Cow Health

Prioritizing reproductive efficiency during drought

lacey.quail@ndsu.edu — Fri, 17 Apr 2026 00:00:00 -0400

While environmental conditions are always fluctuating, cow-calf producers often plan to experience drought. As the saying goes: It’s better to have something and not need it than to need something and not have it. Drought preparation follows the same advice.

Don't let your pasture kill your profits: Grazing and feeding hazards

troy.walz@unl.edu — Fri, 13 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0400

Physical hazards – from swallowed wires to toxic plants – can be devastating, not only to the cow but in certain instances can cause late-term abortions or permanent birth defects in the calf crop.

Getting breeding heifers off to a healthy start to their career

russell.daly@sdstate.edu — Wed, 18 Feb 2026 00:00:00 -0500

Transitioning a heifer calf into a productive, long-term member of the breeding herd requires attention to many important factors, including nutrition, genetic and breeding decisions, and environmental management. Disease and health challenges, however, can undermine all that work.

Healthy heifers for longevity in the herd

abby@agproud.com — Fri, 04 Apr 2025 00:00:00 -0400

With herd size looking toward growth, heifer development will continue to be increasingly important. Management, parasite control and herd immunity are key components of raising healthy heifers.

Add body condition to thin cows after weaning

lacey.quail@ndsu.edu — Thu, 05 Sep 2024 00:00:01 -0400

After a busy season of breeding, pulling bulls, pregnancy diagnosis and weaning, we’d like to hope cows can turn on autopilot for a few months during the winter. However, that’s not the case; cows are always working for us, whether that means lactating, raising a calf, preparing to become pregnant or gestating next year’s calf. It’s our responsibility to make sure they are in the proper body condition to do so.

NCBA presentations share the importance of herd health as we build back the cow herd

abby@agproud.com — Thu, 29 Feb 2024 00:00:00 -0500

It’s no secret that the cow herd is at an all-time low. As producers start to build herds back, creating and maintaining a herd health plan will be immensely important.

The strategic management of anaplasmosis

Wed, 07 Feb 2024 00:00:00 -0500

Veterinarians are concerned that anaplasmosis, a noninfectious disease in cattle, is reemerging throughout the U.S. The initial cause is the transmission of bacteria from ticks and horseflies, especially during heavy tick and fly seasons.

Monensin improves efficiency, reduces feed intake during drought

Tue, 12 Dec 2023 00:00:00 -0500

The ionophore, monensin, is a class of antibiotics that can improve animal health, maintain body condition and increase feed efficiency, yet limit feed intake. This supplement may be beneficial during dry spells when ranchers scramble for additional feedstuffs.

Three contributing factors to bovine lameness

Tue, 05 Sep 2023 00:00:00 -0400

When lameness issues arise, there are many things we can do as producers, and veterinarians, to help these animals recover and get back to a high level of performance.

Thinking beyond VL5 for reproductive vaccines

Wed, 05 Apr 2023 15:39:20 -0400

As cow-calf producers and veterinarians evaluate options for pre-breeding vaccinations on heifers and cows, it is critical to think about the long-term effects of the disease pathogens that you are protecting against.

Preparing for the upcoming OTC antibiotic rules

austincvincent@gmail.com — Mon, 03 Apr 2023 00:00:00 -0400

This year it is important for ranchers to prepare for upcoming changes to the rules regarding purchasing medically important antibiotics.

Digital dermatitis or 'hairy heel wart' is not just a dairy issue

Wed, 08 Mar 2023 15:32:03 -0500

Digital dermatitis (DD) has been a problem in dairies for a long time and is becoming more prevalent in beef cattle, says Terry Engelken, a professor in the college of veterinary medicine at Iowa State University.

Retained placenta causes and treatments

Thu, 09 Feb 2023 00:00:00 -0500

Most cows shed the placenta within two to eight hours after calving, and when a cow has not shed the placenta for 24 hours or longer, it is considered retained.

Helping cattle beat the summer heat

abby@agproud.com — Wed, 20 Jul 2022 19:57:46 -0400

Dealing with the heat was in the news recently as many cattle producers and feedlots in the Great Plains states, specifically Kansas, lost cattle due to extreme heat in June.

