For the first time in the US, 20 top researchers, farmers, and stakeholders discussed the current trends in dairy cattle welfare and looked ahead to what's next. Courtney and Nigel summarize their key takeaways from the roundtable, with timely insights on lameness, social housing, and calves.

How do we measure dairy cattle welfare on-farm? Simple - by looking at animal outcomes such as lameness, hocks, knees, hygiene, and other injuries to assess physical well-being. We discuss the why, the how, and the solutions to these common and observable animal-based outcome measures. 

Why do dairy cows leave the herd? We answer that question and more as we explore the challenges faced by dairy farmers in making culling decisions, the importance of accurate record keeping, and the correlation between health events and culling reasons.

We dive into the evolution of dairy cattle welfare, tracing its roots from the 1960's to today, and explore how legislative approaches in Europe contrast with consumer-driven changes in North America, sparked by undercover videos and industry responses like the FARM and ProAction programs. The discussion highlights major milestones, including the end of tail docking, improved handling of down cows, and the growing emphasis on pain management and enrichment. Looking ahead, we examine how we can balance science, ethics, and consumer expectations as the industry shifts towards more process-based welfare standards.

This episode touches on one of the famous five hoof lesions in dairy cattle - sole ulcers, also known as "standing up disease." From the early misconceptions of sole ulcers being caused by nutritional deficiencies to our current understanding of the role of the environment on sole ulcers, Dr. Cook digs through the research to discover that standing time leads to increased lameness.

The standing and walking surfaces that cows are exposed to between lying bouts have a significant impact on their well-being, especially when it comes to their risk for lameness. In this episode, we look at the variation between flooring types, the pros and cons of concrete and rubber, and how to ensure that the flooring isn't slippery, abrasive, or traumatic to cows' hooves.

Dr. Dörte Döpfer sits down with us for a conversation exploring the intersection of digital dermatitis (DD) and artificial intelligence (AI) in dairy cattle. We begin by talking about how not all lesions are created equal and ways to prevent and treat DD before discussing how we can leverage AI to enhance the detection and management of DD.

Depending on the situation and location, water can be an effective way to cool cows by enhancing cooling through soaking the cow directly or using a fine mist or evaporative cooling pad to cool the air before it reaches the cow. This episode discusses the various ways to cool cows with water and the pros and cons of each so that you can use water strategically and efficiently on farm.

Dr. Jennifer Van Os is back to help us bust some myths about using water to cool cows specifically focusing on the difference between soaking vs. misting, water droplet size, and how cows behave around water.

Is summer PPTV the next "hot" topic? Our opinion may be a bit "inflated," but we think you’re going to be a big "fan" of these systems! This episode highlights the latest heat abatement research using PPTV to provide fast moving air to calves with tips on how to design the PPTV system.