The transition from the dry period to the lactating period is difficult for all cows. These changes are especially traumatic for heifers that are not only undergoing the physiological changes associated with calving and the onset of lactating, but adapting to a new housing environment and the novelty of the milking routine. Furthermore, these heifers are forced to adjust to an increased amount of contact with the farm staff.

I grew up in Las Cruces, New Mexico. In the winter the grass was yellow.

Greetings, from the heart of Baghdad and the International Zone. I write from the third floor of the Embassy Compound Office, which is home to several agencies including the one to which I am assigned: the USDA’s Agricultural Affairs Office that is administered by the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS).

Early on in my career as a hay hauler, I found myself hauling distances that made it impossible to sleep in my own bed at home every night. We were running from southwest Idaho to the Portland, Oregon area. To make matters worse, we often found a back-haul of freight that took us in the general direction of home, if you can count Salt Lake City, Utah or Billings, Montana “in the general direction” of southwest Idaho.

This issue is our annual state of the dairy industry edition.

Progressive Dairyman is proud to sponsor exclusive shirts for participants at this year’s North American Intercollegiate Dairy Challenge (NAIDC).

What an interesting time; a time where people no longer brag about the look of their car or its speed, but rather its mpg rating; a time when homeowners go to lengths to build energy-efficient homes; a time when “alternative energy” became a household phrase.

A miracle happened on the Hudson this year.

In tough economic times your first instinct may be to cut costs any way possible and fail to analyze how these cost-cutting measures may influence the output side of your business.

Opportunities present themselves each day, just as the sun rises and sets.Many people don’t even notice them, let alone act on them.