Milk Fever

 Yesterday I made a very fun post about twins on the farm. The two baby heifers are doing great and eating lots of yummy milk, however their mom is struggling a little bit after the stressful birth. Twins are rare for a reason on the farm because they can be very taxing on your animals, so preferably a cow will only have one calf instead of twins, or even triplets! The mother cow we diagnosed with a condition called milk fever. Milk fever causes an animal to become lethargic, have a lost or decreased appetite, and have extreme difficulty walking and moving around. This occurs due to a lack of calcium which calcium stores can become greatly depleted throughout gestation and post-calving. In order to help our momma cow feel better we had to give her a body a source of calcium which we use a solution called CMPK. This mixture contains, calcium, magnesium, phosphorous, and potassium and is given intravenously. It is possible to administer only calcium, but this can be risky and would need to be given to the animal very slowly to avoid any complications so instead we use CMPK as the mixture is much easier for us to give. This is also another great example as to why we separate the pens in the barn based on the age and current stage of lactation as late term gestating cows will require a significantly higher proportion of calcium in their diet than a growing yearling heifer. 

Today we shipped 4,719 gallons of milk and had one new jersey calf. 

Twins

It was a special day on the farm today because we had twins! One of our cows that we recently brought back to the main facility gave birth to two baby heifers. Twins are quite rare on the farm, and there is something genetically unique about cow twins. If there are twins of opposite sexes born on the farm such as a bull and a heifer, it is most likely that the heifer calf will grow up to be sterile and never produce offspring. A cow that cannot have a calf of their own is often called a free martin. This can be somewhat problematic on a dairy farm considering that we produce, ship, and sell milk. The only way for a cow to produce milk is for them to have a baby, therefore a free martin will never produce milk. Luckily for us, the twins are both heifers so as they both grow up they should develop just like any other calf. After doing a bit of research, some articles suggest that the placental membrane that forms during gestation causes fluids and other bodily proteins to mix between the dam and both calves. The exchange of these fluids will more often than not impact the reproductive status of the heifer calf when she is twin to a bull. 

Today we shipped 4,919 gallons of milk and had the two lovely heifer twins born in the picture below.  

Mooey-Mondays

This was another typical Monday where I fed the calves and then helped administer J-vac, GnRH, and lutalyse shots to some of our cows. When I feed my calves I start by mixing up the buckets first, and then feeding the youngest babies on bottles last. Mixing the milk for the calves is important because if the ration is not balanced properly it could cause indigestion. There are scoops that come with the bags of milk replacer that we purchase and the rule is to mix one full scoop of milk replacer with four pints of warm water! In the photograph with the buckets below, I can carry four of them at a time to feed our hungry calves. 

When we moved on to giving shots I took a picture of one of our girls that was very cozy in her stall. The design of the stalls needs to allow for enough lunge space for the cow. Lunge space is the space that the cow will move forward when she is standing up because a cow will lunge forward when she wants to stand. They were also designed so that the cows should not be able to lay sideways, or with their rear in the bedding as this will allow for easy and fast clean up of manure!

Today we shipped 5,764 gallons of milk and had no new babies. 

Friday Chores

It's Friday, which means we had more cows to dry off. There were a lot of cows that we brought back to our main facility today because they are getting really close to giving birth. In June we are anticipating around seventy newborn calves! To prepare for this baby boom there has been a lot of time spent cleaning out dirty bedding, setting up new pens, and stocking up on supplies. Primarily our farm has Holsteins and jerseys, but we also have a few angus crosses mixed throughout and they provide a decent amount of milk as well. 

To wrap up the week the cows moved very well and we only had one stubborn girl who just refused to walk onto the cattle trailer! Sometimes this happens, and instead of stressing her out we decided to keep her at the current barn and try to bring her home again next Friday. Unsurprisingly the stubborn girl was a jersey, and they always seem to have the biggest attitudes. Below is a photograph of the pregnant cows that are taking a break from milking and thoroughly enjoying their vacation. 

Today we shipped 5,514 gallons of milk and had one new heifer calf. 

