The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the use of Baytril® 100 (enrofloxacin) in dairy replacement heifers less than 20 months of age.
Baytril 100 is a powerful, fast-acting antimicrobial for first-line treatment of BRD that beef cattle producers and bovine veterinarians have relied on for more than a decade. This lifesaving antimicrobial kills all three major BRD-causing bacteria with a single dose.
Producers and veterinarians know there is no time to wait when a calf has BRD, especially valuable dairy replacement heifers. With the value of these heifers at an all-time high, Baytril 100 provides a new, fast-acting, broad-spectrum BRD therapy option. Now, for the first time, dairy producers have access to the premier fluoroquinolone class of antimicrobials.
“The introduction of Baytril 100 into the dairy replacement heifer market gives producers and veterinarians access to the premier single-dose, first-line BRD therapy,” says Dr. Cary Christensen, Senior Director, Food Animal Products Business Unit at Bayer Animal Health. “We recognize that a significant number of dairy heifers will need BRD therapy each year. Baytril 100 will not only help save the lives of these animals, but will help ensure their lifetime value is not compromised by the effects of BRD during the first 20 months of life.”
A national Johne’s survey is now under way. Surveys were mailed to about 15-percent of each state’s dairy producers. The goal is to identify barriers and incentives for participating in the Voluntary Bovine Johne’s Disease Control Program. The information will be used to improve Johne’s-control efforts. For more information
Dairy producers should take the time to explore the National Dairy Animal Well-Being website to learn more about the producer-led coalition. The coalition is encouraging producers to: “to forward your comments to your co-op or producer organization, enabling them to compile all comments from their members.”
The National Dairy Animal Well-Being Initiative is a producer-led coalition that includes members from every sector of the dairy industry. On October 4, 2007 at World Dairy Expo, the coalition introduced the first draft of proposed principles and guidelines intended to provide a uniform umbrella of assurance that the industry is meeting its ethical obligation for dairy animal well-being. Our goal is to protect consumer trust and confidence in the dairy industry by demonstrating dairy producers’ commitment to animal well-being.
Over the next several months, dairy producers will have an opportunity to review the draft principles and guidelines and provide their input via their co-op or industry association. Input on the principles and guidelines is requested by July 1, 2008. Once the input is received, the coalition will finalize the principles and guidelines.
AgriLabs is proud to announce the introduction of Colostrx(R) Plus, a colostrum supplement for dairy and beef cattle. The Colostrx Plus supplement has an industry-high level of globulin protein of 55 grams.
“Already the sole U.S. Colostrx distributor, AgriLabs is excited to own this time-tested brand and reformulate it to better meet real-world needs,” says business unit manager David Zehendner. “Beef and dairy producers have trusted Colostrx to deliver the globulin proteins calves need for a good start. Now, Colostrx Plus delivers 64 percent more globulin protein, along with the consistent quality and reliable availability that comes from being manufactured in the United States.”
Colostrx Plus, which is specially formulated for newborn beef and dairy calves, provides the most disease-fighting globulin protein of any colostrum supplement. It is recommended as an aid in avoiding passive-transfer failure and maintaining intestinal health when fed within 24 hours of birth. Now manufactured in the United States, Colostrx Plus is available exclusively from AgriLabs.
Colostrx Plus is available in convenient single-dose, 16-ounce foil packets. They are easy-to-open and easy-to-mix in lukewarm colostrum, liquid milk replacer or water. Colostrx Plus contains 55 grams of globulin protein, derives its improved potency from the same source that enriches natural colostrum and, like the original, contains whey.
In a perfect world, maternal colostrum would be all that a calf requires in its first day of life, but, in reality, many calves don’t get what they need from their dams for a variety of reasons.
* Maternal colostrum varies widely in globulin content, with studies showing that nearly 20 percent of dairy cows have inadequate levels.
* Problems arise if the calf is unable or unwilling to suckle.
* A dam’s mothering instincts can be poor or she might be undernourished.
* High pathogen levels can be present in the calf’s environment.
* Exposure to inclement weather after birth can increase stress.
“If a calf fails to receive adequate globulin protein levels within 24 hours of birth, passive transfer fails, leaving the calf vulnerable to scours and other serious health challenges,” reports Roger Winter, technical services veterinarian for AgriLabs. “In these cases, supplementation with Colostrx Plus provides essential proteins to boost the globulin protein levels of these vulnerable newborns, which increases the likelihood of passive transfer.”
Pfizer Animal Health has announced that the therapy PIRSUE® has received approval for extended treatment. Be sure to ask your veterinarian for more information.
