WEBVTT 00:00:11.720 --> 00:00:15.060 Breaking free from the chains of the past Where 00:00:15.060 --> 00:00:18.820 truth moves faster than a Holstein calf No law 00:00:18.820 --> 00:00:21.660 waiting on some printed page We're charting new 00:00:21.660 --> 00:00:25.300 ground in the digital age From genomic codes 00:00:25.300 --> 00:00:29.120 to robot facts We cut through the noise, no hold 00:00:29.280 --> 00:00:32.460 them back not your daddy's dairy news tonight 00:00:32.460 --> 00:01:02.740 we're sparking Welcome back to the Bullvine Podcast, 00:01:03.140 --> 00:01:05.299 where we cut through dairy industry noise to 00:01:05.299 --> 00:01:07.920 get you the insights that actually matter for 00:01:07.920 --> 00:01:11.000 your operation. And today we're diving deep into 00:01:11.000 --> 00:01:13.200 a feature piece that's got some serious buzz. 00:01:13.319 --> 00:01:17.980 This deep dive focuses on the December 2025 Journal 00:01:17.980 --> 00:01:21.620 of Dairy Science. Yeah. And the stack of findings 00:01:21.620 --> 00:01:24.680 here, I mean, from calves all the way to culls, 00:01:24.680 --> 00:01:28.019 it has layers that will make every farmer rethink 00:01:28.019 --> 00:01:30.260 their approach. It really will. We're talking 00:01:30.260 --> 00:01:32.620 about these long -held standard protocols. The 00:01:32.620 --> 00:01:34.719 ones we just inherited. Exactly. The ones we 00:01:34.719 --> 00:01:37.079 just do because that's how it's done. And now 00:01:37.079 --> 00:01:39.579 it's being proven that they are, well, significantly 00:01:39.579 --> 00:01:41.939 underperforming. And the central theme, when 00:01:41.939 --> 00:01:43.700 you look at all this research together, it's 00:01:43.700 --> 00:01:47.140 just brutal honesty. It is. It's saying that 00:01:47.140 --> 00:01:49.439 if you're sticking to the way you've done things 00:01:49.439 --> 00:01:52.000 for the last decade, just because, you know, 00:01:52.000 --> 00:01:53.560 that's the standard. You're leaving money on 00:01:53.560 --> 00:01:56.140 the table. Quantifiable money. Or, and I think 00:01:56.140 --> 00:01:58.590 this is even worse. you might be actively inflicting 00:01:58.590 --> 00:02:01.430 some minor harm on your animals without even 00:02:01.430 --> 00:02:03.329 realizing it. We're talking about everything. 00:02:03.489 --> 00:02:06.250 The maximum volume of colostrum we push into 00:02:06.250 --> 00:02:10.389 a calf. The subtle signs of lameness we are missing 00:02:10.389 --> 00:02:13.110 for weeks. And even the beef sire choices we're 00:02:13.110 --> 00:02:15.610 making right now. Yeah. And look, this is mandatory 00:02:15.610 --> 00:02:18.330 listening because the stakes here, they aren't 00:02:18.330 --> 00:02:21.750 academic. This is dollars and cents. Quantified 00:02:21.750 --> 00:02:23.590 by the best research in the world. We're quoting 00:02:23.590 --> 00:02:27.219 specific massive financial gaps. Just think about 00:02:27.219 --> 00:02:30.419 lameness for a second. Okay. That 23 -day delay 00:02:30.419 --> 00:02:33.780 in detection, the difference between a modern 00:02:33.780 --> 00:02:37.259 AI system catching it and, you know, you or your 00:02:37.259 --> 00:02:39.960 standard activity caller finally flagging it. 00:02:40.039 --> 00:02:42.219 That's a huge one. It's the difference between 00:02:42.219 --> 00:02:44.719 a $50 early intervention when you can still fix 00:02:44.719 --> 00:02:48.319 the root cause and a $400 plus treatment after 00:02:48.319 --> 00:02:51.159 the cows got a severe structurally damaging lesion. 00:02:51.500 --> 00:02:53.319 That completely changes the whole conversation 00:02:53.319 --> 00:02:55.300 around investing and monitoring tech, doesn't 00:02:55.300 --> 00:02:57.659 it? It has to. I mean, if you buy a system and 00:02:57.659 --> 00:03:00.080 it only makes you, say, 10 % faster at spotting 00:03:00.080 --> 00:03:02.979 a lame cow, the ROI is in still weeks. Right. 00:03:03.139 --> 00:03:05.740 But if technology buys you 23 days of preventative 00:03:05.740 --> 00:03:08.719 time before there's even a lesion. Yeah. The 00:03:08.719 --> 00:03:11.620 investment justifies itself almost immediately. 00:03:12.080 --> 00:03:14.939 You prevent just a handful of those chronic cases 00:03:14.939 --> 00:03:17.599 and it's paid for. It's a totally different business 00:03:17.599 --> 00:03:19.740 decision for you to make. Absolutely. And it's 00:03:19.740 --> 00:03:22.259 not just. the big numbers on the cow side. On 00:03:22.259 --> 00:03:24.780 the calf side, we've been operating under this 00:03:24.780 --> 00:03:27.699 assumption that, you know, more is better with 00:03:27.699 --> 00:03:30.599 colostrum volume. We all have. And it was driven 00:03:30.599 --> 00:03:34.159 by a necessary push to guarantee minimum IgG 00:03:34.159 --> 00:03:37.280 absorption. We get that. But the new data proves 00:03:37.280 --> 00:03:40.099 that beyond a certain point, we're just sacrificing 00:03:40.099 --> 00:03:43.000 calf comfort. We are sacrificing absorption efficiency. 00:03:43.360 --> 00:03:46.219 We are literally causing colic. Yeah. Causing 00:03:46.219 --> 00:03:48.759 distress for a negligible, almost meaningless 00:03:48.759 --> 00:03:51.120 gain in antibody transfer. Exactly. So we're 00:03:51.120 --> 00:03:53.400 going to be myth busting today. And that colostrum 00:03:53.400 --> 00:03:55.599 rule is target number one. Yeah. We'll show you 00:03:55.599 --> 00:03:58.199 why the idea that more colostrum is better is 00:03:58.199 --> 00:04:01.500 just flat out wrong past about 8 % of a calf's 00:04:01.500 --> 00:04:03.379 body weight. And we'll get into the most exciting 00:04:03.379 --> 00:04:05.300 part for me, for the financially minded farmer. 00:04:05.460 --> 00:04:08.120 Okay. How the data you are already collecting 00:04:08.120 --> 00:04:11.139 on your DHI reports, specifically the de novo 00:04:11.139 --> 00:04:14.340 fatty acids, is a completely free, immediate 00:04:14.340 --> 00:04:17.149 resource. Something you can use right now. Right 00:04:17.149 --> 00:04:20.470 now! For managing methane production and improving 00:04:20.470 --> 00:04:22.670 room and health. Free environmental selection 00:04:22.670 --> 00:04:25.430 plus immediate health insight. You really can't 00:04:25.430 --> 00:04:28.310 beat that. You can't. So let's unpack this monumental 00:04:28.310 --> 00:04:31.050 stack of research. And let's start where every 00:04:31.050 --> 00:04:34.009 successful operation starts. With the calves. 00:04:34.449 --> 00:04:38.970 Okay, let's do it. First meal of life. The core 00:04:38.970 --> 00:04:41.230 issue, and this is validated by the University 00:04:41.230 --> 00:04:43.910 of Guelph research, is that we've been overfeeding 00:04:43.910 --> 00:04:47.279 colostrum volume. especially in that first critical 00:04:47.279 --> 00:04:50.660 meal to the point where we are causing, well. 00:04:51.540 --> 00:04:53.819 verifiable physical pain and discomfort. And 00:04:53.819 --> 00:04:55.620 for context, we have to acknowledge the history 00:04:55.620 --> 00:04:57.579 here. I mean, this goes against two decades of 00:04:57.579 --> 00:04:59.779 industry training. It does. The traditional rule 00:04:59.779 --> 00:05:03.399 became volume, volume, volume. And for a good 00:05:03.399 --> 00:05:06.040 reason. You know, Dr. Godin's foundational work 00:05:06.040 --> 00:05:08.560 in the early 2000s was crucial. Absolutely essential. 