2 ways to focus on proactive heat stress management

janelle.hulme@arrowquip.com — Mon, 18 Jul 2022 21:51:34 -0400

Extreme heat and humidity make for dangerous situations on cattle operations and can cause heat stress, cattle sickness and even death, in extreme cases. Heat management in your cattle operation should always remain a top concern.

Time to plan for spring herd health management

jrussell@zinpro.com — Mon, 24 Jan 2022 15:00:01 -0500

Winter is here, but it will not be long before the snow and ice melt away and pastures start to green up and become lush. Springtime can bring a host of challenges for beef cattle.

Reproductive diseases: Numerous threats and concerns

Mon, 25 Oct 2021 14:00:01 -0400

Reproductive diseases can damage a cattle operation’s profitability for months and even successive years.

Beefing up against bad feet

tyler.melroe@hubbardfeeds.com — Mon, 25 Oct 2021 14:00:01 -0400

It doesn’t matter what time of year it is, the potential for hoof injuries and infections exists in all types of environments. Producers’ “beef” with this is understandable.

5 not-so-fun facts about heat stress

kalyn.waters@ufl.edu — Fri, 23 Jul 2021 20:51:53 -0400

Heat costs the cattle industry billions of dollars annually. This loss comes from reductions in feed conversion, growth, milk production and reproduction. Extensive research has been done to mitigate the impacts of heat stress in the cattle industry.

Research review: Are some cows genetically susceptible to Johne’s disease?

Wed, 02 Jun 2021 21:33:30 -0400

A research project led by Nathalie Bissonnette at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) – Sherbrooke and Kapil Tahlan at Memorial University in Newfoundland is investigating genetic markers in dairy animals that may be associated to Johne’s disease susceptibility or resistance.

Dangers of bovine leukosis are heavy on a herd

jmlangdon@missouri.edu — Fri, 23 Oct 2020 14:00:01 -0400

Bovine leukosis is a very common enzootic infection in beef cattle, caused by the virus bovine leukemia virus, that can be transmitted between cattle by means of infected blood – mostly through infected needles, eartagging/tattoo equipment, dehorners, A.I. sleeves and some insects.

Animal welfare on the ranch

gaiken@ufl.edu — Mon, 24 Jun 2019 14:00:01 -0400

Cattle producers obviously want to make money, but they must deal with bad markets that can be right around the corner, and they continue to be a drought or flood away from a financial crisis. So what is it that keeps them going? It must be in their blood. Why would they be in the business if they did not take pride in their cattle by wanting their cows to maintain body condition, their calves to grow, and all of the cattle having a healthy appearance?

3 reasons to weigh your mature cow herd

kalyn.waters@ufl.edu — Wed, 22 May 2019 15:51:05 -0400

Recently, I had a conversation with a vegetable farmer from the Upper Midwest. Somehow, we got on the topic of scales, and I explained to him that many cattle producers don’t have a scale. The farmer looked at me in pure shock.

New options approved to treat BRD in first pull

Tue, 24 Jul 2018 14:00:01 -0400

The goal of any bovine respiratory disease (BRD) treatment plan is to reduce the number of cattle that go off feed and spend time in hospital pens.

Watch out for anaplasmosis this season

tarpoff@ksu.edu — Thu, 21 Sep 2017 20:33:08 -0400

Besides being a 12-letter word – and a hard one to spell at that – anaplasmosis is a disease the beef industry shouldn’t take lightly.

Photosensitization in cattle and risks to the skin

Fri, 24 Feb 2017 15:00:01 -0500

Photosensitization is a serious skin disease caused by reaction to certain plants eaten by cattle. Dermatitis (inflammation of the skin) develops when the animal is exposed to sunlight.

Producers battle herd health issues following south central Kansas wildfire

katielynn@ksu.edu — Thu, 14 Apr 2016 21:55:48 -0400

A long road ahead is probably the best way to describe the aftermath of the Anderson Creek wildfire in south central Kansas, particularly for cattle producers who have relied heavily on grazing as the main source of herd nutrition.