type of relationships a veterinarian builds with the people they serve.

For Nagorske, those relationships are not secondary to the work. They are the work.

U.S. Bovine Semen Slipped 4% in 2025, Exports Hit Record $327M

Tue, 17 Mar 2026 19:06:21 GMT

Even with a major export market disappearing early in the year, the U.S. bovine genetics industry proved its resilience in 2025.

New data from the National Association of Animal Breeders (NAAB) , which represents roughly 95% of the U.S. artificial insemination industry, shows total semen sales slipped about 4% in 2025 to just under 66 million units - a decline of 2.9 million compared with 2024, effectively giving back last year’s modest gain. However, the industry offset much of that loss through stronger beef demand, expanded export markets and continued shifts in dairy breeding strategies.

China Closes Doors, Global Markets Evolve

In February 2025, U.S. bovine semen exports to China came to an abrupt standstill after Chinese authorities halted the issuance of required veterinary health certificates, cutting off one of the industry’s key export channels. The disruption stemmed from regulatory and trade tensions, not animal health concerns. Without the certificates, U.S. exporters had to redirect product to other markets.

“While dairy unit exports were down due to the closure of the China market, exports to other countries increased, which significantly reduced the impact of the closure,” says Jay Weiker, president of NAAB.

Even with China offline, robust interest from Europe, Brazil, North Africa and South Asia helped steady the export picture.

“The industry not only stabilized but continued to advance by strengthening long-standing markets and opening new ones,” says NAAB international program director Sophie Eaglen.

The closure of China also reshaped the list of top semen buyers by value. In 2025, the United Kingdom led the rankings, followed by Italy and Mexico. Brazil led in total units imported, followed by Mexico and Russia. Overall, 46 markets imported over $1 million in U.S. semen, accounting for 94% of export units and 95% of export value.

A Down Year for Dairy

The U.S. dairy semen market experienced a substantial decline in 2025, reflecting ongoing shifts in breeding strategies and global market pressures. Total dairy unit sales, including domestic, export and custom-collected units, fell 6% compared to 2024, a loss of roughly 3 million units, bringing the total to 45.8 million.

Despite the overall decline, domestic use showed a slight rebound, increasing 2% to 16.5 million units, or nearly 367,000 additional units. Sexed semen continued to dominate U.S. herds, rising 6% to 10.6 million units and now accounting for 64% of all dairy semen used domestically. Conventional dairy semen declined by 280,000 units, highlighting the continued trend toward precision breeding and genomic selection.

Exports for dairy semen totaled 28.3 million units, down about 2.5 million from 2024. The early-year closure of the China market contributed to the drop, but exports to other countries, particularly across Europe, Brazil, North Africa and South Asia, helped offset much of the lost volume. NAAB says strong international demand for replacement heifers continues to create opportunities for U.S. dairy producers.

Beef Semen Sees a Bump

The beef segment saw modest growth in 2025, reversing a multi-year decline. Total beef semen sales increased by 1%, or roughly 122,000 units, to reach 20.2 million units. Domestic use accounted for most of that growth, with beef units sold into beef herds rising 7% for the second consecutive year. In total, 9.8 million beef units were used domestically, with 8.1 million going into dairy herds and 1.7 million used in traditional beef herds.

Heterospermic beef semen, which combines genetics from multiple sires in a single straw, remains a significant portion of the market, though it declined from its 2024 peak of 2.8 million units to just over 2 million in 2025. Domestically, heterospermic units represented 2 million of the total, with 400,000 units exported. Angus remains the dominant beef breed, followed by crossbreeds and heterospermic products.

Export demand for beef genetics also continues to expand. Total beef semen exports grew 13% to 5.5 million units, underscoring the global appetite for U.S. genetics even as total semen unit exports declined overall.

Beef-on-Dairy Genetics Hold Steady

Beef-on-dairy genetics have become an increasingly important strategy for U.S. dairy producers, and 2025 was no exception. Domestic use remained steady at 8.1 million units, while exports of beef-on-dairy semen grew 13%, adding approximately 279,000 units.

This segment is fueled by genomic selection strategies that allow dairy producers to produce replacement heifers from their best animals while using beef sires on the remainder of the herd to create high-value F1 calves for feedlots. Adoption is also growing internationally, with rising demand for F1 calves and crossbred genetics, reinforcing the role of U.S. dairy producers in meeting both domestic and global needs.

Adaptive Trends and Future Opportunities

Despite the year’s unit declines, the industry is adjusting and finding its footing as global demand shifts and new breeding tools and market opportunities come along.

“Trends in semen usage reflect producers’ efforts to improve genetic outcomes and economic returns in an evolving marketplace,” Weiker says. “NAAB members should be complimented for their commitment to developing new markets and increasing market share in strategically important markets. There are many positives that can be gleaned from the 2025 results.”

With export value at record levels and beef-on-dairy strategies growing, the industry appears positioned for continued adaptation and progress in years ahead.

The Top Three Biggest Mistakes When Using Crowd Gates

Tue, 11 Mar 2025 13:00:00 GMT

Crowd gates are often one of the most used tools on a dairy. Not only do they save significant time for employees, but they also help reduce the stress associated with moving cows.

However, just like any tool, crowd gates can be used incorrectly and can sometimes negatively impact cow comfort and welfare. Carolina Pinzon, a Dairy Outreach Specialist with the University of Wisconsin-Madison, highlights the three most common mistakes she sees in crowd gate usage and provides practical strategies to avoid them.

Overcrowding the Holding Area

Occasionally, overcrowding the holding area happens, but Pinzon warns that prolonged overcrowding can negatively impact cow health, production, and welfare. This is especially concerning during summer when cows generate extra body heat and require sufficient airflow.

“Signs of an overcrowded holding pen include cows with their heads up, unable to plant their four feet on the ground, and looking restless and uncomfortable,” Pinzon says. “Short-term overcrowding can also result from misuse of the crowd gate, by employees pushing it too far forward and smashing the cows.”

To prevent overcrowding, Pinzon recommends balancing parlor and pen sizes, so cows spend no more than one hour away from their pens during each milking. Holding areas should allow at least 20 square feet per cow.

“If needed, a large pen can be divided into smaller groups,” Pinzon suggests. “While this means more trips to the parlor for workers, it significantly reduces the time cows spend in the holding pen. Additionally, short-term overcrowding can be alleviated by moving the crowd gate backward to provide more space for the cows.”

Being Careless

While dairy cows are typically gentle giants, they can be stubborn and slow to move. This, however, doesn’t justify using force. Moving crowd gates too quickly or applying electricity can cause unnecessary stress and fear for the animals.
Instead, Pinzon emphasizes the importance of calm and gentle handling. She advises guiding cows to the parlor without pressure or haste.

“Once the cows on one side of the parlor have exited, the crowd gate can be moved forward,” Pinzon says. “This regular adjustment is crucial to accommodate the changing number of animals and available space in the holding area. Automating crowd gates to move forward every time exit gates are open/lift can help reduce misuse.”

Pinzon recommends keeping crowd gates at least three feet from the cows to avoid pressing against their backs. She suggests using sound cues, like bells or ringing, to train cows to move forward, rather than relying solely on gate movement. If the gate gets too close, pull it back to give the cows more space before resuming forward movement. These practices promote a stress-free and productive environment for both cows and workers.

Workers Entering the Holding Area

Crowd gates are valuable tools for safely and efficiently moving cows toward the parlor entrance. However, when employees enter the holding pen to push cows, it can create unnecessary stress for the animals and put workers at risk of injury.

Pinzon highlights the importance of regularly training employees on proper cow handling and the correct use of crowd gates. She stresses avoiding the practice of entering the holding area to chase cows and instead maintaining a calm and consistent environment for the animals.

“Except for when loading the last cows of a pen and fresh cows, the door from the parlor pit to the holding area should remain closed during most of the milking process,” she adds. “This physical reminder is to discourage workers from entering the holding area. In addition, regular maintenance of crowd gates, prompt reporting of issues, and swift resolution of problems by management are crucial for proper gate function.”

Spotting these three common mistakes in crowd gate use and taking proactive steps to address them can significantly improve cow welfare, employee safety, and your herd’s operational efficiency. Regular maintenance, clear protocols, and proper training go a long way in preventing overcrowding and keeping things calm and stress-free for both cows and workers.

Is Bovine Leukemia Virus Hiding on Your Dairy?

Fri, 06 Mar 2026 15:07:53 GMT

Bovine leukemia virus (BLV) is present in most U.S. dairy herds, but many producers do not know it. Because infected animals often appear healthy, the virus can circulate quietly for years before its impact becomes visible.

“BLV is often present long before it becomes an issue. So, if you’re not looking for it on the farm, chances are it’s there, but if you’re not looking, you don’t know or you don’t see it,” Tasia Kendrick, associate professor at Michigan State University, says on a recent episode of “The Dairy Health Blackbelt Podcast.”

Kendrick studies BLV epidemiology and control strategies in dairy herds.

That quiet presence can make BLV difficult to recognize. On many farms, the infection only becomes visible after production or health problems begin to accumulate.

“I’ve talked to quite a few producers, and it’s not a problem until it is. And then, all of a sudden, the animals dying are condemned at slaughter. It’s too late to do anything about when we get to that point,” Kendrick says.

BLV at a Glance:

Present in 80% to 90% of U.S. dairy herds
Up to 40% to 50% of animals infected within affected herds
Impacts immune function, longevity and production
Spreads primarily through blood-to-blood transfer

Subclinical Production and Immune Effects of BLV

Part of the challenge with BLV is that infected animals often appear normal during daily observation. However, research increasingly shows the virus can affect multiple aspects of herd performance.

“Those animals may appear to be normal, but you may be treating them for other ailments through their entire life, and then they leave the herd early, which leads to profit loss for that producer,” Kendrick says.

The economic impact often comes from small performance losses that accumulate across the herd. Reduced milk production, shorter productive lifespans and additional health treatments can all contribute to lower overall profitability.

The virus affects the immune system directly, which can influence both disease resistance and vaccine response.

