For Your Dairy Business...

DON'T BLAME GENETICS ALONE ON UTERINE HEALTH CHALLENGES. Texas A&M researchers found that several confounding variables - including parity, dystocia and ketosis before 17 days in milk - had more significance than genetics on uterine health. After studying the associations between bovine single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and insertion-deletion mutations occurring in seven bovine genes known to recognize bacterial ligands and the most significant uterine diseases in dairy cows, including metritis, clinical endometritis and cytologic endometritis, the researchers concluded that data suggest that some of the examined SNPs may potentially elicit relatively small effects on uterine health in Holstein dairy cows and that some confounding variables are actually more predictive for the incidence of disease than any genetic markers evaluated.

A LINK BETWEEN FERTILITY AND POSTPARTUM ENERGY STATUS? German researchers say "yes." Using regression models to assess the effect of genetic merit for energy status on different traits and on subsequent reproductive performance of 824 high-producing dairy cows, German researchers found that cows with a high genetic merit for energy balance had a significantly earlier resumption of ovarian activity after calving. The researchers conclude that an energy balance (indicator) trait should be included in future breeding programs to reduce the currently prolonged anovulatory intervals after parturition.

YOU WILL BE LESS FRUSTRATED - AND SO WILL THE COW - when handlers remember to follow these rules when working cows:

• Cows can only focus on one thing at a time. Therefore, only one person should pressure a cow at a time; 
• Cows tend to move in and around whatever they perceive as pressure. This allows them to keep an eye on what is pressuring them as they move around or away from it; 
• Cows want to follow other cows; 
• Cows want to return to where they came from; 
• Cows want to move in the direction they face; 
• A cow will respond differently each day; and 
• Cows walk at about 2 mph while people tend to walk about 3 to 4 mph. Handlers walking at their normal pace and parallel with cows will eventually overtake the cow, first slowing them and then stopping forward motion altogether. Handlers are advised to slow their walking speed in order to move at the same pace as calm cows.

DISPLAY YOUR SMV SIGN-OR BE PREPARED TO FORK OVER. According to Wisconsin state law, farm tractors, agricultural implements, animal-drawn vehicles or other vehicles operated at speeds below 25 miles-per-hour must display a "Slow Moving Vehicle" (SMV) sign on the left rear of the vehicle. In all cases, operating during hours of darkness - even when the vehicle is not a SMV, requires the front and rear of the vehicle to have lights (white to the front, red to the rear) and the lights must be illuminated. A citation for failure to display a SMV sign or a violation of the lighting requirement each costs $162.70. Know the requirements in your state, for your safety, the safety of others, and to avoid citations.