Dairy producers can now use PIRSUE® (pirlimycin hydrochloride) Sterile Solution for extended duration therapy treatment of subclinical and clinical mastitis. Pfizer Animal Health recently received the supplemental approval for PIRSUE, which is indicated for the treatment of both clinical and subclinical mastitis in lactating dairy cattle. PIRSUE is labeled for intramammary infections associated with Staphylococcus species such as Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus species such asStreptococcus agalactiae, Streptococcus dysgalactiae and Streptococcus uberis.
“This new approval allows your vet to prescribe PIRSUE once daily for up to eight consecutive days,” said Austin Belschner, DVM, Director, Pfizer Dairy Veterinary Operations. “This provides true flexibility in designing treatment protocols for a wide variety of Gram-positive mastitis pathogens on your dairy.”
“By using extended therapy treatment on mastitis cases, you’re more likely to obtain a bacteriological cure and thus lower the risk of re-treating the animal,” said Belschner.
Posted: February 28, 2008 at 6:36 pm
By News Editor
The Canadian Food Inspection Agencyconfirmed on Tuesday a case of BSE in a 6-year-old dairy cow from Alberta. The animal’s carcass is under CFIA control, and no part of it entered the human food or animal feed system. The age and location of the infected cow are consistent with previous cases in Canada, and this case will not affect Canada’s Controlled Risk country status, as recognized by the World Organization for Animal Health.
Posted: February 15, 2008 at 4:18 pm
By Chuck Zimmerman
One of the awards given by Western Dairy Business Magazine at World Ag Expo is the Outstanding Dairy Industry Edcucator/Researcher. This year that honor was presented to Dr. John Smith, Kansas State University.
Dr. Smith was interviewed by Dairyline’s Bill Baker. He’s humbled by the award. He’s one of the presenters at the Dairy Profit Seminars that were held at Expo. He talked about cross-ventilation for cow comfort.
You can listen to Bill’s interview with Dr. Smith here:
Posted: December 6, 2007 at 6:56 pm
By News Editor
A recent study, sponsored by the American Farm Bureau Federation and conducted by the Bureau for Social Research at Oklahoma State University (OSU) surveyed approximately 1,000 randomly selected people from across the U.S. on their attitudes in regards to animal welfare. The 48-question survey was conducted by telephone.
Bailey Norwood, an OSU economist and primary researcher in charge of the study, came to several conclusions. He generally found that:
• Welfare of farm animals matters to consumers but it’s not a high priority.
• Consumers have faith in the marketing system to maintain animal welfare, but they also want more government regulations.
• Most consumers feel farmers should be compensated if forced to comply with increased animal welfare standards.
• And, through a series of direct and indirect questions, the study found consumers generally do not care about farm animals as much as they say they do.
Along with higher corn prices, the value of corn silage has tracked notably higher. The industry used to reference corn silage values at “a penny a pound” or $20 per ton. However, the higher corn market and costs related to silage harvest have boost corn silage values in upwards of $50 per ton, says Dr. Bill Mahanna, coordinator of global nutritional services for Pioneer Hi-Bred. Mahanna provides suggestions on how growers might manage their corn crop to increase starch content, and in turn, the value of their corn silage.
Bill Mahanna on Value of Starch in Corn Silage (4:15 min MP3)
To see all archived Pioneer Forage Forum podcasts, click here.
Previous Forage Forum podcasts are also archived at the Pioneer GrowingPoint website. To access them, go to www.pioneer.com/growingpoint and click “Livestock Nutrition” and “Forage Blog.” Those not registered for Pioneer GrowingPoint website can call 800-233-7333 Monday-Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. CT for assistance.
The Society of Professional Journalists, the American Civil Liberties Union and others say an attempt to ban the disclosure of information from a national animal tracking system could exempt some Agriculture Department documents from freedom of information laws.
Cattle groups say such disclosure could harm their business. The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, which represents ranchers, has lobbied on behalf of the plan. Colin Woodall, director of legislative affairs for the group, said much of the tracking information is sensitive and unrelated to food safety.
“If it gets in the wrong hands it could be very problematic for our members,” he said. “It’s like Coca Cola having to disclose its secret formula to everyone who wants to file a FOIA request,” he added, referring to the Freedom of Information Act.
The chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, Democratic Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa, included the language in the bill and is now “further examining its implications,” committee spokeswoman Kate Cyrul. Cyrul said Thursday that the provision was included because ranchers were concerned that meatpackers, retailers or the government could misuse their information.
Ranchers now may choose to participate in the tracking program, which assigns numbers to individual animals or groups of animals. That way, the government could easily find animals related to those deemed to be infected with mad cow or other animal diseases. But many ranchers have declined to sign up, partly because of the disclosure concerns.
The Senate bill would allow the department to share some of the information with states and other government agencies under certain conditions, including threats of disease or threats to homeland security. But it would be against the law in most cases for the general public to access the information.