Cow Markers

Cows will sometimes have ribbons or bands tied to their legs which indicate a different condition. On our farm, we have bands that will inform you if a cow has a milk withhold period, or if the cow has something unique about her udder and more. The girl in the picture below has a special band which tells our milkers that one teat on the cow is considered dead and no milk will flow through it. Depending on the milking units the machine can either attach to the teats that are working and the one that would go on the dead teat will get plugged with a stopper. We do not want to cause any irritation to a teat that will not have any milk flowing through it so it is more comfortable for the cow to avoid applying any extra pressure! In order for milk to be released from any cow, they need to be happy. Oxytocin is the happy hormone that is released to help stimulate lactation so it is extremely important that we ensure our cows are treated excellently. 

Today we shipped 5,558 gallons of milk and had two new calves.

Learning to Breed Cows

 Yesterday when we had the field trip we rescheduled with out veterinarian and check around twenty-five cows to see if they were pregnant. On our farm I have mentioned that we use artificial insemination, but we also have a specific pen with a bull. We will try to breed them with the appropriate sire that the computer program will provide to us based on the cows traits. For example, a cow is graded on something called a body condition score. This score is based on different attributes of the animal such as udder, legs, and feet. If there is a low number it would suggest that certain area could be improved so a sire with an excellent score in that same category would make for a good breeding choice. Our bull pen is here because some cows can be really tricky to breed and if we are unable to succeed she will go with the bull to hopefully be bred! Below is a photograph of Tequila, one of the very first bottle calves I helped raise when she was just a baby. She has had two healthy babies on our farm!

I have started learning more about cow breeding recently and it is hard work! If you have been to a farm then you will know that to artificially inseminate a cow you will put a very large glove over one arm and insert it in the cows rear. You will use your non-dominant hand and after a few seconds of this your arm will get all tired like you have been lifting weights. However, by doing this it will actually allow you to feel the cervix of the animal, thus making breeding with the instrument much easier as you can maneuver the device easily and have a higher chance of success with breeding. I hope to one day successfully breed a cow!

Today we shipped 5,466 gallons of milk and had one new heifer calf.

Field Trip at the Farm

Today at the farm we had a school come for a tour with around forty pre-k students to learn about the dairy industry. This was a fun and educational day and we spent it walking the kids through the different barns and explaining what we do. Naturally the kids were most excited about seeing the calves in the calf barn. During the tour one of our friendly barn cats followed us and was very intrigued with his reflection in the milk truck! In the past we have had other schools come to the farm, including a few college students and hopefully we will see more in the future!

We shipped 5,566 gallons of milk and had no new babies. 

Spa Day

 Every Monday at our farm the hoof trimmer will come in and tidy up the feet of our girls! Taking care of the hooves is very important, and often times you will hear the term "lame" used for any cow that might be walking with a strange gait. The majority of the time these strange gaits can be related to an issue with their hooves and the hoof trimmer is able to identify the problematic hoof and help start the healing process. This does not hurt the cow in any way, in fact many hoof trimmers will compare tending to cow hooves like trimming your fingernails when they grow too long. In the photograph below you can see the machine that is used to help keep the cow secure during the hoof trimming process. It is not possible to trim a cows hoof like you would do with a horse so for the safety of the cow and for the hoof trimmer many times the cow in need of a spa day will be lead into a shoot that will keep her body secure and her feet still. This particular machine is able to lift the cow off of the ground and provide an excellent view of all four hooves. Our hoof trimmer has been doing this for over forty-four years! When they are finished tending to a hoof there are several options that the hoof trimmer might decide to do for the cow. If a considerable portion of the hoof was damaged or sore and needed to be removed a rubber block in the shape of the hoof can be placed and secured with vet wrap. Some hoof trimmers will also use an antiseptic called chlorohexidine to help clean and prevent infection from occurring. There is a lot of science involved in hoof trimming, if you are interested in learning more I included a video which talks about the hoof trimming process in greater detail.

Today we shipped 5,597 gallons of milk and have three newborn calves!