00:05:08.860 --> 00:05:11.639 It moved the entire industry away from tragically 00:05:11.639 --> 00:05:14.339 underfeeding colostrum, which was causing massive 00:05:14.339 --> 00:05:17.040 failure of passive transfer. FPT was a huge problem. 00:05:17.310 --> 00:05:20.509 A huge problem. So that guidance suggesting we 00:05:20.509 --> 00:05:24.110 feed 10 % of body weight was a necessary life 00:05:24.110 --> 00:05:26.589 -saving advance to make sure we hit those minimum 00:05:26.589 --> 00:05:29.589 IgG levels. It was. It was essential for correcting 00:05:29.589 --> 00:05:32.310 FPT, but science is always refining the boundaries, 00:05:32.389 --> 00:05:34.269 right? And it seems like we've gone too far on 00:05:34.269 --> 00:05:37.029 the volume side. We have. The Gulf study, Frederick 00:05:37.029 --> 00:05:39.410 and his colleagues, they specifically refined 00:05:39.410 --> 00:05:42.769 that upper boundary. They looked at IgG absorption 00:05:42.769 --> 00:05:45.689 efficiency across four different volumes. Okay, 00:05:45.709 --> 00:05:49.120 what were they? 6%, 8%, 10%, and 12 % of birth 00:05:49.120 --> 00:05:51.620 weight. Right. The whole goal was to find that 00:05:51.620 --> 00:05:53.819 saturation point. Where the benefit stops. And 00:05:53.819 --> 00:05:56.839 the physiological cost begins. And what we found 00:05:56.839 --> 00:05:59.740 is that efficiency peaks and then it just plateaus. 00:06:00.279 --> 00:06:03.139 really fast. You look at that 8 % mark and the 00:06:03.139 --> 00:06:05.199 absorption rate is excellent. It's fantastic. 00:06:05.740 --> 00:06:09.000 Cabs fed 8 % of body weight reached a 24 -hour 00:06:09.000 --> 00:06:13.279 serum IgG concentration of 37 .4 grams per liter. 00:06:13.379 --> 00:06:16.100 That is far, far above the minimum threshold. 00:06:16.259 --> 00:06:18.439 Okay, so that's great. That's success. But here's 00:06:18.439 --> 00:06:21.579 the brutal ROI calculation. When they push the 00:06:21.579 --> 00:06:24.920 volume up by 50 % to 12 % of body weight, the 00:06:24.920 --> 00:06:28.740 serum concentration only hit 43 .4 grams per 00:06:28.740 --> 00:06:30.939 liter. So wait, you're making the calf drink 00:06:30.939 --> 00:06:34.560 50 % more? 50 % more fluid volume. For a tiny 00:06:34.560 --> 00:06:38.220 gain of just 6 grams per liter of IgG. It's the 00:06:38.220 --> 00:06:40.319 law of diminishing returns hitting a brick wall. 00:06:40.519 --> 00:06:43.500 And that minimal gain in IgG, it comes at a cost 00:06:43.500 --> 00:06:46.420 you can actually see. A cost in discomfort. And 00:06:46.420 --> 00:06:48.620 this is the data point that should make every 00:06:48.620 --> 00:06:51.060 farmer listening just stop what they're doing. 00:06:51.180 --> 00:06:53.839 This is the one. We're talking about actual recorded 00:06:53.839 --> 00:06:56.779 physical distress documented by researchers. 00:06:57.100 --> 00:07:00.160 40 colic -like kicking episodes. 40. It's a huge 00:07:00.160 --> 00:07:03.000 number. 40 recorded total episodes of abdominal 00:07:03.000 --> 00:07:05.819 kicking, arching, visible GI discomfort among 00:07:05.819 --> 00:07:09.139 the calves fed at 12%. And the 10 % group, which 00:07:09.139 --> 00:07:11.040 is still the standard for many farms. They restored 00:07:11.040 --> 00:07:13.639 21 kicks. Still way too many. And the groups 00:07:13.639 --> 00:07:16.660 fed the new. Evidence -based maximum, the 6 % 00:07:16.660 --> 00:07:20.519 and 8 % volumes. Zero. Zero kicks. Zero observable 00:07:20.519 --> 00:07:23.439 distress after feeding. So if you're tube feeding 00:07:23.439 --> 00:07:25.899 a calf and it stands up and starts kicking at 00:07:25.899 --> 00:07:29.100 its belly or it's just really restless, this 00:07:29.100 --> 00:07:31.660 study is telling you it's not the colostrum quality. 00:07:31.879 --> 00:07:34.740 It's not. It's the sheer volume overwhelming 00:07:34.740 --> 00:07:38.660 its system. We are causing pain because we are 00:07:38.660 --> 00:07:41.579 fixated on a volume that the calf just doesn't 00:07:41.579 --> 00:07:43.730 need. Let's talk about the mechanics for just 00:07:43.730 --> 00:07:45.629 a second because it's important. We have to remember 00:07:45.629 --> 00:07:48.750 penocytosis. That's the process where the gut 00:07:48.750 --> 00:07:52.089 absorbs those huge IgG molecules. Right. It's 00:07:52.089 --> 00:07:54.290 finite. It happens fast in the first few hours. 00:07:54.389 --> 00:07:56.790 And then the gut capacity for absorption just 00:07:56.790 --> 00:07:58.829 gets saturated. So when you push all that extra 00:07:58.829 --> 00:08:00.930 fluid in. And extra antibodies just pass through. 00:08:00.990 --> 00:08:03.310 They're wasted. But the massive liquid volume 00:08:03.310 --> 00:08:05.949 stretches the abomasum. It stretches the gut. 00:08:06.069 --> 00:08:08.750 And that's what causes the pain. So for a standard, 00:08:08.850 --> 00:08:11.629 let's say, a 40 -kilogram Holstein calf, a pretty 00:08:11.629 --> 00:08:15.129 typical size, 8 % of body weight works out to 00:08:15.129 --> 00:08:18.889 3 .2 liters maximum for that first feeding. That's 00:08:18.889 --> 00:08:20.949 the number. And if you push that to 4 liters, 00:08:21.050 --> 00:08:23.990 which is 10%, you're pretty much guaranteeing 00:08:23.990 --> 00:08:26.310 distress for very, very little immunological 00:08:26.310 --> 00:08:28.810 return. Now, I can hear a lot of farmers saying, 00:08:28.930 --> 00:08:32.169 wait a minute. I spend time mixing that high 00:08:32.169 --> 00:08:35.330 quality colostrum and I want to maximize my total 00:08:35.330 --> 00:08:38.399 IgG delivery. I need that extra volume. That's 00:08:38.399 --> 00:08:40.279 a valid concern, and this is where we have to 00:08:40.279 --> 00:08:43.080 talk about the operational reality. We're not 00:08:43.080 --> 00:08:44.860 saying you should reduce the total amount of 00:08:44.860 --> 00:08:47.539 IgG you deliver. No, absolutely not. We're saying 00:08:47.539 --> 00:08:49.740 you have to respect the gut's immediate capacity. 00:08:50.019 --> 00:08:53.000 The fix is just split feeding. Exactly. If you've 00:08:53.000 --> 00:08:55.820 got a total of, say, 5 liters, you want to get 00:08:55.820 --> 00:08:58.779 into that calf to ensure adequate IgG, you cap 00:08:58.779 --> 00:09:01.899 the first feeding at 3 .2 liters. At that 8 % 00:09:01.899 --> 00:09:04.360 body weight mark. Right. Then you wait 6 to 12 00:09:04.360 --> 00:09:06.440 hours, and you give the remainder in the second 00:09:06.440 --> 00:09:09.360 feeding. You respect the biology. You let the 00:09:09.360 --> 00:09:12.259 calf system process that first load and reset. 