Heat stress is a worldwide problem resulting in digestive, reproduction, immune and production problems, in severe cases death is a very real possibility.

Cows under heat stress show decreased fertility and compromised fetal development, especially when heat stress occurs in late gestation/dry period. 

While the effects of heat stress are certainly serious, there are many nutritional, management and housing decisions you can consider to take the heat off your herd this summer.

Find out how you can prevent heat stress from affecting your herd's milk production and somatic cell count.

Somatic cell count (SCC) data can be used as a good indication of health in both individual cow as well as the herd.

SCC monitoring is important because as the number of somatic cells increases, milk production yields decline, mainly due to damage to the tissue in the udder caused by pathogens and the toxins they produce. With a risk of loss of production, cost of treatment or replacement and missed premiums, SCC monitoring should be an integral part of your herd management.

Your cows are the most important part of your farm. Of course everything revolves around them. Herd management is critical. But how good can your herd management be if the human management isn't taken care of?

As you add cows, the workload increases, and you need more people. Your herd’s health and milk quality depends on more people doing their jobs, and doing their jobs right. As a business owner, you have to pay attention to human resource (HR) functions like administration details, training of your crew, and creating happy, dedicated people all working toward the success of the farm.