How Cow Hooves are Deep Cleaned

Milk Testing

 Each month throughout the year we will have our milk tester come to the farm to collect valuable information. Today our milk tester came in for one of our milking shifts, as we milk our cows twice a day. When our milk tester is here, we will help them collect a small amount of milk from every cow, record the weight in pounds of milk produced from each cow, and determine the protein, butterfat, and SCC numbers. SCC stands for somatic cell count which is a measure of the immune cells and natural mammary cells in a portion of milk. Extremely high SCC could indicate an infection, such as mastitis. Mastitis is an infection of the mammary system and is very uncomfortable for the cow. It is incredibly important to monitor these values because the SCC average of the bulk tank that collects and holds all of our milk must be below a certain standard in order to be shipped and sold for human consumption. An interesting fact about cows is that they will not lactate if they are unhappy or scared. A cow must be producing oxytocin which is known in the dairy industry as the milk letdown hormone

I included a photograph of our milking parlor below. We have a sixteen by sixteen parlor, meaning we have thirty-two total milking units that can be used at the same time. Since we have a large farm it can take between five and six hours on average to milk all of our lactating cows! There are many different styles of parlors that farmers can have, such as a tie stall, rotary parlor, and robotic milker. Tie stall parlors will have the animal living in the same area where they get milked which is different from my farms design where we walk them to the milking parlor. A rotary will require the animals to walk to the parlor as well, but the cows will walk into a moving rotary. I highly recommend looking up a video for a rotary parlor, these are really cool and interesting to watch! Lastly a robotic milker will allow the cow to walk to the robotic milker at will and this machine can fully milk a cow without any human intervention. 

Today we shipped 5,446 gallons of milk and had one newborn bull calf. 

Breeding Cows

 Today at the farm our veterinarian came in again to assist us. On Thursdays we breed cows and this is an important part of dairy management. Cows are mammals which means they will produce milk after they give birth. We have a special computer system that will inspect and compare certain traits of our cows and determine which bull we should breed her with to produce an excellent calf. Primarily we do artificial insemination, but we also have a bull in a specific pen for any cow that might be particularly challenging to breed. This is super beneficial as it will lower the risk of injury on us (if she is a wild one!), and she can be bred during a natural heat cycle which tends to be more effective. 

A few fun facts, a cows gestation lasts about nine months and on occasion a cow will give birth to twins! Twins are pretty rare, so as soon as we get a pair I will be sure to make a special post all about them. To wrap this up I included a photograph I had taken of a cow that was playing with her tongue. Our Jersey cows love to flick their tongue around in the wind like it is a fidget toy and when we catch them doing this it always makes us laugh. I quickly pulled my phone out while we had the truck temporarily stopped to snap a picture. 

Today we shipped 5,448 gallons of milk and had no new babies. 

Babies, babies, babies!

So a major point of my job is to take care of the calves that are born. It is an interesting topic when it comes to calves and how to properly handle them and nearly all dairy farms will have a special barn or area dedicated as the calf nursery. This barn is where I spend a lot of time and I really love every moment of it. We currently have a lot of extra space as calf birthing's have been slow but I am very excited for when they pick up later this summer! A heifer calf is a girl, while a bull is a boy. There is a lot of terminology and jargon used at farms and some other examples include fresh cow; a cow that has recently given birth; and dry cow which I have explained previously. 

What do I do when we have newborn calves? I make sure that they get the best quality colostrum to give them an optimal start to life. Colostrum is jam-packed with antibodies that these calves need because when they are first born as they have a very poor, underdeveloped immune system. The colostrum antibodies can be directly absorbed in the intestines of these animals within the first twenty-four hours of birth so it is vital that we feed them as soon as possible. After they eat their colostrum, I will also give a shot of vitamin B and multimin, I'll dip their naval in a naval guard to protect against infection, give them a toothpaste tube of additional proteins, and I will tag them. I like to think of the tags as fancy earrings that the cows get to show off! In total, a newborn heifer calf will get two tags; one colorful tag with her identification number and birthday, and one tag that looks like a white button. The white button is a fancy tool that our computer system can read and recognize and help keep track of a multitude of information about the health of our cow as she grows up. Below is a photograph of one of our recently trained calves that I included on the bucket training post showing off her bright, shiny yellow tag. She just ate her dinner and has a few drops of milk still hanging on the bottom of her chin!

Today we shipped 5,453 gallons of milk and had no new babies. 

Preg-Checks

Tuesdays and Thursdays at the farm are very busy days, our veterinarian will come to the farm to assist us with various important tasks on these days. On Tuesdays we do pregnancy checks on some of the cows that have been bred. There is a lot of information regarding the breeding process, sire selection, artificial insemination and more, so I will split these general topics into separate posts throughout the week. Today we checked around thirty cows to confirm if they are pregnant and to keep a record of the length of the pregnancy to ensure that we are able to dry them off at the proper time. All of this information is kept in a computer program which we can access and search any animals information on. To preform a preg-check, our vet has a portable ultrasound machine that fits in a backpack and has a cord attached to a pair of fancy looking goggles that they can look through to observe the reproductive system.

