Minnesota DHIA News

A PUBLICATION OF MINNESOTA DHIA                                                   Volume 7, Issue  12                                                             December 2007

US Animal Health Association pushes acceptance of DHIA’s Milk ELISA Johne’s Test Reno Nevada – October 21, 2007

USAHA at its Annual Meeting approved a pair of resolutions calling on USDA to incorporate the DHIA Milk ELISA Johne’s test in its Voluntary Bovine Johne’s Disease Control Program.  The group of scientists noted that the milk test is “comparable in accuracy to the currently available serum ELISA kits” and that approval “would allow dairy producers to access additional testing options.” 

The resolution goes on to the Board of Directors and then to USDA for implementation. 

Minnesota DHIA offers the Milk ELISA Johne’s test to all customers (and to non-customers).  The cost of the test is $5 per cow, and information is generally returned to the farm in under a week.  You select the cows or criteria for the test.   Results are available in paper or electronic format and can be sent to your Vet.  We encourage all herds considering Johne’s testing to consult with your Vet.  We test for Johne’s using the same DHIA sample collected for butterfat analysis.  The test is conducted on that sample after components and SCC are run. 

Over 14,000 cows have been tested at the Sauk Centre and Zumbrota labs, with just over 4% showing up positive.  Your December test might be a good time consider the Johne’s test on your herd, as we approach the new year and 2007 tax season!

The United States Animal Health Association (USAHA), the nation's animal health forum for over a century, is a science-based, non-profit, voluntary organization. Its 1,400 members are state and federal animal health officials, national allied organizations, regional representatives, and individual members. USAHA works with state and federal governments, universities, veterinarians, livestock producers, national livestock and poultry organizations, research scientists, the extension service and seven foreign countries to control livestock diseases in the United States. USAHA represents all 50 states, 7 foreign countries and 18 allied groups serving health, technical and consumer markets.

Popular Tag Option

Looking for an alterative to the MN DHIA silver metal tags? Here is an inexpensive alternative with higher retention rate and less risk of infection.

Destron Fearing Small Round Button Tag

                                                          Colors Available: Pink, Orange, Yellow, White,                             Purple, Red, Blue, Green

          American ID number printed on front

Price: $0.59 each tag

Set of 25: $14.63

Additional Options:          AIN number printed on back   ($0.14 extra each tag)

In order to be published in the year-end Annual Summary for Minnesota DHIA, herds must have 11 tests in calendar year 2007, and must have selected the publicity option.  To check, look at the lower left corner of your herd summary report.  It will say either “Publication” or “No Record Publication”.  To change your option, talk to your Field Rep on sample day.  There are no requirements on the annual percentage of milk sold, except that you must report milk sold so a percentage shows up.

Valid ID Needed

One of the differences between ATA and DRMS is in their EDITS. DRMS has in place EDITS that look for valid Tag or Registration numbers. If the data that we enter isn’t valid, it stops the herd in EDIT and needs to be fixed.  MNDHIA is now doing the edits for our members and since we have access to our DC/Ftech cowfiles, we can sometimes verify or correct information that DRMS wouldn’t have.

For those animals where we can’t find correct information, we will be sending notes to your Field Rep to correct on the next test day.  It if very important to get this information corrected in order to quickly and accurately process your records.

For on-farm software users, please correct tag or registration numbers as requested. It is very important to enter the first tag in a series correctly. We have seen examples of having an extra 0 in a number on the first of a series and all the animals that follow have that extra 0 as well. This creates a domino affect very quickly and the result is unusable ID and records on many cows.

Fast Holiday access to DHIA information

If you have internet access, you can access your reports within seconds of processing being completed.  This will be a nice feature (and its free right now) for weekends and holidays.  You will get a message at logon that says there will be a $2 charge.  That will be covered by MN DHIA, so there will be no charge to you.  This access will save you time and if you choose to access data here instead of by mail, it will save costs to MN DHIA. 

