When I was a youngster, I had a hot temper and was involved in more than my share of fights. There’s a story in my family about the time an older, bigger kid took a donut from me.

The production of high-quality proteins, either meat or milk, has never been under greater scrutiny. Social media has virtually unbounded people’s ability to share their voice with the world.

You’re busy milking cows, topping off forage inventories and making sure your employees aren’t spending too much time managing their fantasy football teams. With that in mind, Progressive Dairy looks at issues in the news impacting you and your dairy business.

Successful dairies have healthy cattle and consistent animal care. Dairy welfare audits aim to evaluate both and provide a structure for measuring performance of animal health and cattle care.

As long as a cow or calf is healthy and productive, she has good well-being, right?  No, not necessarily. 

Whether moving weaned calves into a new group or bringing springing heifers into the transition barn, many dairy producers have come to accept that a pen move will likely result in temporarily decreased feed intake, reduced gains or production, and the potential for a few sick or “off” animals.

Programs to address dairy cattle welfare come in different shapes and sizes. They range from those that serve niche markets are relatively small and aim to differentiate their product with an animal welfare label, to others like FARM, which represents over 95 percent of U.S. dairy farms.

Animal welfare in the milking parlor is one piece of the bigger picture of how improving cow comfort and removing barriers to production can increase milk production efficiency and profitability on your farm.

As an ethicist, I am interested in the respectful treatment of animals. Respectful treatment coincides with being mindful of the physical and mental states of animals throughout their entire lifespan in the system in which they are being reared.