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Current Progressive Dairy digital edition

1. We roll up our sleeves: (From the Editor); When anti-dairy protesters take off their shirts and dump milk on each other during a presidential candidate’s campaign event, you know we’re dealing with nuts – literally and figuratively. Hollywood ...; Created on 11 March 2020
2. Ask a Vet: Pinkeye vaccines with fly prevention: (Herd Health); Pinkeye is a common infectious disease affecting one or both eyes of cattle. Pinkeye is commonly caused by an infectious bacteria known as Moraxella bovis. Other emerging causative agents include Moraxella ...; Created on 11 March 2020
3. Keep in check: Use an onboarding checklist for better employee retention: (Management); On the first day of work, your new hire is giving you his or her best. The employee wants to impress you and is looking to you for guidance. So why don’t producers give the new employee their best? Time ...; Created on 11 March 2020
4. Progressive Events: Pennsylvania Dairy Summit inspires collaboration, communication and sustainability: (Event Coverage); More than 400 dairy producers and indutry professionals reignited their commitment to dairy at the 2020 Pennsylvania Dairy Summit in State College, Pennsylvania, on Feb. 5-6. With four keynote sessions ...; Created on 11 March 2020
5. Control pathogens that silently steal productivity: (Management); On a dairy farm, obvious challenges surface every day, perhaps a displaced abomasum or mastitic quarter. These problems are readily diagnosed and usually treated successfully. However, hidden challenges ...; Created on 11 March 2020
6. Leading dairy teams: Tools to be a great facilitator: (Management); Today’s dairy farm cannot be run by one person. To be successful in any industry, teams must be established to keep operations running smoothly. However, teams are a major investment. Optimizing that ...; Created on 11 March 2020
7. More data means greater accuracy, better cow management: (Management); A dairy’s success depends on the ability to obtain and evaluate data on each and every cow – when she should be bred, if she is at risk for a health event and how much milk she produces, along with other ...; Created on 11 March 2020
8. Lessons learned from those who left the industry: (Management); Well, 2019 is over and with it 819 dairies went out of business in Wisconsin alone. Some might say, it is the evolution of the industry; some might say, “They were poor producers.” One reality is that ...; Created on 11 March 2020
9. FMMO picture clouded by depooling: (Management); With the conclusion of 2019, a full-year profile of each Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) becomes clearer. One of the biggest changes in 2019 was the inclusion of California as an FMMO for a full year. ...; Created on 11 March 2020
10. State of the Dairy 2020: Dairy: A ‘wake’ or an ‘awakening’?: (Industry News); Pete Kappelman is a fourth-generation Wisconsin dairy farmer who now serves as senior vice president of member and government relations for Land O’Lakes. Representing a dairy and agricultural cooperative ...; Created on 11 March 2020
11. State of the Dairy 2020: Midwest: Feed a concern: (Industry News); In Pete Kappelman’s home state of Wisconsin, licensed dairy farm numbers fell by 818 last year. In neighboring Minnesota, where Land O’Lakes is headquartered, the number of licensed dairy farms declined ...; Created on 11 March 2020
12. State of the Dairy 2020: Southeast: At a crossroads: (Industry News); With its heavy dependence on the fluid milk market, no part of the country is a bigger cauldron of emotion than the Southeast. Ask about producer mood, and responses range from lost patience and frustration ...; Created on 11 March 2020
13. State of the Dairy 2020: Central: Staying focused on the positives: (Industry News); Lynda Foster operates a 180-cow, Lely robot dairy with her family near Fort Scott, Kansas. A member of Dairy Farmers of America (and Progressive Dairy’s editorial adviser board), she admits to being an ...; Created on 11 March 2020
14. State of the Dairy 2020: Southwest: Positioning for the future: (Industry News); The two dairy behemoths on the opposite ends of the Southwest – Texas and California – have been on somewhat divergent paths over the past couple of years. Entering 2019, however, producers in both states ...; Created on 11 March 2020
15. State of the Dairy 2020: Northeast: Embracing innovation, with a sense of relief: (Industry News); The improved outlook for milk prices in 2020 is providing some degree of optimism for producers, mixed with a sense of relief, according to Chris Laughton, Farm Credit East’s director of Knowledge Exchange. ...; Created on 11 March 2020
