The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has published today the sixth report on the sales of veterinary antibiotics in Europe, highlighting a continuing downward trend between 2011 and 2014.

The report covers the period between 2011 and 2014. A total of 25 countries have provided data for the entire timespan.

A decrease of 2.4 per cent in total sales (mg/ population correction unit – PCU, PCU meaning the estimated weight of livestock and slaughtered animals) of antimicrobial veterinary products was observed between those years, despite a considerable increase in one of the European countries in which the most sales were registered due to an improvement in data collection system. In 24 of these countries that provided data for this four-year period a decrease of 12 per cent was noted.

The trends give reassurance that Member States continue to adopt a more responsible attitude towards the use of antibiotics in animals, EMA said.

Substantial antimicrobial usage declines in some countries means there is further potential for a decline in other countres, EMA added. Despite low overall decrease in sales of veterinary antimicrobial products, data demonstrate that actions taken in the fight against antimicrobial resistance by the Member States are making a difference.

Source: The Cattle Site

Water is essential to raising healthy calves and must be provided separate from milk from an early age.

Water plays essential roles in hydrating a calf and also in rumen development. Baby calves are on a liquid diet, so it may seem that offering water is not necessary, but that is not true. Offering water separate from milk will increase weight gains by increasing dry feed intake.

According to the National Dairy FARM program Animal Care Manual Version 3.0 (2016), best practice is to provide calves access to clean, fresh water from the first day of life. However, according to the National Dairy Health Monitoring System (USDA, 2014), the average age of heifers when first offered water in the United States is 17.3 days. The age when first offered water tends to go down as herd size increases (see table), however no category of herd size is (on average) offering water the first day of life.

Average age (days) of heifers when first offered water by operation size (NAHMS 2014)

One very important role that water plays is in rumen development. When a calf drinks water, the water goes into the rumen, as does the starter feed. Milk, fed from bottle or bucket, by-passes the rumen via esophageal groove, and is deposited into the abomasum of the calf. Water in the rumen provides a medium for ruminal bacteria to live in. To ferment grain and hay, rumen bacteria must live in water. Without water ruminal development is slowed.

In 1984, the Journal of Dairy Science published a study examining the growth, health and starter intake of calves fed free choice water, or no water throughout the milk feeding period of only 4 weeks. Prior to this study, it was not common to offer pre-weaned calves water. The researchers found that when no fresh water was offered, starter intake was 31 percent less and weight gain was reduced by 38 percent.

Offering fresh water is particularly important in situations where milk total solids are high (under 15 percent). High total solids in milk or milk replacer can create a situation where the osmotic balance in the calf is out of equilibrium and water is pulled out of cells resulting in diarrhea and dehydration, even in a calf drinking plenty of milk. Providing fresh water will allow the calf to self-adjust to some degree, lessening the severity of dehydration.

It is commonly thought that calves prefer warm water over cold water. This theory was verified in a Finnish study published in the Journal of Dairy Science in 2011. The study found that water consumption of pre-weaned calves was higher in calves offered warm water compared with those offered cold water. However, the increased water intake of the calves offered warm water did not equate to increased weight gains, although it is important to note that calves were raised nutritionally very different than typically seen in the United States. It is worth considering starting baby calves on warm water to encourage water consumption.

A final note on water for calves is to ensure the quality of the water. Michigan State University Extension recommends periodically testing water sources for bacteria and mineral content. In general, livestock guidelines provided with water analysis are applicable to calves with the exception of sodium. Calves are very sensitive to sodium and do not tolerate excess sodium well. Water that has passed through a water softener can have very high concentrations of sodium and should not be used to mix milk replacer or used as a source of drinking water unless it has been tested and verified to have low levels of sodium (≤ 100 ppm).

In addition, keep water buckets free from environmental contamination – dirt, feed, manure, algae. Researchers out of Utah State University found increased daily gains and weaning weights when water buckets were dumped and rinsed daily compared to weekly or every 14 days. It is helpful to have a divider between the water and starter buckets in the calf pen so that the calf cannot slop back and forth between buckets.

Water is essential to raising healthy calves. Ensure that it is clean, fresh, and always available beginning at an early age to get the best growth and health of your future herd.

Source: MSU Extension

Red clover is a legume that is well adapted to poorly drained soils and more tolerant of lower soil pH and fertility than alfalfa.

The yield potential of red clover is excellent and red clover varieties can have higher forage yields than alfalfa. Red clover is considered a short-lived legume, but new modern varieties are productive for three full seasons after establishment.

Red clover is most commonly grown for silage or pasture in Wisconsin. It is not commonly harvested and stored as dry-baled hay due to its slow drying rate. A number of research studies evaluating utilization of red clover by lactating dairy cows have recently been conducted at the University of Wisconsin, and the USDA-ARS, US Dairy Forage Research Center (DFRC). This Focus on Forage highlights findings of these research efforts.

Nutritional comparison of alfalfa and red clover for lactating dairy cows

From a nutritional standpoint, red clover and alfalfa are different types of forages that should not be considered equal. In a general sense the nutrient contents of alfalfa and red clover such as crude protein (CP; 16-22%), acid detergent fiber (ADF; 25-35%), neutral detergent fiber (NDF; 35- 45%) and mineral concentrations are similar. However, a number of major nutritional differences exist between red clover and alfalfa.

One of the big differences is that red clover contains polyphenol oxidases. These are enzymes that play a role in inhibiting plant proteases (protein degrading enzymes) and proteolysis (protein breakdown) in the silo. As a result of the action of polyphenol oxidases, red clover protein is not broken down during silage fermentation to the extent of alfalfa protein. Therefore, red clover has more undegradable protein (bypass protein = 25-35%) than alfalfa (15-25%).

In addition research has shown that when red clover and alfalfa are of similar fiber content red clover may be more digestible than alfalfa providing a more energy dense forage to the diets of lactating dairy cows.

Wisconsin studies on milk production potential of red clover

Although lactation performance has varied among trials, the analysis of seven experiments conducted at the University of Wisconsin and the US Dairy Forage Research Center comparing red clover with alfalfa shows that red clover inclusion in the diet reduced dry matter intake, and has a slight suppressing effect on milk production.

In some studies milk protein percentage was reduced when red clover replaced alfalfa in the diets of lactating dairy cows. However, when all trials were considered together there was no net effect on milk protein and fat percentages. In other experiments dry matter intake and milk production of lactating dairy cows was improved by replacing red clover with normal or brown midrib corn silage in the diet.

The magnitude of milk yield reduction in cows fed red clover as compared to other forages has been relatively small (1.0-3.0 lb/cow/day), and in some cases feed efficiency was improved.

A common observation in all lactating dairy cow experiments conducted in Wisconsin has been a reduction in feed intake when red clover was fed. The reasons for feed intake reductions in cows fed red clover based diets have not been determined. No studies have been conducted to determine the effect of feeding red clover to transition and very early lactation cows (< 60 days in milk) where the effects of reduced feed intake may be more severe.

Is red clover an inferior forage for lactating dairy cows?

No. In experiments red clover has supported very good levels of milk production, but research indicates that different diet formulation strategies may be needed when red clover forages are fed. For example, red clover has more bypass protein than alfalfa but in an experiment cows fed red clover and supplemented with a bypass protein supplement (fish meal) still had improved milk yields. In another experiment, cows fed red clover based diets containing 20.0% crude protein produced more milk than cows fed red clover based diets containing 17.5% protein.

So, despite laboratory evidence suggesting red clover may be a better protein source than alfalfa, cows fed red clover seem to respond with improved milk production to additional protein supplementation. In other experiments, feeding combinations of red clover/corn silage or red clover/brown midrib corn silage resulted in improvements in feed intake and milk production indicating that red clover/corn silage mixtures are well suited in a forage program for lactating dairy cows. In another study, feeding a combination of red clover and alfalfa that were grown and ensiled together reduced non-protein nitrogen in the silage and had positive effects on feed intake and milk production.

Do cows really have black loose manure when fed red clover?

Yes. In the past, this effect was considered to be of no important biological significance. While the reasons for black loose feces in cows fed red clover is still unknown the effect is now at least considered in the scheme of red clover utilization. For example, the effect may be related to feed intake suppression. However, a mechanism that explains the black feces and laxative effect in cows fed red clover is unavailable.

Tips for diet formulation when using red clover forages

Understanding that red clover is different than alfalfa is important when formulating diets for lactating dairy cows. Most importantly it should be remembered that feeding cows red clover based diets might limit feed intake as compared to alfalfa of similar quality. Below is a list of important diet formulation concepts to consider when feeding red clover forages.

• Harvest and feed red clover of very high quality. Harvest recommendations are similar to alfalfa. The best forage quality and milk yield potential occurs when red clover is harvested at the late bud or early bloom stages of maturity. Delayed harvest of red clover, while showing only minor declines in laboratory assessed forage quality, has resulted in dramatic declines in milk production. Delaying harvest of the first cutting red clover can also result in severe lodging and potential rapid decline in forage quality and milk yield potential.
• To enhance feed intake blend red clover with another forage such as alfalfa, conventional corn silage, or brown midrib corn silage.
• Conduct complete laboratory analyses to evaluate red clover prior to feeding. Use wet chemistry laboratory methods to evaluate red clover for ADF, NDF, NDF digestibility, and protein solubility. In addition, the bypass protein content of red clover should be analyzed using NIRS techniques.
• Use supplemental protein to maintain good milk yield when using red clover forages.
• Red clover can be high in energy (TDN, NEL), but feed intake may be limited. Therefore, for early lactation high producing dairy cows it is advisable to maximize dietary energy using strategies such as fat supplementation or high energy grains.