While yeast is a common ingredient in feed rations, including yeast in silage can cause stability issues, particularly when there is significant variability in the corn crop, says Dr. Bill Mahanna, coordinator of global nutritional services for Pioneer Hi-Bred. An increasing amount of yeast can impact digestibility and palatability of the silage, but more importantly yeast can “heat up” the silage. Mahanna shares silage management practices to help minimize the growth of yeast.
Bill Mahanna on Yeast in Unstable Silages (4:00 min MP3)
To see all archived Pioneer Forage Forum podcasts, click here.
Previous Forage Forum podcasts are also archived at the Pioneer GrowingPoint website. To access them, go to www.pioneer.com/growingpoint and click “Livestock Nutrition” and “Forage Blog.” Those not registered for Pioneer GrowingPoint website can call 800-233-7333 Monday-Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. CT for assistance.
Posted: October 25, 2007 at 5:19 pm
By News Editor
Pfizer Animal Health has some advice to help producers develop prevention management practices. Using systematic and comprehensive monitoring programs for facility layout, animal flow and employee training can dairy producers increase profits.
“A good fresh cow management program is critical to the success and profitability of a dairy,” says Mark Kirkpatrick, DVM, Manager, Dairy Veterinary Operations, Pfizer Animal Health. “When fresh cows are kept healthy and comfortable, dairy producers also benefit from increased performance and revenue.”
Kirkpatrick says early diagnosis and treatment are critical to preventing serious fresh cow health problems and avoiding economic loss. He recommends that proper treatment protocols are followed consistently and producers work with their veterinarians to set up a fresh cow program that fits the needs of the individual dairy. Simple steps used when evaluating fresh cow health include:
* Allocate fresh pen space exclusively for fresh cows and stock at no more than 80 to 85 percent of total stocking density;
* Lock up time should not exceed two hours a day – according to Nigel Cook, MRCVS, University of Wisconsin – Madison;
* Avoid moving fresh cows in and out of the hospital pen
Does corn silage really need to be that much different for heifers versus cows? According to Dr. Bill Mahanna, coordinator of global nutritional science for Pioneer Hi-Bred, the answer is yes since high fat deposits in growing heifers can cause havoc and production issues down the line. Hear how producers can potentially manage this problem and their crops to reduce starch levels. Bill highlights some of the challenges and potential solutions for managing corn silage when feeding heifers.
To see all archived Pioneer Forage Forum podcasts, click here.
Previous Forage Forum podcasts are also archived at the Pioneer GrowingPoint website. To access them, go to www.pioneer.com/growingpoint and click “Livestock Nutrition” and “Forage Blog.” Those not registered for Pioneer GrowingPoint website can call 800-233-7333 Monday-Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. CT for assistance.
Posted: October 23, 2007 at 5:34 pm
By News Editor
And the news from the Holstein Association USA is also outstanding - the Association is one of the first to be recognized by USDA as an official Animal Tracking Database.
A cooperative agreement has been signed between USDA and Holstein Association USA giving National FAIR (Farm Animal Identification and Records) official approval as a compliant Animal Tracking Database under the USDA Animal Trace Processing System (ATPS). The Association is among the first in the U.S. to be recognized by USDA/APHIS as an official Animal Tracking Database.
Through National FAIR, Holstein Association USA has one of the largest animal databases in the world, totaling over five million animals. If an animal health emergency were to occur in the U.S., the USDA would post a request for pertinent animal tracking information. Holstein would query the National FAIR database to determine where the animals in question have been. Information that would be provided to USDA would be the animal identification number, the premises ID and the event type and date. This system will help ensure data is shared quickly and confidentially with USDA only in the time of need.
Last week at World Dairy Expo a producer-led coalition called the National Dairy Animal Well-Being Initiativewas announced. The coalition represents every facet of the dairy industry and wants to protect consumer trust and confidence in the dairy industry’s commitment to animal well-being.
The coalition introduced the first draft of proposed principles and guidelines intended to provide a uniform umbrella of assurance that the industry is meeting its ethical obligation for dairy animal well-being.
The goal of the National Dairy Animal Well-Being Initiative is to provide assurance to stakeholders that the dairy industry is meeting its obligation to provide appropriate care for its animals.
Throughout the next nine months, dairy producers will have an opportunity to review the draft principles and guidelines and provide input through their co-op or industry association. The coalition will incorporate industry feedback into the final principles and guidelines. The entire process will take approximately 12 months.
The work of the National Dairy Animal Well-Being Initiative has already been endorsed by co-ops representing more than 25,236 farms and more than 104.1 billion pounds of milk marketed annually. This represents approximately 57 percent of the milk marketed in the United States annually, based on current statistics from USDA.
Posted: October 6, 2007 at 2:46 pm
By Chuck Zimmerman
I couldn’t pass up this picture.
If I’m a cow needing a little breeze to cool me down then give me a Big Ass Fan.