“The way the virus works is it lays latent in the immune system. It targets B cells, one of your immune cells, and it can lay latent and dormant until it doesn’t,” Kendrick says.

Because BLV infects immune cells, affected animals may be more susceptible to secondary diseases or respond less efficiently to vaccination programs. Over time, those subtle effects can reduce both longevity and productivity.

How BLV Spreads on Farms

Understanding transmission is central to controlling the virus. BLV spreads primarily through the transfer of infected blood between animals.

“The virus itself targets B cells, which are just cells of the immune system that are in the blood system. So it’s a blood-to-blood transfer that moves it from animal to animal,” Kendrick says.

Routine management procedures can inadvertently contribute to transmission if proper precautions are not taken. Shared needles, contaminated equipment or procedures that transfer even very small amounts of blood between animals can spread the virus.

Vertical transmission is also possible.

“The virus is small enough that it can go through the placenta wall, so there is some dam-to-calf transfer as well as colostrum,” Kendrick says. “If raw colostrum or milk is fed, there’s potential for live virus to infect the animal that way.”

These pathways mean infections can occur both in the milking herd and during early life stages.

Practical Management of BLV

Because dairy operations differ widely in their management practices, BLV control strategies often need to be tailored to individual farms.

“It’s not one solution for every farm because every farm is managing their animals differently from colostrum all the way up to the milking herd,” Kendrick says.

Still, several practical steps can help reduce transmission risk.

“It’s really thinking about management strategies of what you can do to reduce blood-to-blood transfer, whether that’s single-use needles, single-use sleeves, fly control, anything that’s going to decrease the chances of blood transfer,” Kendrick says.

Key Strategies to Reduce BLV Transmission

1. Reduce blood transfer.

Use single-use needles.
Use new palpation sleeves for each cow.
Maintain strict hygiene during procedures.

2. Manage colostrum carefully.

Avoid feeding raw pooled colostrum.
Freeze or pasteurize colostrum when possible.

3. Control biting flies.

4. Establish herd status through targeted testing.

Testing every animal may not be necessary to understand the scope of infection.

“If you test 40 specific animals across the lactation in your herd, you get a pretty good picture of the prevalence, so you have a starting point and you don’t have to test every animal in your herd,” Kendrick says.

The Michigan State University BLV website recommends testing the 10 most recently calved cows that are greater than three days in milk from each lactation group (first, second, third and fourth-plus).

Looking More Closely

BLV has circulated in the dairy industry for decades, often without drawing much attention, but growing evidence of its effects on immunity, productivity and longevity is prompting veterinarians and producers to take a closer look.

For many herds, the first step is simply recognizing the virus may already be present.

A Wisconsin DVM’s Path: Injury, Motherhood and an Evolving Field

Thu, 05 Mar 2026 17:49:10 GMT

“Watch out, little girl.” The first time someone hollered that across a dairy alley, she wasn’t entirely sure how to take it.

Valerie Baumgart, large-animal veterinarian with United Veterinary Service in Wisconsin, was still a student then, following her mentor through herd checks, trying to stay out of the way while cows shifted and shuffled past. At 5' 2" and blond, she was easy to spot. Easy to underestimate, too.

“Initially I was offended,” Baumgart says. “Then I kind of thought it was funny, and then I was like, ‘Watch out, little boy.’”

The farmer who said it, Scott, is still one of her favorites. Years later, he wasn’t just telling her to move. He was calling her first. Running management decisions past her. Asking for her perspective. That shift — from the little girl who needed to step aside to the trusted veterinarian — has become one of the defining arcs of her career.

In many ways, though, she was headed here long before that alleyway.

The Rabbit That Started It All

Apparently, her mother saw it coming first. When Baumgart’s childhood pet rabbit died, her mom braced for tears and heartbreak. Instead, her daughter looked up and asked, “Can I take its fur off and see what’s underneath?” Her mother likes to joke that she realized then her child would either become a serial killer or a veterinarian — and strongly encouraged the veterinary route.

“I’ve wanted to do this forever and ever,” Baumgart says.

She grew up in Wisconsin agriculture, surrounded by beef cows, show pigs, lambs and long days at her grandparents’ and aunt and uncle’s dairy farm. She and her cousin once begged to take over the tie-stall barn someday. Her uncle refused.

“He, with 100% of his soul, said, ‘I will never let you do that. I don’t wish that upon anyone.’”

At the time, she was devastated. Dairy farming felt like destiny. Now, she sees it differently.

“The industry is just, it’s brutal,” Baumgart says. “And these dairymen and women that I work with are extraordinarily talented.”

She’s grateful she wasn’t handed 60 cows and a tie-stall barn to manage. Instead, she gets to support the families who are making those enormous, life-shaping business decisions.

Leaving, Learning and Coming Back Home

At the University of Minnesota, where she completed her undergraduate studies, Baumgart joined the livestock judging team and traveled widely, seeing production systems across the U.S. She spent a semester in Montana doing beef nutrition research with USDA and was struck by how dramatically cattle production differs region to region. The differences in mentality, management style and medicine fascinated her.

She recalls her vet school experience at the University of Wisconsin consisting of caffeine and chaos.

“A lot of coffee, a lot of late-night studying,” she says. “Vet school is a blur.”

At one point, she swore she would never return to her hometown. Today, she lives about 30 miles from where she grew up and has been with United Veterinary Service since graduation. The place she once dismissed became the place she built her career.

A First — and the Will to Prove the Critics Wrong

Baumgart was the first woman the practice hired. To her, it felt less like a headline and more about showing up to do a job and do it well.

“It doesn’t really matter who you are and where you’re from, as long as you’re gritty, determined, motivated and not willing to put up with anybody’s baloney,” she says.

There were comments early on, being the “short blond girl” sent for physically demanding calvings. She isn’t sure whether it was about her height, her gender or because she was a rookie. Most criticism, she’s careful to point out, had little to do with being female at all.

“To be really honest with you, the criticism just made me want to do more, just do better, work harder, prove them wrong,” Baumgart says.

Today, the clinic is split evenly between men and women. She sees the broader shift in veterinary medicine — classes heavily female — as a strength.

“It’s a true blessing to be able to have different personalities, different skills and different ways to approach clients and challenges,” she says.

Diversity isn’t a talking point to her. It’s a practical advantage.

Work Smarter, Not Harder

Baumgart’s height does come up frequently, usually in good humor. In displaced abomasum surgeries, her incision placement is lower than most.

“My surgical incision is really low because my arm is really short,” she explains. “I have to reach all the way over to the other side, so I just give myself an advantage by starting lower.”

Producers tease her about it. She teases back. What she learned early on is that large-animal medicine isn’t about brute strength.

“It’s not about gusto strength,” she says. “Oftentimes I just have to position things a little differently … just working smarter instead of harder and asking for help.”

In the beginning, Baumgart felt she had something to prove; her size and inexperience loomed larger in her mind than in reality. Over time, wins built confidence.

“Once you get a couple of wins under your belt, people really just start to trust you and rely on you,” she says.

And once trust is established, the work becomes collaborative rather than performative.

The Day the Alley Went Quiet

(Photos Provided By Valerie Baumgart)

In August 2024, everything came to a halt. Baumgart was sorting heifers before a herd check. The alleyways were slick. A heifer slipped, caught her leg and fell over it. Baumgart’s foot stopped against the scraper.

“My foot stopped, but my leg kept going,” she says.

Both bones in her lower leg snapped.

“I grabbed my thigh and picked up my leg, and I saw my lower leg flop the opposite direction,” she recalls.

The herdsman looked pale enough to faint. The dairyman dragged her to safety. The heifer stood up and ran off. She didn’t.

Baumgart was off work for four months. Healing was physical and emotional.

Even now, scrambling heifers make her step aside faster. But what lingered most was perspective.

“Tomorrow’s not guaranteed,” she says. “I’m going to do the best that I can do for the time that I’m helping them, and then I’m going to go be a mom and a wife.”

On her broken-bone anniversary, she brings doughnuts into work — small celebrations marking survival and gratitude.

Priortizing Faith, Family and Farming

For someone who once declared she didn’t want children, motherhood has reshaped everything. Baumgart and her husband have two daughters, ages 5 and 3.

“Being their mom is what God made me to be,” she says without hesitation.

About a year ago, her oldest faced serious challenges that forced her to recalibrate priorities. Baumgart doesn’t elaborate, but she doesn’t need to.

“Family is No. 1. Faith, family and then farming,” she says.

Agriculture, she says, is the best possible classroom for raising children: “Agriculture teaches so much about empathy and perseverance.”

Her daughters sometimes accompany her on calls, though they’re quick to inform her that she smells like cows when she gets home.

“It’s OK,” she tells them. “We love cows, cows are really cool and we can take a shower.”

Barn alleys and cookie decorating happen in the same afternoon. Baumgart will assist with a calving in bitter weather while her daughter sits safely in a farmhouse kitchen watching old Westerns. Both worlds matter; neither cancels the other out.

(Valerie Baumgart)

From ‘Little Girl’ to Trusted Resource

Years after that first “watch out,” the same producer began calling Baumgart directly for input.

“It was just really cool to go from the little girl that needed to get out of the way to his first phone call and his resource for decision-making,” she says.

That transformation, more than anything, is the story. Not being the first woman hired. Not enduring criticism. Not even surviving a broken leg. It’s about earning trust through consistency, humility and hard work.

“We will become the veterinarians that our clients want us to be,” she says. “If our clients trust us … we will grow and we will evolve and we will learn.”

Advice for the Next Generation of Veterinarians

Baumgart’s advice to young women entering veterinary medicine is direct and unsentimental.

“Follow your passion and know that it’s not going to be sunshine and daisies all the time,” she says. “You’re going to fail, and you’re going to learn from it. Keep your nose to the grindstone. Figure out what really matters. Don’t make it complicated, and stay humble.”

In her world, simple systems, smart positioning and steady humility go a long way.