Conclusion

While recent investigations have found differences between red clover and alfalfa utilization in lactating dairy cows it should be remembered that differences mainly apply to the nutrition programs for early to mid lactation dairy cows. Red clover has been and is an excellent feed for many classes of livestock including dry dairy cows, dairy heifers, dairy beef, or beef cows.

Source:uwex.edu

An animal science professor says heat stressed dry cows can have long-term negative impacts on dairy herds.

Speaking with Brownfield at World Dairy Expo, Jeff Dahl with the University of Florida says heat stress can cause dramatic effects on a dry cow’s productivity in the following lactation, but the greatest impact is to her calf.  “When she’s heat stressed, that animal ends up being less likely to make it through her first year of life on the farm, less likely to become a productive cow on the farm and produces a lot less milk than the calf that’s dam was cooled during the dry period.”

He says heat stress starts in dairy animals at a humidity index of 68 degrees and above, and monitoring respiration rates is an easy way to determine if animals are heat stressed. Dahl says while the effects to the calf may be permanent, farmers can cool cows by using fans, soakers, shade and sand bedding.

Source: Brownfield

Providing forage and feed supplies with the proper nutritional value for cows is an important consideration for producers as winter approaches, said Dr Jason Banta, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service beef cattle specialist.

Testing hay for quality can provide information producers need to meet the nutritional requirements of cows and keep them in good condition through the winter, Dr Banta said.

By determining the hay supply’s crude protein content and total digestible nutrients, or TDN, which is the measurement of available energy in the forage, producers can determine whether supplemental feed will be necessary, Dr Banta said. Knowing what type and how much supplemental feed is needed can save producers money long term.

“Sometimes we find hay is better than we thought, and we can save some money on supplementation,” he said. “At other times we find the hay wasn’t as good as we wanted, so we do need to provide our cows with some more protein and energy supplements to make sure they are in the condition we want before calving so we optimise their pregnancy rates in the future.”

Nutritional needs vary for various animals in a herd, Dr Banta said. For instance, lactating cows require more protein and TDN than dry cows.

Tested hay should show a minimum of 11-11.5 per cent crude protein and 63 per cent TDN on a dry matter basis to maintain most lactating cows, he said.

Dr Banta said producers should test each cutting and pull samples from at least 10 per cent of the bales. Bales should be picked at random whether in the field or stacked. Producers should also sample 10 per cent of each load when buying hay.

He recommends using a probe that can be inserted into the hay bale to collect a good cross section of hay for sampling.

The cost of testing hay can range from $25-$60 per sample, but Dr Banta said it’s an investment that will help producers optimise their cows’ nutrition and future breeding success.

“It may sound like a lot of money, but if we can do a better job feeding cattle, you’re going to make that money back on calves in the long-run,” he said.

Source: The Cattle Site

The U.S. dairy industry is under extreme financial pressure. Producers are analyzing every aspect of the farm business during these tough times, and calves are an expensive area of the farm. Calves have high labor requirements and feed costs with little short-term income opportunities. It is important to remember that today’s heifer calves are the milking cows in two years. It may be easy to think that you can shave costs in this area without negative impact. However, if calves are short-changed in areas that will result in increased calf loss or illness, reduced farm profitability will extend for much longer.

In evaluating where to cut costs in calf raising, first start with the basics that pay big returns. Proper colostrum management is essential to raising healthy calves. Every calf should be hand-fed 10 percent of its body weight (1 gallon for typical Holstein calf) of high-quality, clean colostrum as soon as possible after birth. Michigan State University Extension recommends a second colostrum feeding within the first 24 hours of life. The second feeding of colostrum can be of lesser quality, however still free of bacterial contamination. Colostrum delivers antibodies from the cow. Calves that receive sufficient antibodies that are absorbed into their bloodstream are said to have “passive (acquired) immunity”. By getting calves enough passive immunity through colostrum feeding, sickness will be reduced and gains will be improved. This equates to less labor, feed and drug costs.

Equipment needs for calves can be costly. While you may have to delay replacement or purchases, evaluate what you have and make modifications, clean ups or rebuilds until margins improve. Some things are necessary to replace, like worn-out esophageal tube feeders, but maybe milk replacer mixers or hutches that were planned to be replaced can be cleaned up and repaired instead.

Evaluate your milk feeding program. If you are on a high milk program, do calves drink all of the milk you offer in the first 10 days? If not, there may be an opportunity to reduce milk waste. While we want to provide all that calves will drink, especially in the first days of life, we also need to be realistic. Are calves weaned on time for your farm goals? Heifers can be weaned as soon as they are consuming adequate starter to maintain their growth, typically two to four pounds per day. Current recommendations are to begin weaning heifers at six weeks of age. According to the most recent National Animal Health Monitoring System (USDA, 2014), average age at weaning for heifers was nine weeks, and 18.9 percent of operations are weaning heifers at 13 or more weeks of age. In many operations, there is likely an opportunity to wean heifers earlier, thus saving costs, without detriment to long-term growth.

Reducing starter waste can cut calf raising costs. Calves should be given a small handful of starter to begin with on day three to five of life. Too often, calf raisers will fill the bucket up with starter and wait for the calf to finish the entire bucket before offering more. Calf starter gets stale, heats and molds when left out, reducing intake. Feeding fresh starter daily, only the amount she will clean up, will promote starter intake, resulting in a calf that is ready to be weaned sooner. If it fits into your herd health plan, starter refusals can be fed to older heifers to reduce wastage.

Now is a good time to discuss your calf and heifer herd health plan with your veterinarian to ensure that all vaccines, treatment protocols and feed additives are up-to-date. It is important not to cut out items that are beneficial to the animals, but there may be opportunities to cut something that was added in response to a specific problem in the past, or as “extra insurance” when milk price was high.

Finally, there can be some income from calves. The majority of dairy producers sell bull calves at a very young age. Evaluate the arrangement you have to sell bulls, and see if there are opportunities to receive a premium. For example, if you currently haul calves to a livestock market, can you sell calves to an individual that would pay a premium and pick up calves themselves? Can you get a premium by showing proof to the buyer that bull calves receive adequate colostrum by blood sampling calves for serum IGG or total proteins? Evaluate if you are selling bulls at the optimal age. If you have housing, labor and excess waste milk, there may be an opportunity to raise some bull calves past weaning to optimize profits. Conversely, if on-farm resources are maxed out, selling extra heifer calves preweaning may optimize labor and housing.

Calves are a large expense to the dairy operation and, with current milk prices, it is wise to evaluate every aspect of calf raising to ensure costs are under control. Work with your MSU Extension personnel, nutritionists and veterinarians to fine-tune calf raising on your farm.

Source: MSU Ext

Minimizing stress during a cow’s transition period by managing the environment surrounding her is always top-of-mind. Beyond the external environment, it’s just as critical to understand how to support a fresh cow internally, through proper nutrition.

Understanding the specific nutritional needs of fresh cows gives us the opportunity to fully unlock potential milk production.

Fresh Cow Nutritional Needs

When formulating fresh cow rations, here are four insights into how you should be examining the diet differently:

1. Instead of crude protein, focus on the numbers that help manage the protein fractions in the ration. Understand the rate and extent of protein digestibility of what is available as this helps to predict how much metabolizable protein will be supplied to the fresh cow, and therefore available for milk and milk protein production.

2. Rumen function research has increased the understanding of neutral detergent fiber digestibility (NDFd) and indigestible NDF or uNDF. Forage samples should no longer be evaluated on just how much acid detergent fiber (ADF) and NDF they contain. Make sure you know the NDF digestibility at different time points and uNDF in order to more precisely evaluate the fiber’s value in the transition cow’s diet and understand the potential energy contribution of that feedstuff.

3. Starch as a percent of dry matter has been an important number in forage analysis for years. Instead of only looking at starch content, understand how degradable that starch is and how quickly it will ferment in the rumen. This is especially important for fresh cows because of their low dry matter intake. They need a certain amount of starch and fiber to manage glucose demand and stay healthy, so it is important to include more quickly degradable starches.

4. Cows need to have the right balance of the different types of fatty acids in their diet to manage energy balance and milk fat production. Research has shown that Omega 3 fatty acids fed to fresh cows can increase milk production.

By having a better understanding of the nutrition they need, we can get fresh cows off to a good start and optimize cow health and performance.

Source: Purina

One of the tricks of a great farm succession is the ability of the founder to let go of management, and ultimately ownership. There are many 60 something and 70 something farm dads on the bald prairie that just don’t know how to change from being the main manager to “the hired man.”  I know hired man is not the politically correct term,  I should say “employee”.  Employees make a wage, and I don’t know if Dad is getting a paycheque!

When you started farming for your dad you were labour, then you gained skill to manage, and then you took over the operation by buying shares, or land, or assets.

Now at age 67 or 72 you are wanting to step back,  and only work when you feel like it. You are again the labour component.

Do you take instruction well ?

Can you be self-motivating ?

Will you have a learner mindset, instead of a judger mindset if your son does things differently than you would ?

Do you have interests outside of your role on the farm ?

Are you paying attention to what your wife needs now ?

Some farmers don’t have a clue how to see something from another’s perspective. They are strong- minded talented entrepreneurs who are used to calling the shots. Now may be the time to do some thinking on the back deck about what you really want your life on the farm to look like. Are there plans for travel and recreation?

Do you have your personal finances in order ? Are you cherishing your marriage?

Do the far away grandkids get many chances to see you ?

Everyone wants to be loved and be needed. Lack of appreciation is a big stumbling block to successful farm transfers. Don’t wait until Father’s day to be appreciated.

Let the folks on your farm team  know the struggles and fears you are having about being useful in your old age.  If you are a “grumpy old man” they will know by your behaviour that something isn’t right, and you are obviously not happy.

