by Sally Colby
If you haven’t put much thought into what to do in case animal rights activists show up at your farm, it’s time to develop a plan. Activists are becoming more emboldened, and as new groups form, members are developing new tactics. Unfortunately, when activists reach their goal of making headline news, they often receive more favorable coverage than the farmer. (more…)
by Emily Carey
Brian Sean Wee, certified financial planner (CFP) and founder of Next Level Horse Businesses, hosted a free webinar on June 7. Wee provided knowledge to help those in the equine industry build strong and profitable riding lesson programs. (more…)
by Troy Bishopp
Staying grounded in life means you aren’t controlled by external chaos and have the ability to stay calm and connect to the core of who you are in the face of uncertainty. Having a good grounding system on your fence energizer will also help control the chaos of animals getting loose and allow you to remain calm when you’re with friends or striving for a good night’s sleep. (more…)
by Sally Colby
Data collection on the farm can benefit the entire farm team and the dairy’s bottom line.
Dr. Lisa Holden, associate professor of dairy and animal science at Penn State, said cameras are commonly used in various areas throughout dairy farms and can collect valuable information that allows managers to provide feedback. “It isn’t about finger-pointing,” said Holden. “It’s about ‘How can we make things better? What’s happening that we can get this done, work as a team and fix things.’” (more…)
by Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
Discussing important farm business like division of labor or farm succession among family members who are also farm partners can be stressful. With past emotional history and money involved, talking about these issues becomes more sensitive than many other topics. (more…)
by Sonja Heyck-Merlin
Joe Lawrence is a dairy forage systems specialist at Cornell’s PRO-DAIRY, in charge of
implementing the annual Commercial Corn Silage Hybrid Testing Program in New York in collaboration with Heather Darby of the University of Vermont. (more…)
by Carol A. Henry
The 58th Tioga County Dairy Princess Coronation was held outdoors at a private location, hosted by Ruth Strong, Dairy Princess coordinator, on June 12, where 2021-22 Dairy Princess Megan Henry was crowned for a second year. (more…)
by Sonja Heyck-Merlin
“There’s not a lot of recent research information on pasturing hogs,” said David Hartman of Penn State, where he works as a livestock Extension educator. “This is because over the last few decades, the swine industry has become more consolidated with much more production in confinement systems, and not nearly as much pasture.” Use of forages for hogs diminished in the early 1950s when synthetic vitamins became widely available. Prior to that, hogs needed access to some pasture to obtain those vitamins. (more…)
by Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
For many farmers, tackling social media seems like another chore on an endless list of things to do. But Amanda Basse, business coach in Providence, RI, wants more farm businesses to use social media, and use it well. She presented “Best Practices for Social Media Ads and Promotions” as a recent webinar. (more…)
by Sally Colby
The time spent planning for the ideal heifer calf to add to the milking string may be wasted if she isn’t properly immunized. The act of vaccinating an animal doesn’t guarantee she’s immunized or protected from disease. Good immunization is the result of proper vaccine handling from the time products arrive on the farm until they’re administered.
by Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
Many people rely upon their employer-sponsored health insurance plan. Farmers operating their own businesses do not have that option. MidAtlantic Women in Agriculture recently presented “Health Insurance Options for Farmers and Small Business Owners” as a webinar led by Maria Pippidis, University of Delaware Cooperative Extension, and Jesse Ketterman, University of Maryland Extension. (more…)
by Sally Colby
Cattlemen have benefited from the development of anthelmintic products that keep stomach and intestinal worms at bay. But the easy availability and relatively low cost of products has led to cattle being dewormed without any parameters other than “we deworm calves at weaning” or “cows are treated when they go to pasture, and get an extra dose if the weather is damp.” (more…)
