Speaking at a pre-conference symposium sponsored by Prince Agri Products Inc. at the 25th annual Florida Ruminant Nutrition Symposium in Gainesville, Dr. Robert Collier, professor at the University of Arizona Agricultural Research Center, said heat-stressed dairy cows may experience increased levels of the stress hormone, cortisol, which can weaken their natural immune system and make them more susceptible to disease and infection.

The 4-State Dairy Nutrition and Management Conference will be held June 11-12 at the Grand River Center in Dubuque, Iowa. Progressive Dairyman staff asked presenters to give us a sneak peek into their presentations.

MarginSmart releases version 3.0, adding significant upgrades and features, including the ability to create a duplicate scenario farm to efficiently create an unlimited number of “what-if” scenarios. Users can then see the projected impact of each of those scenarios on their farm’s overall milk margins, cost of production, cash flow and/or profitability.

Joey Airoso has been appointed president of the Tulare County Farm Bureau.

Roger Erdman, chief engineer of dairy systems architecture, is retiring after 34 years with BouMatic. His last day was May 2. Erdman’s long career with the same company is one milestone of many from a business that’s been around since World War II. BouMatic is turning 75 this year and has chosen June Dairy Month to celebrate the event.

The University of Kentucky recently released a new fact sheet on fresh cow health management. The 15-page document includes photo tutorials, scoring systems and record sheets to aid in fresh cow handling from one to 21 days in milk.

Lameness in dairy cattle presents significant health, performance and welfare challenges and is often responsible for the decision to cull an animal from an operation. The American Association of Bovine Practitioners (AABP) recently developed guidelines to help veterinarians and their beef and dairy producer clients better manage lameness on their operations.