Dr. Maurice Eastridge, Extension Dairy Specialist, Department of Animal Sciences, The Ohio State University
The Dairy 2014 study was conducted in 17 of the US major dairy states and refers to estimates for the calendar year of 2013. Data collected for the study represented 76.7% of U.S. dairy operations and 80.3% of US dairy cows at the time of the study interview. Farm size was defined as very small (< 30 cows), small (30 to 99 cows), medium (100 to 499 cows, and large (> 500 cows). An overview of the findings provided by the study is shown below.
Operation Types and Productivity: Conventional dairy operations (non-grazing) made up 58.8% of all operations and they increased as herd size increased. Of very small operations, 47.8 % were a combination of conventional and grazing operations; overall, more than 25% of operations were a combination of conventional and grazing operations. Compared with 5 years ago, very small operations reported a 24.3% reduction in herd size in the next 5 years and small operations reported a 5.4% reduction. Conversely, medium and large operations had a 12.4 and 23.6% increase in herd size, respectively. The operation average percentage change in herd size 5 years from now is expected to increase in all herd size categories, with an overall increase of 25.7%.
Overall rolling herd average (RHA) milk production was 19,932 lb/cow. RHA milk was highest for conventional operations (21,862 lb/cow) and for a combination of conventional and grazing/other operations (17,815 lb/cow). RHA milk for grazing and organic operations was similar (14,513 and 14,758 lb/cow, respectively).
The overall operation average age of cows at first calving was 25 months. Days dry averaged 57.1 days, while the calving interval was 13.1 months. Overall, 88.4% of operations milked the majority of cows two times per day. More than 80% of very small, small, and medium operations milked the majority of cows two times per day. The majority of large operations (56.8%) milked cows three times per day.
Record-Keeping Systems: A record-keeping system was used to track individual animals by 95% of all operations and 100% of large operations. More than 70% of very small, small, and medium operations used handwritten records. Almost all large operations (94%) used an on-farm computer record-keeping system. Almost all cows (99.1%) were housed on operations that used a record-keeping system. Overall, 56.3% of operations participated in the Dairy Herd Information Association; participation increased as herd size increased. The highest percentage of operations (85.7%) used a record-keeping system to monitor breeding history and genetic improvements.
Use of Technology: Overall, 47.5% of operations had accessed the Internet for dairy information during 2013. Internet use generally increased as herd size increased, with 31.6% of very small operations accessing the Internet for dairy information compared with 89.7% of large operations.
Quality Assurance Programs: Almost half of all operations (45.9%) participated in any quality assurance program; 55.2% of medium operations and 75.6% of large operations participated in a program.
Herd Additions: Almost 30% of operations introduced new cattle to the operation during 2013. Within each cattle class, the percentage of operations that brought in cattle was similar across herd sizes. Pregnant dairy heifers and lactating dairy cows were introduced onto farms by 11.4 and 11.9% of operations, respectively. Only 9.6% of operations quarantined any new additions on arrival. On operations that did quarantine added cattle, 29.3% of new arrivals were quarantined for an average of 20.9 days. Information on the herd of origin of new animals was required on 27.3% of operations. A lower percentage of small operations (24.7%) required herd-of-origin information compared with large operations (42.0%). Overall, 22.7% of operations that added cattle to the operation required or performed individual-animal testing before adding cattle to the operation. A higher percentage of large operations (70.6%) required or administered vaccines to new additions compared with small and medium operations (23.1 and 42.0%, respectively). Overall, 39.1% of operations vaccinated new additions. The majority of operations that added new cattle (60.2%) obtained the cattle directly from other dairy operations. Markets/auctions were sources of new cattle for 28.4% of operations that added cattle. The percentage of operations that obtained new additions was similar across herd sizes for each source.
Source of Heifer Inventory: The percentage of operations in which dairy heifers were born and raised on-site ranged from 62.4% of large operations to 97% of small operations. Overall, 91.8% of operations raised some heifers on-site. On almost half of large operations (46.4%), heifers were born on-site but raised off-site. An off-site rearing facility was used for at least some calves by 12.4% of operations.
Calf Sales and Rearing: The majority of operations (90.2%) sold bull and steer calves, while only 26.4% of operations sold heifer calves. There were no differences across herd sizes in the percentage of operations that sold heifer calves. Heifer calves were raised off-site with retained ownership on 11.7% of operations, while bull and steer calves were raised off-site on 1.8% of operations. The percentage of operations that raised heifer calves off-site ranged from 5.5% of small operations to 44.3% of large operations. A slightly higher percentage of large operations raised bull calves off-site with retained ownership (5.6%) compared with small and medium operations (1.3% each). The percentage of operations in the West region that raised heifer calves off-site was more than three times the percentage of operations that raised heifers off-site in the East region (30.6 and 9.8%, respectively).