00:09:12.480 --> 00:09:14.200 And you still get the full benefit of all that 00:09:14.200 --> 00:09:16.840 IgG. Without the 40 kicking episodes. But wait, 00:09:16.960 --> 00:09:19.779 let's inject a dose of reality here. Splitting 00:09:19.779 --> 00:09:21.919 the feed means I'm doubling my labor time. And 00:09:21.919 --> 00:09:23.820 this is during the busiest window of the day. 00:09:24.240 --> 00:09:26.799 Is reducing a little colic really worth that 00:09:26.799 --> 00:09:29.100 increased labor and time? That is the critical 00:09:29.100 --> 00:09:31.779 question. And I think the answer is yes. Because 00:09:31.779 --> 00:09:35.960 colic and distress. They have hidden costs. It's 00:09:35.960 --> 00:09:38.080 not just the immediate discomfort. A colicky 00:09:38.080 --> 00:09:40.940 calf is a stressed calf. A stressed calf has 00:09:40.940 --> 00:09:43.500 higher cortisol levels. And that can depress 00:09:43.500 --> 00:09:46.240 feed intake in the next 24 hours. It can slow 00:09:46.240 --> 00:09:48.620 down when they start on starter grain. And ultimately 00:09:48.620 --> 00:09:51.000 delay your growth targets. Right. We're talking 00:09:51.000 --> 00:09:55.600 about sacrificing days to weaning for a minimal 00:09:55.600 --> 00:09:57.919 IgG gain that you could have gotten in the second 00:09:57.919 --> 00:10:00.840 feeding anyway. Plus, you reduce stress. You 00:10:00.840 --> 00:10:02.799 reduce the chances you need a vet call for a 00:10:02.799 --> 00:10:05.600 distressed calf. calf. Which is easily $150 right 00:10:05.600 --> 00:10:07.899 there. Minimum. So we're trading, what, 15 minutes 00:10:07.899 --> 00:10:10.360 of labor for better feed efficiency, faster growth, 00:10:10.519 --> 00:10:13.440 and zero vet calls for simple gut distress. When 00:10:13.440 --> 00:10:15.240 you put it that way, yeah, the return on that 00:10:15.240 --> 00:10:17.139 labor investment is pretty clear. And before 00:10:17.139 --> 00:10:19.399 we move on, we have to just hammer this point 00:10:19.399 --> 00:10:24.299 home. Quality still trumps volume. Always. Right. 00:10:24.440 --> 00:10:26.840 This whole conversation assumes high -quality 00:10:26.840 --> 00:10:29.779 colostrum. Exactly. If you don't have a Bricks 00:10:29.779 --> 00:10:33.620 refractometer, you are... Frankly, gambling with 00:10:33.620 --> 00:10:36.360 your CAF program. Those tools cost, what, maybe 00:10:36.360 --> 00:10:39.899 $150 to $300? Cheap insurance. They pay for themselves 00:10:39.899 --> 00:10:42.679 immediately. If one batch of colostrum that you 00:10:42.679 --> 00:10:45.299 thought was great only tested 18 bricks instead 00:10:45.299 --> 00:10:48.370 of 22, and you catch that mistake? Yeah. You 00:10:48.370 --> 00:10:51.649 just prevented a $400 FPT case. It's a no -brainer. 00:10:51.690 --> 00:10:53.350 And you mentioned the Wisconsin Extension data. 00:10:53.509 --> 00:10:56.009 That colostrum production tends to slump in the 00:10:56.009 --> 00:10:58.070 fall months. Yeah, it's a real phenomenon. So 00:10:58.070 --> 00:11:00.110 if you're banking colostrum, that refractometer 00:11:00.110 --> 00:11:02.929 is absolutely essential for deciding which dam's 00:11:02.929 --> 00:11:05.370 colostrum is good enough to freeze and use later. 00:11:05.570 --> 00:11:07.970 The long -term strategy here is using that Brix 00:11:07.970 --> 00:11:10.629 meter to identify and bank those high -quality 00:11:10.629 --> 00:11:12.570 batches. So you're never scrambling, no matter 00:11:12.570 --> 00:11:14.450 what time of year it is. So the bottom line on 00:11:14.450 --> 00:11:17.169 calves is stop equating your effort with results. 00:11:17.720 --> 00:11:19.639 Pouring more in doesn't mean the calf absorbs 00:11:19.639 --> 00:11:21.679 more. It just means the calf is uncomfortable. 00:11:21.960 --> 00:11:25.019 The new evidence -based cap is 8 % of body weight 00:11:25.019 --> 00:11:27.679 for that first meal. Respect the biology. Right. 00:11:28.000 --> 00:11:30.720 Speaking of foundations, if we shift from the 00:11:30.720 --> 00:11:34.940 calf's gut health to the cow's mobility, we find 00:11:34.940 --> 00:11:37.279 a structural problem that's just as serious. 00:11:37.679 --> 00:11:40.580 The very foundation she walks on. Exactly. And 00:11:40.580 --> 00:11:43.519 this lameness data. This is where that $400 problem 00:11:43.519 --> 00:11:45.639 really starts. The industry reality check here 00:11:45.639 --> 00:11:48.919 is that we are consistently, consistently missing 00:11:48.919 --> 00:11:51.460 the optimal intervention window. We're missing 00:11:51.460 --> 00:11:54.450 it by weeks. We often wait until the damage is 00:11:54.450 --> 00:11:56.389 already structural. It's already permanent. And 00:11:56.389 --> 00:11:58.190 look, it's not about farmer negligence. It's 00:11:58.190 --> 00:12:01.190 about human capability versus technology. I agree. 00:12:01.429 --> 00:12:03.870 The average busy farmer, you're trying to spot 00:12:03.870 --> 00:12:06.490 subtle changes during a crowded feed alley walk. 00:12:06.909 --> 00:12:09.289 You're only going to identify about a third of 00:12:09.289 --> 00:12:11.129 the lameness cases that a trained researcher 00:12:11.129 --> 00:12:13.730 would catch. A researcher who's using slow standardized 00:12:13.730 --> 00:12:17.250 scoring protocols. It's just a fundamental difficulty 00:12:17.250 --> 00:12:19.610 of catching subtle changes in a really dynamic 00:12:19.610 --> 00:12:21.889 environment. And that failure to catch it early. 00:12:22.409 --> 00:12:24.970 That's what turns a minor stone bruise or mild 00:12:24.970 --> 00:12:27.690 sole hemorrhage into a devastating chronic repeat 00:12:27.690 --> 00:12:30.149 offender case. And the new research explains 00:12:30.149 --> 00:12:32.929 exactly why that happens. It drills right down 00:12:32.929 --> 00:12:35.090 to the cellular level. OK, let's unpack that, 00:12:35.169 --> 00:12:37.629 because understanding this is critical for understanding 00:12:37.629 --> 00:12:41.549 why lameness becomes chronic. It is. So Wilson 00:12:41.549 --> 00:12:43.289 and colleagues at the University of Nottingham. 00:12:43.679 --> 00:12:45.940 They examined the collagen composition in the 00:12:45.940 --> 00:12:48.519 digital cushions of cull cows. So that's the 00:12:48.519 --> 00:12:51.240 fatty cushion above the hoof horn, the main shock 00:12:51.240 --> 00:12:53.539 absorber? That's the one. And the finding was 00:12:53.539 --> 00:12:56.799 this. Cows with chronic histories of hoof horn 00:12:56.799 --> 00:13:00.200 lesions had significantly lower type I collagen 00:13:00.200 --> 00:13:02.940 in their digital cushions. Okay, so type I collagen 00:13:02.940 --> 00:13:04.620 is the good stuff, right? That's the resilient 00:13:04.620 --> 00:13:06.659 structure, the tensile strength, the elasticity. 00:13:07.220 --> 00:13:09.740 It's like the dense foam in a good running shoe. 00:13:10.039 --> 00:13:12.440 That is the perfect analogy. Okay. Type I is 00:13:12.440 --> 00:13:15.700 the healthy shock -absorbing sponge. When that 00:13:15.700 --> 00:13:17.879 cushion gets traumatized over and over again, 00:13:18.059 --> 00:13:21.440 the body's repair mechanism replaces that type 00:13:21.440 --> 00:13:24.600 I collagen with type III collagen. And type III 00:13:24.600 --> 00:13:27.600 is basically just disorganized scar tissue. Exactly. 00:13:27.700 --> 00:13:30.659 It's stiff. It lacks resilience. It cannot absorb 00:13:30.659 --> 00:13:33.600 shock correctly. It's like swapping the rubber 00:13:33.600 --> 00:13:36.960 sole of your work boots for a thin piece of rigid, 00:13:37.139 --> 00:13:39.779 brittle plastic. Which means the cow is now walking 00:13:39.779 --> 00:13:42.240 on a compromised foundation. The weak cushion 00:13:42.240 --> 00:13:45.559 leads to more trauma on every step. Which leads 00:13:45.559 --> 00:13:48.639 to more scar tissue. And that cow is now structurally 00:13:48.639 --> 00:13:51.460 and permanently predisposed to getting lame again 00:13:51.460 --> 00:13:53.879 and again. You're fighting a cellular deficiency 00:13:53.879 --> 00:13:56.870 every time she steps on the concrete. This explains 00:13:56.870 --> 00:13:59.470 those repeat offenders that drive producers crazy. 