By the way, you are not old, you are  “young-old” if you are still active. You really need to create fun things and purpose for the next 2 decades of your life.

Don’t put off having fun, as health may change, and you have the time and finances now to explore creative ventures.

Find some great causes to volunteer for. Mentor a younger farmer if you have sold your farm. Adopt grandkids who need grandparent influence in their lives. Ask your local town if they need a talented re-invented farmer to fix, maintain, and go for coffee.

Let your farming adult children make mistakes and grow the business the way they want to. You can be a source of wisdom and experience as you make sure you are perceived as helpful, and not interfering. Ask if you can partake in the family business meetings, so that you feel in the loop of communication.

Ask yourself what you want your legacy to be. I hope that when I am 65 I can be encouraging the next generation, help do yardwork, play with grandchildren, volunteer fully in my town, and enjoy some short term mission work with MEDA, Mennonite Economic Development Associates ( www.meda.org) where they use economic development to alleviate poverty.

Can you be the hired man again?

Test it out. Talk about what is working and what isn’t. Teach the next generation with courtesy and respect for their talents.

I would be deeply honoured to hear your story. We all need role models to look up to and encourage us to succeed in new, creative ways. Elderhood is not a highly respected role in our society, but one by one, we can change that perception.

All the best as you labour in love.

Source: Elaine Froese

Despite improvements in milk quality management, mastitis continues to challenge herd health and dairies’ profitability goals. Mastitis is the most costly disease in U.S. dairy herds, costing producers $155-224 for each mastitis case and a significant increase in the risk of culling.^1,2,3 It has been estimated to cost the dairy industry over $1 billion per year.

According to Gary Neubauer, DVM, senior manager, Dairy Technical Services, Zoetis, quality milk is strongly linked to both the health and genetics of cows. “When coupled with sound milk quality management, improving health and wellness traits with genetic selection offers producers a compelling opportunity to manage mastitis risk and improve profitability.”

Manage milk quality with mastitis wellness trait
To help producers manage and reduce risk for costly health events, CLARIFIDE^® Plus provides reliable assessments at an early age for six common dairy health challenges: mastitis, lameness, metritis, retained placenta, displaced abomasum and ketosis. The wellness trait for mastitis goes beyond the indirect measurement of somatic cell count (SCC) that’s available with CLARIFIDE testing through the Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding (CDCB) by offering a direct measurement for mastitis risk. The genetic correlation between mastitis and somatic cell score (SCS) is moderate, putting an even greater importance on directly selecting for mastitis reduction. This also helps explain why the industry has not made more progress on reducing mastitis with indirect genetic selection for SCS.

The genetic risk for mastitis is measured as a standardized transmitting ability (STA), and provides the disease risk of a Holstein female being diagnosed with clinical mastitis one or more times in a given lactation. When producers select for a high STA it will apply selection pressure for reduced risk of mastitis.

The most profitable way to apply a new trait to genetic selection is by identifying its economic value and incorporating it into a selection index. The mastitis trait is included within two indexes: Wellness Trait Index™ (WT$™) and Dairy Wellness Profit Index™ (DWP$™). Using the DWP$ index includes emphasis on mastitis without compromising performance and profitability gain from other traits, such as production. While Net Merit (NM$) may result in some genetic improvement in mastitis from indirect selection on SCS, DWP$ incorporates more emphasis on the direct trait of interest and less from indirect predictor traits. Therefore, DWP$ will approximately double the rate of genetic improvement as compared to NM$ for genetic risk of mastitis.⁴

Powerful, reliable predictions
CLARIFIDE Plus derives genetic predictions based on data collected from millions of health records within U.S. commercial herds, including over four million lactation records from herds where cases of mastitis were recorded.  U.S. producers can be confident CLARIFIDE Plus results will be relevant to their operations with an average reliability of 51% for heifers under two years of age.⁴

According to Dan Weigel, PhD, Director of Outcomes Research for Zoetis, the reliability level of the mastitis trait is pretty amazing on young CLARIFIDE Plus tested calves. “It is very comparable to CDCB core traits, such as heifer conception rate and daughter stillbirth rate, which have proved to be very useful predictions for producers to make decisions from.”

Source: Zoetis

This is National Farm Safety and Health Week. In light of the recent deaths caused by manure gases in central Wisconsin, John Shutske, PhD of the University of Wisconsin-Madison has issued five things farmers should know about deadly manure gases.

1. Manure gases are formed during the breakdown of manure and other organic wastes

When manure is stored or sits for any period of time, it is broken down by bacteria. When in a pit, lagoon, basin, or other storage structure, the anaerobic bacteria that break down manure and other organic material produce different gases. The gases that are the biggest safety concern are hydrogen sulfide, methane, carbon dioxide, and ammonia. Gas production is a normal and natural process. The amounts of gases produced are dependent on animal species, temperature, amount of water in the manure, pH, length of storage time, and type of handling system. These gases are similar to carbon dioxide found in soda. When you agitate, pump, or move the manure in any way, it releases gas, similar to a can of soda being shaken.

2. Manure gases can be deadly

We know quite a bit about these four main gases found in stored manure. These gases are also found in other industrial settings including manufacturing and refining. Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is especially deadly for people who work in close proximity to manure in a confined space or other area where there is no ventilation or air movement. The gas can build up to a highly toxic level quickly. Hydrogen sulfide is considered to be “immediately dangerous to life and health” when workers are exposed to levels of 100 parts per million (ppm) or more. The gas causes death at levels above 500 ppm. At levels of 1000 ppm or more, death can occur with a single breath. The gas paralyzes your diaphragm needed to inhale and exhale. This leads to rapid asphyxiation.

Methane is potentially an explosive gas. Both carbon dioxide and methane can also build up to high levels in enclosed areas, potentially causing death by displacing oxygen, leaving workers without the needed air to sustain life (at least 19.5% oxygen). Ammonia vapors are very irritating, even at low levels and can cause respiratory system and eye irritation or damage.

Ammonia has good “warning” properties. Most people find that working around ammonia is so unpleasant that they will quickly leave the area. Hydrogen sulfide has a strong rotten egg odor even at low levels of around 0.005 to 4 ppm. But, at higher levels, hydrogen sulfide affects the nerves that help you to smell things, and at high enough levels, you simply can no longer smell the highly toxic gas. Carbon dioxide and methane are both colorless and odorless, and without the correct safety monitor are impossible to detect.

3. Manure gases have killed many people in the past several decades

Since the early 1960s, nearly 150 people are known to have died in the U.S. because of manure-related gas incidents in confined spaces. We’ve seen two deaths in Wisconsin in the last month and a half. One was in a confined space (a liquid manure tanker) in Clark County and one was in a non-enclosed area in Portage County adjacent to manure being agitated within a football-field sized storage basin.

Of those manure-related fatality cases across the U.S. documented in recent reports over several decades, about one-half occurred on dairy operations. Almost 25% involved a young person under the age of 16. The most common activity (34%) at the time a person died was conducting repairs or maintenance activities on manure handling equipment followed by actions associated with trying to rescue another person entrapped or overcome in a manure storage space (22%).

4. Working around manure pits, basins, and other structures requires specific safety procedures and protocols

Because of the complexity and hazards found in working with manure handling and storage equipment, especially within confined spaces, we strongly recommend that repair, maintenance, fixing plugged systems, etc. be done from a safe location outside of the confined space. When that is NOT possible, the work must be done by persons with the right qualifications, technical training, and safety equipment to do the job safely.

Safe confined space entry where manure gases or oxygen deficiency is known to be present or has the potential to be present (all manure storage structures) requires:

· Continuous air monitoring and testing equipment (a calibrated four-gas electronic monitor is recommended).

· Ventilation fans, blowers, ducting, etc. to dilute or remove toxic gases and increase oxygen levels to a measured safe level.

· Personal “retrieval” equipment (harness, cables, winch systems, etc.).

· Respiratory protection equipment (a supplied-air respirator is required such as a self-contained breathing apparatus for oxygen levels below 19.5% or gas levels above those which are “immediately dangerous to life and health” or IDLH. The IDLH level for hydrogen sulfide is 100 ppm).

In an outdoor, non-enclosed situation, based on the recent event in Amherst, Wisconsin (Portage County) we know that the potential for high risk situations exist even though this was not a confined space. It is imperative that any pumping/agitation work in the proximity of a manure storage facility occur with some wind present. At this time, we do not have enough information to provide a specific recommendation on minimum wind speed for those working adjacent (within 0 to 50 feet) to a non-enclosed structure such as this basin during agitation and pumping. This value is likely dependent on temperature, wind direction, humidity, presence of other nearby structures/obstructions, and other conditions. But it is clear that risk increases as wind speed decreases. To reduce risk in a non-enclosed situation, we are studying the use of a less expensive hydrogen sulfide monitor (a single gas detector with an alarm) which reduces the cost of equipment to 1/4th the cost of a four-gas unit. The webinar cited in the next section provides further information on H2S detection equipment.

5. Many resources exist to prevent manure-related fatalities and other events

Since farm safety and health specialists have been dealing with manure-related gases for many years, numerous resources exist and should be considered as farmers, nutrient/manure applicators, pumpers, haulers, etc. develop procedures and protocols for working around/near these potentially hazardous environments.

Source: Wisconsin Ag Connection

Cows are suffering and dying from bovine anaemia because farmers are being denied access to a drug which has been approved in at least 20 countries, dairy owners and a veterinary doctor in eastern Victoria say.

They say cow welfare is being compromised by government and industry’s overarching focus on protecting Australia’s lucrative livestock trade.

