• Laura Daniels is the Keynote Speaker at the Calf & Heifer Congress
• Wednesday Webinars in Spanish: Dairy Cow Management
• Veterinary Feed Directive Changes Effective in January
• Save the Date!

Laura Daniels is the Keynote Speaker at the Calf & Heifer Congress

The annual Calf & Heifer Congress 2016: “Laying the Foundation for Top Herd Performance” will be held December 7 and 8 at the DoubleTree by Hilton in East Syracuse, NY. Cornell University’s Northwest New York Dairy, Livestock and Field Crops Team hosts the conference, drawing on resources from across New York State and beyond. The Calf & Heifer Conference agenda and registration details are online. Registration is available online through December 5th.

Conference planners are pleased to announce Laura Daniels as the keynote speaker.
Laura describes herself as mother, wife, dairy farmer, consultant and agricultural advocate. From raising finicky Jersey calves at Heartwood Farm, her dairy in Cobb, WI, to consulting on team building and employee motivation for Star Blends Feed, Laura’s experiences help her make an instant connection with dairy farmers.

Laura’s keynote address “Hitch Pins - Connecting and Sharing Your Values will be held on the evening of December 7. On December 8, Laura will present “5 Tips to Inspire Your Team,” and then moderate a panel on employee management. In 2013 Laura founded the Dairy Girl Network, a networking group serving to connect dairy women from across the US and help them to succeed. The first-ever DGN networking event in New York State will be held after Laura’s keynote.

This year's conference content will also take an all-encompassing look at raising calves from birth through breeding and freshening. Presentations will include “Application of Genomic Technology in Dairy Herds,” by Jonathan Lamb of Lamb Farms Inc., and "Best Practices for Calving Assistance” by Harry Momont, DVM, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin. Hot topics include “Antibiotic Use and Considerations in Calves & Heifers” by Danielle Mzyk, DVM/PhD candidate, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, and “Preventing Disease Outbreaks” and “Respiratory Disease: Diagnostic Tools and Economic Losses” by Theresa Ollivett, DVM, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin.

For more information about PRO-DAIRY, visit prodairy.cals.cornell.edu.  The 2015-2016 Annual Report has just been released.

Julie Berry, Editor  |  Tom Overton, Director  |  Facebook

PRO-DAIRY is now offering dairy management webinars in Spanish on the last Wednesday of each month from November until April, except December.

The first was held from 12:30 to 1:00 pm, Wednesday, and was given by Libby Eiholzer, Bilingual Dairy Specialist, Northwest New York Dairy, Livestock and Field Crops Team Cornell Cooperative Extension. She discussed the basic physiology of how milk is produced. The second webinar will focus on the calving process, and what’s happening with the cow and the calf. The last three webinars will be a series on reproductive management, including heat detection, pregnancy checking, synch protocols and 1st and subsequent breeding strategies.

Registration is not required. Access the webinar link on the Dairy Webinars section on PRO-DAIRY's website to join. Webinars are also posted on the same website for viewing after the event.

Program dates and topics include:

• Nov 30 2016: Milk Production basics
• Jan 25, 2017: Calving management
• Feb 22, 2017: Reproduction Management
• March 29, 2017: Reproduction Management
• April 26, 2017: Reproduction Management
  

PRO-DAIRY's Dairy Herd Health & Management Specialist, Rob Lynch, DVM, posted a Food and Drug Administration's Veterinary Feed Directive Changes e-Alert. Most in the dairy industry are aware of recent guidance coming from the FDA as part of the agency’s policies on judicious use of medically important antimicrobial drugs. As the final phase of implementation approaches, now is a good time to remind everyone what has changed regarding feed-use and water-use antibiotic products which were, up until now, purchased over the counter (OTC).

Save the Date!

• Calf & Heifer Congress 2016
  Laying the Foundation for Top Herd Performance
  December 7 & 8, 2016.
  Doubletree Hotel, East Syracuse, NY.
  Early registration deadline is November 1.
• Academy for Dairy Executives
  Sessions begin December 13 – 14, 2016.
  Western New York Region
  Application deadline is October 20.
  
• Operations Managers Conference
  Precision Management: Merging People, Cows, Crops and Technology
  January 24 - 25, 2017
  Holiday Inn, Liverpool/Syracuse
  Sponsorship and exhibit opportunities are still available.
  
• CDEP Management Symposium
  Strategic Management for Future Success
  February 21 – 22, 2017.
  The Strathallan, Rochester, New York
  
• Herd Health and Nutrition Conference
  In collaboration with Northeast Agribusiness
  April 12, 2017
  Holiday Inn, Liverpool/Syracuse