Hey everyone,

Weaning is one of the toughest periods for dairy calves, and I know a lot of farms struggle with scours, pneumonia, and reduced feed intake during this transition.

We’ve been working with a natural, colostrum-inspired solution that’s been showing real results:
✅ 50%+ reduction in calf mortality from weaning stress
✅ 30% increase in feed intake – better rumen development & faster growth
✅ Less reliance on antibiotics & medical interventions

It’s a milk enzyme found in colostrum, helping calves fight off bacteria naturally while improving digestion. Some farms we work with have seen zero death losses even under extreme conditions (110°F heat stress).

I’m curious: What’s been your biggest challenge with calf weaning? Have you found anything that really works to improve survival & growth?

Would love to hear your thoughts – and if anyone’s interested, I’m happy to share more details or set up sample trials.

Looking forward to the discussion!

We’ve been utilizing a variety of AHV boluses on our dairy for close to a year. Started administering because we had positive testimonial from a herd we were selling milking animals to. I haven’t developed an administration “protocol” but I’ve given to high SCC cows in all lactations and all stages of lactation (I’ve mostly used the “Extra” boluses). I’ve also given to animals that have a breakout of clinical mastitis with no prior SCC issues. I’ve kept track of what animals have received the boluses. I’m struggling to see if there’s a benefit to the animal or if the only benefit is a psychological one where you feel like you’ve done something. Checked a box to help make that animal better or more productive. The one benefit I feel like I’m seeing and able to produce from the data, I think it helps give 1st and 2nd lactation animals some positive immune responses. A lot of this is anecdotal. Anyone using them with measurable success? Protocols in place? I’ve read that dairies that measure SCC daily in the parlor utilize the boluses as soon as there’s an elevation. We don’t have that kind of system.

Without green grass can we run the dairy if yes how can we do it ? What are The pros and consequences…

Hey yall, i’m just looking for some advice here. i’m a first year ag sci student in canada who’s wanting to get into dairy nutrition. i feel it’s pretty important to get experience on farms with livestock and farmers so i know how things usually run and i can apply it later in life. i’ve worked a couple dairy jobs while in highschool (largest herd being 100 lactating cattle), but the dairy industry where i go to school is a lot larger and advanced to what i’m used to. i’ve only ever worked at old school dairy’s but around here it’s pretty large herds with a lot of fancy machinery that i’ve only ever seen in the states. I haven’t been able to find work around here as i’m not able to compete really with the family farmers from around here who’ve done it their whole lives. i’m just looking for ways i can become more of an asset to an operation or ways i can gain more experience. any advice is appreciated thank yall very much!

Attention all dairy farmers! I am trying to understand this concept of "excess colostrum" as I have seen a mass increase in colostrum supplements popping up on the market. Most say the calves are prioritized, and then the supplement is made from the excess. What do you think about this? Is there so much excess that you need something to do with it? How much do you save for backup stock? I'm curious to hear from you!

2ish week old calf shakes when he gets his bottle and fell over when lightly pushed and didn’t move.

Hi! I want to ask if you know where I can apply for work as an assistant dairy farmer . As the title says, I am looking for any job sites or direct hiring for this line of work and I do not have any work experience as I am only taking and studying in a accredited dairy farm school in my country. Hope someone can help me on this. Thanks!

I am looking to avoid buying from farms that do not guarantee their bobby calves aren't killed within days of birth. I understand the industry is moving to reduce the current hundreds of thousands of Bobby calves killed per year in Australia. In the meantime, what dairy brands can I purchase with an ethical position on Bobby calves? I understand bannister downs hand rear their calf herd to six months old, which to me seems more ethical.

I am really trying to remain a consumer of dairy so I would appreciate respectful comments. If you believe my understanding of bobby calf farming is incorrect, please be respectful and polite. I sincerely value farmers and the hard work and harsh economic conditions you face.

I have MU480's communicating with DelPro version 3.6 (2010.12.4.10), running on a pc with windows 10. Now, that operating system is about to be assasinated by its creators, and we will all be enjoying version 11 before long. I just want to know if anyone is running such an old DelPro program on win 11? I can't upgrade to later DelPro versions, as they don't support the MU480 machines. So, anyone out there who has let Microsoft do its update thing without trouble?