Mycotoxin Risk Holds Steady in 2025

Mon, 23 Feb 2026 19:49:12 GMT

According to the dsm-firmenich World Mycotoxin Survey , which assessed the global mycotoxin threat, 86% of North American samples tested above the recommended threshold for at least one mycotoxin. While mycotoxin levels haven’t necessarily escalated from 2024 to 2025, there was a shift in the distribution, which has some implications for cattle and swine operations.

“The 2025 results show a continued mycotoxin challenge, with contamination rates rising for both aflatoxins and zearalenone and average levels increasing across all major mycotoxins,” said Ursula Hofstetter, head of mycotoxin risk management at dsm-firmenich, in a press release.

The Major Players

Mycotoxins are toxic metabolites produced by fungi, most commonly Fusarium, Aspergillus and Claviceps species. They develop in the field and can persist through harvest and storage. Weather stress, hybrid selection and storage management all influence which toxins dominate in a given year.

The primary mycotoxins shaping North American livestock risk in 2025 were:

Deoxynivalenol (DON)
A Type B trichothecene produced by Fusarium species. Commonly found in corn and wheat. Often referred to as ‘vomitoxin’.
Zearalenone (ZEN)
Also a Fusarium toxin. Structurally estrogenic and frequently present alongside DON in corn and small grains.
Fumonisins (FUM)
Produced by Fusarium verticillioides and related species. Predominantly found in corn.
Aflatoxins (AFLA)
Produced by Aspergillus species. More common in drought- or heat-stressed corn.
Ergot alkaloids (ERGOT)
Produced by Claviceps species. Typically associated with small grains.

These toxins rarely occur in isolation. Co-contamination often shapes the reality producers see on the farm.

What Changed from 2024 to 2025

The 2025 North American mycotoxin prevalence in raw materials compared to 2024 shows the following shifts:

DON: 74% → 76%
ZEN: 73% → 78%
FUM: 46% → 55%
AFLA: 15% → 17%
ERGOT: 44% → 9%

Trichothecenes remain deeply entrenched, with DON prevalence increasing slightly. Most of this increase is a result of an increase in wheat (73% → 93%). Meanwhile, fumonisins rose meaningfully and ergots dropped sharply.

Cattle: Rumen Function, Immune Resilience and Production Losses

Cattle historically are considered somewhat more resilient to mycotoxins than monogastrics, owing to partial ruminal detoxification. However, evidence increasingly shows persistent exposure to Fusarium toxins like DON, ZEN and FUM, especially in combination, can exert significant effects on digestion, immunity and metabolic health.

When looking at global finished feed samples for ruminants:

DON was prevalent in 69% of samples and above the risk threshold in 53% of samples.
ZEN was prevalent in 73% of samples and above the risk threshold in 33% of samples.
AFLA was present in 34% of samples and above the risk threshold in 29% of samples.

Studies have demonstrated short-term exposure to Fusarium toxins, including ZEN and FUM, affects fermentation patterns and the microbial community, which in turn can reduce fiber breakdown and volatile fatty acid production — key drivers of energy supply in cattle. Even modest disruptions to the rumen microbiota can reduce feed efficiency and gain over time.

The immune system is also affected by mycotoxins. The immunosuppressive effects of common mycotoxins in ruminants have been documented , including alterations in cytokine gene expression, immunoglobulin production and macrophage function.

Further, individual toxins like AFLA have well-established effects on liver function and general metabolism in cattle. Chronic AFLA exposure has been linked to reduced appetite, lower weight gains and elevated liver enzymes, indicating compromised hepatic function that can impact production and health resilience.

These findings indicate how cattle performance and disease resistance can be eroded by the mycotoxin patterns reported in the 2025 data. Persistent DON and ZEN exposure, combined with higher FUM presence, places additional load on rumen fermentation and immune competence, potentially contributing to subclinical production drift.

Swine: Immune Disruption, Gut Barrier Injury and Performance Drag

In swine, elevated prevalence of DON, ZEN and FUM can exert systemic effects on immune function, gut integrity and reproductive physiology at both clinical and subclinical levels.

When looking at global finished feed samples for swine:

DON was present in 85% of samples and above the risk threshold in 41% of samples.
ZEN was present in 79% of samples and above the risk threshold in 19% of samples.
FUM was present in 44% of samples and above the risk threshold in 8% of samples.

Research has shown DON and FUM alter the gut epithelial barrier, impair immune defenses and increase bacterial translocation from the gut, making pigs more susceptible to infections even when properly vaccinated. In the immune tissues themselves, DON exposure has been linked to changes in the gene expression of key antimicrobial and inflammatory regulators, implying a weakened ability to respond to disease challenge at the cellular level.

ZEN adds another layer of complexity. Beyond its well-known estrogenic effects (i.e., swelling of reproductive tissues and altered estrous cycles), ZEN has been shown to suppress antibody production in porcine immune cells, reducing levels of IgM, IgG and IgA. These immunoglobulins are important for protective vaccine responses. This explains why farms employing what should be effective vaccination programs still report breakthrough disease.

Collectively, these mechanisms mean widespread DON and ZEN exposure is a disease vulnerability issue. When the gut barrier is compromised and immune cell function is suppressed, pigs are less able to defend against respiratory pathogens, enteric bacteria and systemic infections alike, and their response to vaccination may be diminished.

Mycotoxin Co-Contamination Defines 2025

The defining feature of mycotoxins in 2025 is not a single toxin spike, but co-contamination. Feeds routinely contain multiple mycotoxins at once and their effects overlap, creating steady biological pressure.

The result is rarely dramatic toxicosis, but production drift is reflected in reduced gains, narrower reproductive margins, lowered health resilience and increased performance variability.

With persistent DON, rising ZEN and higher FUM prevalence in North America, ingredient-level vigilance and close monitoring of performance trends are important. The mycotoxin burden did not spike, but it did rearrange.

Does Bird Flu Have an Effect on Cow Fertility?

Fri, 06 Feb 2026 20:52:17 GMT

When highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) first hit U.S. dairies, it threw the industry into unfamiliar territory. With so many unknowns, the immediate focus was on slowing the spread and caring for the cows that were affected.

Now, with more of the puzzle pieces coming together, researchers are beginning to step back and look at the bigger picture, examining how the virus affects cows not only in the days and weeks after infection, but what it may mean for their health and performance long after.

On a recent episode of “The Dairy Podcast Show”, Jennifer Spencer and Juan Pinedo, Extension dairy specialists with Texas A&M, came together to better understand what this virus is doing to reproduction — and if infected cows will be paying the price for years.

What Does HPAI Mean for Cow Fertility?

Spencer and Pinedo are just starting to study HPAI’s long-term effects, and their work is one of the first to measure how it may impact reproduction in U.S. dairy herds. Early signs point to a real effect on reproductive performance, particularly in younger animals, though the science is still evolving.

“We really want to know if it does impact reproduction,” Spencer says. “We want to let the producers know so they can understand if they might have to cull heavier to make sure that they’re managing this and replacing the cows in a timely manner — for sustainability of the herd and also to help maintain or improve their profitability.”

Like all major health events, HPAI is predicted to have an impact on cow fertility or pregnancy loss. But for Spencer and Pinedo, they are trying to figure out to what degree.

“We know that when cows get sick, they shift their energy toward fighting an infection rather than reproducing,” Spencer explains. “If these cattle that are infected with HPAI are having reduced milk production, feed intake and rumination, then there’s a high probability it’s impacting reproductive efficiency and their performance.”

Pinedo adds this pattern isn’t unique to HPAI, but still worth studying.

“Just like with any other systemic disease, having a detrimental effect in repro performance is something that we will expect,” Pinedo explains.

Dig Into Herd Data

In March 2025, Spencer’s team received rapid-response funding from USDA APHIS to study how HPAI affects reproduction in dairy herds. They designed a retrospective observational study, analyzing on-farm records from January 2021 through each herd’s HPAI outbreak and beyond.

“We’re looking at data from January 2021 until they had an HPAI outbreak,” Spencer says. “How we’re determining that is based not just on what the producer says, but by also analyzing the records and looking for that drastic drop in milk production, because that’s kind of the overall sign when they had an HPAI outbreak.”

To give the team a wide view of how HPAI is affecting herds in different settings, the project spans across three dairy regions with five to 10 dairies per region. These areas include the:

South Central
Western U.S.
Pacific Northwest

“We want to get information from different environments to have a better idea of the geographical differences, and what they deal with heat-stress-wise, or the feed availability,” Spencer says. “This will give us a 30,000' view of what is happening.”

A Hit on Heifers

While the full analysis is still in progress, the team has already taken a close look at one South Central dairy, and the early patterns are raising important questions in heifers. The study found conception rates dropped during the outbreak year but appeared to rebound the following year.

“For heifers, they actually had about a 5% decrease in their conception rates during 2024 from March until December, but that appears to go back up in 2025,” Spencer reports.

Pinedo added specific figures to put the changes into perspective.

“There was a 52% conception rate, and they dropped during the outbreak to 45%. The year after, they came back to 50%,” he notes.

These numbers show that while conception rates began to recover after the outbreak, they didn’t fully return to pre-HPAI levels. Spencer notes heifers needed more services per conception, suggesting the virus may have lingering effects on reproductive efficiency.

“For heifers, we saw an increase in services per conception, but they’ve remained higher. They went from about a 1.5 up to like 2, 2.2 number of times bred for their heifers, and it’s continuing into 2025,” she adds.

Spencer admits that wasn’t what they expected.

“We didn’t think that heifers would be impacted,” she says.

Complicating things further, some of the heifers in question were born to cows infected late in gestation.

“Some of those heifers were actually from cows that were in their third trimester of their pregnancy, so that may be a contributing factor,” Spencer adds. “There’s so many moving parts in it.”

How Are Cows Being Impacted?

For cows, the pattern is more complex. Unlike heifers, which showed a relatively clear dip and rebound in conception rates, mature cows showed more varied responses to HPAI. Some herds experienced noticeable declines during the outbreak, while others were less affected.

“We did see conception rates appeared to decrease in all of the lactations,” Spencer notes. “But for the first and third and greater lactations, they seem to be going back up, whereas the second lactation seems to be kind of having a harder time rebounding.”