00:13:59.649 --> 00:14:01.850 You trim them, you block them, you foot bath 00:14:01.850 --> 00:14:03.710 them, and three months later, they're back. And 00:14:03.710 --> 00:14:05.970 you're spending 400 bucks every single time fighting 00:14:05.970 --> 00:14:08.210 a structural deficiency that was set in stone 00:14:08.210 --> 00:14:11.429 or in scar tissue because you missed that first 00:14:11.429 --> 00:14:14.090 crucial preventative window. And we have to talk 00:14:14.090 --> 00:14:16.250 about the financial compounding here. The Robsis 00:14:16.250 --> 00:14:20.250 study from 2023 JDS, it put the base direct cost 00:14:20.250 --> 00:14:25.149 of lameness at around 307 euros. 330, 340 bucks 00:14:25.149 --> 00:14:27.279 US. Right. But that's the conservative number. 00:14:27.340 --> 00:14:28.860 That often doesn't even account for the secondary 00:14:28.860 --> 00:14:31.940 costs. The lost milk, the cost of treating metritis 00:14:31.940 --> 00:14:34.539 that follows a painful calving. Delayed breeding, 00:14:34.759 --> 00:14:37.519 increased risk of culling. When you factor all 00:14:37.519 --> 00:14:40.960 that in, that cost can easily surge towards $800 00:14:40.960 --> 00:14:44.320 or even $1 ,000 for a serious case. So if prevention 00:14:44.320 --> 00:14:48.340 costs $50 and a serious case costs $800, the 00:14:48.340 --> 00:14:50.720 data is clear. Prevention isn't just better, 00:14:50.860 --> 00:14:53.700 it's economically mandatory. So how do we get 00:14:53.700 --> 00:14:56.629 there? We need detection that operates at the 00:14:56.629 --> 00:14:59.909 level of the cow's compensatory behavior, not 00:14:59.909 --> 00:15:02.429 her pain threshold. And that brings us right 00:15:02.429 --> 00:15:05.409 back to the AI advantage and that critical 23 00:15:05.409 --> 00:15:08.750 -day gap. The AI gait analysis systems, the ones 00:15:08.750 --> 00:15:10.789 that use cameras and vision processing, they 00:15:10.789 --> 00:15:13.370 are detecting mobility changes three weeks before 00:15:13.370 --> 00:15:16.330 activity callers or human observation flag the 00:15:16.330 --> 00:15:18.149 issue. Wait, I have to push back here for the 00:15:18.149 --> 00:15:20.669 average farmer. My callers cost thousands of 00:15:20.669 --> 00:15:22.490 dollars and they're supposed to track lameness. 00:15:23.080 --> 00:15:25.500 Why is my activity collar failing to catch this 00:15:25.500 --> 00:15:27.559 early window? Because the collar measures the 00:15:27.559 --> 00:15:29.960 quantity of movement, step count, resting time. 00:15:30.080 --> 00:15:32.139 It's designed to catch the moment the cow is 00:15:32.139 --> 00:15:34.580 so sore she stops walking or feeding. Which is 00:15:34.580 --> 00:15:37.480 when the lesion is already severe. Exactly. But 00:15:37.480 --> 00:15:40.379 AI gait analysis, it measures the quality of 00:15:40.379 --> 00:15:42.960 movement, the kinetics, the weight distribution. 00:15:43.279 --> 00:15:46.120 The cow changes how she walks long before she 00:15:46.120 --> 00:15:48.480 drops her total step count. That's it. So walk 00:15:48.480 --> 00:15:49.960 me through what that looks like. What's the AI 00:15:49.960 --> 00:15:52.870 catching that I'm not? It's subtle. But visually, 00:15:53.090 --> 00:15:56.309 it's that uneven tracking of the hind feet. It's 00:15:56.309 --> 00:15:58.909 a slightly shorter stride length on one side 00:15:58.909 --> 00:16:01.250 when she makes a turn. Okay. It's the slight 00:16:01.250 --> 00:16:04.049 increase in the duration of the head bob when 00:16:04.049 --> 00:16:06.830 that sore foot hits the ground, even if her total 00:16:06.830 --> 00:16:09.090 head motion hasn't dropped yet. Or, and this 00:16:09.090 --> 00:16:11.009 is a big one, it's the increased standing time 00:16:11.009 --> 00:16:13.750 before she lies down because she's testing that 00:16:13.750 --> 00:16:16.789 painful limb. Right. She's compensating for discomfort. 00:16:16.950 --> 00:16:19.309 She hasn't dropped her dry matter intake yet. 00:16:19.409 --> 00:16:22.250 That compensation is happening 23 days before 00:16:22.250 --> 00:16:25.309 the system that only tracks steps even notices 00:16:25.309 --> 00:16:28.690 a drop in quantity. So the AI system is identifying 00:16:28.690 --> 00:16:31.669 the cow acting like she's walking on glass, while 00:16:31.669 --> 00:16:33.889 the activity caller is waiting until she's just 00:16:33.889 --> 00:16:36.210 decided to stand still. That is the fundamental 00:16:36.210 --> 00:16:38.049 difference. And that's the difference between 00:16:38.049 --> 00:16:40.950 the $50 intervention window and the $400 treatment 00:16:40.950 --> 00:16:43.169 window. If you catch it in that compensatory 00:16:43.169 --> 00:16:46.029 phase, you can make a minor adjustment, maybe 00:16:46.029 --> 00:16:48.129 a quick look at the foot, a change in bedding. 00:16:48.169 --> 00:16:51.009 And you prevent the type I collagen from turning 00:16:51.009 --> 00:16:53.870 into that type 3 scar tissue. You stop the chronic 00:16:53.870 --> 00:16:57.190 cycle before it even starts. This raises an absolutely 00:16:57.190 --> 00:17:00.870 vital, skeptical challenge for farmers who are 00:17:00.870 --> 00:17:04.359 evaluating technology. Yes. If you... are going 00:17:04.359 --> 00:17:07.019 to invest heavily in a monitoring system. You 00:17:07.019 --> 00:17:09.960 have to pressure the vendors. They need to prove 00:17:09.960 --> 00:17:12.420 they are measuring quality of gait, not just 00:17:12.420 --> 00:17:14.680 quantity of activity. You need to ask them that 00:17:14.680 --> 00:17:17.779 critical question. What specific behavioral change 00:17:17.779 --> 00:17:20.400 does your system detect? And at what stage of 00:17:20.400 --> 00:17:22.740 disease progression does that change become measurable? 00:17:23.019 --> 00:17:25.710 Right. And if they can't point to kinetics, or 00:17:25.710 --> 00:17:28.089 weight distribution or the head bob and they 00:17:28.089 --> 00:17:30.609 only talk about a general drop in activity you're 00:17:30.609 --> 00:17:32.849 probably buying a system that only detects the 00:17:32.849 --> 00:17:34.950 problem a week before your herdsman would caught 00:17:34.950 --> 00:17:37.250 it anyway you're not buying the 23 days of prevention 00:17:37.250 --> 00:17:40.650 if it only catches the quantity drop it is detecting 00:17:40.650 --> 00:17:44.049 pain not preventing structural damage the investment 00:17:44.049 --> 00:17:46.829 has to be justified by its ability to break that 00:17:46.829 --> 00:17:49.609 type 3 collagen cycle okay let's shift gears 00:17:49.609 --> 00:17:51.690 completely From the structure of the foot to 00:17:51.690 --> 00:17:53.329 the structure of the breeding program. Let's 00:17:53.329 --> 00:17:55.529 talk beef on dairy. Yeah, the conversation is 00:17:55.529 --> 00:17:59.250 always, almost always fixated on the dollar premium 00:17:59.250 --> 00:18:02.250 you get for that calf. Right. But the new data 00:18:02.250 --> 00:18:05.109 confirms that chasing the biggest premium can 00:18:05.109 --> 00:18:07.809 absolutely wipe out your profitability. And then 00:18:07.809 --> 00:18:10.059 some on the cow side. This is a textbook example 00:18:10.059 --> 00:18:13.279 of prioritizing a short -term gain over the long 00:18:13.279 --> 00:18:15.559 -term health of your herd. We have seen operations 00:18:15.559 --> 00:18:18.279 get financially burned by this. Absolutely. The 00:18:18.279 --> 00:18:20.619 study in the December JDS was massive on this, 00:18:20.680 --> 00:18:24.640 a genetic analysis of 231 ,000 calving ease records. 