WARNING: This story contains images of dead animals that readers may find distressing

Dairy farmer Brett Keily lost 25 cows and as many calves within six weeks of moving onto his dairy farm near Bairnsdale, in East Gippsland.

“You wake up in the morning and go outside and wonder what kind of a nightmare you’re walking into every day,” he said.

“All I can liken it to is like watching someone dying of cancer — they fade away, get weak, can’t get up, don’t eat or drink and that’s the end of them.

“It’s just plain cruel watching them go down with this disease and knowing there’s something available to treat them with we are not allowed to have.”
It is view expressed to the ABC by four other farmers.

Hobby farmer Jill Kent has been working around the clock to keep her pregnant cow, Hope, alive.

“It’s been a long haul with her, carrying feed and water to her every day and trying to put an old rug over her at night-time and just looking after her and hoping she gets better,” she said.

“[It’s] really upsetting if I know something that could cure her and it’s not available, that’s heartbreaking.”

What is bovine anaemia?

Bovine anaemia is caused by a tick-borne parasite which destroys red blood cells and can leave a cow pale, panting, and unable to stand or fight off secondary infections.

The parasite — in the Theileria orientalis group — can infect both dairy and beef cattle, and usually flares when animals are under stress, such as when pregnant or being moved.

Virulent strains of the parasite are now found in all mainland states.

Separate Australian Meat and Livestock reports this year classed bovine anaemia as an “emerging threat” and estimated it had cost the beef and dairy industries $20 million per annum since 2006.

Brett Keily, who as a Murray Goulburn supplier has taken a huge cut in his milk payments, estimated the disease had cost him between $75,000 and $100,000 this year.

“Certainly dairy farmers have been doing it very tough recently and Theileria is something they don’t need to deal with on top of already low milk prices,” Bairnsdale veterinarian Jade Hammer said.

Is there a treatment for cows?

A single injection of the drug buparvaquone, if administered early in a cow’s infection, can greatly reduce mortality rates, Dr Hammer said.

He said the drug had been registered in about 20 countries but not Australia, even though the Queensland Government’s Tick Fever Centre recommended five years ago that tightly controlled use of buparvaquone be pursued “as a matter of urgency”.

The drug was used successfully in New Zealand in 2013 to stem an outbreak of bovine anaemia across the North Island, according to veterinarian Mark Hosking, who was instrumental in getting the NZ Government to allow the medicine’s importation.

“We treated ourselves, our practice, about 600 to 700 (cows),” Dr Hosking said.

“I would say three quarters of those survived.”

Drug ‘threat to Australia’s meat exports’

As the drug can stay in a cow’s system for up to four months, New Zealand authorities required that milk and meat from treated cows not enter the food chain for long periods — 43 days for milk, and a year-and-a-half for meat.

NZ’s Ministry of Primary Industries has told the ABC that use of the drug was tightly controlled and that none of its export markets expressed concern about use of the drug.

“There’s lots of benefits but some real challenges around withholding (times) and it comes down to how much animal welfare is an issue in an outbreak, whether it’s wanted,” Dr Hosking said.

But the risk to Australia’s lucrative meat and livestock trade outweighs the drug’s benefits, according to Federal Agriculture Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce.

Mr Joyce wrote in December to a concerned dairy farmer who would like to see the drug registered:

“As major overseas markets have not established a Maximum Residue Level (MRL), detection of buparvaquone … in our exports would be regarded as a violation and have serious adverse consequences for the Australian cattle industry.”

Mr Joyce said controlling buparvaquone’s use would require “a stringent and onerous regulatory framework” which “is not a preferred option”.

Outbreak caused deaths among Australian cows in Vietnam

But the ABC can reveal that Australian cattle exports have already been adversely affected — by untreated bovine anaemia.

The ABC has obtained an email sent in March this year to Narelle Clegg, the assistant secretary of the live animal exports branch of the Agriculture Department.

It said that pregnant Australian dairy cows sent to Vietnam suffered abortions or died after arrival and that the vet on the ground recognised it as an outbreak of theileriosis.

There were “lots” of animals affected, the email said.

Cattle in the consignment were then treated with a single-dose medication from Uganda and India — two countries which manufacture buparvaquone — which brought the issue “under control”.

The Cattle Council of Australia and Dairy Australia believe the restrictions on buparvaquone would make it unworkable and that the drug residues would pose too much of a risk to exports.

“Trade is one aspect but many farmers would happily abide by extremely long withhold periods if it meant saving a cow and many aren’t involved in the export industry,” Dr Hammer said.

“Many farmers have approached me to try and have it registered.”

Farmer Brett Keily said he would not hesitate to use buparvaquone if that was what the doctor ordered.

“A cow dead in the paddock is worth nothing even if I hold on to it for 18 months to on-sell, it’s a much better option than watching it die,” he said.

Source: ABC

ANALYSIS – Dr Pamela Ruegg, extension milk quality veterinarian for the University of Wisconsin-Madison, speaks about new concepts in the use of dry cow therapy, especially the concept of selective dry cow therapy

“When we’re using selective dry cow therapy programmes, we want to use antibiotics to treat quarters with known intra-mammary infections, so really the difficult part of implementing a selective dry cow therapy programme is to find the appropriate method to identify cows that have active infections and will benefit from the use of antibiotics in those quarters,” said Dr Ruegg.

There are three methods to consider:

1. Review the history of the cow: Has she had previous cases of clinical mastitis, and what is her monthly somatic cell count history look like?
2. Perform individual quarter tests right before dry off, such as the use of a California Mastitis Test or the use of an individual quarter somatic cell count test.
3. Try to identify active intramammary infections by either collecting a milk sample for culture or for the use of a molecular test such as PCR testing.

Try to identify active intramammary infections by either collecting a milk sample for culture or for the use of a molecular test such as PCR testing.

“None of these methods are perfect but that doesn’t mean that some herds can’t successfully use these to use a selective dry cow therapy programme,” she said. “What you have to decide on your own individual herd is what your level of risk management is and is your herd really an appropriate herd to be able to use one of these methods and reduce the amount of antibiotics you use, or would your herd benefit more from continuing to use blanket dry cow therapy.”

Research on Selective Dry Cow Therapy

The purpose of the study was to compare the use of blanket dry cow therapy in every quarter of every cow to selective dry cow therapy (no dry cow therapy in low somatic cell count (SCC), low risk cows). Four herds were used in Ohio. The study evaluated each cow based on their somatic cell count and clinical mastitis history in the last 90 days, and only cows with low SCC were enrolled in this randomised clinical trial with half receiving blanket dry cow therapy and half of did not.

The study results showed:

• No overall effect on milk yield
• SCC was 16 per cent greater in those low SCC quarters that did not get dry cow therapy
• There were big differences between herds in the effect of reducing the amount of dry cow therapy that was used. In some herds, the use of dry cow therapy in every quarter of every cow was extremely beneficial, while in other herds, cows did fine with the use of selective therapy. The take-home message from this study is, not all herds should use selective dry cow therapy programme.

The question to think about is, which herd are you?

Another study performed in Holland with almost 1,700 cows from 97 randomly selected Dutch herds. Within those 97 herds, the researchers looked at the last DHIA SCC of each cow, and cows that had low SCC were enrolled in the study.

In enrolled cows, two-quarters received dry cow therapy and two-quarters did not, so this is a quarter level study that reduced antibiotic usage by about 85 per cent.

“The conclusion of the study was that the risk of clinical mastitis was actually increased in the quarters that did not get dry cow therapy and the SCC was slightly increased in quarters that did not get dry cow therapy. We can conclude that not every herd is appropriate for this type of programme. In some herds, every quarter of every cow should get dry cow therapy. Randomly applied, this type of programme doesn’t seem to be effective,” said Dr Ruegg.

Another study was conducted in Canada, and they enrolled about 16 herds and about 700 cows. They had very rigorous selection criteria both for the herds and for the cows. All enrolled herds had to have bulk tank cell count of less than 250,000, and the cows had very serious eligibility criteria:

• Low SCC in the last 90 days of lactation
• No clinical mastitis in the last 90 days of lactation
• CMT test was performed on all of the cows at dry off

Half of the screened cows met their eligibility criteria to fall into the study to evaluate selective dry cow therapy and the other half of the cows received blanket dry cow therapy and a teat sealant to every quarter of every cow.

In this particular study, they evaluated a number of outcomes:

• Intramammary infections at calving
• Clinical mastitis in the next lactation
• SCC for the first 180 days of lactation
• Milk yield in the first 180 days of lactation

“They had outstanding results using a selective dry cow therapy programme with absolutely, no negative impact on either milk quality or milk yield,” said Dr Ruegg.

Based on the research, the use of selective dry cow therapy randomly to herds decreases antibiotic usage effectively but it also increases mastitis. Reducing antibiotic usage at the end of lactation isn’t appropriate for every herd.

“Selective dry cow therapy, when carefully applied in selected herds, clearly can decrease antibiotic usage without increasing mastitis, without decreasing milk quality and for some herds, it can be quite an appropriate programme,” she said.

Source: The Cattle Site

UK – The UK’s government has pledged to continue the fight against antimicrobial resistance to drugs by working together with other countries to create a global strategy to tackle the problem and investing in research to find new antibiotic substances.

The government said it would uphold the recommendations of the review into the problem by Lord Jim O’Neill, released in May 2016.

Use of antibiotics in agriculture is often blamed for the development of resistance, and the government’s response to Lord O’Neill’s report said targets would be set for reduction in antibiotics use across animal agriculture, building on the success of the poultry industry, which reduced antibiotics use by 44 per cent between 2012 and 2015.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has committed to a reduction in antibiotic use in livestock and fish farmed for food to a multispecies average of 50mg/kg by 2018 (down from the most recent 2014 figure of 62mg/kg). Sector-specific targets will also be set by 2017.

