After a difficult delivery, it is always exciting to have a live calf, but that feeling is quickly dampened when the calf does not suckle or thrive. In the veterinary world, this is called neonatal maladjustment syndrome, commonly referred to as a “dummy calf” or “weak calf.”

Over a decade ago, Diamond V introduced a unique, systematic approach to measuring the operational efficiency of a dairy’s feeding operation. Recently, Sara Sievert, ruminant species marketing manager with Diamond V, had the pleasure to sit down and discuss with Dr. Tom Oelberg, as well as Matt Sattler, another ruminant field tech specialist, about where we’ve come, where we’re at and where we’re going in our journey to feed cows better.

The USDA’s monthly World Ag Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report, released Aug. 12, 2022, revised 2022-23 U.S. milk production estimates higher due to larger cow inventories and increases in milk output per cow.

Here’s Progressive Dairy’s monthly review of the numbers (July 2022) to provide some additional transparency on your milk check.