00:18:24.920 --> 00:18:27.960 Across 1 .2 million lactations. Right. They looked 00:18:27.960 --> 00:18:30.119 at Holsteins and Jerseys bred to the Big Three, 00:18:30.279 --> 00:18:32.940 Angus, Charolais, and Cemental. They had the 00:18:32.940 --> 00:18:35.319 data to see the true trade -off. And the core 00:18:35.319 --> 00:18:37.960 finding, this should be non -negotiable for every 00:18:37.960 --> 00:18:40.420 single producer out there. Profitability hinges 00:18:40.420 --> 00:18:43.460 entirely on the calving ease EPDs. The expected 00:18:43.460 --> 00:18:46.660 progeny differences. Exactly. It is not the beef 00:18:46.660 --> 00:18:48.960 breed itself that determines success or failure. 00:18:49.339 --> 00:18:54.019 It is the specific CE score of the sire you choose. 00:18:54.240 --> 00:18:56.660 You can't just generalize. And the evidence for 00:18:56.660 --> 00:18:59.960 success is there. Which is encouraging. Research 00:18:59.960 --> 00:19:01.880 from Penn State and the University of Kentucky 00:19:01.880 --> 00:19:05.619 showed that when you select beef sires with favorable 00:19:05.619 --> 00:19:09.140 CE indices. And this is a key distinction. Specifically 00:19:09.140 --> 00:19:12.619 for mature dairy cows, not first calf heifers. 00:19:12.720 --> 00:19:15.019 Right. When you do that, dystocia rates show 00:19:15.019 --> 00:19:17.500 no significant increase compared to just using 00:19:17.500 --> 00:19:19.740 dairy semen. So the U .S. sire selection parameters, 00:19:20.019 --> 00:19:21.740 when you apply them with diligence, they are 00:19:21.740 --> 00:19:24.460 not inherently bad for the cow. Which proves 00:19:24.460 --> 00:19:27.380 the program can work. But it works conditionally. 00:19:27.460 --> 00:19:29.920 It's a management program first and a genetics 00:19:29.920 --> 00:19:32.140 program second. And the warning sign is that 00:19:32.140 --> 00:19:34.400 anecdote that became a damaging trend for the 00:19:34.400 --> 00:19:36.579 early adopters. I heard one producer put it perfectly. 00:19:36.700 --> 00:19:39.220 He said they got greedy on the calf side and 00:19:39.220 --> 00:19:41.500 forgot about the cow side. This is exactly what 00:19:41.500 --> 00:19:42.900 happened. They chased the high -dollar calves 00:19:42.900 --> 00:19:45.700 using powerful, high -growth sires that had just 00:19:45.700 --> 00:19:48.819 terrible cavanese EPDs. They were focused on 00:19:48.819 --> 00:19:52.259 that $300 calf check premium. And they watched 00:19:52.259 --> 00:19:55.799 their heifer dystocia rates climb to 25, even 00:19:55.799 --> 00:19:58.660 30 percent. You cannot afford that. Let's just 00:19:58.660 --> 00:20:00.619 break down the economics of one difficult calving. 00:20:00.660 --> 00:20:03.519 You get a $200 premium for that beef calf. That 00:20:03.519 --> 00:20:06.059 profit is gone with the first complication. Instantly. 00:20:06.490 --> 00:20:08.769 What are the costs? You've got the direct vet 00:20:08.769 --> 00:20:13.029 assistance. That's easily $100 to $250 for a 00:20:13.029 --> 00:20:14.970 difficult pull, especially if it's after hours. 00:20:15.250 --> 00:20:17.950 Then you have the post -calving trauma. A difficult 00:20:17.950 --> 00:20:20.549 calving dramatically increases the risk of a 00:20:20.549 --> 00:20:22.950 retained placenta. Which requires more treatment, 00:20:23.089 --> 00:20:27.970 adds another $75 to $150. And if that leads to 00:20:27.970 --> 00:20:30.210 metritis. You're looking at more treatments, 00:20:30.410 --> 00:20:33.069 more labor, and potentially a lifetime hit on 00:20:33.069 --> 00:20:35.069 fertility. And the biggest cost is the opportunity 00:20:35.069 --> 00:20:38.049 cost. The delayed breeding cycle. Right. A cow 00:20:38.049 --> 00:20:40.529 that suffers dystocia takes significantly longer 00:20:40.529 --> 00:20:43.490 to resolve her uterus and cycle back. If that 00:20:43.490 --> 00:20:45.369 extends her voluntary waiting period by just 00:20:45.369 --> 00:20:48.029 10 or 15 days, we're sacrificing hundreds of 00:20:48.029 --> 00:20:50.980 pounds of milk in her next lactation. That $200 00:20:50.980 --> 00:20:54.079 calf premium suddenly looks tiny compared to 00:20:54.079 --> 00:20:56.859 a $600 to $1 ,000 cost of a complicated recovery. 00:20:57.200 --> 00:20:59.859 So the operational framework for successful beef 00:20:59.859 --> 00:21:02.019 on dairy based on this research is really simple. 00:21:02.180 --> 00:21:06.160 One, you must select sires with documented favorable 00:21:06.160 --> 00:21:10.099 CEEPDs. No exceptions. You can't just pick a 00:21:10.099 --> 00:21:12.799 Charolais because the cows look good. Two, you 00:21:12.799 --> 00:21:15.220 limit beef breeding primarily to mature proven 00:21:15.220 --> 00:21:18.400 cows and you strictly avoid your high -risk heifers. 00:21:19.049 --> 00:21:23.509 And three, you actively religiously monitor your 00:21:23.509 --> 00:21:26.009 dystocia rates. If your percentage of assisted 00:21:26.009 --> 00:21:29.950 calvings goes up even 2%, you immediately tighten 00:21:29.950 --> 00:21:32.690 your CE selection threshold. It has to be a non 00:21:32.690 --> 00:21:34.369 -negotiable threshold. I mean, if you look at 00:21:34.369 --> 00:21:37.089 specific examples, Angus and Hereford, they generally 00:21:37.089 --> 00:21:39.170 have lines that work reliably because their CE 00:21:39.170 --> 00:21:41.690 scores are often better managed. But breeds like 00:21:41.690 --> 00:21:44.670 Charolais or Belgian Blue, they offer that tempting 00:21:44.670 --> 00:21:47.369 premium. But they require extreme diligence on 00:21:47.369 --> 00:21:49.809 CE selection. Without that, you're just financially 00:21:49.809 --> 00:21:52.130 exposing your herd to a totally unnecessary risk. 00:21:52.589 --> 00:21:54.849 Don't let the potential premium distract you 00:21:54.849 --> 00:21:57.529 from the cost of the event. The cow is the primary 00:21:57.529 --> 00:22:00.970 asset. Her recovery and her next lactation must 00:22:00.970 --> 00:22:03.430 always come first. Okay, let's look forward now. 00:22:03.589 --> 00:22:06.250 The regulatory and environmental pressures on 00:22:06.250 --> 00:22:09.390 dairy. They're not going away, especially on 00:22:09.390 --> 00:22:11.390 methane. It's hard to chance. But the good news 00:22:11.390 --> 00:22:13.750 from the genetic side is that reducing methane 00:22:13.750 --> 00:22:16.329 might be way more tractable than we assumed. 00:22:16.650 --> 00:22:19.509 And we can do it without trade -offs or cost. 00:22:20.190 --> 00:22:23.170 This is the ultimate free win segment. It really 00:22:23.170 --> 00:22:25.269 changes the environmental conversation for dairy 00:22:25.269 --> 00:22:28.410 producers. The major finding from SumEx, Lectinet, 00:22:28.609 --> 00:22:31.069 and Gulf, and this is from analyzing over 700 00:22:31.069 --> 00:22:35.309 ,000 milk MIR records, is massive. Methane efficiency 00:22:35.309 --> 00:22:39.890 traits show heritability of about 23%. 23 % heritability. 