Heifer Rearing and Movement: For small and medium operations that sent heifers off-site to be raised, the majority (84.9 and 59.0%, respectively) sent heifers that were weaned but not pregnant to the off-site raising facility, while most large operations (62.8%) sent heifers as preweaned calves. Overall, 55.7% of operations sent heifers to rearing facilities as weaned calves, and 69.6% of operations primarily brought back pregnant heifers. Across herd sizes, more than 50% of operations that sent heifers to an off-site rearing facility sent the heifers to a single facility in which heifers had contact with cattle from other operations.
Bull/Steer Rearing and Movement: The majority of small and medium operations (68.3 and 57.7%, respectively) sold bull/steer calves through an auction. Approximately one-third of large operations (32.5%) sold bull/steer calves to a calf ranch or heifer raiser and did not bring them back to the operation; 37.7% sold bull/steer calves through an auction. Almost two-thirds of all operations (61.8%) sold bull/steer calves through an auction.
Calving Area: The use of a multiple-animal calving area/pen increased as herd size increased. Overall, 58.7% of operations had some cows calve in a group calving pen. A higher percentage of small operations (34.1%) had some cows calve in an individual pen cleaned between each calving compared with medium and large operations (20.0 and 21.6%, respectively). A similar percentage of operations across herd sizes used individual calving pens that were cleaned after two or more calvings. Of the 74.4% of operations that reported testing for Johne’s disease, 7.3% allowed test-positive cows in the calving area. About one-fourth of operations (24.2%) removed cows from the calving area within an hour of calving. More than half of all operations (57.5%) removed cows from the calving area from 1.1 to 14.0 hours after calving.
Births and Stillbirths: Overall, 94.4% of calves born were alive at 48 hours and 5.6 % were stillborn. A higher percentage of calves born on small and medium operations (6.8 and 6.4%, respectively) were stillborn compared with calves born on large operations (5.1%).
Colostrum Management: The average age of heifer calves at the first feeding of colostrum was 3.6 hours. Large operations fed colostrum sooner following birth (2.1 hours) than small and medium operations (3.8 and 3.9 hours, respectively). The majority of small and medium operations (74.2 and 58.3%, respectively) fed 2 quarts or less of colostrum at the first feeding, while almost half of large operations (48.4%) fed 4 quarts or more at first feeding. Only 21.8% of all operations fed 4 quarts or more at the first feeding. The majority of all operations fed an additional 2 quarts or more of colostrum in the first 24 hours. The amount of colostrum fed to heifer calves in the first 24 hours increased as herd size increased. The majority of small operations (51.1%) fed 4 quarts in the first 24 hours, while the majority of large operations (56.2%) fed 6 quarts or more. Almost 90% of operations (87.5%) fed 4 quarts or more of colostrum during the first 24 hours. More than one-third of large operations (38.3%) routinely monitored serum proteins. Less than 10 percent of all operations (6.2%) routinely monitored serum proteins to evaluate their colostrum management program. More than one-third of heifer calves (35.3%) were on operations that routinely monitored serum proteins.
Preweaned Heifers: Individual outside hutch or pen was used by 37.9% of operations, while individual inside unheated hutch or pen was used by 25.1%. The use of nonmedicated milk replacer increased as herd size increased. Medium operations represented the highest percentages of operations that fed medicated milk replacer or any milk replacer (49.2 and 63.9%, respectively). Slightly more than one-third of all operations (37.6%) fed at least some calves medicated milk replacer. Milk-replacer medications used by the highest percentage of operations were lasalocid (12.7%), decoquinate (11.5%), and a combination of neomycin and oxytetracycline (9.0%). Medications in milk replacer were not reported for 8.0% of operations.
The use of unpasteurized milk (saleable or nonsaleable/waste) decreased as herd size increased, ranging from 72.9% of very small operations to 26.3% of large operations. Overall, 55.7% of operations fed at least some calves unpasteurized milk. Pasteurized milk was fed on a higher percentage of large operations (43.8%) than very small, small, or medium operations (5.1, 1.5, and 9.9%, respectively). Acidified milk was fed on 1.7% of operations, with no differences across herd sizes. A higher percentage of very small, small, and medium operations (91.6, 97.2, and 93.9%, respectively) fed preweaned heifers twice a day compared with large operations (84.4%). A higher percentage of large operations fed preweaned heifers three times a day compared with the other herd sizes. The majority of preweaned heifers (88.9%) were fed twice daily, while 6.8% of preweaned heifers were fed three times daily.