Those second-lactation cows are noteworthy because many were first-lactation animals during the outbreak itself.

“It seems as if perhaps a first-lactation animal, which you might think would be more resilient to recover, maybe, is having more longer-term effects on at least reproduction, as opposed to older cattle,” Pinedo adds.

These unexpected patterns have the researchers taking a closer look at the number to try and determine why younger animals are taking a bigger reproductive hit.

How Much Should We Read Into Early HPAI Data?

While the data is eye-opening, both researchers are quick to point out that the findings are still early, and there’s a lot they don’t yet know.

“This is research that is at the very early stages, and it’s a retrospective observational study,” Pinedo emphasizes. “You really want to control confounders; it’s nothing that we could jump into conclusions [about] right now.”

He lists the kinds of changes every producer lives with year to year:

“You have bull genetics that will have changed, repro program that will have changed, feed that will have changed, heat abatement technologies, so many confounders that affect repro that have to be controlled,” he says.

Spencer sees the same complexity in the field of research.

“What if they changed a breeder? Or what if they started using precision technologies on their heifers, so their heat detection rate went up? These are things we have to take into consideration,” she says.

For now, the research is still in its early stages, but the data suggest HPAI does have reproductive effects worth paying attention to, especially in younger animals. As the team continues to analyze records and track herd performance, these early insights can help producers keep a closer eye on animals who were impacted by the virus and make more informed decisions for the long-term health and fertility of their herds.

Managing Vitamins and Minerals to Increase Calf Survival

Thu, 15 Jan 2026 21:31:03 GMT

Stillbirths and weak newborn calves are among the most frustrating outcomes in both beef and dairy systems. Calving difficulty, infectious disease and congenital defects are often investigated first, yet many cases end with no clear explanation. Even when calving appears normal, losses still occur leaving veterinarians and producers searching for answers after the fact.

Dr. Bob Van Saun, professor and Extension veterinarian at Penn State University, spoke on the importance of maternal nutrition and the placental transfer of vitamins and minerals on a recent episode of AABP’s “Have You Herd?” podcast.

What often goes unnoticed is the gestational environment that shaped the fetus long before calving began. Nutritional decisions made months earlier, particularly around vitamins and trace minerals, can quietly determine whether a calf is born resilient, compromised or nonviable. Rather than being isolated calving failures, some stillbirths might represent the final outcome of inadequate fetal preparation.

“If we don’t do what we need to do nutritionally for that pregnant animal, we could have very long-term effects not only on the reproductive success of the female, but also on the offspring,” Van Saun says.

Newborn Calves Enter the World Nutritionally Limited

Newborn calves, whether beef or dairy, arrive with a biological disadvantage: milk alone cannot meet their trace mineral and vitamin needs.

“We often tout milk as nature’s perfect food, and it certainly plays a very important role in the macro minerals and in energy and protein, but one of the things that’s been well known is milk does not have significant quantities of most of the trace elements. Particularly iron, copper, selenium and even some of the vitamins aren’t in high quantities within the milk,” Van Saun says.

Trace minerals and vitamins are essential for enzyme function, immune development and antioxidant defense, yet the neonatal diet provides very little of them. As a result, the calf’s ability to survive early life depends heavily on what accumulated before birth, particularly in the fetal liver.

“With some of the work that’s been done, we’re starting to recognize that the mineral status of that newborn calf is very dependent upon how we feed mom,” Van Saun says.

In addition to gestational nutrient transfer, colostrum is an important way to get calves off on the right foot, especially with fat soluble vitamins, so long as the mother has been appropriately supplemented.

Placental Transfer of Minerals and Vitamins

Minerals and vitamins reach the fetus through the placenta, but not all nutrients behave the same way. Trace minerals appear to move primarily by facilitated diffusion, rather than active transport. Van Saun explains that as a result, fetal blood concentrations are typically much lower than maternal blood concentrations.

Once those nutrients enter fetal circulation, the liver becomes the key storage site. However, the complete mechanism by which these nutrients are stored in the liver is not well understood.

“If you remember the anatomy, the umbilical vein goes directly to the liver. It’s my thinking that the fetal liver somehow captures these minerals and stores them,” Van Saun says. “The fetal liver can concentrate these trace elements to a level that’s nearly twice what we typically see in the dam. We need to find out what influences this.”

In contrast, fat-soluble vitamins cross the placenta inefficiently, particularly later in gestation, leaving newborn calves relatively depleted at birth and heavily reliant on colostrum to establish antioxidant protection.

Maternal Mineral Deficiencies and Fetal Loss

At the Penn State diagnostics lab, mineral and vitamin analyses of fetal and stillborn calf livers have revealed a surprising number of incidences of deficiency. Despite expectations of a linear relationship between maternal mineral status and fetal mineral status, there appears to be very little direct relationship.

“When I plot maternal versus fetal concentrations, I generally see a shotgun scattergram,” Van Saun explains. “That makes me think there’s got to be some other regulatory process there.”

Across the data, several nutrients appear repeatedly in association with fetal loss and stillbirth. Van Saun highlights the following:

Copper: Essential for enzyme systems and antioxidant defense
Selenium: Critical for glutathione peroxidase activity
Zinc: Involved in cellular and immune development
Magnesium: Supports energy metabolism and neuromuscular stability
Vitamin A: Needed for epithelial development and antioxidant defense

Oxidative Stress at Birth

As umbilical blood flow is compromised during delivery, particularly during prolonged or difficult births, the fetus experiences hypoxia.

“That’s going to produce large quantities of reactive oxygen species,” Van Saun explains. “And if those aren’t squelched by the antioxidant system, that could cause the demise of the animal.”

Trace minerals and fat-soluble vitamins play central roles in the defense against reactive oxygen species. When fetal reserves are marginal, oxidative stress during calving might push a compromised fetus past a survivable threshold. This could help explain why some stillborn calves show no obvious infectious, genetic or mechanical cause at necropsy.

Why Overfeeding Isn’t Usually the Problem

A common concern is whether aggressive mineral supplementation could harm the fetus. However, even in dams with liver mineral levels that would be considered toxicosis, fetal levels remain within a narrow range.

“When maternal concentrations of liver minerals are very low, the fetal maternal ratio is quite high. In other words, the fetus is capable of extracting more mineral from a deficient mom,” Van Saun says. “But as mom’s mineral status increases to very high levels, the ratio is quite low. Suggesting that there is some mechanism in place where the fetus doesn’t over accumulate.”

Van Suan observed this most profoundly with copper, but has also seen the same pattern with zinc, iron, selenium and manganese.

“Somehow, Mother Nature has built in a protective mechanism on both ends of the spectrum ensuring even when mom is on the low side, the fetus can try to accumulate,” he says. “And then if mom is on the high side, the fetus doesn’t over-accumulate.”

Stillborn Calves as Nutritional Sentinels

Stillborn calves represent an underused opportunity to evaluate herd nutrition. Liver mineral and vitamin analysis from stillborn calves can uncover deficiencies that were not clinically apparent in the dam.

“We really need to emphasize how to make a good situation out of a bad situation,” Van Saun says. “I think if you’re having a string of stillborns, I would be wanting to take a liver sample.”

Repeated measures of low selenium, copper, or vitamin A in stillborn calves, especially in the absence of other pathology, can point back to gestational nutrition as the root cause.

What Can You Do to Get Ahead of the Problem?

Effective investigation of stillbirths and weak calves should begin with diet evaluation, but meaningful assessment of gestational nutrition requires a broader, more deliberate strategy. A clearer understanding can be gained by using multiple diagnostic entry points across the herd and across time.

Van Saun highlights several practical diagnostic opportunities:

Submitting liver samples from stillborn calves when infectious and congenital causes are not identified
Using cull cow or abattoir liver samples to establish baseline mineral status
Sampling healthy animals within defined physiologic groups, rather than sick cows in inflammatory states
Building longitudinal data rather than interpreting isolated results

Taken together, these approaches allow the shift from reactive troubleshooting to proactive risk management.

Stillbirths and weak calves are often the final expression of biological constraints established months earlier not failures limited to the calving event.

New Leadership to Take on Key Animal Health Roles at USDA

Tue, 13 Jan 2026 19:23:03 GMT

USDA announced major leadership changes within the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). Michael Watson, APHIS administrator, will retire at the end of January after decades of distinguished service, and Rosemary Sifford, deputy administrator for veterinary services and U.S. chief veterinary officer, has also retired from federal service after a similarly notable career.

Dedicated Public Servants

Watson’s notable career reflects his unwavering commitment to safeguarding U.S. agriculture, building strong partnerships with states and stakeholders and mentoring future leaders. Beginning his USDA career in 1994 as a plant pathologist with the Agricultural Research Service, he later held key leadership roles across multiple APHIS programs. APHIS says Watson consistently championed science-based policy, ensuring APHIS decisions were grounded in rigorous data and research to protect U.S. agriculture and maintain public trust. His legacy is one of collaboration, integrity and dedication to public service.

Sifford began her USDA career in 1997 as a Saul T. Wilson Scholar and held numerous roles across APHIS. Under her leadership and guidance, APHIS advanced major animal health efforts, including combatting highly pathogenic avian influenza — with unprecedented detections in dairy cattle — and strengthening preparedness and response for New World screwworm. APHIS says her direction ensured these efforts were grounded in science-based policy, supported by field-ready guidance, and delivered with transparent stakeholder engagement. A steadfast champion of practical, proven biosecurity, she worked hard to protect animal health nationwide.

“Dr. Watson and Dr. Sifford are dedicated public servants and we greatly appreciate their time at USDA, serving American farmers and ranchers, and protecting the national security of the U.S. I am so grateful for their extended service to support the Trump administration during such a critical time for American agriculture,” says U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins in a news release. “The team at APHIS plays a critical role in protecting our food supply from foreign pests like the New World screwworm, as well as fighting diseases like bird flu. I have the utmost confidence in Ms. Moore, Dr. Huddleston and Dr. Dijab in continuing this critical mission and defending American agriculture.”

