Labor challenges, low milk prices and tighter financial margins on many dairy operations are top of mind for producers heading into 2026, as well as growing concerns about labor availability, labor policy and staying competitive with surrounding non-agriculture industries.

Destructive rooting and wallowing are the obvious signs of a feral hog population moving into a farm, ranch or suburban neighborhood. Using their long, distinctive snouts, they dig up and turn over soil as they search for grubs, worms and vegetative material in pastures, corn crops and golf courses.

Over the coming weeks and months, ranches across the United States will gather their herds for the annual springtime tradition of branding. In addition to marking ownership of the year’s calf crop, cowboys will administer vaccines to young calves in an effort to curb a disease that is just as consistent as the spring ritual: pneumonia or bovine respiratory disease (BRD).

Several serious livestock diseases are caused by a group of bacteria called clostridia that can produce deadly toxins. Many cattlemen are familiar with blackleg, tetanus and enterotoxemia, but some may not be familiar with redwater.

Now, I realize it’s a pretty big ask to make me appear presentable, if not handsome, in public, but you’d be surprised how badly someone with a barber pole outside the door and a rudimentary knowledge of how scissors work can truly mess up a haircut.

Not only do we deal with stress in our lives, but we often create stressful situations for the animals we care for. Recognizing these events and taking measures to provide the animals with mechanisms to deal with stress can help them bounce back more quickly.

Wildfires undoubtedly are one of the most challenging natural disasters, and when they occur, they create immense hardship for our farming and ranching families and greater rural communities.

Last year, Dairy West, representing dairy producers in Idaho and Utah, was also approved to oversee dairy product education and promotion for producers in Washington and Oregon. The board-approved merger, a solution to address consolidation and industry needs, is an example of the ever-changing landscape of dairy product promotion for U.S. consumers.