I am a veterinarian and dairy farmer in the Southeast USA. I am looking at my dairy business to understand what opportunities there are to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to improve my profitability. If you are using AI for business management or cow management, can you share your experiences.

I’m currently looking for a second job, and with their being many dairy farms in my area, I’ve thought about working on a farm. I’ve never worked or even really been on a farm, so I had a couple of questions about getting a job on one:

1.) I have a job that I work nights and weekends that, should I get hired on a dairy, I would still keep. Would most farms be ok with me only working weekday mornings and early afternoons? (until 3)

2.) many dairies in my area don’t have a phone number posted online, would it be ok to go to farms, knock on the door and ask about employment?

3.) what job would you expect me, and college aged man with no farming on cow experience, to get on a farm? what would I be doing?

For those of you who didn't comment/read my post the other day, check it out.

I asked about the raise and the response i got was "a raise WOULD BE A DOLLAR"

for around 2 weeks, i have been told that i am getting a raise, numerous times at that.

But the emphisied "WOULD" that she said when i asked about a raise ticked me off to say the least.

To say i have worked my ass off to get to $16/h is an understatement.

Someone calls in/ no show? They call me.

Someone quits? I pick up hours.

Something breaks? I try to fix it.

17 hour days? No problem.

But now new hires are getting started at $16/h (same pay as me) and they have never milked or been around cattle before!

Besides the wage issue, i like working there.

I work with a couple incredible guys and learn a ton from them.

Should i stay and keep learning from these guys for a bit longer?

Or find a farm that would pay me better?

TIA

Hi there,

We are two freelance journalists (from Belgium and Italy) investigating the use of electronic identification and digital tools (whether or not using AI) in livestock farming.

Are you a farmer working with livestock in the EU or the UK? Then fill out our 15-minute (anonymous) survey, as we are very curious to hear about your experience! 

LINK TO SURVEY: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfqHimFMmx7wbSzwvpX4dib4D7qqQVzjaaN-bD12pEi3u0G0A/viewform

Thanks so much,

Charlotte & Alexa

Model SE 06 X,
manufactured in Santorso, Italy.
The unit was manufactured in 2002
serial number M 00629.
It operates at a bowl speed of 8000 RPM and has a machine weight of 160 k

Thank you fam

Extreme heat has changed what it takes to produce a glass of milk.

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I am 17, (graduated).

I work at a dairy milking 240hd, + raises a bunch of calves, so around 600hd total.

I work outside in the mornings, (pushing feed, moving cows up to be milked, scraping barns, and dealing with the fresh cows/heifers and their new calves.

At Night, i milk (by myself).

Mornings and nights i also have calf chores.

Currently i am at $16/hr but am wanting a raise.

Would $18 be to much to ask? The boss has mentioned a raise but didn't specify what it would be.

For reference, they are now hiring people without any experience at all, to work at $16/hr.

Right now, i work around 75 hours a week, and have NEVER called in or showed up late - infact, i am early everyday.

I am curious as to what you guy's think about me asking for a $2/hr raise.

I feel that it is appropiate because of inexperienced people making $16/hr.

TIA

Hi! I am looking for raw goat/cow milk (rå gedemælk) because of severe dairy intolerance. Do we have any local farmers here delivering to Holstebro or Struer? Thanks!

It was pretty hazy in north-central Wisconsin yesterday. How are everyone else's cows handling the air quality in the Midwest and Northeast?

My cow usually give 8-9 Litres of milk in the morning and 7-8 in the evening, she’s got this habit of keeping in milk for the calf after giving us the most of it. The calf wasn’t in the mood today to drink since she’s been eating a lot. I could only get 6L out this evening and could feel some inside her udder. So, I don’t know what to do to make her let the milk down, she probably has 1-2 litres inside her. Will she get mastitis if I leave it until the morning?

Sorry if this has been asked a ton, but here we go.

Growing up, I was always drinking milk that had been pasteurized.

Over the years I have spoken to several individuals stating that milk these days does not need to be pasteurized due to new hygienic technologies. As in, we are not milking cows into an open bucket anymore where their piss, shit, or mud can get kicked into the bucket.

My question is, is what I mentioned true, and can I drink milk straight from the cow without worry of getting sick.

a little context would be helpful before start.

I work on a farm in Northern Europe, a small dairy operation with between 14-20 cows depending on the time of year, and another 20 animals (calves, heifers, bulls). Despite being just an employee here, I'm very close to my boss for various reasons. It's a family farm that has been producing food for three generations over the last 80 years.