16. State of the Dairy 2020: Northwest: Apprehension, but a commitment to innovate: (Industry News); “Apprehensive” is the best term to describe the mood of dairy producers in Idaho, according to Rick Naerebout, chief executive officer of the Idaho Dairymen’s Association. That apprehension is being ...; Created on 11 March 2020
17. By the numbers on a hot topic: The role of grazing in reducing greenhouse gas: (Feed & Nutrition); Are cow farts destroying the planet? Does eating meat matter? Can grazing reverse climate change? Jasmine A. Dillon, Ph.D., assistant professor of beef and dairy agro-ecosystems at Colorado State University, ...; Created on 10 March 2020
18. 3 Open Minutes with Fred Gingrich: (Calves & Heifers); At the beginning of 2020, AABP updated its production practice guidelines for dehorning calves, and one of the significant updates was a recommendation for pain mitigation. Progressive Dairy Editor ...; Created on 10 March 2020
19. Considerations for managing whole or waste milk with replacement heifers: (Calves & Heifers); Raising replacement heifers is the second-greatest cost on a dairy farm, and these animals will dictate the future success of the enterprise. To ensure future productive success, many considerations should ...; Created on 10 March 2020
20. Why heifer maturity matters: The ‘Peter Pan problem’: (Calves & Heifers); How does one know when to breed virgin heifers? On many dairies, the decision is entirely subjective based on if the heifers look “big” enough, reach a certain age, or the pen is getting crowded and they ...; Created on 10 March 2020
21. Get more return from your investment; make more No. 1 heifers: (Calves & Heifers); Dairy producers are working to raise both the optimal number and the highest-quality heifers for their operations. Developing replacement heifers is a significant and necessary expenditure for dairies, ...; Created on 10 March 2020
22. Unlocking your heifer inventory goals: (Calves & Heifers); There are many topics to discuss when managing heifer inventory. Producers give careful thought to feed and labor costs, reproduction, semen strategies, etc. – the list can go on and on. While these ...; Created on 10 March 2020
23. Successful outcomes from group housing systems for calves: (Calves & Heifers); Conventional wisdom has told us we should house dairy calves individually to prevent nose-to-nose contact and control spread of disease. Calf hutches have been viewed as the “gold standard” for calf raising. ...; Created on 10 March 2020
24. Calf scours: Key considerations for prevention, treatment and recovery: (Calves & Heifers); Scours – it’s an unwelcome but far too common problem on many dairies today. Thanks to education and development of new products, tremendous strides have been made in reducing the severity and number of ...; Created on 10 March 2020
25. Leading the Way: 8 tips for filling out phenomenal scholarship and award forms: (Organizations); Each year, I am asked to review and give input on scholarship and award forms. Learning how to make a great form is a handy life skill to possess. It’s a great way to earn scholarship money for college ...; Created on 10 March 2020
26. Life on the family farm under an open heaven: No, this is good for me: (Guest Blog); In our culture today, so many people complain about hard work. By the way they talk about it, you would think it’s something that should be avoided if at all possible. But wise people know better. It always ...; Created on 10 March 2020
27. Just dropping by ... The strait gate and narrow path to success: (Yevet Tenney); As part of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus exhorted His followers: Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in ...; Created on 10 March 2020
28. Equipment Hub: Failure to cut the net: (Barns & Equipment); Note: This information applies specifically to the New Holland BR Series balers. Most net issues are mechanical in nature. The two most common causes are dull knives and insufficient brake tension against ...; Created on 10 March 2020
29. Reproductive tract of a dairy cow: (Training Tools); Sistema reproductivo de la vaca lechera cuernos uterinos/e horns Click here or on the image above to view it at full size in a new window.; Created on 10 March 2020
30. When farm moms have to make tough decisions for their kids: (Guest Blog); “I think your son may have sensory processing disorder,” the doctor said to me. Meanwhile, said son is literally bouncing off the walls, grabbing random objects and throwing them, putting every godforsaken ...; Created on 10 March 2020
31. The Milk House: To greener (virtual) pastures: (Ryan Dennis); When I was young, I always got jealous when I saw that other kids had Gameboys and Nintendos. I wanted to play with all the latest gadgets and entertainment. Fortunately, and probably as my parents ...; Created on 10 March 2020
