As with all areas of dairy operations, increasing efficiency – in this case of feed in the rumen – deserves attention because when it is improved, gains can be seen beyond the area of focus, not to mention in sustainability (this includes economically) as well.

It was dairy producer Danny Martins’ vision to design a fully automated feed center where he didn’t have to rely on multiple feeders and could instead entrust just one person.

Fiber isn’t fiber isn’t fiber. Lots of folks talk about fiber – doctors, teachers, marketers, nutritionists – but there are different types of nutritional fiber, and fiber digestibility partially depends on the species of animal consuming it.

Jerseys have their own requirements and different nutritional challenges that we must consider when formulating rations.

Cows crave consistency, and it’s imperative that we provide them with a consistent ration, using clean feed mixed properly and delivered at the same time every day.

Feed costs account for more than 45% of production costs and approach nearly 60% with high feed costs. Obviously, dairy income is directly proportional to milk volume, composition and quality produced on the farm.

Just as the line at the concession stand depends on what is happening on the baseball field, the line at the robot depends on what is happening in the barn.

A few months ago, I received a call from a dairyman who was having issues with his somatic cell count (SCC). He asked me to look over his feeding program and see if I saw anything that they might be overlooking or that stood out as a problem that might affect somatic cell, mastitis levels, etc.

A total mixed ration (TMR) diet has long been used to consistently offer a high-quality mix to ruminants. It allows farms to incorporate almost any ingredient into the diet consistently, safely removing much of the variation from one mouthful to the next.