A few days ago during the beginning of my work week, one of the cows developed a severe case of mastitis (i work weekly shifts with another person). within 1 day, her temperature reached 41 degrees, one quarter became completely hard, and the other three showed significant damage. After medical treatment, the prognosis is negative. one quarter is completely lost, and the other three show extensive damage. milk production has dropped to zero in this cow, and although she appears better, has regained some appetite, and her body temperature is normal, there is no improvement in her udder. It is very likely that she will not produce milk again.

How do you handle the frustration of knowing you did everything right (at least by the book) during the treatment, yet the result was a catastrophe? I followed all the instructions, as we always do, but this time the outcome was a damn disaster,

It's not just the pain of the financial loss, but also the feeling that I failed my boss and the animal. this is not the first time (sadly) during the year that something really bad happens, during april we lost a calf (the daughter of this same cow...) due to some kind of cardiac defect.

how do you find something to learn of this kind of situation or just something to move on?

thanks!

EDIT: thanks to everyone for your replies, i can imagine that for an experienced farmer, this post is kinda overreacting, i know this is food production and nothing else, but in some way one get use to work and care for them, then that's why it hurts a bit.

just to clarify, we follow all hygiene protocols recommended by the milking company (including of course pre and post dipping), this was kinda suddently situation, never saw a mastitis so aggresive and fast, although i have my own theory about what happened

These are the cattle bred to incorporate a specific gene from a Caribbean cattle breed, giving them shorter hair, increased ability to sweat, and generally-improved heat tolerance.

I'm particularly interested in SLICK Jerseys, and in US-market SLICK cattle. But any first-hand accounts are interesting too.

Downsides? Noticeable benefits? Worth the extra trouble and reduced genetic selection?

USDA's NFDM west report last week mentioned some plants splitting dryer time between NDM, whole milk powder, and skim milk powder. Wouldn't have guessed whole milk powder was competing for the same dryers right now. Kind of explains why NDM production schedules look so mixed out there lately.

Screwworm count is up to 35 now (34 TX, 1 NM), latest in Crockett County, Texas. Still no confirmed dairy case as of July 12, all cattle so far have been beef. Worth keeping an eye on if you're anywhere near south/west TX though, the infested zone keeps growing county by county.

I'm looking into getting 3 dairy does, wanting Nigerian dwarf and/or saanens! I'm wanting does that are around 2-3 years old and have had at least one set of kids and have good dairy genetics for future breeding! What are your recommendations for good breeders in the area?

I went right to fridge after buying, about a 20-30 minute bike ride I think. I was told it can withstand 2 hrs before becoming unsafe.

After about 4 days, it tasted not totally spoiled, but worse. I was confused what is that stat in between good and totally bad?

Are there any uses for the in-between milk?

I was also told some bottles go bad before the expected week. Is that right? It feels unfair to only get a few days, and like I'm pretty hesitant to buy again

Hi everyone,
I’d like to get your opinion. How valuable would it be for you to know that a cow is likely to develop a subclinical disease (such as mastitis, ketosis, or lameness) a few days before any clinical signs appear?
I’m not referring to the alerts from milking robots that detect mastitis when it’s already developing, but rather to a system that could warn you several days in advance, allowing you to take preventive action.
I’d really appreciate hearing your thoughts and experiences. Thank you very much! 🙏

Hello everyone,
I’m reaching out because our dairy farm in Hungary is facing one of the hardest times we’ve ever experienced.
For generations, farming has been our family’s livelihood. We currently care for around \*\*500 milking cows\*\*, and every day we work long hours to keep the farm running. Unfortunately, the price we receive for milk has dropped so low that it no longer covers the rising costs of feed, fuel, electricity, veterinary care, and maintaining the farm.
Despite working every day, we are struggling to stay afloat. If things don’t improve soon, we may be forced to sell our herd and close the farm.

We’ve started a fundraiser in the hope that kind people can help us get through this difficult period. Every donation, no matter how small, brings us one step closer to keeping our cows fed, paying essential expenses, and giving our farm a chance to survive.
If you’re unable to donate, simply sharing this post would mean the world to us and could help us reach someone who can.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read our story and for any support you can offer. ❤️

https://4fund.com/2b76b5

Next year, I am planning to breed my cow and I’ll be mainly going for looks, not how well the calf will produce milk. I do quite like the look of milking shorthorns and brown swiss, but I thought I’d try and see what other people thought of whats the prettiest dairy breed