That’s what I’m talking about. One of these would be very nice over by deck too I’ll bet.
Here’s what they say about them on their website: “We don’t know about California, but we’re darn sure happy cows come from Big Ass Fans. How so? Well, you try doing your job under Africa-hot conditions. Bet you wouldn’t perform at your best level either. The same applies to cows. Keeping them comfy keeps them eating, which is the key to optimum milk production. Even better, your herd won’t bunch up in one area to keep cool. No matter where cows are in your barn, our Big Ass Fans moves air over all of them. Plus, they cost just pennies-per-hour to operate, meaning energy bills won’t milk your wallet dry.”
Posted: October 5, 2007 at 9:42 am
By Chuck Zimmerman
One of the exhibitors here is Arm & Hammer Animal Nutrition Group. They’ve got a new website up so dairy producers have an online destination to learn more about them and their products.
I spoke with Scott Morey (pictured on the right) who is their Senior Business Manager. He says they’re focused on dairy nutrition from a product standpoint and are here to talk about a variety of products.
Scott says that he’s hearing from producers that times are good. He wants producers to know that Arm & Hammer is focused on reproduction since they see that there’s room for improvement in this area.
Posted: October 4, 2007 at 10:35 am
By Chuck Zimmerman
This morning at World Dairy Expo a producer-led coalition of dairy groups and companies announced the National Dairy Animal Well-Being Initiative. They’re proposing dairy animal well-being guidelines and principles.
One of the groups participating in the effort is the National Milk Producers Federation. I spoke with their Senior Vice President of Communications, Chris Galen (not pictured) about what his organization is doing and specifically about this new animal well-being initiative. He says that it would be naive to think that the animal rights activists (whackos would be my term to describe them) will ignore dairy since they’ve been so much on the attack of poultry and pork. The initiative effort he says puts the dairy industry on the offense in addressing the concerns that these well funded groups have on consumers.
Posted: September 30, 2007 at 7:58 pm
By Chuck Zimmerman
Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists are testing a plant-produced, therapeutic protein, which thwarts bacteria that cause inflammatory udder disease in dairy cows. They turned a laboratory-produced plant virus into a delivery vehicle that carries a specific gene. The target gene expresses large quantities of a protein called CD14. When the virus reproduces itself inside plant cells, it generates CD14.
The researchers designed the virus to use the plant as a patent-pending “biofactory” that rapidly accumulates usable quantities of the therapeutic CD14 protein. A tagging system—which the researchers built into the technology—allows high levels of the CD14 protein to be harvested from mashed leaves. Potentially, fifty plants could provide enough purified protein to treat a herd of 500 cows.
In the ARS photo, plant pathologist Rosemarie Hammond and molecular biologist Lev Nemchinov (right) point out to molecular biologist Dante Zarlenga the virus symptoms on a plant containing the CD14 gene.
Sheep on a farm in southern England tested positive for foot and mouth disease after being slaughtered on suspicion that they were infected, the British agricultural ministry said.
Cattle on the same farm were also slaughtered after they displayed signs of the disease, including lesions, with test results still to come, the ministry said.
The animals were on a farm inside the protection zone west of London set up last week when a new outbreak of the disease was discovered and hundreds of pigs and cattle were culled.
The pigs were not suspected of having contracted the disease at the farm, which is the fifth infected site in Britain over the past month and a half, a ministry spokeswoman said.
Two nearby sites were hit last week by foot and mouth. The first of those came less than 24 hours after EU veterinary experts agreed to declare Britain free of foot and mouth from Nov. 9 and lift an export ban - imposed after the disease was found on two farms in August.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the use of Baytril® 100 (enrofloxacin) in dairy replacement heifers less than 20 months of age. 
One of the awards given by Western Dairy Business Magazine at World Ag Expo is the Outstanding Dairy Industry Edcucator/Researcher. This year that honor was presented to Dr. John Smith, Kansas State University.
Along with higher corn prices, the value of corn silage has tracked notably higher. The industry used to reference corn silage values at “a penny a pound” or $20 per ton. However, the higher corn market and costs related to silage harvest have boost corn silage values in upwards of $50 per ton, says Dr. Bill Mahanna, coordinator of global nutritional services for Pioneer Hi-Bred. Mahanna provides suggestions on how growers might manage their corn crop to increase starch content, and in turn, the value of their corn silage.
I couldn’t pass up this picture.
One of the exhibitors here is 
This morning at World Dairy Expo a producer-led coalition of dairy groups and companies announced the 
The researchers designed the virus to use the plant as a patent-pending “biofactory” that rapidly accumulates usable quantities of the therapeutic CD14 protein. A tagging system—which the researchers built into the technology—allows high levels of the CD14 protein to be harvested from mashed leaves. Potentially, fifty plants could provide enough purified protein to treat a herd of 500 cows.