00:22:40.049 --> 00:22:43.009 To put that in perspective for you, that is comparable 00:22:43.009 --> 00:22:45.549 to key production traits like milk yield and 00:22:45.549 --> 00:22:47.849 fat percentage. And it is dramatically higher 00:22:47.849 --> 00:22:49.910 than health and fertility traits, which usually 00:22:49.910 --> 00:22:52.029 land somewhere between, what, 3 % and 8%. So 00:22:52.029 --> 00:22:53.910 this means genetic selection for methane reduction 00:22:53.910 --> 00:22:57.289 is highly effective. It's fast. We can move the 00:22:57.289 --> 00:22:59.680 needle on this quickly. It's an incredibly powerful 00:22:59.680 --> 00:23:02.779 lever. But here's the other piece of just seismic 00:23:02.779 --> 00:23:05.680 good news. And this removes the biggest barrier 00:23:05.680 --> 00:23:08.079 to environmental selection in a production system. 00:23:08.240 --> 00:23:10.880 Which is? The genetic correlation between methane 00:23:10.880 --> 00:23:13.759 efficiency and milk yield is, statistically speaking, 00:23:14.059 --> 00:23:17.859 zero. Zero. No tradeoff required. You can select 00:23:17.859 --> 00:23:20.519 for a more efficient, high -producing cow and 00:23:20.519 --> 00:23:23.299 reduce her emissions at the same time. The environmental 00:23:23.299 --> 00:23:25.980 choice is no longer an economic penalty. So what 00:23:25.980 --> 00:23:28.640 does that mean for a long -term strategy? Cimex 00:23:28.640 --> 00:23:30.980 is projecting that a 20 to 30 percent reduction 00:23:30.980 --> 00:23:34.720 in herd methane output by 2050 is absolutely 00:23:34.720 --> 00:23:37.579 achievable. Through genetics alone, depending 00:23:37.579 --> 00:23:39.940 on how intensely the industry selects for it. 00:23:40.039 --> 00:23:42.839 And the timeline is fast enough to make a real 00:23:42.839 --> 00:23:45.059 difference in your lifetime. Generation one, 00:23:45.200 --> 00:23:47.559 that's about two years, gets you a three to four 00:23:47.559 --> 00:23:49.619 percent herd reduction. By generation three, 00:23:49.700 --> 00:23:52.599 so six to eight years, you're looking at a 10 00:23:52.599 --> 00:23:55.460 to 12 percent cumulative reduction. That is significant. 00:23:56.160 --> 00:23:58.839 verifiable environmental progress. And it's achieved 00:23:58.839 --> 00:24:01.200 just by refining your sire selection criteria. 00:24:01.539 --> 00:24:04.339 So here's the practical application. You don't 00:24:04.339 --> 00:24:06.740 need to overhaul your program. You keep selecting 00:24:06.740 --> 00:24:09.940 for what's profitable. Fat, protein, net merit, 00:24:10.039 --> 00:24:12.480 health. Right. You then use methane efficiency 00:24:12.480 --> 00:24:16.359 as a tiebreaker. Between two otherwise equivalent 00:24:16.359 --> 00:24:18.839 bowls, it costs you nothing to add that criterion. 00:24:18.920 --> 00:24:21.160 And you're quietly stripping carbon footprint 00:24:21.160 --> 00:24:23.559 with every single generation. It's the ultimate 00:24:23.559 --> 00:24:27.779 why not. Exactly. If Bull A and Bull B offer 00:24:27.779 --> 00:24:30.119 identical projected profitability and health, 00:24:30.279 --> 00:24:33.599 but Bull A is a 5 % more efficient methane reducer, 00:24:33.759 --> 00:24:36.099 the choice is obvious. And here's the best part 00:24:36.099 --> 00:24:39.420 of all. You are already paying for the data that 00:24:39.420 --> 00:24:41.920 feeds these efficiency scores. The methane efficiency 00:24:41.920 --> 00:24:44.500 scores are derived from the same DHI test you 00:24:44.500 --> 00:24:47.279 run every month. Right. Most operations are already 00:24:47.279 --> 00:24:50.160 submitting samples for DHI testing, which generates 00:24:50.160 --> 00:24:52.559 that mid -infrared spectral data to measure fat 00:24:52.559 --> 00:24:55.269 and protein. And the mechanism here is actually 00:24:55.269 --> 00:24:57.630 really elegant. It ties directly back to rumen 00:24:57.630 --> 00:24:59.910 function. Okay, so explain the biology simply. 00:25:00.089 --> 00:25:01.990 Focus on the hydrogen management in the rumen. 00:25:02.069 --> 00:25:05.130 The rumen is a constant hydrogen factory. High 00:25:05.130 --> 00:25:07.369 methane cows, they tend to have fermentation 00:25:07.369 --> 00:25:10.450 pathways that churn out a lot of acetate. That 00:25:10.450 --> 00:25:12.990 acetate production releases hydrogen as a byproduct. 00:25:13.440 --> 00:25:16.279 That hydrogen is then quickly captured by methanogens 00:25:16.279 --> 00:25:19.099 and converted into methane, which the cow belches 00:25:19.099 --> 00:25:21.279 out. And that acetate -rich environment leaves 00:25:21.279 --> 00:25:23.759 a distinct signature in the milk. A signature 00:25:23.759 --> 00:25:26.960 of milk, rich in de novo fatty acids. Conversely, 00:25:26.980 --> 00:25:29.319 the low -methane cows, they're channeling that 00:25:29.319 --> 00:25:31.539 hydrogen into a more efficient pathway, producing 00:25:31.539 --> 00:25:33.839 more propionate. Which is a source of glucose 00:25:33.839 --> 00:25:36.400 for the cow. Right. Productive energy. So when 00:25:36.400 --> 00:25:39.000 the cow produces more propionate and less acetate, 00:25:39.039 --> 00:25:42.210 the fatty acid profile of the milk changes. So 00:25:42.210 --> 00:25:44.990 propionate is the productive pathway. Acetate 00:25:44.990 --> 00:25:47.650 leads to waste in the form of methane. Precisely. 00:25:47.650 --> 00:25:50.069 So if I see high novo fatty acid readings on 00:25:50.069 --> 00:25:52.650 my DHI report, that's not just a fat number. 00:25:52.750 --> 00:25:55.730 It's a free, actionable warning sign that this 00:25:55.730 --> 00:25:57.890 cow is running a high acetate, potentially high 00:25:57.890 --> 00:26:00.849 methane, and slightly less energy efficient rumen. 00:26:00.869 --> 00:26:03.269 But hold on. I'm looking at my DHI sheet right 00:26:03.269 --> 00:26:07.589 now. It says fat, protein, MUN, SCC. It doesn't 00:26:07.589 --> 00:26:10.200 say methane profile or... de novo fatty acids. 00:26:10.440 --> 00:26:13.059 How do I actually get this data that I'm supposedly 00:26:13.059 --> 00:26:15.319 already paying for? That is the practical hurdle. 00:26:15.480 --> 00:26:17.720 The data is being generated by the spectrometer, 00:26:17.839 --> 00:26:20.519 but often the DHI processing center doesn't automatically 00:26:20.519 --> 00:26:23.380 print the full fatty acid profile on the standard 00:26:23.380 --> 00:26:25.420 sheet. So I have to ask for it. You have to call 00:26:25.420 --> 00:26:27.859 your DHI processor or your extension specialist 00:26:27.859 --> 00:26:31.299 and specifically request the detailed fatty acid 00:26:31.299 --> 00:26:33.559 breakdown. It might be under a section called 00:26:33.559 --> 00:26:37.490 fatty acid breakdown or MER profiles. Once you 00:26:37.490 --> 00:26:39.410 get that sheet, you're looking for the percentage 00:26:39.410 --> 00:26:42.029 of de novo fatty acids. So if I start tracking 00:26:42.029 --> 00:26:44.109 that de novo percentage, I get two wins for the 00:26:44.109 --> 00:26:46.930 price of one. You do. First, I get a free early 00:26:46.930 --> 00:26:49.750 warning system for acidosis, which we absolutely 00:26:49.750 --> 00:26:52.549 need to monitor in transition cows. Yes. Low 00:26:52.549 --> 00:26:54.990 de novo can be a primary signal of a compromised 00:26:54.990 --> 00:26:58.140 rumen. And second, I get a baseline for selecting 00:26:58.140 --> 00:27:00.940 for lower methane genetics over time. You nailed 00:27:00.940 --> 00:27:03.299 it. You get rumen health and methane efficiency 00:27:03.299 --> 00:27:05.740 information from one piece of paper you already 00:27:05.740 --> 00:27:08.420 paid for. It is sitting there waiting for you 00:27:08.420 --> 00:27:11.359 to use it as a powerful diagnostic tool and a 00:27:11.359 --> 00:27:14.180 free environmental selection criterion. That's 00:27:14.180 --> 00:27:16.579 efficiency you just can't ignore. All right, 00:27:16.579 --> 00:27:18.700 let's step back into skeptic mode for a minute. 