The government’s stance was broadly welcomed by groups involved with agriculture and its use of antibiotics. The British Veterinary Association said that while it opposed arbitrary target-setting as it could impact on vets’ ability to treat animals where necessary, it accepts the use of evidence-based targets as a means to reduce resistance. The BVA added it would be working with the government to help set the sector-specific targets.

Meanwhile, John FitzGerald, secretary general of the Responsible Use of Medicines in Agriculture (RUMA) alliance, commented: “The UK farming industry is being asked to play its part, in reducing antibiotic use by around 19 per cent by 2018 based on sales recorded by the Veterinary Medicines Directorate in 2014.

“This will be testing, but we are confident and determined that the industry can rise to the challenge.”

The government’s commitment came ahead of a special UN meeting on antimicrobial resistance, due to begin on Wednesday.

Source: The Cattle Site

UK – Plans to engage with younger dairy farmers have been unveiled by the National Farmers Union NFU with the launch of its new Dairy Development Group.

Applications for the group, which will look to improve their understanding of how the industry works and how they can get the most from it, opened last week.

NFU national dairy board vice chairman Tom Rawson said: “It is the perfect way of introducing the next generation of dairy farmers to further their knowledge of both the NFU and the sector.

“The new NFU Dairy Development Group is a fantastic opportunity for enthusiastic, dynamic and forward thinking younger dairy farmers to get involved with the NFU’s policy work and find out about core lobbying and political activity,” said Mr Rawson.

“Having input from the next generation of farmers is vital if we are to be effective – many of the decisions dairy farmers make today will have a major impact on our industry for years to come.

“I hope that any ideas generated within the new group will be things they can take back to their regions for further discussion and action.”

The one-year programme will offer an exclusive insight into the supply chain and dairy industry organisations. It also offers the opportunity to learn new skills to develop a dairy business.

The application window will open from September 14 for one month. Events will run from November 2016 to April 2017.

Source: The Cattle Site

Switching from old corn silage to freshly cut, or recently fermented, corn silage can be the cause of a “fall slump” for many dairies. This is a time when production may drop, as often seen across the country.

“In the fall, dairy producers often see decreases in milk production, or the inability to reach production targets, when switching from old silage to the new crop,” says Bob Charley, Ph.D., Forage Products Manager, Lallemand Animal Nutrition. “This can be accompanied by changes like decreased feed intake or loose manure. Dairy producers simply can’t afford to see reduced health and performance because of feed changes – and they shouldn’t have to.”

The first step in avoiding a fall slump is to understand the potential causes. First, fresh silage may have lower starch digestibility. Especially when harvested above 35 percent dry matter (DM) the starch in corn starts to become less digestible. In addition, there can be normal variances in DM, kernel processing score and nutrient content from one silo to the next, and from one year to the next.

Plus, early fed silages or green chop crops are not “finished products”. For example, they can contain high levels of readily fermentable carbohydrates, which can contribute to Sub Acute Ruminal Acidosis (SARA). SARA is a major reason why producers see changes in performance during this time.

To avoid a fall production slump, Dr. Charley recommends:
· Allowing silage to ensile for at least four months before feeding. As silage spends additional weeks in storage, the starch becomes more digestible;
· Changing silos gradually over a two- to four-week period, increasing the new season material by c. 25% each week;
· Testing new forages for DM, kernel processing score and nutrient content and adjusting the ration as necessary;
· Using a research-proven silage inoculant containing enzymes to help break down plant fiber, which aids in digestibility;
· Use a research-proven active dry yeast (ADY) probiotic that can help optimize rumen function and reduce the risk of dysfunction.

These steps are focused on easing the transition and giving the ensiling process time to produce a less changing feed. One of the key steps is applying a silage inoculant at ensiling, which can help prevent production drops by maintaining feed quality. Inoculants can also help improve stability of the silage. For instance, Lactobacillus buchneri 40788, applied at a minimum of 400,000 colony-forming units (CFU) per gram of silage or 600,000 CFU per gram of high-moisture corn (HMC), is the only inoculant bacteria strain reviewed by the FDA and allowed to claim improved aerobic stability.

“The high dose rate L. buchneri 40788 technology prevents spoilage yeast growth, keeping the silage stable, preventing mold growth and potentially reducing mycotoxin risks,” Dr. Charley said. “Feeding unstable silage can result in decreased production during any time of the year.”

Another action to help prevent health changes during the fall includes adding an active dry yeast (ADY) probiotic with the strain Saccharomyces cerevisiae CNCM I-1077, which can help increase pH and fiber digestibility in the rumen. Feed with high levels of fermentable sugars can lower pH levels in the rumen and impair the animal’s ability to use the ration efficiently.

“Most producers can’t risk their herd’s production,” Dr. Charley notes. “Fortunately, there are simple – and cost-effective – solutions to keeping production steady through the fall.”

Source: Growing Georgia

With fresh cows being one of the more fragile and immunosuppressed groups of cattle on your dairy, pen moves shouldn’t be taken lightly. Researchers from the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine list reducing pen moves among the five keys to preventing poor fresh cow transition.¹

Hospital pens worsen the situation. Moving fresh cows into a hospital pen with a group of sick cows carries serious risk. Threats fresh cows may encounter include:

• Metritis: Costs per head can amount up to $354 in losses of production and performance.²
• Mastitis: Contagious mastitis pathogens can easily be passed via equipment or milkers’ hands from sick cows to fresh herdmates. Outbreaks can cost up to $200 per case.³
• Salmonella: Hospital cows are 11 times more likely to contract Salmonella from carriers shedding organisms in the pen.⁴

Count the potential costs of pen moves on your dairy with this worksheet. In the meantime, continue to employ best management practices, such as keeping complete and accurate health records and monitoring disease incidents and treatments. Additionally, work with your veterinarian or Zoetis representative to understand pen move risks and discuss treatment options that minimize the pen moves.

Source: Zoetis

Financial losses from hoof disease far exceed the costs of prevention. Decreased milk production, weight loss, premature death and culling, decreased reproductive performance and treatment expenses are the most recognized financial costs of lameness.¹ When considering cost of treatment, lower milk production, earlier culling and mortality, your dairy could be out up to $469 per clinical case of lameness.^2,3 According to the National Animal Health Monitoring System, 12.5% of cows on dairy operations were affected by lameness at least once in lactation.⁴ If 12.5% of your cows experienced lameness, what would that mean for your bottom line?

Prevention is key when it comes to minimizing lameness:

• Hoof trimming at least once per lactation provides hoof soundness and can help uncover potential hoof problems, such as ulcers.
• Early detection of disease is key. Incentivize your cow pushers and milkers to identify lame cows early and to take action for diagnosis and treatment.
• Proper nutrition management can help lower the number of foot problems in the dairy herd. Changes in feeding can impact hoof health. Laminitis has many contributing factors, but a good nutrition program will go a long way in reducing the impact of laminitis.

Reduce risk of lameness with help from CLARIFIDE^® Plus:CLARIFIDE Plus offers a new way to help reduce lameness rates by allowing you to make better genetic selection and breeding decisions with genomic data for lameness. Genetic improvement for lameness reduction is an important part of an overall management strategy and offers a way to improve your herd’s genetic ability to withstand the physical demands of lactation.

Effective treatment:
Foot rot is a leading cause of lameness. In cases of foot rot, prompt treatment is critical. A single case on your dairy can cost up to $446 per cow, increasing the risk of culling, especially during the first half of lactation.⁵ EXCEDE^® (ceftiofur crystalline free acid) Sterile Suspension offers extended therapy in a single dose, making treatment convenient. EXCEDE can help reduce labor costs, hospital pen exposure and performance losses because cows remain in the milking string. EXCENEL^® RTU EZ (ceftiofur hydrochloride) Sterile Suspension also is a powerful choice for treatment of foot rot.⁶ Both products, when used according to label directions, have no milk discard, meaning you won’t have to worry about milk residues or moving cows from their pens and disrupting the social order.

The Dairyland Initiative, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine, examines the impact of the housing environment on dairy cattle well-being. Maintaining a clean and dry foot environment and regular footbaths create an effective hoof management protocol. The objectives of footbathing are to remove erosive material from the hoof and to disinfect the skin above the hooves.

Best management practices endorsed by The Dairyland Initiative and other hoof experts for successful footbaths are:

• Placing footbaths in a well-lit and ventilated area
• Using footbaths that are easy to clean and refill
• Situating footbaths in lanes so they don’t disrupt cow flow, especially out of the parlor
• Setting up footbaths on nonslip surfaces
• Keeping the footbath free of debris and at an effective pH level

Work closely with your veterinarian to create hoof care programs to help keep the hooves on your dairy healthy and strong. Learn more tips for healthy hooves at DairyWellness.com/healthy-hooves or by contacting your local Zoetis representative. Learn more about CLARIFIDE Plus and the ability to help genetically reduce lameness at CLARIFIDEPlus.com.

Source: Zoetis

Cows that have a compromised or poorly functioning immune system are more prone to illness in early lactation than at any other time in the production cycle, with immunity dipping by up to 40% during the transition period.

The cost of these issues can be staggering, with a 100-cow herd likely to see annual costs in excess of £11,000 in dealing with mastitis, metritis and retained placentas as a direct result of immune system suppression.

In the current challenging dairy climate, these are costs few farms can afford to carry.

What is cow immunity and why is it challenged at this stage of production?

Immunity is essentially a cow’s ability to fend off infections and disease challenges. Cows have a broad non-specific “innate” immunity, which can be enhanced with the help of an “acquired” immune response.

This develops after previous exposure to disease or following a proactive vaccination programme.

