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5 Mistakes Dairy Farmers Make With Their Veterinarians (And How to Fix Them)

Are you making these 5 common mistakes with your veterinarian? Learn how to improve your herd’s health and boost productivity with these actionable tips.

Did you know that a qualified veterinarian may boost your dairy farm’s output by up to 20%? Maintaining herd health entails more than just the occasional examination; it also involves establishing a strategic relationship that propels your whole company ahead. Collaboration between a dairy farmer and a veterinarian is critical to ensuring the health and well-being of your herd. However, many dairy farm owners unintentionally make errors jeopardizing this essential partnership. Addressing these frequent problems is critical for maximizing the advantages your veterinarian can provide.

Mistake 1: Infrequent Communication

When communication with your veterinarian is inconsistent, it may lead to significant gaps in herd health management. Missed health concerns are more probable because early indicators of sickness or suffering may go undetected, leading to more critical, more expensive problems. Furthermore, without regular updates, veterinarians may be unable to give targeted guidance, resulting in ineffective herd management measures.

To reduce these dangers, schedule frequent check-ins with your veterinarian. This may include planned visits, monthly reports, or even weekly phone conversations. Maintaining open communication channels ensures that you and your veterinarian are constantly updated and on the same page about your herd’s health and management strategy. This proactive approach not only aids in the early discovery of possible problems but also develops a more collaborative connection, which benefits your herd’s general health.

Mistake 2: Not Sharing Complete Information 

Your veterinarian’s ability to offer sufficient treatment greatly depends on the information you supply. Overlooking facts regarding your herd’s health, food, and surroundings might result in incorrect diagnoses or insufficient treatment approaches. Comprehensive records provide a clear picture and enable your veterinarian to make educated choices consistent with your farm’s objectives.

Detailed record-keeping is critical. Monitor feed quality, diet modifications, and oscillations in milk output. Similarly, keeping track of health episodes, symptoms, and treatments might reveal patterns that otherwise go undiscovered. Transparency regarding minor concerns or significant changes allows your veterinarian to customize recommendations to your individual needs.

Remember that this alliance relies on open communication. Expressing even modest concerns and providing detailed information fosters a proactive attitude to herd health. This teamwork will eventually improve your herd’s performance and well-being.

Mistake 3: Ignoring Preventative Care

Preventative care is the underappreciated hero of cattle management. Ignoring this critical component might result in expensive blunders that harm your herd’s health and bottom line. Regular immunizations and health checks are essential to ensure your animals’ well-being.

Benefits of Preventative Care 

  • Reduced Disease Incidence: Vaccinations and regular check-ups help avoid epidemics that might wipe out your herd.
  • Lower Long-term Costs: Disease prevention is typically more cost-effective than treatment. Investing in preventive measures allows you to avoid costly treatments and lost productivity.
  • Improved Reproductive Success: Disease prevention is typically more cost-effective than treatment. Investing in preventive measures allows you to avoid costly treatments and lost productivity.
  • Enhanced Animal Welfare: Maintaining a healthy herd from the start lowers pain and enhances the overall well-being of your animals.

Scheduling Tips 

  • Create a Calendar: Work with your veterinarian to create a vaccine and health screening regimen. Mark these dates on a calendar accessible to all farm personnel.
  • Combine Tasks: Combine immunizations with other standard treatments, such as reproductive checkups. This reduces stress for the animals and saves time.
  • Seasonal Checks: Schedule extra health exams during high-risk seasons, such as spring and autumn, when illnesses are more common.

Collaboration with Your Veterinarian 

  • Regular Consultations: Schedule monthly meetings with your veterinarian to assess your herd’s health and adapt the preventive care strategy.
  • Customized Plans: Work together to develop a strategy that meets your herd’s requirements and problems, considering age, breed, and previous health difficulties.
  • Compliance Follow-ups: Ensure all farm personnel understand and adhere to the preventive care strategy. Review compliance regularly and correct any inadequacies as soon as possible.

Prioritizing preventive care and working with your veterinarian may protect your herd from possible health concerns while ensuring a flourishing, profitable farm.

Mistake 4: Overlooking Training and Education

One crucial error often unreported is the absence of ongoing training and instruction for dairy farm owners and staff. Maintaining the most recent innovations and best practices is critical for a successful organization. Regular attendance at seminars, webinars, and training sessions led by veterinarians may give vital insights into new procedures and approaches. This continual education improves your team’s skills and knowledge and guarantees that everyone understands animal health and farm efficiency.

Participating in these educational opportunities may promote a culture of constant development and adaptation. This proactive strategy may substantially influence your dairy farm’s overall performance and sustainability, making any investment in education worthwhile.

