Last month, I wrote about Hank Wagner and his passion for lifelong learning. The advice he shared was to read a little bit each day. I decided to take Hank’s advice and sought out a book from one of his favourite authors, John C. Maxwell.

In the last few years, a number of automatic teat dipping and spraying technologies have been introduced to the dairy industry. In the midst of the early adoption phase, Progressive Dairyman reached out to several manufacturers or marketers of this equipment to learn what is attracting the initial purchasers as well as what might be holding some interested parties back.

About 100 women arrived at Legacy Farms in Shell Lake, Wisconsin, for the Vita Plus Chick Day on Friday, Aug. 19. After the rain clouds parted, the day began with a short history of the farm.

One day late in June, one farm did what others may be too scared to have happen. It let 20 outside individuals conduct a walk-through of the dairy to make observations related to milk quality and to troubleshoot areas for improvement.

The owners of Gracemar Farms prefer to be hands-on operators. Even as the farm continues to grow in size, they maintain active roles in the farm’s daily tasks.

After fielding numerous complaints from the fieldman about the state of the milk house temperature wheel charts, Marge Pavlat from Casco, Wisconsin, decided it was time to find a solution.

Early adopters of automatic milking systems have primarily been farms with 240 cows or less. According to Jack Rodenburg of DairyLogix, there are “probably less than 60 dairies worldwide with more than 500 cows and traditional single-box robots.”

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, people will soon be making lists of the things they are thankful for. While it is good to take time once a year to recognize the many good things in our lives, I recently read an article that encourages a regular reflection of thanks, especially during times of challenge and change.

Running the dairy operation at Tibben Farms in Brinston, Ontario, is Ralph Tibben and his two sons, Mike and Mark. Mike manages the dairy herd while Mark does all of the cropping. Ralph does “a little bit of everything,” Mike says.