I remember sitting across from her in her living room. Her angel-white hair shining in the sunlight streaming though the window.

Most dairy cows are now housed indoors for most, if not all, of their lives. Very few cows are moved to pasture or dirt lots during the dry period or when weather permits.

National survey data concerning dairy calf health and survival have shown little change in success rates over the last 10 to 15 years.

The cost of raising dairy heifer replacements represent 20 to 25 percent of the total costs of milk production. Keeping heifers healthy, developing consistent growth to attain target goals for frame size and bodyweight by 25 weeks of age without excessive body condition and reducing feed costs are all important factors for managing the heifer enterprise.

The dairy industry is very dynamic and has undergone tremendous change in the last few decades.

First milking colostrum is an important source of nutrients, non-specific immune factors and passively absorbed maternal antibodies (immunoglobulins or Ig), critical to promote growth and to protect the newborn calf against infectious disease in the first weeks and months of life.

I am in our nation’s capital for two days. I’ve written about the first day, just completed, and described the second day that will follow tomorrow.

When we started publishing 18 issues at the beginning of the year, some people asked me if the dairy industry produced enough news to merit publishing 50 percent more frequently than we had been for the last 20 years.

Students from Dalhart Elementary and Allyn Finch Intermediate schools were asked to enter a contest and draw pictures of “Where do you think cows live?” for the March 25, 2008 issue of the Progressive Dairyman magazine.

Get ready for the new and improved “black box,” as genomic selection is upon us!