Mistake 5: Focusing Only on Emergencies

Relying only on your veterinarian for emergency care might lead to more significant expenditures and fewer effective results. While emergency calls are essential, they should not be the exclusive focus of your herd health plan. Addressing simply the symptoms without addressing the underlying causes might result in reoccurring difficulties, more stress for your animals, and, eventually, higher financial and emotional expenses for you.

A proactive approach to herd health includes frequent check-ups and preventative treatment, which may help uncover problems before they become crises. Integrating your veterinarian into your long-term management strategy may result in a more sustainable and profitable organization.

Here are some ways to incorporate your veterinarian proactively: 

  • Routine Health Check-ups: Schedule frequent inspections to assess general herd health, detect early symptoms of illness, and change management strategies.
  • Vaccination and Nutrition Programs: Collaborate with your veterinarian to create and execute immunization schedules and personalized dietary regimens that improve immunity and general health.
  • Health Records and Data Analysis: Keep meticulous health records and utilize data analytics to uncover patterns and opportunities for improvement. Share this information with your veterinarian to make better-educated decisions.
  • Training and Education: Continue to educate yourself and your team on the most recent best practices in animal care and herd management via training programs given or suggested by your veterinarian.
  • Open Communication: Maintain open lines of contact with your veterinarian to address problems, exchange observations, and seek advice on long-term strategy.

Fostering a collaborative relationship with your veterinarian and focusing on preventative care may benefit your herd’s health, increase production, and lessen the probability of expensive crises.

The Bottom Line

Effective herd management relies on a proactive, well-communicated partnership with your veterinarian; missteps such as infrequent communication, withholding information, neglecting preventive care, bypassing training opportunities, and focusing solely on emergencies can undermine herd health and profitability—take actionable steps today: schedule regular meetings, share comprehensive health data, invest in preventive measures, embrace ongoing education, and consult your veterinarian.

Summary: Engaging with your veterinarian more frequently can significantly enhance your herd management. Ensure complete and transparent communication to get accurate advice and timely interventions. Embrace preventative care and ongoing education to dodge common pitfalls and improve overall livestock health. Remember, it’s not only about emergencies; a proactive approach can save both time and resources in the long run. Ultimately, fostering a respectful and informed partnership with your vet can lead to substantial benefits for your dairy farm. Furthermore, sharing comprehensive information allows customized recommendations, reducing disease incidence, lowering long-term costs, improving reproductive success, and enhancing overall animal welfare.

  • Frequent engagement with your veterinarian boosts herd management effectiveness.
  • Maintaining transparent communication ensures accurate advice and timely help.
  • Emphasizing preventative care prevents common issues and enhances livestock health.
  • Ongoing education can help avoid pitfalls and improve farm performance.
  • A proactive approach saves time and resources, beyond just handling emergencies.
  • Collaborating respectfully and informatively with your vet can yield significant farm benefits.
  • Sharing complete information with your vet allows for tailored recommendations.
  • Effective vet collaboration reduces disease rates and enhances overall animal welfare.
  • Proactive veterinary care lowers long-term costs and improves reproductive success.

Learn more: 

CHRISTINE MASSFELLER “Once Upon A Time Calendar Girl”

For cattle photographer Christine Massfeller timing is everything.  As a young child, the timing was right for visits with her mother to a nearby dairy farm.  Next good timing provided her with the perfect mentor.  The timing was also right when a creative idea blossomed and the right subjects and the right team came together at the right time. It shouldn’t be surprising then to learn that Christine Massfeller is the photographer behind the 2014 Masterrind Calendar.  Any way you look at it that photo shoot has timeliness written all over it. (To view this keep sake Calendar click here)

calori_d_jasper_maribold_120607_0041 Kopie

Christine Massfeller holding Calori D Jasper Maribold

“From Behind the Scenes, Christine Moved to Behind the Camera.”

Many will tell you that the greatest thing about finding your true calling is the way it expands your talents and abilities.  Christine Massfeller found this to be true when she was working in the Public Relations department of the German AI Rinder-Union West.  For her what came next was a logical progression. “At RUW I was responsible for the magazine they produce for their local members. So I also started taking pictures for that magazine just learning by doing because I was not educated in photography at all. But at this time my interest grew and I bought my first semi professional camera, organized some photo shoots and bought and read literature about basic technical things.” A simple beginning that for Christine soon progressed to an important next step. “A few months later I was introduced to Han Hopman by my German colleague Steve Schneider and I started my career with Holstein International.”