New Leadership

Starting Feb. 1, Kelly Moore will serve as acting administrator. Moore is currently acting chief operating officer for USDA’s marketing and regulatory programs mission area, and acting deputy administrator of marketing and regulatory programs business services.

“She brings extensive operational leadership experience and results-driven management, including a strong foundation of discipline from her prior service in the U.S. Marine Corps,” APHIS reports. “Ms. Moore is highly adept at guiding organizations through periods of change and transition and driving efficiency, compliance and innovation at scale — critical to APHIS’s mission during this pivotal time.”

Effective immediately, Dr. Alan Huddleston will serve as acting U.S. chief veterinary officer. With deep expertise in epidemiology and program development, he will represent U.S. animal health priorities internationally and maintain strong engagement with states and industry.

(USDA APHIS)

Dudley Hoskins, under secretary for marketing and regulatory programs, says their leadership and commitment to collaboration strengthened APHIS and the nation’s animal and plant health systems.

“These are consequential changes at a pivotal moment for the agency, and I am confident that Ms. Moore, Dr. Huddleston, and Dr. Dijab will not only serve as steady hands for program continuity but will lead APHIS into a new era,” Hoskins says.

To ensure continuity during this transition, APHIS veterinary services associate deputy administrator Adis Dijab will continue to provide operational oversight of veterinary services.

“APHIS operations continue uninterrupted, guided by science-based policies, strong stakeholder engagement and experienced acting leaders to ensure program continuity,” APHIS reports. “APHIS remains steadfast in its mission to protect the health, welfare and value of our Nation’s plants, animals, and natural resources — continuing to deliver solutions and essential services that safeguard U.S. agriculture and support stakeholders nationwide.”

Producers and Veterinarians Are Taking Back Agriculture’s Story Online

Mon, 15 Dec 2025 21:31:46 GMT

“In agriculture, if we don’t tell our story, someone else will, and they’re not telling it right,” says sixth-generation rancher Tucker Brown .

Most Americans have never set foot on a cattle operation, yet millions scroll past videos every day telling them how livestock are raised, what antibiotics do and whether beef belongs on their plate. Increasingly, that information isn’t coming from veterinarians or producers. It’s coming from influencers, activists and algorithm-fueled accounts that often get the facts wrong.

At the same time, consumer curiosity about animal welfare and food safety has never been higher. Nearly 70% of U.S. consumers say animal welfare is very important to their purchasing decisions. However, there exists a gap between what people think happens in cattle health and what is actually occurring on farms.

Meet the Experts: Real-Life Ranchers and Vets on Instagram

Ranchers Brown and Emma Coffman recently sat down at a Stockmanship and Stewardship event to discuss the importance of online advocacy, building trust and making an impact through educational content on social media.

Brown is a rancher at R.A. Brown ranch in Throckmorton, Texas. With nearly 200,000 followers on Instagram , he has been using his platform to educate, entertain and build trust with consumers for over seven years. Although admittedly, Brown’s purpose for posting shifted from his original intent.

“At first, it was just to help me sell more registered bulls,” he says. “But what ended up happening was there were more consumers watching my stuff than bull customers, and so, this trust was being built between consumers and myself and other ranchers.”

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A post shared by Tucker Brown (@tuckerbrownrab)

Coffman, the founder and owner of Double E Ranch Advocacy , is a first-generation agriculturalist. Her passion for public agricultural education began when she discovered just how much information was never communicated to consumers.

“When I started getting an interest in agriculture through 4-H and FFA, I had a lot of questions,” she says. “I realized there was a lot of what I thought was very simple, basic one-on-one information about how our food is grown and the labeling behind it that we weren’t talking about to consumers.”

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A post shared by Double E Ranch (@double_e_ranch_)

Both Brown and Coffman agree the people with mud on their boots and dirt on their hands from the farm should be the ones to answer consumer questions where their food comes from and how it’s grown.

Bovine veterinarian Dr. Erika Nagorske, who has amassed almost 17,000 followers on Instagram , takes a highly educational approach. She’ll often post about unique cases asking vet students for their diagnosis, following up with the answer a couple weeks later.

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A post shared by Dr. Erika Nagorske (@docnagorske)

“The reason why I keep doing it is the educational piece, especially for veterinary students. I love teaching vet students and I really like teaching producers who want the extra information,” Nagorske says. “Nobody wins if the vet doesn’t explain what they’re doing and what they’re thinking. It’s a teaching platform.”

Brown, Coffman and Nagorske view what they do as a way to increase public understanding of where their food comes from and the role of veterinarians in agriculture.

“In the ag space, it’s so hard. I think we always complain that nobody understands us,” Nagorske says. “I grew up in a city, fell in love with the industry, and I want to share it. If we don’t share it, we can’t complain that people don’t know.”

Getting Started: 4 Tips for Effective Ag Social Media

Are you thinking about sharing on social media? Coffman and Brown had the following recommendations:

Remember the why: Your goal should be in the front of your mind
Don’t worry about being polished: Being relatable is more important
Use your personality: People often connect with the human before the information
Keep it simple: Answer one question per post

“It’s really about trying to take complex subjects, bring it down to a baseline level and then build your advocacy off of that,” Coffman says. “And don’t be afraid to repeat yourself.”

In cattle production, there are a number of commonly asked questions. Coffman advises going back to these topics with varying approaches to get the message across. Further, there are a lot of everyday on-farm activities that consumers have never seen before. Above all, conveying the information in a way the audience will understand is most important.

Winning Trust: How to Handle Negative Comments Online

As with all social media, there is the potential for negative interactions. How you handle them can be very impactful.

“I always suggest that when you get a negative comment on what you’re sharing … to respond with facts rather than emotion,” Brown says. “It helps you look better, helps you be more relatable and more trustworthy to the 90% of watchers that will be silent.”

The goal isn’t to “win,” but to build trust, he says.

In the end, the public only sees what we share. Misinformation thrives in silence, not in the presence of experts. When agriculture professionals speak openly, transparently and compassionately on social media, the industry benefits.

“When we tell the truth, ranching wins,” Brown says. “That’s all you have to do. You don’t have to come up with a story. All you have to do is tell the truth.”

For these professionals, transparency means allowing the public to see the core values of their work, a view Nagorske summarizes by focusing on veterinarians’ dedication.

“I want them to take away the deep rooted passion that veterinarians have for animals. Even if it’s livestock. Even if the end goal is to consume them,” Nagorske says.

Bugs Beware: Next Gen Prepares to Combat Insect Threats to Animal Health

Wed, 03 Dec 2025 15:43:36 GMT

The nation is facing a critical shortage of veterinary entomologists. Kansas State University is ramping up efforts to create awareness and opportunity for students interested in playing a crucial role in safeguarding livestock health and agricultural economies by studying insects and ticks that affect animals.

“With increasing insecticide resistance and the emergence of new tick and tick-borne pathogen species, our capacity to meet future research, extension and teaching needs in this area is more critical than ever,” Cassandra Olds, assistant professor of entomology at K-State, says in a release.

To address this increasing challenge, Olds collaborated with other university veterinary entomologists to develop the Research and Extension Experience in Veterinary Entomology for Students (REEVES) program .

“Despite the significant impact arthropods like ticks and insects have on livestock production, there’s a serious lack of trained veterinary entomologists,” Olds says. “Many students simply aren’t aware of this viable career path or what it entails.”

Funded by the USDA-NIFA and led by the University of Tennessee, the 8-week summer residential program offers an immersive, hands-on experience in veterinary entomology research and extension.

“The overarching goal of REEVES is to introduce and train talented individuals for graduate and professional programs, as well as livestock-associated careers that emphasize team science,” the release says. “The program educates them on the fundamentals of veterinary entomology and provides them with real-world project experience relevant to the needs of stakeholders.”

Two scholars are placed at each participating institution each year, K-State, University of Tennessee, Texas A&M and University of Georgia, and will run from 2025 till 2028.

Not only will REEVES scholars engage in impactful research, but they will also have the opportunity to present their research at the annual Livestock Insect Workers Conference and an online REEVES Expo. For example, K-State scholars evaluated the impact of stable flies on cattle performance in feedlots this year and investigated recent outbreaks of Theileria orientalis in the region.

“For me, the most exciting aspect of this field is the chance to do good at every level,” Olds adds. “You have the opportunity to positively impact both animal health and well-being, while simultaneously improving the livelihoods of the people who own them.”

Tips to Make Informed Culling and Cow Longevity Choices in a Dairy Herd

Wed, 19 Nov 2025 15:54:27 GMT

How long a cow should remain in a milking herd is a tricky question without a straightforward answer. Some people will argue that increased herd longevity is a good thing. Nigel Cook from the University of Wisconsin outlines how this argument has been presented to him:

“People think longer lives result from healthier cows and that reflects better animal welfare, decreased environmental footprint (raising fewer replacements can decrease our methane emissions per pound of milk), and we can improve our economics because we’re keeping cows longer,” he says.

However, if you look a little deeper, this reasoning may be flawed. When comparing real herds, there are a variety of situations that may explain why there is no one-size-fits-all for turnover rates in a dairy.

“There are herds with lower turnover rates, with great welfare and excellent health. They sell heifers or build another barn, they expand. But there are also herds with lower turnover rates that have low turnover rates because they have to keep cows. Those cows may be high somatic cell count cows, mastitic cows or lame cows, and that impacts their overall performance and fertility,” Cook explains.

On the other hand, high turnover rates can also reflect good herd management.

“There are herds with high turnover rates that can support those rates because of good health and good fertility. They have the replacement supply they need to do it,” Cook continues.

Avoid Hasty Culling Choices

In the U.S, the average time for a dairy cow to remain in the herd is 2.5 lactations. Over the past 10 years, many improvements have been made in dairy herds: cattle are producing more milk with improved component contents, fertility rates are up and somatic cell counts are down. Despite these changes, herd turnover rates have remained fairly constant. Cook proposes this is because producers follow breeding, and not necessarily culling.

