Herd Health

From growing up on a dairy farm to leading research efforts around hoof health and lameness, Dr. Gerard Cramer has devoted his life to improving the quality of life for dairy cows.

Lameness affects nearly 25% of dairy cows worldwide. Data from the last five years suggests that when lesions occur in first lactation or before, there is a high probability the same lesion will occur again in consecutive lactations.

In the first 72 hours, her body is transforming from maintenance to high performance. Her body is being transformed like a caterpillar into a butterfly.

We’ve been trying a different protocol on dairy heifers for the final month pre-calving. Here is a personal rendition of why we tried this new approach, how social media responded and what we’ve been learning.

The “transition period” is the point in time when a dairy cow transitions from pregnant and not milking to milking and not pregnant. It is somewhat akin to launching a rocket from a standstill to orbit in a matter of weeks.

It’s the middle of winter and your dairy cows have likely dealt with seasonal lameness this fall. This has probably led to lower production levels, weaker reproductive performance and a pile of bills for additional hoof trims, wrappings and other treatments.