11. Overstocking: Your pleasure is your cows' pain

More cows, more milk, more money. A simple concept, but acquiring too many cows without adequate space can prove to be disastrous in your herd. 

Q. Would you say there’s been an increase in overstocking in the past few years? Why has this occurred? 

A. "The desire to add a few more milking cows to each pen is ever-present, and the industry goes in cycles of overstocking and learning lessons from it the hard way. I think this is because the benefits of an increase in the milk check occur immediately over days to weeks, and the negative impacts accumulate slowly over months to years. The start of the pandemic drove many producers to add cows as milk price collapsed, but that trend was already present – it was just accelerated – as milk price increased again, those milk checks continued to grow. We are just starting to see the full negative impacts of overstocking now, as lameness and mastitis rates creep up and fresh cow performance suffers. I suspect it will cycle back down before starting up again when sufficient time has passed. Dr. John Dahl was once quoted as saying that the half-life of information in the dairy industry is around 15 years – I think that is still true today."

—Nigel Cook, University of Wisconsin – Madison

12. Recent insights on how feeding whole milk or milk replacer affects the calf

Milk replacer is often valued on dairies for its consistency, cleanliness and cost. However, they often contain higher levels of lactose and minerals with lower levels of fat. Farms struggling with calf diarrhea should consider feeding a milk replacer that’s lower in lactose and keeping solids between 12.5% and 15%. Recent research shows that the calf’s digestive tract development may also benefit from whole milkfat in the milk replacer.

13. HERd Management: You can't fill from an empty cup

Farming is a physically and emotionally demanding job. This can lead to depression, and it is essential to ask for help, deal with the cause of the depression and take steps to climb out of it. It might seem counterintuitive, but taking time to fill one’s own cup isn’t necessarily selfish. After all, one can’t help others when their own cup is empty.

14. Synchronization for timed A.I. is not just for cows

A study at the University of Wisconsin revealed potential for higher fertility when using sexed semen and increased reproduction fertility in heifers with a particular protocol.

Q. What is the most important thing learned from this study that you feel will benefit producers?

A. "The key take-away from our study that benefits producers is that submitting heifers to a five-day CIDR-Synch protocol for first service with sexed semen is an efficient and economical strategy for reproductive management of heifers. Although there is a greater initial investment in hormonal treatments, this initial investment is more than covered by decreased feed costs from fewer days on feed. Under the current economic climate, farmers are experiencing record-high input and feed costs. With most U.S. heifers inseminated based on detection of estrus with sexed semen, this remains a key opportunity for farmers to increase reproductive efficiency and decrease costs."

—Paul Fricke, University of Wisconsin – Madison

15. What's new with transition cow nutritional recommendations

The Eighth Revised Edition of the Dairy NRC, now called NASEM, was published in December 2021, replacing the previous version published in 2001. The new book has a chapter dedicated to transition cow nutrition describing nutrient requirements for transition cows. The new NASEM also emphasizes nutritional practices which will reduce the prevalence of health disorders that commonly occur around parturition.

Q. Why do you think this piece resonated with readers?

A. "As I often told students, if you feed transition cows correctly and get them off to a good start after calving, feeding for high production is usually easy. This article reviewed our current stake of knowledge regarding transition cow nutrition, and your readers realize just how important a good transition is."

—Bill Weiss, Ohio State University

16. The relationship between a herd's environment and genetic potential

Genetic potential can be hindered by poor management. Consistently monitoring and improving calf wellness, transition cow management, milk quality and reproduction can help control environmental factors that would otherwise harm your herd’s potential.

Q. What area of management would you say is essential to the calf fulfilling her genetic potential?

A. "While all management facets are crucial, calves must be prepared to face the challenges ahead from the minute they are born. This means colostrum management and delivery must be on target. Ensuring clean, high-quality colostrum is administered promptly helps young calves build immunity against calfhood disease and protect their future contributions to the herd. Dairies only get one shot with each calf, and there are no do-overs. If she is met with poor calf care basics, we cannot be surprised when she struggles to live up to genetic expectations. Calf wellness contributes heavily to a dairy’s success."

—Dave Erf, Zoetis

17. Colostrum temperature: Not too hot, not too cold, just right

When it comes to colostrum, calves need it fed at a normal calf body temperature. Too warm, and it can damage the immunoglobulins and functional bioactive ingredients. Too cold, and the pathogen load can increase or even cause hypothermia in the calf if it’s severe enough.

18. Cool stuff we saw at World Ag Expo 2022

Progressive Dairy Editor Walt Cooley highlighted the top three new technologies he saw on the showgrounds at World Dairy Expo. 

"Year after year, producers continue to prove they are interested in what’s new by reading our 'cool stuff we saw at show' articles. If I had to guess why this article was so popular, it would probably be the methane-powered tractor that was unveiled at World Ag Expo. I don’t think it’s because everyone felt compelled to rush out and buy one, but high diesel prices this year have likely gotten farmers interested in at least learning about alternatives."

—Progressive Dairy Editor Walt Cooley

19. A practical understanding of trace minerals

Different formula combinations for minerals in feeds, supplements and premixes are limitless and the sources of the minerals are extensive as well. This article discusses the sources of trace minerals and the apparent value (i.e., absorption) of the various sources to help develop a more practical understanding.

Q. What makes selecting a trace mineral source challenging?

A. "The primary challenge is wading through all the data from all the sources and deciding which makes the most sense in a particular dairy. Trace mineral nutrition (particularly absorption dynamics) are not well understood, even after years of study. We more or less understand that we need to feed an inorganic source (generally sulfates) for availability in the rumen. Subsequently, nutritionists often combine this with an 'organic' source such as an amino acid complex, peptide, proteinate, polysaccharide, glycinate or other form."

—Steve Blezinger, Reveille Livestock Concepts

20. A dairy manager's guide to ketosis

Need-to-know information about ketosis such as costs, diagnosis and testing strategies, how to manage against excessive weight loss and low feed intake, and treatment to take metabolic health management and dairy profitability to the next level. 

Q. What new innovations are on the horizon to optimize ketosis management in the future?

A. "The use of cow data in synergy with ketosis monitoring and diagnosis strategies has been a hot topic in academia and the industry. There is a growing body of work that looks into using things like milk test information, genomic evaluations and sensor data to assign different levels of risk for ketosis to individual cows or groups of cows. That could enable savvy managers to develop more efficient and individualized cow care protocols for ketosis, as well as other illnesses."

—Ryan Pralle, University of Wisconsin – Platteville