When making culling decisions on a dairy, four things should be considered: animal welfare, food safety, public perception and economics. With each individual situation, one of these items may slightly outweigh another, but all four are important before deciding to treat, cull from the herd or humanely euthanize an animal. Treatment and animal care protocols and records are crucial to make informed, responsible decisions.

Jan. 1, 2017, will bring about two big changes for the dairy industry. First, the Veterinary Feed Directive (VFD) will go into effect, requiring a VFD from a licensed veterinarian for all medically important antibiotics administered in feed.