While our vet is checking the pregnancy status of our animals, they are also looking at specific biological cues from the ovaries of any non-pregnant cow. At our farm we have two different vaccinations that we will give our cows when we are preparing to breed them as they help to regulate the reproductive cycles. The two vaccinations are called GnRH and Lutalyse. GnRH is naturally produced by the pituitary gland of all animals and it will help the animal form a follicle on the ovary. This follicle will contain a single egg that will be ready for fertilization once released from the ovary. Lutalyse, otherwise known at luteinizing hormone is another naturally produced hormone from the hypothalamus and this has a special role in bringing an animal into heat. For anyone interested in the more technical aspect of this hormone, it will cause the removal of a corpus luteum. A corpus luteum will appear on the ovary after every single menstrual cycle and this will produce another hormone called progesterone which helps the uterus prepare to carry an embryo! When a corpus luteum is removed the production of progesterone will drop and the animal will go into heat which will be an optimal time for breeding. 

This was a very technical post about several different hormones and their interactions in the reproductive system of cows! Please feel free to leave a comment or send me an email with any burning questions. 

Today we shipped 5,566 gallons of milk and had three new bull calves! 

Johne's Disease

Today was a bittersweet day at the farm. Our veterinarian diagnosed one of our cows with an uncommon disease called johne's disease. This is a bacterial infection that can lie dormant in an animal for several years before showing any clinical signs. Our girl, who had been going through lots of treatments and TLC, eventually was diagnosed with this. Unfortunately this bacterial infection does not have a cure, and many of the common signs include diarrhea, a normal appetite, and edema under the jaw. Edema is simply swelling of fluid in the tissue which can cause a visible bump. Her name is Bumblebee, one of the cows I helped bottle feed and care for when she was just a newborn calf. Considering there is no cure, and that her condition was only getting worse, it was decided to put her to rest so that she would not be in any more pain. When I did some outside research on this infection I discovered that it essentially causes an animal to be unable to absorb nutrients from anything that they eat, and they will eventually die due to nutrient deprivation. If you are interested in reading more about johne's disease here is a link to a USDA website with more information: https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/ourfocus/animalhealth/nvap/NVAP-Reference-Guide/Control-and-Eradication/Johnes-Disease#:~:text=In%20cattle%2C%20signs%20of%20Johne's,bloodstream%20into%20the%20digestive%20tract.

In the photograph below is a different cow, this girl is really friendly and loves to be pat. I wanted to include her in this post to brighten up the overall tone! I also gave her plenty of neck scratches after taking this photograph. 

Today we shipped 5,483 gallons of milk and had no new babies!

Dry Cow Day and a Special Surprise

 Every Friday we move cows in the cattle trailer to our second facility. We have two locations which are within a few miles of each other and I like to consider one as our main operation and the other as the teenager hangout. I think this because the one location has the milking parlor and is where I spend most of my time, while the other location has our weaned heifers, yearlings, and some dry cows. Today we moved around fifteen cows and ten of them were dried off from our main facility. To dry off a cow we have a special toothpaste like material which comes in single use tubes and all we do is apply it to each teat on a lactating cow when she is about seven months pregnant. This will allow the cow to get a rest period to prepare herself for birthing as a cow will have a gestation period of nine months. When we move them to the other barn it allows the cow to get plenty of rest, proper nutrition, and reduce the instance of getting harassed by other cows. Sometimes our pregnant girls can get picked on so separating them can be very helpful for many reasons! 

The photograph below of the cattle trailer was taken by Sarrah over the winter. This is the same one we use when we haul our dry cows across town and if you look closely you can see some of the girls poking their little noses through the trailer! We all thought it was a really cute picture. 

Today we shipped 5,454 gallons of milk and had a very special surprise of newborn kittens! At the calf barn we have a few friendly barn cats and the proud mama cat Ketchup had four adorable healthy kittens.

Bucket Training

 At the calf barn today we decided it was time to try and train some of our young calves to drink off of a bucket. Many farms will feed their calves on a bottle and we will also do that, but once the calves are eating really well we will try to graduate them to eating on a bucket. This is really simple to teach and will save a lot of time during chores. All we need to do is fill a pail with milk and guide their mouth into the liquid with our hands or with a nipple attachment that would normally be on a bottle. Most of the time all it takes is for a few drops of milk to touch their tongue and then they drink the entire pail without a problem. Sometimes however, we will have the occasional calf who cant quite figure it out alone so we have to help them find the milk at the bottom of the bucket a few extra times until they get it.

