’Twas the night before New Year, and all through the farm Not a milker was stirring, as they were all home. I rose in the morning,

It’s easy to focus on heat stress and its impact on herd health during the dog days of summer, but one often-overlooked area is cold stress and how it compromises herd productivity and performance.

Nearly 300 dairy cattle reproduction enthusiasts gathered Nov. 10-11, 2016, in Columbus, Ohio, for the 11th Dairy Cattle Reproduction Council (DCRC) annual meeting.

Over the past five years, genomics has received a lot of publicity as a tool to help manage your herd’s genetics. Whether it is determining an overall breeding strategy for your herd or trying to find that high-end outlier that brings tens of thousands of dollars at a cattle sale, there is no doubt genomics has revolutionized the way producers look at dairy genetics.

Reproduction is a fascinating story. The story begins with the supply of oocytes that are present from before birth on both ovaries.

It’s not too late! Make plans to attend the third Dairy Strong conference, January 18-19, in Madison, Wisconsin. Find more information at Dairy Strong.

The farmer leaders of the dairy checkoff had a vision in 2012 to construct a “newsroom” with the goal of protecting and building consumer trust in dairy.

Welcome to 2017, folks! It’s a new year with new resolutions ... lose weight, spend less, save more …. The list goes on.

The onset of estrus in dairy cattle is accompanied by changes in physiological activity, rumination and feeding behavior. These alterations can be monitored via direct observation or through the use of automatic sensors to identify deviations associated with estrus, subclinical illness or lameness.

USDA’s crop production and hay stocks reports will update 2016 hay and forage production totals, hay inventories and alfalfa new seeding acreage estimates on Jan. 12, 2017. For now, most hay growers and marketers can be happy 2016 is in their rear-view mirror.