The majority of all operations (57.7%) fed preweaned heifers 2 quarts of milk or milk replacer at each feeding, while 22% fed 4 quarts or more at each feeding. The percentage of operations by the amount of milk or milk replacer fed at each feeding was similar for very small, small, and medium operations. More than half of all operations (53.3%) fed 4 to 5 quarts per calf per day, while more than half of preweaned heifers (54.5%) were fed 6 or more quarts per day. The overall average weaning age for preweaned heifers was 9 weeks. Very small operations weaned heifers at an older age (11.6 weeks) compared with the other herd sizes. The majority of small and large operations (51.4 and 54.8%, respectively) weaned heifers based on reaching a target age. About one-fifth of operations (21.5%) weaned their heifers if they were eating at least the recommended 2 lb of starter for 3 consecutive days. A higher percentage of medium operations than large operations (26.1 and 14.9%, respectively) weaned based on starter intake.
The percentage of operations that vaccinated preweaned heifers against any disease increased as herd size increased, ranging from 37.0% of small operations to 81.3% of large operations. Overall, 49.3% of operations vaccinated heifers against any disease. The most common vaccines administered to preweaned heifers were infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (34% of operations), parainfluenza type-3 (32.8%), and bovine respiratory syncytial virus (28.2%). Overall, 4.7% of operations, representing 22.2% of heifer calves, routinely tested heifer calves for BVD. The percentage of operations that routinely tested heifer calves for BVD increased as herd size increased, ranging from 1.0% of small operations to 26% of large operations.
Weaned and Pregnant Heifers: The two most common types of housing for heifers were open/dry lot with barn or shed (21.9% of operations) and multiple animal inside area/barn (32.7%). Housing weaned heifers in tiestalls or stanchions decreased as herd size increased. A higher percentage of large operations than the other herd sizes used open/dry lot housing without barn or shed to house weaned heifers. The primary housing types for pregnant heifers were open/dry lot with barn or shed (27.8% of operations), freestall with access to open/dry lot (18.5%), multiple-animal inside area/barn (15.0%), and pasture (12.6%). A lower percentage of small operations (65.2%) vaccinated weaned heifers against any disease compared with medium and large operations (85.0 and 89.9%, respectively). The four diseases vaccinated against by the highest percentages of operations were infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (64.1%), BVD (63.8%), parainfluenza type 3 (58.4%), and bovine respiratory syncytial virus (56.8%). Overall, 61.1% of operations administered vaccines to pregnant heifers. More than 40% of operations vaccinated pregnant heifers against five different diseases: infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (47.0%), BVD (46.9%), parainfluenza type 3 (44.7%), bovine respiratory syncytial virus (44.1%), and leptospirosis (41.5%). The percentages of operations that vaccinated against rotavirus, Salmonella, E. coli, and clostridia increased as herd size increased.
Cow Housing: Overall, tiestall or stanchion was the primary housing type used for lactating cows on 38.9% of operations. One-fifth of operations (20.0%) housed lactating cows in freestalls with no outside access. The majority of large operations (51.5%) housed lactating cows in freestalls with no outside access. Pasture access for lactating and dry cows decreased as herd size increased. Overall, 59.5% of operations allowed pasture access for lactating cows and 72.3% allowed pasture access for dry cows. The percentages of lactating and dry cows that had access to pasture decreased as herd size increased. Overall, 19.9% of lactating cows and 34% of dry cows had some pasture access.
The majority of all operations (82.6%) used a covered structure or building to provide lactating cows shelter from the sun. Sprinkler or mister use for lactating cows increased as herd size increased, and 25.2% of all operations used sprinklers or misters. A lower percentage of small operations than medium and large operations used fans to cool lactating cows, and a higher percentage used tunnel ventilation. Of all operations, 72.5% provided dry cows with a covered structure/building and 51.8% provided shade. Sprinkler or mister use for dry cows increased as herd size increased, and 10.7% of all operations used sprinklers or misters. About half of all operations (49.7%) provided fans for dry cows, and a higher percentage of large operations than small and medium operations provided fans.
Milking Facilities: Parlors were used to milk cows on 79.4% of medium operations and 99.8% of large operations. Milking facilities for very small and small operations were similar, with the highest percentages of these operations using tiestalls or stanchion barns. A slightly higher percentage of all operations milked cows in a tiestall or stanchion barn than in a parlor (52.6 and 45.8%, respectively). Overall, 86.6% of cows were milked in a parlor and 13.1% were milked in a tiestall or stanchion barn. The majority of cows on very small and small operations were milked in a tiestall or stanchion barn, while the majority of cows on medium and large operations were milked in a parlor.