32. The Manure Spreader: Old grumpy: (Tim Moffett); Have you ever met someone who was always grumpy? Sure you have. I know we all have our moments – and sometimes days. But I’m talking about that person who could win the Powerball lottery, get $75 per ...; Created on 10 March 2020
33. Letter to the dairy employee: Be the best version of yourself: (Management); The year is well on its way! After a very challenging 2019, the dairy community is still ready to face 365-day, 24/7 work. Dairy farmers have the privilege and responsibility to feed the world, by producing ...; Created on 10 March 2020
34. E-Verify: The potential linchpin for ag in proposed immigration reform bill: (Management); Twelve years ago this January, I completed my first half marathon in Phoenix, Arizona – a fact I admit has absolutely nothing to do with dairy. But the following day, I attended a federal court hearing ...; Created on 10 March 2020
35. On the Edge of Common Sense: Carol’s story: (Baxter Black); Carol’s story is just another glamorous tale of a city girl who married a romantic Nebraska Sandhills rancher years ago and became a “vocational cow assistant” for life. “So what exactly do you want ...; Created on 10 March 2020
36. Feedbunk management: Ensuring enough feed for all cows: (Management); Even when producers put up the right quality of feed for a class of cows, ensuring that all cows have enough feed is a goal that has a few components to consider. Too much competition from other cows, ...; Created on 09 March 2020
37. Achieving and measuring silage density: (Management); The topic of silage density in storage has garnered a great deal of focus in the last few decades, but it remains a key opportunity area on many farms for its role in 1) minimizing storage losses and feed ...; Created on 09 March 2020
38. Strategies to ensure quality forage for the entire dairy herd: (Management); While weather is a constant challenge to maintaining forage supply, producers can control other threats to having enough feed. Mismatched storage capacity and lack of planning or design, incorrect ...; Created on 09 March 2020
39. Corn silage forage quality: Hybrid genetics versus growing conditions: (Management); Over the past four years a number of groups in the Northeast have initiated efforts to increase collaboration and enhance our understanding of corn silage hybrid forage quality through existing Corn Silage ...; Created on 09 March 2020
40. Red clover: The other highly digestible legume: (Management); In today’s tight dairy economy, every acre, just like every cow, needs to be profitable. Adding red clover in a tight economical rotation, teamed with winter forage, can do that. Red clover has been ...; Created on 09 March 2020
41. Next steps for better silage yield maps: (Management); With yield monitor technology, silage growers can see the impact of management changes in every field section over time. Unfortunately, even with calibrated equipment and best operator practices, yield ...; Created on 06 March 2020
42. Best timing of harvest for brown midrib forage sorghum yield, nutritive value, and ration performance: (Management); Forage sorghum is a drought- and heat-tolerant warm-season grass that can be used for silage on dairy farms. Since it requires a soil temperature of at least 60°F for planting, the recommended planting ...; Created on 06 March 2020
43. Cool stuff we saw at World Ag Expo 2020: (Event Coverage); For all three days of this year’s show, the weather cooperated nicely and was sunny and beautiful. Progressive Dairy Editor Walt Cooley searched the grounds for new products and interesting insights at ...; Created on 25 February 2020
44. How to keep your new grass-based business in the black: (Management); If you want to start a grass-based business, the most important question is how to make the wisest use of all the financial resources at your disposal. A balance sheet is a place to start, said Paul ...; Created on 06 February 2020
45. Breaking 7 common myths on colostrum: (Calves & Heifers); First one there is the winner! It’s a race between antibodies in the colostrum and the bacteria in the environment. Who would you like to win? I cannot even begin to count the number of times I’ve ...; Created on 21 January 2020
46. Calfhood pneumonia: When is it related to ventilation and when is it something different?: (Calves & Heifers); Calfhood pneumonia can be frustrating to deal with. Understanding where the problem originates is the first step in creating a plan to combat it. Most cases of calfhood pneumonia can be placed into one ...; Created on 13 January 2020