More than 300 hoof trimmers, experts and allied industry supporters teamed up to tackle some of the toughest issues facing dairy animal foot health during the 2016 Hoof Health Conference held in Atlanta, Georgia, Feb. 17-20.

Those interested in dairy cattle reproduction or mastitis have organizations dedicated to providing them with information on the latest technology, research and management protocols. However, anyone interested in animal welfare did not – until now.

You have all heard the expression “30,000-foot view.” Commentators often use this phrase when explaining something in a very broad sense. Recently, my wife and I decided to take our four daughters on their very first plane ride. The anticipation of the event was so thick in the days that led up to it that you could cut it with a knife.

Don’t miss out on the exciting lineup at this year’s Dairy Calf and Heifer Association (DCHA) conference being held April 11-13 in Madison, Wisconsin.

When T.J. McClure joined a start-up dairy heifer operation in the heart of beef cattle country during the devastating dairy down cycle of 2009, people thought he had lost his mind.

Heifers raised on pasture not only cost you less to raise, they are also healthier and give more milk, according to Jennifer Blazek, a dairy and livestock educator with the University of Wisconsin, and Adam Abel, an NRCS soil conservationist.

Editor’s note: This article is part one in a three-part series on evaluating your hygiene protocols. Visit 5 steps to perfect cleanliness to read part two and Are your calves secure? 7 ways to make it so to read part three. In this time of lower milk prices, every penny counts, and many producers have “hunkered down” and decided not to make any large investments this year.

There are no shortcuts when it comes to raising healthy dairy heifer calves. Strict hygiene of facilities and personnel is a must, as are:

Feeding water to nursery calves can often cause frustration for producers. Water intake by nursery calves is dynamic and has a degree of variability, making it a little difficult to judge how much water they will drink.

Thinking of feeding pasteurized waste milk to your calves? It can be an excellent choice, both nutritionally and economically. But on its own, pasteurized waste milk does not deliver the complete package necessary to feed all the calves in your herd to their greatest potential.