00:27:19.130 --> 00:27:22.390 We've talked about free genetic solutions. Now 00:27:22.390 --> 00:27:24.890 let's talk about the expensive additive solutions 00:27:24.890 --> 00:27:27.150 hitting the market. The methane reduction product 00:27:27.150 --> 00:27:29.829 market is flooding with sales pitches. And as 00:27:29.829 --> 00:27:32.430 an operator, you need extreme caution and a set 00:27:32.430 --> 00:27:34.589 of really rigorous questions before you spend 00:27:34.589 --> 00:27:37.450 a single dime. Absolutely. You have to assume 00:27:37.450 --> 00:27:39.970 the rooming adapts. It has been optimizing itself 00:27:39.970 --> 00:27:42.779 for millions of years. If someone claims they've 00:27:42.779 --> 00:27:45.980 fundamentally changed that fermentation vat with 00:27:45.980 --> 00:27:48.359 a plant extract. They need robust, sustained, 00:27:48.539 --> 00:27:51.220 and verified proof. So we developed four buyer 00:27:51.220 --> 00:27:53.700 beware questions, and I want every farmer listening 00:27:53.700 --> 00:27:55.599 to print these out and bring them to your next 00:27:55.599 --> 00:27:57.960 sales meeting. These questions force the vendor 00:27:57.960 --> 00:28:00.980 to prove biological efficacy, not just marketing 00:28:00.980 --> 00:28:03.880 claims. Okay, question one, the basic sanity 00:28:03.880 --> 00:28:08.079 check. Show me the DMI data alongside the methane 00:28:08.079 --> 00:28:11.509 data. Right. If the results show a drop in methane, 00:28:11.569 --> 00:28:14.009 but also a proportional drop in dry matter intake, 00:28:14.250 --> 00:28:16.289 you might just be buying an expensive appetite 00:28:16.289 --> 00:28:19.829 suppressant. If the cow eats 5 % less feed, methane 00:28:19.829 --> 00:28:22.930 drops 5%. That's not a change in efficiency. 00:28:23.130 --> 00:28:25.490 That's just a reduced feed bill that leads to 00:28:25.490 --> 00:28:27.970 less milk. It's a false economy. You are trading 00:28:27.970 --> 00:28:31.200 necessary feed intake for a climate claim. Question 00:28:31.200 --> 00:28:33.640 two separates true mitigation from just intake 00:28:33.640 --> 00:28:36.660 depression. Is this reduction measured in grams 00:28:36.660 --> 00:28:40.660 per day or grams per kilogram DMI? This is crucial. 00:28:40.900 --> 00:28:43.440 Total daily methane can drop simply because the 00:28:43.440 --> 00:28:46.339 cow ate less. That's meaningless. It is. Methane 00:28:46.339 --> 00:28:48.740 yield grams per kilogram of DMI. That is what 00:28:48.740 --> 00:28:51.099 proves the additive actually altered the fermentation 00:28:51.099 --> 00:28:54.079 pathways, diverting hydrogen to propionate. So 00:28:54.079 --> 00:28:56.079 if they only show you a reduction in grams per 00:28:56.079 --> 00:28:57.940 day, you tell them you need to see the yield 00:28:57.940 --> 00:29:00.539 data. A 500 gram per day reduction sounds great, 00:29:00.680 --> 00:29:03.220 but if DMI dropped four kilos, the yield is the 00:29:03.220 --> 00:29:05.500 same. You need that specificity. Question three 00:29:05.500 --> 00:29:08.140 focuses on endurance. How long did the trials 00:29:08.140 --> 00:29:10.900 run? If the trials ran under eight weeks, I am 00:29:10.900 --> 00:29:13.759 raising a serious skeptical eyebrow. The rumen 00:29:13.759 --> 00:29:16.240 microbiome adapts quickly. We see this all the 00:29:16.240 --> 00:29:18.799 time with plant extracts or oils. You get a beautiful 00:29:18.799 --> 00:29:21.500 15 % or 20 % reduction in methane initially. 00:29:21.720 --> 00:29:23.599 And then the methanogens figure out a workaround, 00:29:23.759 --> 00:29:26.880 and the reduction is gone by week 10. You need 00:29:26.880 --> 00:29:30.200 trials that run for a minimum of 12 weeks, ideally 00:29:30.200 --> 00:29:33.119 across multiple lactations, to prove sustained 00:29:33.119 --> 00:29:36.160 efficacy. And the final, biological gut check. 00:29:36.339 --> 00:29:38.980 Pun intended. Where did the hydrogen go? Yes. 00:29:39.420 --> 00:29:41.420 If you are blocking the methanogens from making 00:29:41.420 --> 00:29:44.119 methane, you are blocking the cow's primary hydrogen 00:29:44.119 --> 00:29:47.059 disposal route. The vendor must explain the new 00:29:47.059 --> 00:29:50.039 hydrogen sink. Ideally, the hydrogen is being 00:29:50.039 --> 00:29:52.799 channeled into propionate, a useful productive 00:29:52.799 --> 00:29:54.920 energy source for the cow. And if they can't 00:29:54.920 --> 00:29:57.059 explain that pathway and quantify the corresponding 00:29:57.059 --> 00:29:59.539 increase in propionate, the rumen might just 00:29:59.539 --> 00:30:02.029 be building up hydrogen pressure. which stresses 00:30:02.029 --> 00:30:04.069 the cow and can lead to her going off feed. It 00:30:04.069 --> 00:30:06.329 forces vendors to show they understand the complex 00:30:06.329 --> 00:30:09.410 biology, not just the simple marketing tagline. 00:30:09.769 --> 00:30:12.250 Okay, let's pivot to another health topic where 00:30:12.250 --> 00:30:14.029 the science is still emerging, and we need to 00:30:14.029 --> 00:30:17.690 counsel significant caution. The bovine leukemia 00:30:17.690 --> 00:30:20.549 virus BLV connection to calf health. Right. There's 00:30:20.549 --> 00:30:23.390 emerging research suggesting an association between 00:30:23.390 --> 00:30:26.829 the BLV status in dams and calf health outcomes, 00:30:27.049 --> 00:30:29.930 specifically respiratory disease. But this is 00:30:29.930 --> 00:30:32.349 a classic case where we have to emphasize uncertainty. 00:30:32.630 --> 00:30:35.529 We need to avoid massive operational changes 00:30:35.529 --> 00:30:38.470 based on preliminary findings. So why the uncertainty? 00:30:38.890 --> 00:30:40.529 Because the mechanisms are completely unclear 00:30:40.529 --> 00:30:43.309 and the potential for confounding factors is 00:30:43.309 --> 00:30:46.910 enormous. Right. Is it that BLV -infected dams 00:30:46.910 --> 00:30:48.769 produce colostrum with compromised immunity? 00:30:49.009 --> 00:30:51.789 Is it a direct immune effect on the calf? Or 00:30:51.789 --> 00:30:53.849 is this just a marker for something else? That 00:30:53.849 --> 00:30:56.450 third point, the confounding management, is huge. 00:30:56.809 --> 00:31:00.609 USDA NHMS data shows 94 % of U .S. dairy herds 00:31:00.609 --> 00:31:03.900 have at least one BLV -positive cow. The average 00:31:03.900 --> 00:31:06.819 prevalence is 46%. So high prevalence herds might 00:31:06.819 --> 00:31:09.099 systematically have lower biosecurity practices 00:31:09.099 --> 00:31:11.680 overall, higher calf housing density, poorer 00:31:11.680 --> 00:31:13.940 ventilation. Factors that independently drive 00:31:13.940 --> 00:31:16.500 respiratory disease. We don't know if the BLV 00:31:16.500 --> 00:31:20.359 status is the root cause or just a flag for a 00:31:20.359 --> 00:31:22.660 riskier management environment. So let's focus 00:31:22.660 --> 00:31:24.819 on what we do know with confidence. Economic 00:31:24.819 --> 00:31:27.900 analyses already show that reducing BLV is financially 00:31:27.900 --> 00:31:31.099 sound, regardless of any calf link. Right. Every 00:31:31.099 --> 00:31:33.759 10 % increase in herd prevalence is associated 00:31:33.759 --> 00:31:38.099 with losses in the 430 to 540 pound rolling herd 00:31:38.099 --> 00:31:41.059 average range. Due to reduced longevity, increased 00:31:41.059 --> 00:31:44.380 culling, subtle production drops. The known reasons. 