Hi Everyone,

We’re developing a solution using thermal imaging technology to detect mastitis and lameness, and we’d love your input!

Which approach would you prefer for your farm?

• Option 1: An app-based service where you can use your smartphone or tablet to capture and get the result.
• Option 2: A hands-free fixed camera system installed on-site for continuous thermal imaging and monitoring.

Your feedback will help us create a solution that best fits farmers’ needs.

Please vote below and share your thoughts in the comments! If you have additional insights or questions, we’d love to hear them.

View Poll

If your cows graze, do you have to augment that? What are they lacking?

What's the difference between corn silage and hay?

I see small local dairy farms still let their cows out to graze. Is it a question of number of cows, or amount of acreage, or what that decides whether to graze or not?

Do non-organic grass fed farms use weed killers on the pasture?

Right now, I typically wear ridgecut pants but looking for some more sturdy pants.

I’m new to the dairy world. We have been in high quality dairy goats for the last few years and done the typical “homestead milk processing. I would love to learn more about milk processing as we continue to build up our business. I’m not looking or able to invest in a turn key creamery setup, but I would like to know and learn about the process to be able to make the correct decisions. Anyone have a good lead?

As many dairymen continue to embark on large projects and hire their friends to build on very loose terms and contracts, along with “trust deals,” as a consultant, I just recently caught a well-respected farm builder mishandling over $6M in funds. Please get ahold of me if you want to minimize the significant risks that farming families are unaware of and don't have the staff or resources to manage correctly. This market sector is filled with egregious risks that farmers have no clue about.

I work as a RE Appraiser in north Florida and feel with dairies every once in a while. I’ve learned a lot over the years, but I’m not clear on the difference between a loafing barn and a free-stall barns. I’ve had farmers describe them essentially interchangeably and generally just go with what they call theirs as these are generally heavily depreciated and the difference is minimal impact on value.

Is the presence of feeding troughs the main difference or am I missing some other key factors?

For me, it would be when an ol lady caught her ankle around some loose fence wire and bruised it badly, we gave her a few weeks, but then we guess she stepped in a hole or something and when I was pushing cows in from pasture for morning milking, her ankle was hanging by a few pieces of skin, sadly but thankfully she was put down pretty soon after.

Every farm needs a dog or two, and one of my two labs is getting long in the tooth, so we were thinking about getting a new dog in the near future? What breed or dog do you have, and what is your experience with dairy farm dogs?

The main ethical arguments against dairy farming appear to be:

1. Male calves: Male dairy calves are expendable and are either killed immediately or sold to veal farms. Sexed sperm and the use of beef sperm can minimize this issue, but they are far from the standard practice.

2. Female cows are sold to slaughter when their production drops. So, instead of living out their natural lifespans (~20 years) they are killed without even reaching middle age.

As dairy farmers, how do you feel about these concerns?

So many posters on this sub talk about how much they love cows. Please help me understand.

I'm hoping to network with other dairies or labs that are using the VetMAX CORE extraction (manual and automated methods) for bovine mastitis testing. I'm having issues with the PCR runs.

Is it possible/ effective to use a poultice with abscesses on dairy cattle? I'm thinking about the large pads that can be used as a wet or dry poultice. They are labeled for use with dogs and horses and I have seen them work incredibly well for both. I'd love to know if there is a similar product for cattle to treat hoof/ leg/hock abscesses.

I recently came across a TikTok about a milking robot. I suddenly had a naughty thought. I immediately check the comments section. I wasn't the only bloke.

!Being perpetually horny, I have now become infatuated with this idea of hopping in for a go in a milking robot. I don't know what sort of operational challenges I would face, but I can imagine how this all would logistically play out in fantasy land. Like obviously unethical to contaminate with bad milk, the robot has cleaning and disinfecting features.!<

!Like people who've worked around these machines, could you kindly indulge me with your experiences? What sort of details could I add to fantasy land to make it more realistic and feeling in-reach? like any particular sensors, expected programming, where the E-stop is etc.!<

!My questions is, have any of you farmers have had a naughty thought around a milking machines.!<

!DM me if you'd like to share.!<

https://www.tiktok.com/@korndog4u/video/7087410474349808938?lang=en