“The process of culling is enormously variable,” Cook says. “Few farms use relatively well organized, high quality summaries of data to help them select cows early enough in lactation to decide which cow leaves.”

Cook highlights how a lot of farms put too much focus on the cow’s immediate production history instead of their lifetime production.

“They have a heifer, they have a slot. They’re just making that decision that day without a lot of prior planning. I wish we could change that,” he says.

This can lead to hasty cull decisions that may not be the best move for the herd overall. This was confirmed in an unpublished survey of over 60 Wisconsin dairy herds. Cook and colleagues found that 29% of cows culled for production reasons were better performers than half of the cows in their own herds.

“We should be holding our farms accountable to the quality of the cows leaving the herd, not the quantity,” Cook says.

The Economics of Culling Decisions

Mike Overton, global dairy platform lead for Zoetis, suggests letting herd economics be a driving factor when making the decision to cull and selecting cull cows.

“When we look at [culling decisions], we’re trying to replace an inferior cow, and that represents an opportunity to improve the herd,” Overton says. “It comes down to timing. We do it too late, we cost the herd money. If we do it prematurely, we cost the herd money.”

Consider the predicted value of the incoming and potential cull animals. If you replaced that animal, what would the improvement in milk production be? How about the improvement in herd genetics? One additional consideration is the revenue for the current cow when she leaves.

“When you have a heifer calving into a herd and her predicted value is greater than the lowest value cow in the herd, replace that cow. If not, that heifer should go elsewhere,” Overton says.

While Overton advocates for more aggressive replacement strategies, he says he is often countered with the idea of whether the departing cow has ‘paid for herself’.

“The decision to replace the cow should never account for when she’s paid for herself. That’s flawed logic,” Overton says. “This line of thinking might work for your average and above average animals, but your lower producing cows, the ones you should be culling sooner, will end up staying in the herd longest.”

Also consider older cows have a higher risk of health complications, as well as a lower market value per pound at slaughter. The salvage value of a cow should play into your culling decisions.

“Most people assume a low replacement rate equals greater profitability,” Overton explains. “It would be true all things being equal. If you think about if all cows were healthy and equal in production and market value, and the only reason for replacement was mortality, a lower replacement rate is going to be better. But we also know that cows are not equal in value or productivity.”

It’s possible to fall into the trap of trying to hit longevity, productivity or replacement rate benchmarks; however, these may cause lower performing cows to be kept for longer. Cull decisions should be well informed and tailored to each herd.

“Don’t be afraid to replace poor producing animals, even first lactation animals, if you’ve got heifers available to take their place. Never restrict replacement just to try and hit a benchmark,” Overton says.

Biotics in Bovines: Postbiotic Applications for Dairy Cattle

Thu, 06 Nov 2025 20:03:00 GMT

Dairy cattle nutrition is increasingly being designed to shape the microbiome, not just to feed it. Postbiotics represent the third category in that effort. Rather than supplying live microbes (probiotics) or microbial substrates (prebiotics), postbiotics are the beneficial compounds microbes produce, without the organisms themselves.

This matters because high-producing dairy cows operate under tight metabolic margins. Transition stress, rapid shifts in energy demand, and rumen fermentation instability can all disrupt gut integrity and immune balance. Postbiotics offer a way to influence those systems even when microbial populations are stressed, inconsistent or slow to stabilize.

This is the fifth installment of the Biotics in Bovines series where we will explore the role and application of prebiotics, probiotics and postbiotics in dairy and beef cattle nutrition. Each installment will examine a different facet of microbiome-focused nutrition from how these products work to what recent research says about their effectiveness and on-farm value. The goal is to help veterinarians and producers make informed, evidence-based decisions about integrating biotic feed technologies into herd health and performance programs.

Postbiotics are non-living microbial products that interact with the rumen and immune systems. They commonly include:

Yeast Fermentation Products
Lactic Acid Bacteria Metabolites
Inactivated Bacteria

These compounds can be used to strengthen gut barrier integrity, support immune signaling, encourage resilience in fiber-fermenting microbes and reduce the impact of stress-related dysbiosis. Unlike probiotics, they do not require survival through pelleting, storage or rumen passage, which could be a practical advantage on the farm.

Evidence in Dairy Systems

In dairy calves , yeast fermentation products fed in the milk replacer had greater postweaning average daily gains and body weights with similar feed intake. These calves also had improved rumen absorption (observed as increased plasma volatile fatty acid concentrations) and increased immune response to lipopolysaccharide stimulation at weaning.

During the transition period , postbiotics containing yeast fermentation products have been shown to improve the lactation performance and metabolic status of dairy cows. This supplementation reduced inflammation and enhanced liver metabolic function resulting in greater milk fat and improved energy corrected milk yield.

One study in lactating dairy cattle investigated whether the incorporation of yeast fermentation products had any effect on the prevention and control of digital dermatitis. They found that postbiotic treatment decreased the risk of cattle having ulcerative and active lesions and slowed the negative progression of lesions.

In dairy cattle with mastitis , the administration of a heat-killed Lactococcus lactis postbiotic was as effective in eliciting a localized immune response as the administration of live L. lactis. Postbiotic treated cattle had an equally potent interleukin-8 response and cure rates based on somatic cell counts compared to probiotic treated cattle. These results could have beneficial implications for farmers worried about the shelf-life of live probiotics.

Practical On-Farm Guidance

Consider incorporating postbiotics into your milk replacer. Postbiotics can support healthy rumen and hind-gut development jump-starting calves for their postweaning lives.
Use postbiotics to strategically support the immune system. This includes stressful events such as heat stress events, group/pen changes and vaccination periods.
Check the label. Dose and duration guidelines vary by product and production stage.
Postbiotics are less susceptible to environmental conditions than probiotics. This might make them a better fit for your farm.

Limitations and Research Gaps

Postbiotics are relatively new to ruminant nutrition. Extensive research has not yet been completed and the most effective metabolite combinations may remain to be discovered. The long-term effects across multiple lactations remain uncertain; using postbiotics as precision tools rather than as blanket-use additives might be most beneficial.

Actionable Takeaways

Start where the risk is the highest. Prioritize young calves or transition cows where the research shows the clearest and most repeatable benefits.
Choose products with a clearly stated microbial source and processing method. ‘Fermentation product’ tells you very little about what you are feeding. Look for specific strain and process information.
Pair postbiotics with management, not instead of management. Foot baths, milking hygiene, feed access and bunk management still drive outcomes. Postbiotics can support these efforts, but they don’t replace them.
Reassess during quiet periods. Once stressors ease, evaluate whether continued supplementation still provides return on investment.

Your next reads:
Biotics in Bovines: Prebiotic Applications for Beef Cattle
Biotics in Bovines: Prebiotic Applications for Dairy Cattle
Biotics in Bovines: Probiotic Applications for Dairy Cattle
Biotis in Bovines: Probiotic Applications for Beef Cattle

Marketing Cull Dairy Cattle: How to Integrate Welfare and Economics into Decision-Making

Wed, 29 Oct 2025 19:54:46 GMT

Dairy cattle span multiple product sectors, with a first career as a dairy animal and a second career as a beef animal. With a declining cattle herd population in the U.S., focusing on health and welfare of each animal remains important. In addition, finding extra value in each animal is critical to each operation’s business.

Look At The Factors
According to the 2022 National Beef Quality Audit, dairy or beef cows and bulls that can no longer be used for their original purpose are still valuable. Cull cattle, or animals being removed from the herd, can be marketed in several ways dependent on the type of operation, their production and marketing goals, resources, and other factors.

In a guide titled “Right Way. Right Time. A guide to cull dairy cattle management,” the National Dairy Farmers Assuring Responsible Management (FARM) program collaborated with CattleFax and the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association to evaluate these various factors and improve cull cattle management to enhance animal welfare while considering economics.

This document uses established standards to address key areas of opportunity for effective cull cattle management and provide strategies for making timely culling decisions and improving welfare. It is designed to help producers examine the opportunity to capture more value.

“‘The Right Way. Right Time.’ handbook provides practical steps to help farmers and veterinarians make the right decision on the complex question of ‘When is the right time for a dairy cow to change careers,’” says Meggan Hain, chief veterinary officer for the National Milk Producers Federation and the National Dairy FARM Program.

Topics Covered
The handbook establishes a mechanism for proper diagnosis, treatment protocols and training topics like fitness for transport and euthanasia decisions.

When it comes to minimizing stress during transportation or career changes, understanding how temperature, wind speed, humidity and storms affect cattle and calves during transportation is important. There are also many aspects of transportation that can be controlled — including where the animal is marketed, the equipment used, stocking density and transporter education. Recommendations for calf transport from the American Association of Bovine Practitioners (AABP) are included in the resource.

The BQA Transportation certification, which helped guide the ‘Right Way. Right Time.’ documents, provides direction on fitness for transport decisions with topics such as mobility scoring, body condition scoring, length of transport and withdrawal times. Both educational resources can be training tools for veterinarians when working with their dairy and calf operations.

For example, the following are points to consider before deciding to ship an animal:

Ensure all animals have cleared withdrawal times prior to shipping
Make proactive decisions to ensure early treatment or early culling to lead to better outcomes for the animal
Do not transport cattle with a Body Condition Score of 2 or less to reduce bruising, prioritize welfare and improve yield/payment
Mobility score 3 (using a 5-point scale) should be strongly scrutinized at the farm or auction market and evaluated for their ability to make the full trip to their end destination and in shape to walk into the processing plant
Full udders can cause animal discomfort and mobility issues, in addition to being a food safety concern since milk is considered a contaminant

With all fitness for transport and culling decisions, we should be asking ourselves, “What does it mean when the animal leaves the farm in that condition? Is this what is best for the animal?”

Euthanasia is also an important decision for which veterinarians should be a crucial adviser. Supporting producers in making euthanasia and culling decisions and developing protocols can help take the decision making away from the producer, making it easier to take that next step. For animals that should be euthanized rather than transported, ensuring landmarks are correct and maintenance of euthanasia tools are more steps to improving welfare. Considerations for carcass disposal should be weighed depending on what is available in the area and what is practical for the operation.