00:31:45.079 --> 00:31:48.039 Therefore, our bullvine position remains consistent. 00:31:48.339 --> 00:31:50.720 Don't overhaul your calf respiratory program 00:31:50.720 --> 00:31:53.529 solely based on this emerging link yet. Continue 00:31:53.529 --> 00:31:56.450 to pursue BLV reduction for the already validated 00:31:56.450 --> 00:31:58.849 financial reasons, production, cow longevity, 00:31:59.029 --> 00:32:01.130 overall immune health. Any calf health benefit 00:32:01.130 --> 00:32:03.630 you see down the line is a bonus, not the primary 00:32:03.630 --> 00:32:06.609 driver for a costly intervention today. Manage 00:32:06.609 --> 00:32:08.869 what you know and monitor the data on what you 00:32:08.869 --> 00:32:11.089 don't. Solid advice. Manage the cost drivers 00:32:11.089 --> 00:32:13.650 first. All right, so a farmer just finished milking. 00:32:13.730 --> 00:32:16.250 They've internalized this mountain of data and 00:32:16.250 --> 00:32:17.869 they're driving to the feed store right now. 00:32:18.509 --> 00:32:20.849 What are the three most actionable things they 00:32:20.849 --> 00:32:22.980 need to remember from this deep dive? The three 00:32:22.980 --> 00:32:26.440 steps that save them money immediately. First 00:32:26.440 --> 00:32:29.740 thing, right size your colostrum. Stop causing 00:32:29.740 --> 00:32:32.839 colic for no benefit. Okay, take away one. Immediate 00:32:32.839 --> 00:32:36.440 action this week. If you don't own a Bricks refractometer, 00:32:36.640 --> 00:32:39.980 buy one. Make it standard protocol, non -negotiable. 00:32:40.160 --> 00:32:42.779 Second, set a hard cap on that first feeding 00:32:42.779 --> 00:32:46.130 at 8 % of the calf's body weight. So 3 .2 liters 00:32:46.130 --> 00:32:48.970 maximum for a standard 40 kilo calf. Exactly. 00:32:49.009 --> 00:32:51.109 We're cutting out the colic, not the IgG delivery. 00:32:51.289 --> 00:32:53.529 And the medium term strategy, three to six months 00:32:53.529 --> 00:32:56.210 out. Implement a split feeding protocol for any 00:32:56.210 --> 00:32:59.069 total volume needs that exceed that 8 % maximum. 00:32:59.329 --> 00:33:01.950 Give the calf 8 % immediately, then the remainder 00:33:01.950 --> 00:33:04.690 six to 12 hours later. And make sure your calf 00:33:04.690 --> 00:33:06.789 crew is tracking comfort scores to ensure that 00:33:06.789 --> 00:33:09.849 visible distress is gone. Long term, one to two 00:33:09.849 --> 00:33:12.630 years. Start refining your dam selection for 00:33:12.630 --> 00:33:15.509 your colostrum bank based on consistently excellent 00:33:15.509 --> 00:33:18.410 Brix readings. You need to be prioritizing cows 00:33:18.410 --> 00:33:21.490 with superior IgG quality and aggressively banking 00:33:21.490 --> 00:33:23.849 that colostrum during peak seasons to cover those 00:33:23.849 --> 00:33:26.009 inevitable fall slumps. Takeaway number two, 00:33:26.410 --> 00:33:29.130 enforce genetic non -negotiables, especially 00:33:29.130 --> 00:33:30.930 when you're chasing that beef on dairy premium. 00:33:31.230 --> 00:33:33.910 The cow always comes first. Immediate action 00:33:33.910 --> 00:33:36.210 this week. Pull your current inventory of beef 00:33:36.210 --> 00:33:39.509 on dairy semen. Audit the calving ease EPDs. 00:33:39.769 --> 00:33:43.329 Right now, if any sires fall below a strict minimum 00:33:43.329 --> 00:33:46.089 CE threshold that you've set, pull them from 00:33:46.089 --> 00:33:47.650 the stack. I don't care what the calf premium 00:33:47.650 --> 00:33:50.529 is, you can't afford the dystocia costs. Medium 00:33:50.529 --> 00:33:52.410 term, three to six months. Start using those 00:33:52.410 --> 00:33:54.829 methane efficiency scores as a tiebreaker when 00:33:54.829 --> 00:33:57.109 selecting your new sires. Capitalize on that 00:33:57.109 --> 00:33:59.809 23 % heritability with zero production trade 00:33:59.809 --> 00:34:02.470 -off. And enforce the rule, limit beef breeding 00:34:02.470 --> 00:34:05.029 primarily to your mature cows. And long term, 00:34:05.170 --> 00:34:07.670 one to two years out. Systematically track your 00:34:07.670 --> 00:34:09.730 herd's dystocia rate for beef on dairy calves 00:34:09.730 --> 00:34:12.690 specifically. If that rate climbs even slightly 00:34:12.690 --> 00:34:15.030 above your baseline, you immediately adjust your 00:34:15.030 --> 00:34:17.570 CE selection threshold until that rate returns 00:34:17.570 --> 00:34:20.769 to normal. Profitability is defined by the health 00:34:20.769 --> 00:34:23.650 of the dam, not the size of the calf check. And 00:34:23.650 --> 00:34:26.750 takeaway number three, stop paying for data you 00:34:26.750 --> 00:34:30.869 don't use. Yes. Leverage your existing DHI investment. 00:34:31.329 --> 00:34:33.960 Immediate action this week. Locate your last 00:34:33.960 --> 00:34:37.280 few DHI reports. Call your DHI processor and 00:34:37.280 --> 00:34:40.159 specifically request the detailed fatty acid 00:34:40.159 --> 00:34:43.579 profile, focusing on the de novo fatty acid percentages. 00:34:43.940 --> 00:34:46.260 Start using it as a baseline indicator for early 00:34:46.260 --> 00:34:49.440 rumen health monitoring. Watch for signs of acidosis 00:34:49.440 --> 00:34:51.760 in your transition cows. It's a free window into 00:34:51.760 --> 00:34:54.210 your herd's health. Medium term, three to six 00:34:54.210 --> 00:34:57.030 months. If you are evaluating new lameness monitoring 00:34:57.030 --> 00:34:59.409 tech, use our research evaluation checklist. 00:34:59.849 --> 00:35:03.030 Ask vendors specifically about that 23 -day detection 00:35:03.030 --> 00:35:05.489 window. Make sure the system measures the quality 00:35:05.489 --> 00:35:07.690 of gait, not just the quantity of steps. You've 00:35:07.690 --> 00:35:09.349 got to guarantee you're preventing that type 00:35:09.349 --> 00:35:12.130 3 collagen damage. And long term, one to two 00:35:12.130 --> 00:35:15.170 years. Integrate that de novo fatty acid profile 00:35:15.170 --> 00:35:18.110 into your nutritional and genetic strategy. Use 00:35:18.110 --> 00:35:20.769 that data to subtly select for lower methane, 00:35:20.829 --> 00:35:23.690 more efficient rumens over time. It's an environmental 00:35:23.690 --> 00:35:26.190 and efficiency benefit delivered via your existing 00:35:26.190 --> 00:35:28.829 DHI infrastructure without spending a single 00:35:28.829 --> 00:35:31.429 dollar on questionable feed additives. This has 00:35:31.429 --> 00:35:33.630 been another Bullvine podcast from The Bullvine 00:35:33.630 --> 00:35:35.949 Podcast. For more straight -talking industry 00:35:35.949 --> 00:35:38.630 analysis, including those crucial skeptical questions 00:35:38.630 --> 00:35:42.369 for feed vendors, head to www .thebullvinepodcast 00:35:42.369 --> 00:35:44.929 .com. vine .com subscribe wherever you get podcasts 00:35:44.929 --> 00:35:47.389 we're out with new episodes every day and upcoming 00:35:47.389 --> 00:35:49.590 topics we'll be analyzing the true cost of parlor 00:35:49.590 --> 00:35:51.809 automation labor dynamics and the shifting consumer 00:35:51.809 --> 00:35:54.489 demand for a2 milk proteins we'll see you next 00:35:54.489 --> 00:35:54.710 time