Cow Nutrition: For all operations, 92.0% fed lactating or dry cows alfalfa hay/haylage; 89.4% fed corn silage; 76.9% fed soybeans—whole, meal, or hulls; and 90.3% fed corn—whole, meal, cracked, or flaked. The percentages of operations that fed lactating or dry cows clover, soybeans, or oats generally decreased as herd size increased, while the percentages of operations that fed cottonseed, wet brewers/distillers grains, canola, wheat, straw, or blood meal generally increased as herd size increased.
The use of an independent nutritionist to balance rations increased as herd size increased, while the percentage of operations in which the operator/owner balanced rations decreased as herd size increased. A higher percentage of small and medium operations used a feed company nutritionist to balance rations (41.0 and 48.4%, respectively) compared with large operations (30.5%). Water tanks or troughs were used to provide drinking water for cows on more than three-fourths of operations, regardless of herd size. In addition to water tanks or troughs, 73.6% of small operations provided water via a cup/bowl waterer. The percentages of operations that used a cup/bowl waterer or a lake, pond, stream, or river as a water source for cows decreased as herd size increased. The majority of operations (93.6%) sourced water from a well. Ground water and municipal water were used by similar percentages of operations across herd sizes. Surface water was used by a higher percentage of very small and small operations than medium and large operations.
Breeding Bulls: About half of all operations (51.5%) had bulls used for breeding dairy cows. Beef bulls were used for breeding dairy cattle on 5.5% of operations, while dairy bulls were used on 48.1% of operations. A lower percentage of small operations used dairy bulls or any bulls (45.8 and 48.2%, respectively) compared with large operations (61.6 and 62.8%, respectively).
Cow Vaccination: The percentage of operations that administered vaccines to cows increased as herd size increased. Overall, 73.8% of operations administered any vaccine to cows. More than half of operations administered vaccines against BVD (68.0%), infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (60.2%), parainfluenza type 3 (55.8%), bovine respiratory syncytial virus (54.8%), or leptospirosis (51.5%).
Recombinant Bovine Somatotropin (rbST): The percentage of operations and the percentage of cows for which rbST was used increased as herd size increased. Overall, 9.7% of operations used rbST, and 14.7% of all cows received rbST during the most recent lactation.
Management of Nonambulatory Cows: For this study, nonambulatory cows were defined as cows unable to rise for at least 24 hours. In 2003, nonambulatory cattle were banned from entering the food supply after the first case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy was discovered in the United States. The percentage of operations with at least one nonambulatory cow during 2013 ranged from 38.8% of very small operations to 98.4% of large operations. Overall, 76.5% of operations had at least one nonambulatory cow. On large operations, 2.1% of cows became nonambulatory. Overall, 2.6% of cows became nonambulatory during 2013. In total, 30.0% of nonambulatory cows recovered, 49.7% were euthanized, 2.5% were slaughtered for home consumption, and 17.7% died.
Permanent Removals, Death, and Euthanasia: Overall, 28.4% of cows were permanently removed from operations during 2013. A lower percentage of cows were permanently removed on small and medium operations (26.0 and 26.3%, respectively) than on large operations (29.7%). A similar percentage of cows died across herd sizes. Overall, producers reported that 4.8% of cows died in 2013. Of operations that euthanized cows, 91.7% used a gunshot.
Use of Veterinarians: Of the 6.2% of operations that did not use a veterinarian, 66.1% reported that a veterinarian was not needed on the operation. Only 3.1% of operations that did not use a veterinarian reported that there was no local veterinarian. Of operations that used a veterinarian, 91.3% used their veterinarian for emergency services, 85.7% for reproductive management, 85.1% for disease diagnosis and treatment, and 84.6% for drug sales. Overall, the top three producer-reported services were reproductive management (71.0% of operations), emergency services (51.2%), and disease diagnosis and treatment (44.9 %).
Source of Drugs: Most operations (76.1%) obtained prescription drugs directly from the operation’s veterinarian. Nonprescription drugs were primarily obtained directly from a veterinarian (31.9% of operations) and directly from a farm/ranch/feed store (38.2%).
Additional information about the study and the tabular data are available at:
https://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/nahms/dairy/downloads/dairy14/Dairy14_dr_PartI.pdf
Source: Dairy 2014: Dairy Cattle Management Practices in the United States, 2014. February 2016, USDA–APHIS–VS–CEAH–NAHMS, Fort Collins, CO, 970-494-7000, http://www.aphis.usda.gov/nahms