Calendar Cover - Schneewittchen - Snow White Cow: Girl (Graceland), Owner: Agrargenossenschaft Eibau Model: Constance Nagler.

Calendar Cover – Schneewittchen – Snow White
Cow: Girl (Graceland), Owner: Agrargenossenschaft Eibau
Model: Constance Nagler.

January

JANUARY Sterntaler – The Star Talers
Calf: WEU Pamela (Fanatic),
Owner: Perk, Spanharrenstaette

“Looking Back it was Early Exposure that Inspired the Times of her Life”

Let’s rewind the story a bit to discover where a passion for cows started for a girl who wasn’t raised on a farm but learned to love cows anyway. Christine recalls the beginning. “I grew up in a small town and fell in love with cows when I was a child, when my mom and I picked up milk from a very small dairy farm close by. It was always difficult for my mom to get me out of the barn again. I could watch cows and spend time with them for hours.” Surprisingly, or maybe not, Christine made this the inspiration for her education. “After school I went to university and studied Agricultural Science with the focus on Animal Nutrition, Genetics and Breeding.”  This was no passing fancy and it is a daily party of her life. “I love everything that has to do with cows. My boyfriend’s cows realize that every day. I absolutely love spoiling them.”

February

FEBRUARY Frau Holle
Cow: WHC Schira (Golden Eye),
Owner: Weseloh, Schneverdingen
Model: Marion

“It is Invaluable to Have Timely Mentoring.”

The next timely occurrence for this budding photographer was getting employed by Holstein International.  Christine describes it as, “The best thing that could ever happen to me.  The people are wonderful and I had a perfect start there.” This also marked the timely entry of a very important mentor. “I got the best teacher you can imagine in Han Hopman.”  Here was an opportunity that would make a big difference to Christine. “Han Hopman developed creative and natural cow photography. (Read more about Hans Hopman in Han Hopman: Shooting Straight at Holstein International) In the beginning of my HI career he spent a lot of time with me, teaching and showing me everything he knew: technical aspects, how to work with cows behavior, putting legs, composing images, communication with people and animals etc.”  No doubt this input inspired Christine to delve deeper into photography and, with the generous support of Holstein International, Christine furthered her studies.  “I did an official photography education at a renowned Dutch school.” And she continued to learn from her mentor. “The most important thing was that Han is such a good teacher and great and loyal boss. That saved so much time in making progress.” Indeed people are the main success factor for Christine. “Being a member of the editorial team of HI gives me the chance to learn so much about the dairy and breeding business from my colleagues and of course from the business itself and all the people I meet and work with.”  (To see more great work from Holstein International photography team click here)

March Cover

MARCH Kleine Meerjungfrau – Little Mermaid
Cow: BcH Caroli (Stylist),
Owner: Luenschen
Model: Rabea

“It should be possible to take ordinary cows and make them Extraordinary”

It is obvious that Christine Massfeller is a true cow passionista.  Who else would come up with an idea that basically meant sending out a casting call for cows? But that is just one part of the challenges that she enjoys when doing cattle photography which has so many facets to get right.  She numbers them.  “Bringing a cow into balance and getting out the best of every animal, scene and model. Making the best of every situation. Working with light.”  Cows constantly influence Christine’s imagination and her work. “For my photography education exam, I developed my series “Cows Surreal”. The idea was to put cows in scenes they naturally never would appear. The idea behind that was that almost every human in our modern world has contact with dairy animals, but not in a direct way. People buy milk and milk products in supermarkets but almost never see a cow in real. So I tried bringing cows back to people in an abstract way. This series is not yet finished. I will continue working on it soon. But with starting this series I got some worthwhile experiences with real complicated and difficult photo shoots.”

April Cover

APRIL Baron von Muenchhausen
Cow: Kleopatra (Stempler),
Owner: Bertram, Hunden
Model: Gerhard

“They said ‘It Couldn’t Be Done!’”

Quite often it turns out that the best impetus for doing something exceptional happens when you’re told that it can’t be done.  Cow art, cow science and cow photography are not immune to naysayers.  In Christine Massfeller’s case she wanted to show the world a different perspective on cows. Not for her is the idea of “same old, same old.” She wants to take the whole experience for herself, her viewers … and even the settings the cattle are placed in to a whole new level.  “I had the idea to go a step further and I developed that fairytale idea. That would involve even more story telling. In the beginning it was very difficult to convince people that this could work. Too much effort.  Too expensive. Too Crazy.  Too Kitschy.”  So, of course, Christine didn’t give up. “The images were already finished in my head but most people I talked with first could not imagine how it would look like.” And then good timing entered the picture once again.  I got support from Han and he promised me we would do it together and publish it with HI.”