The Veterinarian’s Role
The veterinarian is key to the discussion, and can provide guidance and training on these topics.

It is important to recognize that cull cow marketing is rarely an all-or-nothing decision. There are nuances on each operation that the dairy farmer, employees and veterinarian should discuss when deciding to remove an animal from the herd. Cull cow management and marketing on the dairy is an important part of the business that deserves attention, rather than just serving as a byproduct from producing milk. Veterinarians are encouraged to use industry resources such as the “Right Way. Right Time. A guide to cull dairy cattle management” document, the National Dairy FARM resources at https://nationaldairyfarm.com/ , and the BQA program at www.bqa.org .

Don't Break, Build: A Farmer's Playbook for Taking Control of Your Mind

Wed, 29 Oct 2025 19:02:20 GMT

It was already shaping up to be one of those days.

An unexpected bill is due, and the money just isn’t there. The kids are fighting again. Understandably, your wife is over it, and now it’s your fault. One of your employees just called to say the new group of wean pigs is sick. It’s all a part of a life, but sometimes it just stacks up to be too much.

“In a world of unpredictability with so many factors at play on any given day, it’s easy to be mentally or emotionally hijacked by elements out of our control,” says Athena Diesch-Chham with Restorative Path Counseling and Wellbeing. “Stress and anxiety thrive in this environment. However, the long-term effects of that are real.”

Farming stress will never go away, so how can you get more grit or become more resilient to that stress?

One expert says it starts by paying attention to the present.

“Don’t think about what happened yesterday or worry about what is happening tomorrow,” says Cheri Burcham, with University of Illinois Extension. “Focus on what you are doing and feeling in the very moment.”

Diesch-Chham likes to think of it as “being where your feet are.”

“So often brains are hijacked by stress and launch us mentally to a different space either in the past or in the future,” Diesch-Chham adds. “Mindfulness is just asking for our whole selves to be here in this moment, wherever our feet are planted.”

Pay Attention

This concept of truly being “in the moment” not only reduces stress, but research shows it can also lower blood pressure, increase immunity and reduce anxiety and depression, Burcham says.

When you intentionally notice where you are, you can recognize potential challenges sooner, says Abigail Cudney with Michigan State University Extension . Instead of habitually reacting to stress with intense anger, emotional shutdown, negative thinking or overthinking, this intentional awareness helps rewire the brain through a process called neuroplasticity, or the brain’s ability to grow and adapt to new experiences.

Consider the attention you pay when walking through the barn. You use all your senses to make assessments and determine what’s going on all around you.

“Whether it’s walking the barn or enjoying the fall scenery, naming something you are currently experiencing for each of the five senses is another way to practice mindfulness,” Diesch-Chham says. “This doesn’t have to be complicated – the whole goal is to bring mind and body to the same place.”

5 Senses Technique

Just Breathe

The fight or flight response animals have when stress strikes is the same thing that happens in people. As a review, the vagus nerve, which runs from the base of the brain and branches out to the organs, serves as a conduit of chemicals/hormones that are activated automatically/reflexively by the sympathetic nervous system. This is an involuntary and adaptive process that increases respiration and blood flow to prepare the body for quick and protective action, such as fighting or fleeing. Once the perceived threat has passed or been managed successfully, the stress response also passes and respiration, blood pressure, and heart rate return to a normal steady state, according to the Yale School of Medicine .

Through deep breathing, the vagus nerve can be stimulated intentionally to help restore, mitigate and even prevent these physical and psychological reactions. Slow, even breaths that originate deep within the abdomen stimulate the vagus nerve in a way that signals safety and cues the body and mind to relax, restore, and release chronic and unhealthy patterns.

“Deep breathing can be practiced anywhere and in so many ways – so it is very accessible and easy for farmers to practice,” Burcham explains. “Practice in the field or even while operating machinery.”

Let Go of What You Can’t Control

Perhaps one of the biggest advantages of “being where your feet are” is realizing you can’t control it all.

“Working towards recognizing what truly is within our individual control and then choosing to focus our energy on managing what we can control to improve our overall mental health and stress, helps us remain resilient through the pieces that are outside of our control,” Diesch-Chham says.

Adversity happens. Markets will crash. Animals will get sick. Disease will strike. Families will argue. But you can recover faster from those stresses by staying grounded in the moment, aligning your thoughts and emotions with reality.

Resources to Help Build Resilience:
North Central Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Center

Mindfulness: University of Illinois Extension

Building Resilience with Mindfulness

Insights into Calf Mortality at Commercial Calf Ranches

Fri, 24 Oct 2025 12:52:21 GMT

As the dairy industry embraces beef-on-dairy crossbreeding, a new type of animal is reshaping the U.S. calf and feedlot landscape. These calves, born on dairies but destined for the beef supply chain, are prized for their hybrid vigor, growth potential and carcass quality. Their journey often includes an early stay at commercial calf ranches, where young calves are reared in large groups under varying environmental and management conditions.

While these specialized facilities play a key role in raising thousands of calves efficiently, they also present unique animal health challenges. Calves arrive from multiple dairies, often within days of birth, and face stresses from transport, commingling and pathogen exposure. The industry has long suspected that respiratory disease dominates mortality at these sites, but until recently, detailed, systematic data to confirm those patterns were limited.

A new study by Rebecca Bigelow and colleagues from Kansas State University set out to change that. The study compiles data from over 240 necropsies performed across four different commercial calf ranches over a 12-month period documenting cause of death, concurrent conditions and whether these patterns shifted by season, sex, breed or location. These necropsies included both beef-dairy cross (152) and dairy calves (91). Their findings confirm respiratory disease is indeed the leading cause of death, but they also shed light on gastrointestinal (GI) disease and septicemia. Their work provides a valuable benchmark for working to improve early-life calf health.

Of the 243 necropsied calves, 67.5% of them had a primary diagnosis of respiratory disease. Gastrointestinal causes accounted for 11.5%, septicemia for 9.5%, and miscellaneous cases (including trauma, umbilical infection and liver abscesses) for the remaining 11.5%.

Most calves had no additional comorbidities recorded, but among those that did, respiratory plus another condition was the most common combination. Within the respiratory category, bronchopneumonia represented nearly 90% of cases, while bronchopneumonia with interstitial pattern was less frequent. Considering GI lesions, 49% of calves had no lesions, while 21% had upper GI lesions (rumen and abomasum), 13% had lower GI lesions (small and large intestine), and 30% had both.

One of the study’s more surprising findings was what didn’t change. Statistical modeling showed no significant associations between the likelihood of respiratory or GI diagnoses and season, sex, breed or ranch. This result suggests the underlying disease pressures in these systems are persistent year-round rather than being driven by environmental conditions or genetic background. Further, beef-dairy cross calves had no improved disease resistance compared to dairy calves under commercial rearing conditions.

These results can be summarized into the following takeaway points for animal caretakers:

Prioritize respiratory prevention.

With two thirds of deaths linked to respiratory causes, calf ranches must focus on preventative strategies: proper ventilation, gradual group transitions and consistent monitoring for early signs of respiratory illness. Review vaccination programs and align them for protection at times of stress and exposure.

Necropsies pay off.

Routine necropsy programs can help producers spot emerging disease trends before they escalate.

Maintain consistent management year-round.

Prevention and monitoring must remain equally rigorous through all seasons, not just in winter or transport peaks.

Collaborate across the production chain.

Calf health outcomes at ranches depend on colostrum management, navel care and nutrition practices at the dairy of origin, as well as transport and receiving protocols. Strong communication between dairies, calf ranches and veterinarians ensures continuity of care.

Biotics in Bovines: Probiotic Applications for Dairy Cattle

Wed, 22 Oct 2025 15:23:30 GMT

As antibiotic stewardship and sustainability become central goals for the dairy sector, probiotics are gaining attention as a way to strengthen cattle health and performance. Probiotics are live microorganisms that confer a health benefit to the host. In dairy cattle, they can stabilize the rumen function, support immune balance, and improve growth and milk performance. Recent work has shown certain bacterial and yeast strains are a promising tool for application in dairy herds.

This is the third installment of the Biotics in Bovines series where we will explore the role and application of prebiotics, probiotics and postbiotics in dairy and beef cattle nutrition. Each installment will examine a different facet of microbiome-focused nutrition from how these products work to what recent research says about their effectiveness and on-farm value. The goal is to help veterinarians and producers make informed, evidence-based decisions about integrating biotic feed technologies into herd health and performance programs.

You can find links to the first installments at the end of this article.

Probiotics used in dairy cattle include a wide range of bacteria and yeasts, each with distinct mechanisms of action. Common groups include:

Lactic acid bacteria (Lactobacillus, Enterococcus, Bifidobacterium): Enhance intestinal barrier function and suppress pathogenic bacteria.
Bacillus species: Spore-forming bacteria that can reduce inflammatory responses.
Yeasts (Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Kluyveromyces marxianus): Improve rumen fermentation, fiber digestion and feed efficiency.

These organisms act by stabilizing the rumen and intestinal microbiome, enhancing volatile fatty acid (VFA) production, reducing lactic acid accumulation and strengthening mucosal immunity.

Evidence in Dairy Cattle

Calves and Heifers

A 2025 meta-analysis including 55 studies reported feeding probiotics to dairy calves might be beneficial for enhancing dry-matter intake (DMI), starter intake and average daily gain (ADG). However, results across studies were variable, as were the type of probiotic used. Supplementation with Bacillus spp. and Lactobacillus spp. was found to increase ADG, while Lactobacillus spp. increased starter intake.

Probiotic supplementation has also been used to mitigate calf diarrhea related to Clostridium perfringens. In a challenge study using colostrum-deprived dairy calves, daily feeding of Lactobacillus animalis and Propionibacterium freudenreichii before, during and after an oral challenge of C. perfringens significantly reduced the incidence and severity of diarrhea and improved survival compared to controls.

