THE DFD (Dairy Farmer’s Digest) Podcast

On this week's episode of the Dairy Farmer's Digest (DFD), I talk to Mark Gerber.  Mark is an account manager and Technical Specialist with Zinpro. We cover a plethora of topics relating to hoof health, hoof trimming and lameness prevention and treatment. Lameness is the most costly disease on modern dairy farms, it's impact can be felt through production, reproduction and overall herd performance...

On this weeks episode of the podcast, I have the pleasure of talking to Andrea DeGroot from Farm Credit Canada.  Andrea is a Business Advisor who specializes in farm transitions. Transitioning a multi-million dollar farm business is a daunting task, Andrea and I discuss where to start, what resources you may need and how producers can navigate this crucial decision making process. I hope you enjoy...

On this episode of the podcast, I talk to Dr. Bill Mahanna.  Bill is the Global Nutritional Services Manager with Pioneer, he is also an adjunct professor in the Department of Animal Science at Iowa State University. Bill and I cover all things corn silage, we touch on plant health, starch deposition and how to cut, pack and store the most critical forage for this years winter feeding. He has an i...

On this episode of the podcast, I talk to Dr. Sarah Parsons, she is the Colostrum Technical Specialist with Alta Genetics.  Sarah provides technical support for clients right across North America. Dr. Parsons graduated from the  University of Guelph with a BSc in Animal Biology and a PhD in Dairy calf management where she specialized in calf weaning management. Colostrum is the one of the first st...

On this weeks episode of the podcast, I talk to Bill Woodley.  Bill is the owner of Woodley Dairy Direction, a consulting company that specializing in training nutritionists on the key concepts of dairy nutrition, Bill has spoken to, and consulted with Dairy producers all over the world. With hay and winter forage crops quickly reaching their harvest windows, Bill and I tackle the topic of forage...

On this weeks episode of the podcast, I have a great discussion with Dr. Stirling Dorrance, DVM from Nova Scotia, Canada.  Along with being a practicing veterinarian, Dr. Dorrance works with Lactanet in Eastern Canada where he works with producers understanding and interpreting Profilab, the milk fatty acid report from Lactanet.   Milk has a multitude of different fatty acids in it, Dr. Dorrance h...

On this episode of the podcast, I talk to Dr. José Santos, a Professor in the department of Animal Science at the University of Florida, Gainesville.  Dr. Santos and I explore the world of DCAD diets for transition dairy cows and how it can work on your operation to help keep cows healthier and more productive.   Dr. Santos conducts applied and basic research in dairy cattle nutrition and reproduc...

On this weeks episode of the podcast, I talk to Tony Hall, Technical Services support from Lallemand Animal Nutrition.  Tony and I drill down on the difference between forage samples when it all looks good on paper, and how CP isn't always the best indicator of quality. Tony has extensive experience when it comes too making high quality forages and how fiber quality affects milk production. Tony i...

On this episode of the podcast, I talk to Dr. David Renaud.  Dave is a veterinary epidemiologist in the Department of Population Medicine at the University of Guelph.  His research focuses on the health and welfare of dairy calves, Dave teaches in both the veterinary and undergraduate curriculum. As one producer put it to me, "raising calves can be the most rewarding or the most soul sucking endea...

On this weeks episode of the podcast, I talk to Dr. Andy Skidmore from Lallemand Animal Nutrition about inoculant, what they are, how they work and how they can fit into your forage production systems. Dr. Skidmore is a Veterinarian with a PhD in Dairy Management from Cornell University.  He has been in the dairy industry in the United States and has held various roles from a practicing veterinari...

On this weeks episode of the podcast, I have a great conversation with Dustin Grisnich.  He is the owner of Windy Creek Dairy in Fort Macleod, Alberta. Dustin, along with his wife, four kids and two cats milk 45 cows under the new entrant program from Alberta milk.  He is also the host of the Faraway Farmboy podcast, a podcast dedicated to networking within the Western Canadian dairy business.  Yo...

On this week's episode of the podcast I have a great  conversation with Dustin Gamble, the Procurement manager for Shur Gain Ontario. There are a lot of things that we can't control in our day to day lives and business, and the major global influences on feed price is one of them.  Dustin and I talk about what influences the markets around the world and in our own back yard, we also touch on the g...

