Dairy Science Commons^™

A Comparison Of Larvicide And Garlic Mineral Salts On Horn Fly Populations, Kristina N. Dees, Benjamin J. Schrag

SACAD: John Heinrichs Scholarly and Creative Activity Days

For this research project, we studied three separate pastures containing Fort Hays State University’s Holstein cows. One pasture was our control group, with no horn fly protection applied. Another pasture had cattle that were fed with garlic in their mineral salts, an all-natural horn fly prevention method. Our final pasture contained cows sprayed with a larvicide. This was a single-blind study, meaning I did not know which pasture had what treatment, but my professor knew. Throughout the late summer and early fall of 2023, we went out to each pasture and took pictures of ten cows per pasture. Then, using …

Is There An Economic Advantage To Planting Diverse Summer Annual Forage Mixtures?, Kelly Mercier, Chris Teutsch, Ray Smith, Kenny Burdine, Edwin Ritchey, Eric Vanzant

The Journal of Extension

This study examined economic implications of planting summer annual mixtures of grasses, legumes, and forbs at varying nitrogen rates. No differences in yield occurred between the three mixtures, indicating that mixtures with lowest seed cost will be most economical. Applying N resulted in yield increases of 12.26 lb DM per lb N applied. Although yield responses to N were positive, sensitivity analyses showed that applying N resulted in positive net returns only when hay prices were high and N prices were low. When utilization rates are accounted for, enterprise budgets determined grazing to be 18% cheaper to implement than haying.

The Rise Of Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations, Their Effects, And How We Can Stop Their Growth, Andrea Prisco

Dickinson Law Review (2017-Present)

Dramatic changes in the agricultural industry over the last century have led to the rise of concentrated animal feeding operations– industrial facilities that raise a large number of animals in confined spaces. Animals raised in these facilities suffer from poor quality of life and abuse. For humans, these facilities have had adverse effects on the environment and public health, but they are also associated with high productivity and low food costs. This Comment analyzes the effects of concentrated animal feeding operations on animal well-being, the environment, and public health. This Comment also analyzes current federal legislation that helps combat the …

Hotline Number To Reach And Offer Agricultural Information To Plain Anabaptists During The Covid-19 Workplace Closures, Emily Shoop, Carly Becker, Nathan Glenn Briggs, Danielle Smarsh

Journal of Amish and Plain Anabaptist Studies

The Penn State Extension Animal Systems Team developed a toll-free hotline phone number to convey short educational messages to maintain contact and outreach to Pennsylvania’s animal producing Amish, Mennonite, and other plain Anabaptist populations. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Penn State Extension’s programming went largely online via webinars, online courses, and emails. This change in programming excluded a large sector of Pennsylvania farmers who do not use or have access to the internet and, as such, were liable to miss important best management practice reviews and timely updates in animal agriculture. The Animal Systems Hotline offered callers the choice to listen …

Barriers To Management Intensive Grazing By Southern Dairy Farmers, Mohammed Ibrahim, Nalini K. Pattanaik, Brian Cornish

Professional Agricultural Workers Journal

Abstract

Interest in Management Intensive Grazing (MIG) [a situation where grazing animals are moved to a fresh pasture every few days in order to have access to adequate forage] practices by farmers have increased steadily over the years. Many research publications on grazing advocate the financial and environmental benefits of grazing. Understanding the challenges of MIG can be an important piece of information for a dairy farmer. A survey was conducted to determine how farmers in the southeastern region perceive the barriers to the adoption of MIG. A greater percentage of MIG southeastern farmers were satisfied or very satisfied with …

Genetic Variation Of The Dgat1 Gene In Dual-Purpose Dairy Cows And Its Influence On Economically Important Breeding Traits, Mark E. Armitage, Emma Swan, Denise O'Meara

SURE Journal: Science Undergraduate Research Experience Journal

Background
Over the last 10 years, the discovery of individual, or candidate, genes that influence economically important traits has revolutionised how the dairy industry selects cows for breeding programmes. One such gene, the diacylglycerol O-acyltransferase 1 (DGAT1) gene is significant in dairy production as it is associated with the synthesis of fat in milk, and polymorphisms within the gene can be used for selection purposes. In this study, the variants (genotypes) of the K232A polymorphism of the DGAT1 gene, within a dual-purpose dairy herd, bred for both dairy and beef production, were determined, and compared to the Economic …

Assessing Training Methods To Educate Dairy Workers, L. Mendonca, B. E. Voelz, A. Scanavez

Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Reports

Training employees is fundamental for dairy producers to achieve efficiency in order to increase profitability. Training videos offered online are becoming more common and recommended to train employees. The goals of this survey were to evaluate the comfort level of dairy employees in using computers and tablets, and preferred training delivery methods. A total of 71 employees from 6 dairies were interviewed. Interviews were conducted in the preferred language of the interviewee – English or Spanish. Of the respondents, 52 and 65.6% of employees consider computers and tablets easy to use, respectively. More than half of the employees reported that …

Maine’S Dairy Relief Program, Tim Drake

Maine Policy Review

This short article looks at Maine’s dairy-relief program, which is viewed as national model of good public policy that can save jobs, support traditional industry, and keep a critical link in our food system

Letter From The Dean, Lalit Verma

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Once Daily Calf Feeding Lowers Rearing Costs, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

The usual method of hand rearing dairy calves involves twice daily feeding of milk or milk substitutes.

This routine adds considerably to the labour necessary at milking time and may have prevented many farmers from putting much effort into dairy beef production.

The report below comes from a 1969 trial carried out at Bramley Research Station to see if once-daily calf feeding was as effective as twice daily feeding.

The trial's results should be considered as early findings from a series of trials being conducted into calf rearing regimes by both the Animal and Dairying Divisions of the Department of …

Supplementing Calves With Tallow : Results Of A Trial At Wokalup Research Station, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

THE removal of butterfat from milk by separation, reduces the energy content of the milk by about 50 per cent., and must slow the growth of calves unless extra energy is provided from some other source.

In the dairying districts of Western Australia, there has been considerable interest in recent years in the addition of homogenised tallow to skim milk to provide extra energy.

Good calves have been produced by this means.

Dry Supplements Reduce Labour And Cost Of Calf Rearing, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

The conventional method of hand rearing dairy calves in Western Australia calls for the feeding of whole milk, skim milk and/or milk substitutes for periods of up to 16 weeks.

This requirement for milk and labour has often prevented beef production from becoming a major sideline on many wholemilk and butterfat farms.

The two trials reported below* were carried out at Bramley Research Station to see if milk consumption and time to weaning could be reduced by free-feeding hay and cereal based supplements.

Effects Of Mastitis On Milk Yield And Composition, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

EVERY DAIRY farmer knows how much he spends on the treatment of cows affected with mastitis, but the actual loss in production is more difficult to estimate.

As part of the current mastitis research programme the Department of Agriculture's Animal and Dairying Divisions surveyed 37 dairy herds with a believed high incidence of mastitis.

Tallow As A Substitute For Butterfat In The Diet Of A Young Calf, R. Sprivulis

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

WHILE cow's milk is the best food for a young calf it is also very expensive.

The normal substitute for whole milk is skim milk, but removing the butterfat from cow's milk reduces the dry matter content by 30 per cent and the digestible energy by 50 per cent.

Good Management For The Springers Pays Dividends, J Y. Langdon

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

This article gives a striking example of the advantages of calving cows in good and rising condition—and explains why condition around calving time is so important.

ALTHOUGH most farmers know that cows calving in good and improving condition will give higher yields than those calving in poor condition, few use this knowledge to improve the production from their cows.

Mastitis : Prevention And Control. 2. Principles Of Mastitis Control, F C. Wilkinson

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

MASTITIS is a major cause of financial loss in over half our dairy herds.

Losses result from treatment costs, milk discarded, permanent loss of milk production, culling, lowering of solids-not-fat content and loss of butter-fat production.

Mastitis CAN be controlled. This article outlines the basic principles of mastitis control in the milking shed.

Pigs On The Dairy Farm : Cutting Costs To Meet Low Prices, R A. Bettenay

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

As all dairy farmers know, the market prices of pigs tends to fluctuate, depending on supply and demand, in a manner which is very hard to predict.

At a time when prices are low there are several things which the dairy farmer can do to continue operating, although at a reduced margin.

Cull Your Dairy Cows On Production, R A. Bettenay

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

Good production and breeding records are essential to allow effective culling of dairy cows, says Busselton Agricultural Adviser R. A. Bettenay, B.Sc. (Agric.) in this article, in which he outlines points to take into account when culling the herd.

Skim Milk : The Cheapest Pig Feed, P C. Beck

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

BUTTERFAT production has started on most South-West dairy farms, and although pig prices are not high at present, many dairy farmers have either purchased young stock or bred pigs to utilise their surplus skim milk.

Skim milk is the best feed for pigs on the dairy farm. Properly used in conjunction with other feeds it produces high quality carcasses at minimum cost.