More than 100 dairy farmers and industry related experts and business people took part in this year’s I-29 Dairy Conference. Attendees represented the five-state area of North and South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa and Nebraska. Among the keynote speakers was Dr. Temple Grandin, Colorado State professor, who is well known for her animal handling practices.
Dr. Grandin’s presentation focused on the importance of understanding how fear impacts animal behavior and significantly reduces productivity in any setting, including a dairy.
"Fear circuits in animal’s brains have been mapped. Animals experience fear," Dr. Grandin said. "Scientists have learned that cortisol levels are elevated in animals when they experience fear or are handled roughly. When they’re able to do something voluntarily, cortisol levels are lower.
"Female animals also respond differently than males. They tend to get more excited than males. Electric prods really increase stress levels, in all animals. A lot of the stress responses go across species. Research has shown that stress makes females less likely to conceive and causes open mouthed breathing to increase. Fear is a very strong stressor so you want to avoid that in your dairy animals."
Dr. Grandin encouraged dairy producers to take precautions to make "first" experiences positive ones because the fear response is not easily forgotten by animals.
"They’ll associate a bad experience with a color or something like a hat, a female," Dr. Grandin said. "In some instances they may never get over the negative response so it’s important to make the first trip to the dairy parlor a happy one. Take time to introduce the parlor. Look for things along the way or in the parlor that could trigger a fear reaction."
Ear radar is often a first sign of fear. Tail swishing, sweating, and quivering can all be indications that an animal is experiencing a fear response.
"Vocalization is another clear indication of distress," Dr. Grandin said. "Think about this. How would you like to walk into a wonderful restaurant where you expect to eat and have an enjoyable experience. Instead, the people there yell at you, jab you with an electric prod and slam a gate in your face. Do you still feel like eating?"
President and Chief Executive Officer of the American Dairy Association-Mideast, Scott Higgins, from Columbus, Ohio, shared the experiences his association has experienced in proactive measures his state took in regard to animal well-being.
"We bring agriculture and dairy into one room so our legislators have a one-stop shop to find out what Ohio dairy farmers are thinking and what they want," Higgins said. "It’s far better for Ohio’s dairy farmers to argue out our issues in a board room than to do through the media or in the marketplace."
Higgins noted that Ohio has been successful in dealing with animal rights activists in regard to animal welfare. Their work to investigate and deal with state issues as well as prepare responses ahead of potential questions has been productive for the state’s dairy industry.
"Consumers want to know how products are produced, if they’re safe, high quality and locally grown," Higgins said. "We have a system in place to take our consumers to the dairy farms, let them observe how animals are cared for and how their food is produced. We introduce them to the farmers and their families and we provide information that helps them understand our industry."
Higgins shared the Ohio Dairy Producers website and video advertising products to help the audience understand how effectively consumers can be reached through carefully prepared information shared in a variety of ways.
"We’ve asked our farmers to become Ohio’s dairy industry spokespersons," Higgins said. "We’ve used news releases, guest columns, letters to the editor, social media and rallies to reach consumers and let them know we are resolved to do ‘the right thing.’ We’ve set standards for the state and called out our bad actors. All of those efforts have made it possible for us to win over consumers confidence and support."
Higgins said Ohio dairy producers have embraced the state’s standards and he encouraged those present to develop a similar model to promote the dairy industry in their own state.
"Be engaged and step forward to help shape and form the future for the dairy industry and your state’s livestock community," he added.
Other conference presenters included Jan Shearer of Iowa State University, who discussed the importance of addressing lameness. North Carolina State University representative Lon Whitlow talked about the increased incidence of molds and mycotoxins in feeds and how producers could prevent and treat the conditions in their operation.
Jim Paulson, University of Minnesota Extension, shared the complexity of sustainability and encouraged producers to consider what the term meant to them and how they could evaluate the sustainability of their own operation.
"What are you doing today that your children won’t be able to do in the future?" Paulson asked. "We all need to make use of science-based information to reach out to consumers and help them understand why we do what we do."
Crystal Powers, Extension Engineer at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln said life-cycle analysis is helping researchers evaluate dairies in a "cradle-to-grave" manner, examining every aspect of milk production. She noted that the carbon footprint associated with a gallon of milk is far less today than it was in the past.
"The per-cow units of energy used in 1944 to produce a gallon of milk were 32," Powers said. "Today its 10+, far less than half of what it was. Today’s producers can reduce their carbon footprint by extending the life of heifers. Don’t breed heifers too early.
"Calving later can actually extend their life. Improve energy efficiency on the farm, reduce the use of fossil fuel. All those things mean a lower carbon footprint."
Dr. Alvaro Garcia, Associate Professor in the Dairy Science Department at South Dakota State University was among the planning committee and conference organizers of the 6th annual I-29 Dairy Conference. PD
PHOTO: Dr. Temple Grandin brought valuable information to dairy producers regarding the importance of recognizing and reducing any fear responses in their dairy animals in order to maximize production levels. Photo by Loretta Sorensen.
