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Who do dairies call when their management is in need of repair? The fix-it man. With a little ingenuity and some elbow grease, Pauly Paul turns downtrodden dairies into fine-tuned machines.
Paul’s business card says “Dairy Management Consultant.” However, he is not the kind that comes out in khaki pants for a day to tell you how to run your dairy from a boardroom table. Instead, he shows you.
When it comes to maintaining milk production during times of heat stress, we often look for the mechanical fix.
Fans, sprinklers, misters and other heat abatement systems can certainly be effective tools in minimizing the negative effects of hot temperatures and humid conditions, but the root of the problem is not always something adding another fan is going to solve. Sometimes, a few employee management tweaks are just what you need.
Two founding members of the Western Dairy Management Conference were honored in March with memorial lectures during the 12th biennial gathering of the conference in Reno, Nevada.
More than 1,600 researchers, educators, allied industry and dairy producers from across the country participated in the three-day educational event for large-herd dairies.
In a survey five years in the making, the FDA found that more than 99 percent of bulk tank milk samples tested were free of drug residues of concern. The report was released March 5, 2015.
Jack Banker has spent the past two years leading the Dairy Calf & Heifer Association the same way he runs his own heifer-raising operation: with passion and dedication.
For producers like Elizabeth Quinn, organizations like the Dairy Calf and Heifer Association (DCHA) are about improving the family operation and reconnecting with old friends. Others, like Santiago Gallo, use the information and connections gleaned from the group to build the first-ever custom heifer-raising operation in Mexico.
What is the cost of growing your own crops? Do you even care? You should care; feed costs are the largest cost of production for a dairy operation and play a key role in getting your company the best bottom line. Knowing your costs will help you decide which crops to grow, what quality of feed you need and how much is needed to match your feeding rations.
Making milk is a lot of work, which is why it is important to provide a comfortable environment for the dairy cow, especially as temperatures rise. In fact, research shows that when cows spends more time resting and ruminating, they are better able to maintain milk production during times of heat stress.
From conventional to robotic milking, we see really no significant differences in the freestall dimensions recommended for comfortable dairy cows. Over the past years, there have been changes in recommended stall length and width.
Numerous surveys have identified lower lameness prevalence in freestall facilities using deep, loose-bedded stall surfaces compared to mat-bedded or mattress-bedded facilities.
The difference does not appear to be due to any great difference in management between the two types of facilities impacting the rate of new lameness case development.
