Milk fever continues to be a serious syndrome affecting dairy cows across New Zealand. The industry target for clinical milk fever is less than 1 in 100 cows but we know that many farmers have higher numbers than this. At Mineral Systems we focus on managing milk fever risk. Farmers following our recommendations are reporting; Clean, simple calvings Good, healthy appetites and strong milk production curves Early cycling and feeling positive about upcoming mating The graph abo

Every dairy farmer wants to produce more milk. To get a cow to produce firstly she must have the feed in front of her. Sadly, this is not always the case. How farmers think about feeding cows is deeply ingrained in their psyche and in many instances to suggest cows are underfed is to question the very essence of a farmer’s being. And, it’s a good way for a consultant to get the sack. So, in the interests of diplomacy it’s assumed that every herd is fed to requirements! Fundam

Starting spring with more confidence that milk fever was under control ensured Craig & Alice Knowles got some decent sleep during calving. Craig milks 240 crossbred cows on his 107 Ha block in Inglewood, Taranaki. This is Craig’s fifth season on the current farm, after 5 years on a different farm with the same herd. Milk fever during calving has been an ongoing issue for the herd on both farms. They’ve had up to of 30 downer cows each season and the first year on the new farm

Everybody loves a success story. Even better is when you get more than one! That’s why we want to share the amazing results we had resolving milk fever in herds this spring. We know many farmers struggle daily with down cows and sleep can be scarce during calving. Many farmers accept this as a normal part of calving but this doesn’t have to be the case. Herds with historical levels of 10 to >30% milk fever are tracking at 2-4% this season after following Mineral Systems guide

“Every day begins with an act of courage and hope: getting out of bed” quipped US writer Mason Cooley. He may have had a milk fever problem. Milk fever has been recognised as a specific disease of dairy cows for over 200 years – and it’s still a serious problem. The science is difficult and contradictory. Ask Mr Google what he thinks and you’ll get a run down on low blood calcium, parathyroid hormone and vitamin D. Include DairyNZ in the search and you’ll get condition score,