The challenge to immunity around the transition period is an entirely natural and common phenomenon, with a cow’s neutrophil (white blood cell) and lymphocyte (element of the blood specifically linked to the immune system) function decreasing by 25-40%.

This greatly increases the risk of milk fever, retained cleansings, metritis, LDAs, ketosis and mastitis – all of which are commonly seen in early lactation.

A cow’s immune system doesn’t function as well as it should because the cow has to undergo changes to its physiology and immune function to accommodate the developing placenta and foetus.

Ben Brearley is a vet with the Livestock Partnership

As a result, transition cows are both more likely to become infected by pathogenic organisms and to suffer more severe disease than at any other stage in the production cycle.

Allied to this natural immune suppression is the effect of negative energy balance in the pre- and post-calving period and the difficulty of getting nutrition and management spot on in this tricky stage.

Steps to improving cow immunity

The reasons for immune suppression in this period are complex and still poorly understood and undoubtedly we will learn more about it in the coming years – but what can farmers do in the meantime?

1 Transition cow health issues rarely occur in isolation and higher risks of one problem will increase the chances of something else developing too.

For example, cows with milk fever are more likely to develop retained cleansings, metritis, endometritis and mastitis, and those with negative energy balance are also at higher risk of left displaced abomasums, retained cleansings, metritis and endometritis.

These common problems are often different ways of the cow trying to tell you the same thing – her immunity is compromised.

It is, therefore, vital that, as farmers and vets, we do all we can to support the immune system function around calving. Boosting the immune system at calving through good nutrition and management has long been a core part of transition cow management.

2 Improving energy balance and preventing ketosis are also central to maximising immune function at calving.

Recent studies have proved that cows suffering one of the common post-calving problems were likely to have had poor energy status before calving. This means she was already a high-risk cow before she even calved.

3 Use your disease recording with your vet and nutritionist to help you identify whether or not your cows’ immune status is being compromised by transition health.

The benefits of improving immunity

Improving the immune system will result in fewer cases of severe infections requiring antibiotic therapy and a quicker return to positive energy balance and increased fertility.

This will allow cows to return to service quicker, a key part of profitable dairy farming.

Importantly, while transition nutrition management is a key part of helping cows maintain a healthy immune system, it is also central to maximising milk production early in lactation.

There are no simple answers to overcoming immune suppression at calving.

It is a challenge every cow faces and one that is best countered with careful planning, monitoring of performance and teamwork from vet, nutritionist and farmer.

Source: Farmers Weekly

Jersey calves are gaining popularity across dairy and calf raising operations in many parts of the country. Similar to all calves, the first 60 days of a Jersey’s life is critical to the future of their performance. But Jerseys have the following unique characteristics that raisers should keep in mind to help optimize their lifetime potential.

1. Jerseys are born small, with little body fat

At birth, ensure Jerseys are in a warm environment. In cool and cold weather, place calves in a dry, heated environment that is free from drafts before moving them to a hutch. Also, use calf jackets to help keep them warm.

Colostrum with adequate antibodies should be harvested clean within two hours of parturition. Feed three quarts of warm colostrum within two hours after birth, followed by a second feeding six to eight hours later. This will help ensure passive transfer of antibodies. An appropriate feeding rate for Jerseys is 10% of body weight or three to four quarts per feeding.

Prime the immune system with an intranasal vaccine like INFORCE^TM 3.

Vaccinate dams to help bolster colostrum and improve immunity.

2. Jerseys need more fat in their diet

Jerseys have a higher maintenance energy requirement than other breeds. A high content of protein and fat in the milk or milk replacer, such as 28% protein, 25% fat milk replacer, can help meet these nutritional requirements to closely mimic whole milk. This type of feed content may cause watery or ‘loose’ manure for Jersey calves, although they are still healthy. Energy requirements increase significantly in cold weather. Therefore, changes in temperature may require you to modify their diet also.

3. Jerseys transition slower

Wean Jerseys slowly to encourage them to eat more calf starter. Cut milk volume in half and reduce it slowly from there.

It’s also important to ensure Jerseys have adequate vaccination coverage during stressful times. Producers should work with their calf raiser and veterinarian to agree on a vaccination program that covers each animal from the day she is born until she makes it to the fresh pen.

Also, consider choosing which heifers you want to raise and which ones you may want to sell by genomic testing with CLARIFIDE^®. This test helps identify which heifers have the greatest genetic potential, allowing you to make better heifer culling decisions while they’re young.

4. Jerseys can be bred to freshen earlier in life

Jerseys mature and reach puberty sooner than Holsteins. With an adequate nutrition program, Jerseys should be reaching maturity by 10 to 11 months of age. Consider administering a dose of prostaglandin, such as LUTALYSE^®Injection (dinoprost injection) or LUTALYSE^® HighCon Injection (dinoprost tromethamine injection), on the day of movement into a breeding pen. Manage feed intakes so their body condition score at breeding is approximately 2.5 to 3.0.

5. Jerseys need more calcium at calving

Milk fever, hypocalcemia and subclinical hypocalcemia, can be a common challenge for Jersey heifers if they’re not managed carefully. They need to be on a pre-fresh diet for at least 14 to 21 days. Manage minerals in the pre-fresh diet. Add anionic salts to heifer diets. After they have been on the diet for one week, monitor their urine pH levels.

Jerseys are a unique breed to work with. If you focus on feeding and developing them right into healthy animals during the first 60 days, you’ll set a foundation of lifetime potential for them. Work with your Zoetis representative and veterinarian to develop a successful program for Jerseys.

Source: Zoetis

The Dairy Farmer, Gianantonio Locatelli climbed up the steel ladder and peered over the brim of a large corrugated vat, about the size of a very deep above-ground swimming pool. “It’s full!” he exclaimed, with warbling joy. “It’s beautiful!”

The vat was full of liquid cow dung. I handed my phone to Locatelli’s friend, the architect Luca Cipelletti, and climbed the ladder to the top, disembarking on a viewing dock. Beneath my feet the manure bubbled and gurgled, forming foamy peaks and crests. It was a topographical map, a primordial stew. A rich and beautiful shade of brown.

The day was sunny, with a gentle wind. T-shirt weather. From the top of the poop vat we had a view of the entire Castelbosco farm, one of eight farms run by Locatelli in the province of Piacenza, about an hour south of Milan. We could see the barns, home to some 1,500 dairy cows that produce milk for Grana Padano cheese. Their roofs and eaves were painted in cheerful geometric patterns by the British artist David Tremlett: yellows, fuchsias. We could also see the 13th-century medieval castle where Locatelli lives from May to November with his wife, Laura, a cheesemaker. We had breakfasted there a little while ago.

Another vat, this one disused, was directly behind us. At first it appeared to be some kind of “green roof” building. But the verdure that covered it had sprouted spontaneously, nourished by the remnants of fecal waste. It reminded me of the wild grasses of Manhattan’s High Line. We took in the processing facilities and digesters, also painted by Tremlett, where cow dung is transformed into electricity. Since 2007, Castelbosco farm has been entirely powered by energy produced on the premises, from the cows’ excrement; Locatelli sells the electricity he does not use. Last year, he and Cipelletti, along with the artist Gaspare Luigi Marcone and the art collector Massimo Valsecchi, opened a Museum in 10 rooms on the castle’s first floor. It’s a charmingly unmodern space that showcases paintings, objects, video art about poop, a display about the dung beetle (also the museum’s logo) and a giant coprolite. (Visits are by appointment only, and include a guided tour of the property.)

In addition, the museum produces and sells home goods — including vases, flowerpots, coffee mugs and plates — that are made out of a compound of baked manure and clay that they call merdacotta — “baked shit.” For a site-specific show, composed of the museum’s goods and some of its installations, the group won the top prize for exhibition design at this year’s prestigious Milan Design Week.

But I am still standing on top of a vat of liquid waste, and you are wondering about the smell. Of course you are. The thing is, unless you have the well-trained nose of a sommelier or a professional taster, it’s hard to describe smells. They are not over there, something to be coolly appraised and summed up; they are overwhelming, literally consuming. Describing a smell is like describing a feeling or a mood or an atmosphere. Smells are reminders of the body’s defenselessness and porousness; they come from the inside. But here’s what I can say. The smell, from the platform on top of the poop vat, was pleasant — earthy, farmlike, wholesome. It was far, far preferable to the smell that clung to the barns like a bad memory.

Castelbosco farm is no mom-and-pop operation. Locatelli is an intensive farmer. His cows do not range free over open fields. When they are not being milked, they jostle haunch to haunch in file. Poking their blocky, sweet heads between bars, they scarf ever-diminishing piles of hay. They defecate. Properly speaking, they do all of these activities at once. And these are big animals. Waste floods out of them like water from an open pipe. It drops out of them like grenades. They stand in their own filth. The pregnant ones lie down in it. It stains their haunches.

If the wind is favorable, the odor around the barns is tolerable — a little sweet, a little sharp. But when the wind blows against you, the odor is rank and nauseating. Fun fact: Every day the cows on Locatelli’s farms produce 50,000 kilograms of milk and 150,000 kilos of dung.

It’s ammonia that makes manure smell bad, a by-product of its natural decomposition. When manure is collected and stored in an oxygen-free environment, it produces several other gases, including methane — a greenhouse gas that traps heat many times more effectively than carbon dioxide. Globally, agriculture is the number one source of methane emissions. According to a recent E.P.A. report, in 2014, 8 percent of U.S. methane emissions due to human activity were produced by manure management. And 23 percent were produced by enteric fermentation — the digestive process in which cows also produce methane, which they mostly release through burping. (A typical dairy cow can emit 145 kilograms of methane per year.)

