Herd Health

Monitoring U.S. average bulk tank somatic cell counts (SCC) over many years shows a clear peak during summer months. Higher temperatures and humidity levels during the June-September period create heat stress in cows and negatively affect their immune response.

The current state of the dairy industry is putting pressure on dairy producers. Excess milk in the market has allowed dairy processors to be more selective with the milk they are purchasing.

What makes a team successful? There are a lot of factors, but one critical piece is having the right players in the right positions to achieve your goals. The same goes for the milk quality team on your dairy.

Twenty-eight years ago, Charles Owen, a horse farrier by training, began his amazing journey to unlock the mystery of laminitis. Starting with an idea of how laminitis originated, Owen spent the next 17 years researching his theory and another 11 years testing it.

Keeping accurate health and production records is an important practice that can help producers make meaningful decisions while troubleshooting transition cow issues in their operations.

The average Class III milk price for January to April of 2018 was slightly above $14 per hundredweight, well under the cost of production. That has forced dairy farmers to seek management strategies to increase income, cut costs or both.