The girl in the picture below was an absolute rockstar! First I showed her where the milk was with my hand, then I transitioned into a nipple attachment and she kept her nose in the bucket for the entire time. When the afternoon feeding came around she remembered that there was delicious milk in the bucket and did not need any assistance finding it. As soon as I placed the pail in her pen she immediately stuck her nose down in the warm milk and drank it all without any help.

Today we shipped 5,444 gallons of milk and had no new babies. 

Spring Cleaning

 All of my mornings begin with the calf chores before we tackle other projects. Sometimes a long day at the farm might require us to work on aspects that do not involve cows. Today we did a lot of spring clean-up moving old pallets, broken boards, and other unusable materials. We cleaned up around the calf barn and then we went across town to our second portion of the farm and cleaned up even more. The loader was filled several times and this opened up a lot of space around the barns. This took us well over a few hours and once we finished moving everything we were all pretty tired and sore. While we were busy working in this beautiful weather, one of the pallets that we moved had a cute little frog which we relocated so that he would not accidentally get stepped on! Another critter that graced us while working was a chubby little woodchuck whom seemed more curious about what we were doing outside than actually being frightened. 

Today we shipped 5,500 gallons and milk and had two new baby bull calves! 🐮🐮🐮

Keto-no!

While at the barn today I had to help treat some sick cows. Every now and again we will have a few members of our herd come down with an illness that needs medication in order to be treated. Luckily for our herd, we have a special pen to separate our sick girls that need to be monitored closely. Another benefit to having a separate pen for sick cows is the decreased risk of spreading infection to others. Today in the sick pen we checked a few for ketosis. We use a simple instrument that will measure the amount of ketones present in the body by having the cow urinate on a paper dipstick. The end of the paper dipstick will change color depending on the concentration of ketones present, and there is a scale printed on the container for reference. The darker the color of purple, the more ketones present in the cows body. If we get a positive reading for a large amount of ketones then the animal will need treatment! The dipstick in the photograph below was a positive reading so we quickly got medications to treat her. When a cow is positive for ketosis she essentially does not have enough sugar in her blood system so her liver will begin to break down fats which results in the overproduction of ketones throughout her body. Typically a cow suspected of ketosis will look lethargic, have a decrease in her milk production, and in some cases they can have a loss in their body condition score. Our farm uses the urine dipstick to check for ketosis, but other methods include a blood analysis that can be obtained from a vein underneath the cows tail, or by testing the milk. 

To treat our sick girl we need to restock her body with sugar! In severe cases we will administer an IV of dextrose to provide her body with an immediate source of sugar to encourage her liver to stop breaking down fats for energy. We will also pump a mixture of water, a specialized alfalfa powder, and propylene glycol which her gastrointestinal tract will digest and absorb. Our girl that needed treatment was very well behaved while I gave her an IV and we expect her to make a speedy recovery!

Today we shipped 5,551 gallons of milk, and had one newborn bull calf. 🥛🥛🥛

Welcome to my Farm!

I started my day bright and early at 6:30 AM by feeding the calves and then I moved onto chores with the big cows. Currently I work at the Simpson View farm which has a mixed herd of Jerseys and Holsteins. There are around 1200 cows on the farm and of those we are milking roughly 570 of them. In the photograph below is the dry cow barn. A dry cow is a cow that is not lactating and is currently pregnant. This is an important rest period for the cow as they require nutrients for both their own maintenance and the calf that is developing inside. Most farms will dry a cow off for the last 60 days of pregnancy to ensure that she gets all the rest she needs to bring a new life into the world! All of the girls in the photograph below are preparing to give birth and to help give them an extra boost we gave them vaccinations of J-Vac. This will help prevent a disease known as metritis which is an infection of the uterus that can happen due to dystocia, retained placenta, or dirty material from entering the birthing canal during labor. In total we gave twenty J-Vac shots to help protect our herd! 

I want to include some fun statistics in my daily posts about milk produced and calves born to wrap up my daily posts! Today we shipped around 5,560 gallons of milk, and there were no new calves.🐄🐄🐄