Source: NY Times Style

Maximizing dry matter intake (DMI) is essential in allowing dairy cows to perform to their potential. Cows need to eat the ration as formulated, in the quantity required for their production level, and in a manner that ensures a healthy rumen.

Dry matter intake relies on the eating behavior of dairy cows, including:

• Meal frequency or meals per day
• Meal length (minutes per meal)
• Feeding rate (pounds consumed per minute)
• Meal size (pounds per meal)

Frequency of feed delivery is one factor which influences cows’ eating behavior. Sova and coworkers (2013) studied feeding management practices on 22 dairy farms in Ontario, Canada. All herds were housed in freestalls and fed total mixed rations. The researchers found differences in herds that were fed once per day compared to twice daily. Cows that received a second feeding per day consumed 3.1 pounds more dry matter and had 4.4 pounds greater milk yield. These results were similar to other research that showed feed delivery stimulates cows to access feed.

Another result of feeding twice per day was that less feed sorting occurred. When dairy cows sort feed, they usually are selecting for the finer and/or smaller particles. Since longer particles are a significant source of fiber, sorting increases the risk that cows will not consume adequate fiber to maintain healthy rumen function.

Endres and Espejo (2010) also observed that more frequent feed delivery reduced the tendency of feed sorting. In 50 freestall dairy farms in Minnesota, these researchers measured fiber content of the feed in the bunk at regular intervals after feed delivery. The results indicated that feeding twice daily reduced the increase of neutral detergent fiber (NDF) content over time, compared to herds that fed once daily.

Consistent intake of fiber in adequate amounts throughout the day is expected to help support desirable milk fat concentration. In several studies, sorting against longer particles was associated with lower milk fat percentage.

Other factors associated with cows accessing the feed bunk are returning from the milking parlor and feed push-ups. Providing good quality feed at these times is important.

More frequent delivery of feed to dairy cows increases DMI, a key factor in achieving higher milk yield.  Cows fed two or more times per day also have greater access to fresh feed throughout the day, which is especially important during these hot summer months.

Source: Michigan State University

More dairy farms are using technology originally developed for municipal waste treatment systems.

Josh Gable of Kenosha, Wisconsin-based Centrisys says the process uses a centrifuge to remove solids from liquids. “If we spin the slurry fast enough, the solids will start to partition, so basically, we take the force of gravity and multiply it by the 3-thousand G’s.  Then, things separate really quickly. Then, solids that get extracted out of the water get extracted out of the machine with, essentially, a screw.”

Gable says Centrisys is one of a few companies designing and manufacturing these units.  He says farmers can recapture phosphorus and organic nitrogen while removing it from the wastewater.  “A lot of the phosphorus in dairy manure is actually bound to the solids, so if you can remove the solids, specifically the fine solids, then you can get rid of a large percentage of the phosphorus.”

He says less phosphorus and nitrogen in the manure means less will get into lakes, streams, and groundwater.

Their first dairy manure installation was in 2009.  Now, Centrisis has two dairy farms in Wisconsin using the technology, one in Indiana, and Washington, and six in Colorado, with more inquiries coming in.  There are similar centrifuge-based systems built by other companies being used in agriculture as well.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

California’s drought is costing farmers an estimated $603 million this year, although the impact is far less than a year ago, according to a study released Monday by UC Davis.

The latest annual survey by UC Davis researchers shows that the reasonably rainy winter has eased the effects of the drought, even though considerable shortages persist in crucial areas of the San Joaquin Valley.

“The drought continues for California’s agriculture in 2016, but with much less severe and widespread impacts than in the two previous drought years, 2014 and 2015,” theresearchers wrote.

Researchers said farmers have fallowed 78,780 acres this year because of water shortages. That compares with an estimated 500,000 acres last year. The idled acreage has cost farmers $247 million in crop revenue. It also deprived the rural economy of an estimated 1,815 farm jobs that otherwise would have been created, the study said.

Farmers also have had to spend an additional $303 million pumping groundwater to make up for the diminished supplies of water from the Central Valley Project and State Water Project, the study said. With indirect costs thrown in, the researchers estimated the total economic impact at $603 million.

That’s still a sharp contrast from last year, when UC Davis said the drought took a $2.7 billion bite out of the farm economy.

Farming has come under scrutiny during the drought because of its intensive water use. Agriculture consumes 80 percent of the state’s “developed” water – that is, water not dedicated to the environment. When the environment is factored in, farming’s share is estimated at about 40 percent.

Despite the hardships of the drought, farm revenue in California actually has increased. That’s due in part to high commodity prices and farmers’ decisions to draw heavily on groundwater to limit fallowing. Farmers generated $54 billion in revenue in 2014, the last year for which statistics were available. That was a 5 percent increase over 2013.

Farm employment jumped by 7 percent last year, an addition of 30,000 jobs, despite relatively heavy fallowing. A major reason for the increased employment: Farmers have been switching to more labor-intensive crops, such as almonds and pistachios.

Farm groups, however, have said the drought has taken its toll because growers have had to spend more money for their water, cutting into profits.

With funding from the farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program, a project is underway to evaluate ways that dairy farmers can manage calf nutrition to reduce the impact of heat stress on the young animals. According to Ohio State University and the University of Illinois, the economic impact of heat stress can result in annual losses of $253,000 with dairy animals up to 1 year of age in New York State.
During heat stress calves must use more energy to regulate their body temperature. This requires more dietary nutrients.

Project leader Kayla Hultquist with W. H. Miner Agricultural Research Institute, Chazy, NY, notes, “We observed in a previous Northern New York Agricultural Development Program-funded study that calves decreased their intake of milk replacer and starter grain during times of heat stress. This new project investigates strategies that will encourage calves to increase their caloric intake during hot weather.”
The research team is working with three groups of calves housed in outdoor hutches at the Miner Institute dairy farm in Clinton County. Researchers are evaluating the use of milk replacer supplemented with fat as a way to increase caloric intake without the calves having to consume a larger quantity of milk replacer.

Data collection will include tracing daily milk replacer, starter grain and water intake; weekly weight gain; and hip height and width. Average daily weight gain, feed efficiency, and the economic implications will be calculated. The research team will align observations and measurements of calf behavior and health with temperature and relative humidity to examine any correlating indicators of how well the calves handle heat stress.
Project data will be available by year-end on the NNYADP website at www.nnyagdev.org, at the December 2016 Dairy Day at Miner Institute, and at dairy association meetings.

The farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program provides grants for on-farm research and technical assistance projects in Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties. Funding for the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program is supported by the New York State Senate and administered through the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets.

Source: NNYAgDev

Making high-quality silage is about achieving the twin goals of rapid, efficient front-end fermentation and back-end stability during storage and feedout.

“It pays to focus on producing silage that is maximized both in terms of quantity and quality,” says Renato Schmidt, Ph.D., Forage Products Specialist, Lallemand Animal Nutrition. “Focusing on good silage management practices helps producers reduce dry matter losses and increase retention of important nutrients that contribute to robust growth and health.”

Even in the best situations, there are likely to be challenges simply due to variability in the crop or weather variations during harvest, time taken to bring the crop in and storage conditions. However, focusing on good management practices, including selecting the right inoculant, will help producers defend silage against challenges.

When producers review inoculant options, it’s important to look for evidence that a product that has been proven in the specific crop to be ensiled. Small grain silages, corn silages, haylages and high-moisture corn (HMC) face different ensiling challenges.

“Issues can also vary with the storage method used on the farm,” Dr. Schmidt says. “Bags, bales, bunkers and silos can all present different conditions for ensiling.”

Finally, producers should consider the specific challenges that occur year-to-year on their operation, such as:

• Harvesting at high or low dry matter (DM)
• Cloudy or overcast weather during cutting/wilting
• Field diseases (molds, blights, etc.)
• Hailed-on crops
• Drought
• Insect damage
• Clostridial (black, smelly) silage
• Low DM recovery (shrink issues)
• Feed heating and spoilage issues

“The right inoculant choice can help overcome specific silage challenges on your operation,” Dr. Schmidt says.

Dr. Schmidt recommends producers choose an inoculant proven to help provide fast, efficient fermentation for low DM crops.

If the crop has higher DM (35 percent or more), it may be prone to heating and spoilage during feedout, especially if it experienced drought stress, hail damage, insect damage or field disease. In these situations, Dr. Schmidt suggests combining P. pentosaceus 12455, enzymes and Lactobacillus buchneri 40788. This offers the benefits of both a fast, efficient fermentation and reducing heating and spoilage at feedout. In fact, the high dose rate L. buchneri 40788 has been reviewed by the FDA and allowed to claim efficacy in preventing the growth of yeasts and molds in silages and HMC.

Source –Lallemand Animal Nutrition

As technology improves, larger dairies are beginning to transition to robotic milking. An upcoming installation in Ancali, Chile will contain 64 Voluntary Milking Systems (VMS)™. These facilities are beginning to see the benefit of the parlour going to the cow, instead of cow going to the parlour.

One such benefit is the potential for a higher milk yield per cow. Well managed large dairies that have gone from 3X in a conventional milking system to almost 3X (2.8X) in a VMS (minimal difference in milk frequency), have reported that cows produce 8-10% more milk, while receiving the same quality of feed and level of management. Part of this could be attributed to improved overall cow comfort and new facilities, but another factor is likely that time away from feed and rest is minimized.

Aside from a boost in production, there are other benefits to consider including those to the cow, the workforce, the environment and even younger generations. In this article, we’ll focus on the cow.

Benefits for the cow

Heifers can have their own Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for start-up and there are several options to help with a quiet, calm and positive experience. Activities that can cause her to react negatively can be minimized. Depending on herd size, pre-calving exposure with a daily amount of pellet acceptable by the local nutritionist allows her to associate the robot with palatable feedstuff. The arm can be programmed to attach and spray so she acclimates to its movement and is not fearful.

