The dairy Lifetime Performance Index will be updated April 1 and includes some changes in trait weighting, including milk production as a dairy farmer realized it was over-emphasized.
Dairy cattle
Dairy LPI gets last minute updates
A dairy farmer figured out that the last index was over-weighted to milk production
US will spend up to $1 billion to combat bird flu, USDA secretary says
The U.S. will invest up to $1 billion to combat the spread of bird flu, including increasing imports of eggs, agriculture secretary Brooke Rollins said on Wednesday.
Canadian, Mexican agri-food sectors must co-operate amid tensions with U.S. says ambassador
Canada and Mexico must build on a strong agricultural trade relationship to secure trade resilience in the face of U.S. tariffs, says Carlos Joaquin Gonzales, Mexico's ambassador to Canada.
Canadian cattle, hog inventories post modest declines
Canadian cattle and hog inventories on January 1, 2025 were down compared to one year prior, Statistics Canada reported.
Online presence brings farm stories directly to consumer
There can be pitfalls from being the face of farming on the internet
Olly Harrison and Davide Gomiero were recognized at Agritechnica and Eurotier for their public story telling about their farming operations.
Dairy producers, researcher weigh in on how to increase longevity
Production, fertility and replacement rate need to be balanced against economic factors for dairy farms
Building longevity in dairy herds doesn’t have a sure-fire formula, however, production, fertility and replacement rate using a cow-specific metric balanced against economic and management impact should influence culling decisions.
Bird flu finds fertile ground in dairy mammary cells: study
Beef cattle may not have same susceptibility, although more work is needed on the topic
A U.S. study reveals that the avian flu clade that has infected dairy herds throughout the country affects dairy cows in their mammary cells — an unusual place for flu viruses to replicate.
Federal government stocks up on human bird flu vaccine
The Canadian government has secured 500,000 doses of a human vaccine against avian influenza as part of a contingency plan to protect those at most risk for the disease.
Watch dairy heifers grow on well-balanced diets
There are numerous different ways to get a quality mix to a farm’s heifers
I have balanced many dairy heifer replacement diets in the last few months. It’s a pretty easy exercise, once I put it down on a pdf spreadsheet and then email […] Read more
US bird flu response disrupted in early weeks of Trump administration, sources say
Congress not briefed for weeks, reports withheld, meetings cancelled, reports suggest
The Trump administration has disrupted the U.S. response to bird flu as the outbreak worsens, leading to confusion and concern among federal staff, state officials, veterinarians and health experts, 11 sources told Reuters.