KY Dairy Notes (May)

Tip of the Month
When dry treating cows, attention to the details is important to prevent new infections
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- After milking, clean each teat end with an alcohol pad starting with the teat farthest away. Continue cleaning the teat end until the alcohol pad remains “white”. Use a new alcohol pad to clean each teat end.
- Starting with the teat closest and finishing with the teat farthest away, partially insert the infusion tip of the antibiotic carefully into the teat streak canal and slowly depress the plunger. Repeat for other 3 teats.
- Repeat infusion procedure with a tube of teat sealant for each teat. Pinch the top of the teat when infusing.
- Be careful not to contaminate the tip of the infusion tube.
- When finished, dip each teat with post-dip.
- Mark cow so everyone knows she is dry. Remove cow from the milking herd to prevent accidently milking.
- Record information of product used, cow id, date etc in permanent records.
Squeezing More Net Income from Your Dairy
One must take control and be the best business and cow manager possible in today’s business climate. Taking time to review one’s on-farm management practices of which you control can definitely pay financial and performance dividends.
Reproductive Management Practices Improve Fertility
At the recent KY Dairy Partners Meeting, Dr. Ronaldo Cerri from the University of British Columbia explained some of the key management decisions associated with managing a reproductive program for improved fertility.
Wisely Invest in Your Most Precious Commodity— Your Time
Our time is our most valuable and precious commodity and cannot be replaced. Quoting the great philosopher, Seneca: “We’re tight-fisted with property and money, yet think too little of wasting time, the one thing about which we should be the toughest misers.”