Lactating and Transition Cows

Both qualitative and quantitative improvements to milk production have been observed with probiotic supplementation. Lactating dairy cows fed S. cerevisiae had increased DMI and milk yield compared to controls. This yield increase was thought to be a consequence of an improved rumen environment (pH, VFA ratios). Yeast supplementation has also been shown to increase milk protein content via enhanced microbial crude protein.

Probiotics have also been shown to support cattle through the transition period when fat stores in the body are being mobilized. A probiotic blend including Bacillus spp. fed in the weeks surrounding calving has been shown to be beneficial for supporting liver function, while a yeast-bacteria mixture fed to transition cows increased DMI and milk fat percentage.

Intravaginal probiotics have also been investigated for transition cows. The application of a freeze-dried lactic acid bacteria culture before and after calving increase milk yield and feed efficiency, with a greater effect on multiparous cows compared to primiparous cows. Intravaginal probiotic application has also been shown to improve uterine involution postpartum, decrease incidence of uterine infection and increase conception rates at first insemination.

Practical On-Farm Guidance

Prioritize products with clear strain identification and dosage instructions. The type of probiotic you want to use will change depending on animal age and production stage.
Match product type to production phase.
- Calves: Use lactic acid bacteria in milk replacer or starter feeds to support early gut development and reduce scours.
- Transition cows: Target yeast- or Bacillus-based probiotics to improve rumen stability, feed intake and immune balance. Consider intravaginal applications for reproductive health.
- Lactating cows: Consider Bacillus or yeast strains to support fiber digestion.
Maintain consistent feeding and delivery. Probiotic organisms should be ingested daily to remain effective. Interruptions in feeding can negate benefits.
Monitor outcomes. If you don’t measure it, you can’t manage it. Track performance and health data so you know what is and isn’t working for your herd.

Limitations

While probiotics show broad potential, their efficacy depends heavily on strain, dose and management. The complexity of the rumen environment means that not all strains may be effective and every dose. Results are most reliable when using stage-specific, well-characterized strains with proven viability under farm conditions.

Actionable Takeaways

Start early for best results. Introduce probiotics in milk replacer during the first two weeks of life to reduce diarrhea risk and support rumen development.
Target the transition period. Feeding probiotics from three weeks precalving through 30 days in milk can help stabilize DMI, support liver function and improve reproductive performance.
Feed through stress events. During heat stress, transport or ration changes, probiotic supplementation can help maintain rumen pH stability and DMI.
Evaluate cost-benefit periodically. The economic return depends on herd health status and management; probiotics tend to be most profitable when used strategically.

Your next reads:
Biotics in Bovines: Prebiotic Applications for Beef Cattle
Biotics in Bovines: Prebiotic Applications for Dairy Cattle

Biotics in Bovines: Prebiotic Applications for Dairy Cattle

Fri, 10 Oct 2025 01:37:30 GMT

Dairy industry professionals are increasingly turning attention to the gut microbiome as a tool to reduce disease, improve growth and protect herd productivity without relying on routine antibiotics. Prebiotics — non-digestible feed substrates that selectively feed beneficial microbes — are one practical, low-risk option.

This article kicks off a series where we will explore the role and application of prebiotics, probiotics and postbiotics in dairy and beef cattle nutrition. Each installment will examine a different facet of microbiome-focused nutrition from how these products work to what recent research says about their effectiveness and on-farm value. The goal is to help veterinarians and producers make informed, evidence-based decisions about integrating biotic feed technologies into herd health and performance programs.

The most common prebiotics supplemented to dairy cattle include:

Fructooligosaccharides
Mannanoligosaccharides
Galactooligosaccharides
Inulin
Beta-glucans

These are commonly sourced from yeast cell walls, yeast culture and agro-industrial wastes. While the main goal of prebiotic use is to provide substrate for beneficial gut bacteria, they can also modulate immune response and bind to harmful pathogens. Prebiotics fermented by select gut microbes can lead to the production of short-chain fatty acids, gut pH lowering (which inhibits harmful bacteria), enhanced gut barrier function and immune modulation.

In dairy cattle, the primary goals of prebiotic use are enhanced milk production and quality, to support gut health and immunity (especially high-stress periods), and to improve nutrient absorption. Calves have been shown to respond well to prebiotic supplementation, while results in adult cows are more varied.

Recent calf trials report the clearest, most consistent benefits.

Fructo-oligosaccharide (FOS) supplementation during the nursing period has been shown to support hindgut maturation, increase persistence of beneficial Bifidobacterium, and improve average daily gain in newborn dairy calves. These outcomes make FOS attractive for calf rearing protocols aimed at reducing diarrhea and improving early growth.

Mannan-oligosaccharides (MOS) and inulin have a similarly strong calf focused-evidence base. Experimental work indicates MOS can improve average daily gain and reduce pathogenic Escherichia coli in the feces. In a calf study investigating the effects of inulin supplementation, increased physical rumen development was observed in 3-week-old calves fed for two months.

Trials in adult lactating cows show inconsistent production responses. Some studies have suggested that inulin supplementation can increase milk production, possibly through upregulated rumen volatile fatty acid concentrations , and enhance antioxidant and immune function. Meanwhile, MOS supplementation has been shown to decrease the populations of harmful fungi in the rumen.

Overall, more variable responses should be expected in adult cows because the mature rumen ecosystem buffers dietary changes, reducing the impact of prebiotics.

Practical, On-Farm Guidance

Choose the right target and the right product. Prioritize prebiotics for calves for diarrhea reduction, average daily gain improvement and gut maturation, where evidence is the strongest. For adult cows, focus on well-documented products or use prebiotics as a part of a combined synbiotic strategy.
Match form and timing to the goal. For calves, FOS or MOS in milk replacer is practical and supported by trials. For dry or fresh cows, consider top dressing or inclusion in the TMR for specific use cases.
Start with a controlled trial. Test a product in a defined pen or cohort. Track clear outcomes: fecal scores, average daily gain, time to weaning, medicine use, and for cows somatic cell count, milk yield, and disease treatments. Compare the cost versus the value of reduced disease treatments and labor.
Watch interactions and quality. Prebiotic effects vary with dose, base diet and other additives. Use products with transparent specifications and consult existing trial data.

Limitations and Research Gaps

Ruminant probiotic research is growing, but not uniform: neonates and young calves respond more reliably than adult cows, and product heterogeneity makes generalizations risky. Large on-farm replication trials, and longer-term studies on lifetime productivity and economics are still needed to fully understand the impact prebiotics can have on adult dairy cow performance.

Actionable Takeaways

Use prebiotics first in calf programs where diarrhea and average daily gain are priorities.
Run a small, controlled on-farm trial with clear metrics to determine what works for you.
For lactating cows, use prebiotics as part of multi-modal strategies and set conservative return on investment expectations.

The Impact of Low Trace Minerals in Cattle May Be Bigger Than You Expect

Wed, 08 Oct 2025 17:12:14 GMT

Trace minerals — including copper, selenium, zinc, manganese and cobalt — are needed in vanishingly small amounts. However, when these nutrients fall even the smallest bit short of a cow’s needs, the consequences can be significant. These results can include slower growth, compromised immunity and poor reproduction.

Although trace minerals make up less than 0.01% of an animal’s body weight, they’re fundamental co-factors in enzymes, antioxidants, metabolic and immune pathways. Subclinical deficiencies may be a more extensive problem as the symptoms are not evident and there is no intervention, leading to economic losses.

David Schaeffer, professor at the University of Illinois, and his colleagues recently published work analyzing trace mineral concentrations from beef and dairy livers submitted to the California Animal Health & Food Safety Lab System laboratory between 2012 and 2021. The aim of this work was to compare any correlation patterns of copper, selenium, and manganese contents, and incidence of disease.

This work included 1,495 liver samples collected from cattle submitted for diagnostic testing. They were categorized as beef (857) or dairy (638), and further grouped by age (neonates, adolescents and adults).

The study revealed significant differences between deficiencies in beef and cattle. Overall, 73% of beef cattle and 45% of dairy cattle were found to be deficient in at least one trace mineral. In beef cattle, 46% of cattle were deficient in selenium, while 39% were deficient in manganese and 33% were deficient in copper. In dairy cattle, 10% of cattle were deficient in selenium, while 37% were deficient in manganese, and only 5% were deficient in copper.

(Adapted from Schaeffer et al., 2025)

The observed increased incidence of deficiency in beef cattle is likely expected as these animals often rely on free choice minerals, while dairy cattle are fed a total mixed ration including a mineral supplement. Interestingly, Schaeffer also reported a large portion of dairy cattle may have been oversupplemented as they observed above normal copper and selenium levels.

Associations between mineral status and disease occurred across both groups, but were most prevalent in beef cattle.

In beef cattle reported to have bovine respiratory disease (BRD), 68% of animals were deficient in copper, selenium or both minerals. The median age of these animals was 8 months, and most of them had been recently transported and co-mingled with other calves.

One thing the authors noticed was some conditions that are usually subclinical in beef cattle, for example parasites, were fatal in animals that were deficient in copper, selenium, or both.

“Now obviously we don’t know the condition score of those animals,” says co-author David Villar on a recent episode of “Have You Herd?”. “I would imagine it was pretty poor to die from internal parasites.”

As stated above, dairy cattle cases had much lower prevalences of trace mineral deficiency. Along with this, they also had lower incidences of correlation between deficiency and disease.

Of the dairy cattle with only one deficiency, the most frequent diagnoses were BRD (23%), Salmonella (14%), scours (16%), and septicemia (6%). Of all dairy cattle, 11% of those with BRD also had a copper or selenium deficiency.

It’s important to remember these are correlations between mineral status and disease, not causation.

Villar highlights what he hopes producers and veterinarians would take away from this work: “The main conclusion I would make is that beef, but not dairy, are still largely deficient in essential microminerals, copper and selenium. We need to check the herd management to see what’s happening.”

These results present an opportunity for producers and veterinarians to build preventative mineral nutrition programs, especially in beef herds where deficiencies are more prevalent. Proactive monitoring and targeted supplementation could reduce disease, mortality and economic loss in cattle herds.