On this episode of the podcast, I have a great discussion with Kristen Kelderman about mental health.  Kristen is currently doing her Masters of Psychology and Neuroscience of Mental Health at King's College in London, UK. Mental health is becoming a more common and less stigmatized conversation in our daily lives.  Kristen helps facilitate those conversations and normalizes them.  Growing up on a...

On this episode of the DFD podcast I have a great conversation with Kristin Benke, she is the Director, Economic and Product Development with the Dairy Farmers of Ontario.  Kristin has spent the last 12 years at the DFO.  We have a great conversation about how the new pricing schedule has been going for the past 8 months.  We also talked about what she thinks the future holds for producers in the...

On this episode of the podcast, I get to talk to Dr. Bill Mahanna.  Bill is the Global Nutritional Services Manager with Pioneer, he is also an adjunct professor in the Department of Animal Science at Iowa State University. Bill has an incredible wealth of knowledge and experience when it comes to making high quality forages, especially corn silage.  He has worked for Pioneer for over 30 years and...

On this week's episode of the podcast I talk with Gary Markus about how to set your farm up for Reproductive success!  Gary, along with his wife and four kids run Markhill Holsteins in Ingersoll Ontario.   In addition to milking cows, he also works as an Elite account manager with Alta Genetics in SW Ontario. you can reach him at gary.markus@altagenetics.com or on twitter @gary_markus  Reproductio...

On this week's episode of the podcast, I have the pleasure of talking to Christine O'Reilly, the forage and grazing specialist with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA).  Christine is a wealth of knowledge when it comes to producing high quality forages.  We have a great conversation about what is happening in the province with regards to forage yields and quality, we als...

On this episode of the podcast, I talk to Dr. Mac Littlejohn and Dr. Reg Clinton from Kirkton Vet Clinic about how heat stress affects the cows.  We have a great discussion of what to look for when monitoring your animals and what we can do to help them out. Dr. Littlejohn and Dr. Clinton are partners at Kirkton Vet clinic, where they are 2 of the 10 dairy focused vets at the practice.  KVC is a p...

On this weeks episode of the DFD podcast, I talk to my colleague Chelsea Gordon about the effects of heat stress on cows.  The first week of June was a scorcher in Ontario so we had a great conversation about what we can do as a nutritionally to help these cows make milk and components. Chelsea is the Director of Dairy Technology Application for Trouw Nutrition Canada, I have worked with her for t...

On this episode of the podcast, I talked to Tom Kilcer, he is one of the pioneers of the "haylage in a day" or the photosynthetic drying concept.  Tom is very passionate about helping producers make the highest quality feed possible, and has spoke to many farmers, researchers, nutritionists and equipment manufacturers all over North America. Tom worked as a county Dairy Extension specialist for Co...

On this weeks episode of the podcast, I talk to the man, the myth, the legend Bill Woodley.  Bill is the owner of Woodley Dairy Direction, a consulting company that specializing in training nutritionists on the key concepts of dairy nutrition, Bill has spoken to, and consulted with Dairy producers all over the world. With protein and grain prices as nearly all-time highs, Bill and I tackle the top...

On this episode of the podcast, Dr. Chris Church is back on the DFD.  We have a great discussion about transitions cows.  We touch on a few subjects including DCAD, transition diseases, feeding and grouping strategies. During this discussion, I pose a question to Dr. Church; Is 3.5 kg's (2.0 kg's of milk fat and 1.5 kg's of milk protein) on a herd average possible?  Chris and I have a great conver...

On this weeks episode of the podcast, I talk to the always energetic Kelsey Banks.  She is an agronomist in Eastern Ontario, who  has a keen interest in dairy forage crops.  Kelsey is very passionate about making sure producers work as a team with their agronomist and nutritionist to make the highest quality forages possible.  We had a great conversation about what to look for when scouting field...

On this week's episode of the podcast, I get the pleasure of talking to Dr. Matt Walker.  Matt along his wife Jaqueline and four daughters own and operate Dairy Doc Holsteins in Woodstock, Ontario.  Matt is also a Vet, and a partner in Oxford Bovine Veterinary Services one of the largest and most progressive dairy focused vet clinics in Canada. Matt and I have a great discussion on what profitabil...

On this weeks episode of the podcast, I talk to Tony Hall from Lallemand Animal Nutrition.  Tony and I talk about how too make the highest quality silage possible, and how mitigating silage loss relates too profitability of your dairy.  Tony has extensive experience when it comes too making silage and helping producers reach their goals.   Tony is a world renowned speaker, he has consulted on farm...