Farms with at least 5 robots are developing pre-fresh areas where gates are installed to assist with the heifer’s learning of how to move through them. The addition of automatic feeders is even implemented to simulate the experience in the robot.

If exposure to the robot pre-calving is not efficient, the next option is to have a protocol to walk the heifer through the robot and milk her manually at least once or twice to ensure she is introduced in a calm, quiet way.

You can calve all cows out on the robot or transition them from a conventional milking system. Once the fresh animals are out of the pen, and are negative to ketosis, fresh checks have determined a clean uterus, and have no evidence of lameness (Zinpro score of 1 or 2), they can go to their respective groups – VMS for 2 year olds or VMS for 2nd lactation plus. Partial mixed rations (PMR) can be adjusted accordingly if the nutritionist wishes to adjust the parameters according to lactation number.

Additionally, a robotic system enables you to select parameters to allow milking based on time and yield, allowing more access to early lactation and higher producing animals. Greater peaks have been established in large automated milking systems that aim for at least 2.8 milkings for cows producing at least 35 lbs/milking. Milking times ideally under 7 minutes should be a goal for animals meeting this requirement.

It is important to also aim for at least 21 ½ hours of total milking time if trying to reach maximum capacity (including cleaning cycles) per robot with less than 1 ½ hour of idle time, or non-milking periods.

A greater control of feed provides another benefit to the cows. Customized pellets can be included to target a specific physiological state (for example a fresh cow or late lactation cow). One containing a higher starch level, assuming ample forage NDF intake, can provide greater energy intake, potentially in a rapidly degraded form depending on the source, to high-producing cows early in lactation and beyond. Later in lactation, to control body condition at dry off, an alternative pellet can be given. This pellet should provide more soluble fiber to shift rumen fermentation, altering energy partitioning based on microbial production of short-chain fatty acids and reducing adipose accumulation. The flexibility of multiple feedstuffs is a major advantage of automated systems to target feed animals according to their production and stage of lactation.

Recommendations of feeding parameters based on target intakes and cow traffic may be monitored with current technology:

• The DeLaval body condition scoring BCS objectively and consistently scores cattle and is used to monitor nutritional management strategies.

• Herd Navigator displays how cattle are cycling and may be used to relate to nutritional status based on levels of progesterone

Source: Navigator

Chazy, NY.  With funding from the farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program, a project is underway to evaluate ways that dairy farmers can manage calf nutrition to reduce the impact of heat stress on the young animals. According to Ohio State University and the University of Illinois, the economic impact of heat stress can result in annual losses of $253,000 with dairy animals up to 1 year of age in New York State.

During heat stress calves must use more energy to regulate their body temperature. This requires more dietary nutrients.

Project leader Kayla Hultquist with W.H. Miner Agricultural Research Institute, Chazy, NY, notes, ‘We observed in a previous Northern New York Agricultural Development Program-funded study that calves decreased their intake of milk replacer and starter grain during times of heat stress. This new project investigates strategies that will encourage calves to increase their caloric intake during hot weather.’

The research team is working with three groups of calves housed in outdoor hutches at the Miner Institute dairy farm in Clinton County. Researchers are evaluating the use of milk replacer supplemented with fat as a way to increase caloric intake without the calves having to consume a larger quantity of milk replacer.

Data collection will include tracing daily milk replacer, starter grain and water intake; weekly weight gain; and hip height and width. Average daily weight gain, feed efficiency, and the economic implications will be calculated. The research team will align observations and measurements of calf behavior and health with temperature and relative humidity to examine any correlating indicators of how well the calves handle heat stress.

Project data will be available by year-end on the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program website  at www.nnyagdev.org, at the December 2016 Dairy Day at Miner Institute, and at dairy association meetings.

The farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program provides grants for on-farm research and technical assistance projects in Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties. Funding for the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program is supported by the New York State Senate and administered through the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets.

Managing a dairy farm’s finances and ensuring it is profitable is no easy task.

The Iowa State University Extension and Outreach dairy team has developed a series of budgets to help dairy producers understand their current financial situation and determine the profitability of their operation.

The budgets can be found online through the ISU Extension and Outreach dairy team website.

Dairy businesses are often made up of many components that can either complement or compete with each other. The enterprise analysis allows producers to take stock of the entirety of their operation and determine its profitability.

“These are the most comprehensive budgets that we’ve seen specifically made for the dairy industry,” said Larry Tranel, dairy specialist with ISU Extension and Outreach. “We have included budgets for grazing, organic and conventional operations. As we look at the cost of production versus milk prices, it is imperative that producers understand their cost of production, especially those who are just getting into the industry or making changes.”

Three different types of budgets have been prepared, providing farmers who operate a conventional, organic or pasture based system an opportunity to set up a personalized budget plan that works for their operation’s herd size and production level.

“While the budgets are fantastic tools to begin the process of examining a farm’s profitability, visiting with an ISU Extension and Outreach dairy specialist is still a good idea,” Tranel said. “Contact your dairy specialist for further information and assistance.”

The budgets available online will be updated semi-annually, allowing for a current look at costs and projected income throughout the dairy industry. While the budgets are currently only available in PDF format, an editable Microsoft Excel spreadsheet version is coming soon.

Source: iastate.edu

It is probably a familiar situation: the cow that always produces a lot of milk is under the weather at the start of the lactation period. Her milk production is down, she has a poor appetite and looks lethargic. All the alarm bells ring. Are these symptoms a sign of ketosis?

Prevention is better than cure is a saying that certainly applies to ketosis. Providing an optimal feed ration can prevent a great deal of trouble, but even so some cows are more susceptible than others. As the condition is hereditary, you may have certain cow families that are more prone to ketosis. In addition to the season of calving, management and parity, genetics also play a role in whether or not a cow suffers from this disorder. It has a heritability of approximately 20%. This means that the risk of ketosis occurring can be considerably reduced through breeding.

Breeding value ketosis per bull for heifers, second calf and third calf

How does it work?
Since December 2014, CRV has presented the breeding value for ketosis for each bull. A score higher than 100 means that descendants of this bull have a lower risk of contracting ketosis. On average, 11% of cows contract ketosis, and this percentage rises to even 24% among older animals. By using bulls with a higher breeding value for ketosis, you can ensure your herd is less susceptible and the number of problem cows will fall.

Huge differences
Do daughters of bulls with a breeding value of 108 never suffer from ketosis? Unfortunately, the answer is no, however the percentage is considerably lower than daughters of bulls with a breeding value of 92 or even lower for this factor.

Percentage of descendants with ketosis in lactation 3.

The figure above shows that just 11% of the descendants of bulls with a breeding value of 108 or higher contract ketosis in the third lactation, compared with 37% of the descendants of bulls with a breeding value of 92 or lower. In a herd of 100 older cows that is a difference of 26 animals.

Conclusion
Breeding is a simple tool to reduce the incidence of ketosis in your dairy herd. Ketosis is part of the Better Life Health index. If you opt for Better Life Health, then reduced ketosis is automatically taken into account.

Genetic selection has played an important role in halting the downward trend in Australian dairy herd reproductive performance.

A recent analysis by Dr John Morton confirmed that the Daughter Fertility Australian Breeding Value (ABV) has given dairy farmers an effective tool to breed for improved herd reproductive performance.

His analysis, found that the daughters of sires with higher ABVs for daughter fertility have markedly better reproductive performance than daughters of sires with lower Daughter Fertility ABVs (see graph).

He concluded that continual selection of sires with a high Balanced Performance Index (BPI) would result in small but ongoing improvements in herd reproductive performance. “This is significant because genetic improvement is both permanent and cumulative. Some farmers may choose to use the Health Weighted Index (HWI) which puts more emphasis on daughter fertility than the BPI,” John said.

“However, to maximise genetic gain for herd fertility, select high BPI/HWI sires from the Good Bulls Guide that have high ABVs for daughter fertility.”

Michelle Axford from the Australian Dairy Herd Improvement Scheme (ADHIS) said farmers could expect continued improvements in herd fertility, as more cows with better genes for fertility enter the milking herd.

“Farmers have more choice than in the past, with the number of high BPI bulls with a Daughter Fertility ABV of at least 105 increasing from 16 in 2011 to 478 in 2016 (see bar chart) in the Good Bulls guide/App,” she said.

As well as this, the reliability of the Daughter Fertility ABV has improved. In 2003 only 10 of the top 50 Holstein bulls and eight of the top 20 Jersey Bulls had a Daughter Fertility ABV. Today, with improvements to the genetic evaluation model and increased reliability, every Holstein and Jersey Bull listed in the Good Bulls Guide has a Daughter Fertility ABV. Similar improvements have been achieved in other dairy breeds. This improvement provides dairy farmers with even more power to breed for better reproduction.

“Of course, genetics complements other management strategies used by dairy farmers to improve herd fertility, including nutrition, heat detection, AI practices and bull management,” she said.

The study drew upon data from 74 seasonal and split calving commercial herds with high quality reproductive data, covering more than 60,000 lactations from Holstein cows and almost 3,000 Jersey cow lactations. More information on the study is available by clicking this link for a research update.

ADHIS is an initiative of Australian Dairy Farmers’ Ltd, that receives the majority of its funding from Dairy Australia through the Dairy Services Levy.

For more information, contact Michelle Axford at ADHIS ph (03) 8621-4240 or email maxford@adhis.com.au.

Figure 1: 6-week in-calf rates for Jersey (upper line – green) and Holstein (lower line) cows by cow’s sire’s Daughter Fertility ABV.

Source: ADHIS