The Milk Producer - March 2012 - (Page 43)

three million range,” he recalls. When he arrives at a customer’s The upshot was selling 25 infected farm, he appreciates seeing clean cows. “We had a lot of cows, so that cows. “It really makes milking easier. didn’t really hurt us,” Martin says. You don’t have to spend as much He also sold off the farm’s beef time cleaning them before milking,” herd. This step, and selling off the he says. infected dairy cows, relieved overcrowding in the barn, he says. Martin then implemented routine dry cow treatments for all cows. As well, he started using the California Mastitis Test regularly. Results were almost instant as the bulk tank SCC started to decline rapidly. He swears by the CMT routine. As soon as one of his animals calved, he tested her. If one of her quarters gelled, he treated the quarter automatically. He also kept meticulous treatment records, and paid close attention to monthly bulk tank results. If his SCC rose to 200,000 from 150,000, for example, he would check the fresh cows whose milk was going into the tank, he explains. A smaller herd can easily adopt Any farm can reduce a high SCC and produce better quality milk, Martin says. this routine, he says. Even a large herd can use the CMT to check fresh cows if the SCC spikes upwards. Dirty cows suggest the herd owner By checking his records, Martin is failing to pay attention to details, knew when mastitis flared up several Martin says. “Dirty anything in gentimes in a particular cow. Then he eral is not good.” would have her cultured so he would This is especially true for udders. know what he was dealing with. On farms that shave or singe udders, Other steps he implemented were manure or sawdust can’t stick to ensuring teats were thoroughly hair and affect milk quality or udder washed and dried before milking. He health. also started wearing milking gloves. On well-managed operations, he “The main thing is to keep your tends to see teats washed and then cows clean and dry,” Martin says. “If dried with individual towels. Alcohol you keep them clean and dry, the rest wipes work well, too. They clean and usually takes care of itself.” disinfect, and the teats dry quickly, he In 2005, Martin’s career as a dairy notes. farmer came to an abrupt end when He also finds attention to detail the barn burned down. He decided adds up. For instance, a tiestall opagainst the huge investment rebuilderation might have one person looking would require and tried his hand ing after too many milking units. Afat various jobs for the next few years. ter the automatic take-offs kick in, Then he came up with the idea for some cows could be standing around his relief milking business. “I’m not too long before post-dipping, Martin really a dairy farmer or a full-time says. He would rather see a milking herdsman. So I decided to call myself unit put on the shelf and each cow the Relief Herdsman,” he says. given the proper individual attention. Also, he says, a properly functioning plate cooler helps ensure highquality milk. Over time, it can start losing efficiency and should be serviced regularly. Overcrowding can cause numerous problems, he says. Air movement in the barn can be poor, cows are more prone to getting dirty and smaller animals may not get enough to eat. While he advocates using the CMT, he notes many dairy farmers have individual cow SCC testing done through CanWest DHI. These records can be valuable, yet some farmers never bother to look at them. On farms that could brush up on their management routines, Martin suggests the owners have simply acquired habits that need to be changed. They may not be aware of how adopting new habits can quickly improve the quality of milk they produce. He is seriously considering expanding his business by offering to work with dairy farmers who want to improve their milk quality. This could become a much more serious issue when the SCC penalty level drops to 400,000 on Aug. 1 from the current 500,000. Udder health specialists routinely advise setting your target SCCs well below a penalty threshold. As Martin says, this gives you “wiggle room” in case of an upward spike, and time to find and resolve the cause of it. “It also means you’re making more money,” he adds. He has prepared an extensive checklist of more than 200 details that go into making high-quality, low-SCC milk. It covers key items such as premilking, milking and post-milking routines, equipment maintenance and a host of other management factors. By following this advice, Martin suggests, a farmer could qualify for a certificate within three years from the Dairy Farmers of Ontario Raw Milk Quality Recognition Program. “It’s fairly easy to manage once you implement the right protocols,” he says. MilkPRODUCER | March 2012 | 43

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Milk Producer - March 2012

The Milk Producer - March 2012
Contents
Editor’s Notes
DFO Chair’s Message
Dairy Update
DFC Promotion
Farm Finance
Policy Update
Cover Story
Research
Applied Science
Ruminations
Udder Health
Markets
New'N'Noted
Back Forty

The Milk Producer - March 2012