May Cover

MAY Schneeweisschen & Rosenrot
Limousin bull and Charolais heifer owned by Ahrens GbR, Hespe
Models: Sophia Sparkles and Eva Wermert.

“It was a BIG idea for BIG Calendar that had found it’s Time!”

When all the necessary parts of a project come together — you just know that something big is going to happen. “Han has done a calendar for Masterrind almost every year for the last 10 years. Their calendars always have a special theme. We brought the fairytale idea to the table and immediately got some supporters, who were very enthusiastic about the idea. Then we worked out a plan and Masterrind decided to do it with us. It was a win win situation. Masterrind was a great partner and they organized everything perfectly.”

June Cover

JUNE Bremer Stadtmusikanten – The Bremen Town Musicians
Cow: Schnicka (Donley), Owner: Hoeft, Bramstedt
sheep (14 year old Erna) and cock (still alive!!) owned by Evers family, Syke; dog Winnie owned by Hermann Bischoff

“Making it Look Simple Requires A Lot of Work”

With approval for the project, it was time to put in the hard work. “We had quite a few meetings and developed everything, the scenes, how the cows should look like, the human models, the costumes and everything else.” Although cows were the stars, it took a lot of people to pull it off. |Christine gives credit to the large behind-the-scenes-team. “It took everyone pulling together. There was the Masterrind organization, their PR department, some of their classifiers who selected the cows (and also helped washing & clipping them, organized the transportation to the scenes), the human models (some of them Masterrind employees or their kids, some of them from my soccer team), the cow models, the breeders of the cows who prepared their animals, professional hairdressers and makeup artists.”  Christine feels that having such an enthusiastic team was a key ingredient of the project’s success. “It was really wonderful to work with such great people (and cows) who did such a good job, even though they had no experience with such a project (me either)!”

July Cover

JULY Rotkaeppchen – Little Red Riding Hood
Bull: Smokin Joe (Observer), MASTERRIND
Model: Carolin
Wolf: Hermann Bischoff

August Cover

AUGUST Froschkoenig – The Princess & the Frog
Cow: FUX Sia (Alexander), owner: Hahn/Radtke GbR
Model: Teresa Kempe.

“The Fairy Tale Ending is A Pleasant Surprise”

When you plan a fairytale photo shoot, it would be nice to assume that it would end happily ever after.  Even with her passion for dairy cows, Christine has been pleasantly surprised at how the project has been received. “Honestly I did not expect such a big response. Masterrind gave the calendar to their members (in Germany the AIs are owned by their local breeders) and clients. It was out before 2014 started. We got many emails from people who wanted to buy one, also from people who are not in our business.”  (To order your copy of the keep sake Calendar click here)

September Cover

SEPTEMBER Dornroeschen – Sleeping Beauty
Cow: Jolli (Jotan), owner: Agrargenossenschaft Bockendorf eG
Model: Lori

October Cover

OCTOBER Hans im Glueck – Lucky Hans
Cow: Silva, owner: KÖG Kleinbardau
Models: Thomas & Thomas

“Dreamscapes Inspire a Dream Job”

Loving what you do every day is a dream that many wish they could fulfill.  Christine makes it look easy and inspiring, but she has eight steps that comprise her best advice to someone who would like to follow their photography dream: Work hard. Find a good teacher. Listen at the right moment. Don’t listen at the right moment. Be a better photographer then Photoshopper. Develop your own thing. Be open. Be always respectful to people and cows you are working with.” Christine is more than willing to take her own advice and adds a couple more action steps. “Staying healthy and open minded. Keep on working for HI. Keeping learning, because photography gets more and more difficult the deeper you get into it. It’s a big process.” Her dearest dream is to keep developing new ideas and producing the ideas that come up.” She sums it up enthusiastically. “There are so many pictures in my head that need to be taken!”

November Cover

NOVEMBER Haensel & Gretel
Cow: Litt Leo (Radenko), owner: Wortmann GbR, Morsum

december

DECEMBER Aschenputtel – Cinderella
Cow: Jess (Starfire), owner: Pfaff, Gahlenz
Model: Nicole
Castle: Schloss Moritzburg, Sachsen

The Bullvine Bottom Line

Not only have dairy calendars been taken in a totally unprecedented direction but so have the cows that are our daily inspiration.  With the turning of every page, there is a new dairy dimension to be celebrated.  Congratulations to you Christine Massfeller for sharing your wonderful images and giving us insight and inspiration for every dairy day of the calendar year. (To order your copy of the keep sake Calendar click here)

 

 

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