1. Logon to www.DRMS.org

2. Click on LOGIN

3. Enter Herd code and RAC (4 digit Release Code).   Please call 800.827.3442 if you need your RAC.

4. First time only: Sign up for Web Reports

5. Click here to display WebReport (Green bar)

6. View this month’s reports as well as past months (only for months you have processed here)

7. You can download the reports to your computer if you wish to look at them any time during the month.  They will be saved under sample date so next month you will still be able to look at this month’s reports.

If your Field Rep has entered your email address into their computer, you will receive an email telling you when your herd has processed, and providing a link to the logon page on the DRMS website. 

Our goal is to optionally attach reports to an email again after some other projects are completed.  Until the new options screens are programmed, you will continue to receive the paper reports.  To prevent this, have your Field Rep send us a memo with your herd on sample day.

If you would like help getting this set up on your computer, please ask your Field Rep on sample day or call Robyn at 800.827.3442, extension 19.

The Calendar Report and New Lactation Reports are now available.  Please order these from your Field Rep on sample day.

“Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of mind. To cherish peace and goodwill, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas.”--Calvin Coolidge

November Quality Leaders (Records Processed in November)

	SCC	Cows	LgScc		SCC	Cows	LgSCC
DAN AND JOLENE SCHLANGEN	35	68	1.2	JOHN ROBERS	87	20	1.9
MARK KLEHR	42	52	1.4	WINTER VIEW HOLSTEIN'S	87	38	2
LYNN WAEGE	50	45	1.6	LESTER AND GARY RYDEEN	87	51	2.4
JEFF MILLER	52	57	1.3	RAYMOND JONES	88	61	2
LARRY AND DIANNA BRAEM	54	41	1.5	PAUL NIES	89	36	1.9
DAVID SCHUUR	56	56	1.8	OAT HILL DAIRY	89	84	2
DANIEL HALLBERG	57	65	1.3	JOHN+MARY RADEMACHER	90	130	1.9
SCHEFERS BROS	58	80	1.4	SCOTT & JACOLYN RICKEMAN	91	70	1.9
BOB AND BARB PETIT	59	60	1.6	MIKE + DENISE WHITE	92	61	1.8
HAPPKE HOLSTEIN FARM	60	67	1.5	ROBERT + FAWN STAUB	92	30	2.2
KIMM'S DAIRY	61	88	1.7	JEFF BLENKER	92	46	2.2
REWITZER+SONS	62	37	2.1	PHILIP & SHEREEN HAUGE	94	45	1.8
KEVIN & CHERYL KRUIZENGA	64	58	1.3	AB ACRES	94	41	1.9
MAYNARD SCHUMACHER	65	49	1.9	KEVIN & SHEILA THARALDSON	95	57	1.8
HIESERICH FARM	67	88	1.6	LUX-URY HOLSTEINS INC.	95	122	1.8
DARAN AND CHRISTY BORTH	68	70	1.7	KEVIN ANDERSON	95	40	2.1
CRONK DAIRY	68	38	1.8	TOM FUECHTMANN	96	100	1.6
PAUL+ANN%NIBBE	70	37	1.9	VALLEY GEM FARMS INC.	97	71	1.5
MIKE + ROSIE ZEIG	70	32	2.2	GLEN SCHROEDER + SON	97	143	2.3
MARK TITERA	71	25	1.6	BOB & TERRI KETCHUM	98	118	1.8
GERALD+LISA BURG	71	42	1.9	BRUCE BURMEISTER	98	41	2.3
BRUCE AND JODI HEIM	72	148	1.7	BRUCE RUNDHAUG	100	60	1.8
FRANK PATRICK	72	59	1.8	ELDON MALWITZ	100	42	1.9
GARY P LIESER	72	55	1.9	DAVID & CAROL BOLLMAN	100	70	1.9
DEAN RAUSCH	72	62	2.1	JOPPS CENTURY FARMS	100	100	2.1
RONALD + ANN BORASH	73	61	1.7	BECHTOLD BROS	100	120	2.1
JAMES AND PAUL GREGORY	74	90	1.5	SCHREIBER BROS	100	87
JIM KULINSKI	74	50	1.6	DENNIS+SANDY REED	101	51	2
TIM & SUE HOESE	74	43	1.8	TROSEN DAIRY	101	234	2.1
GREGORY P. ZILKA	75	32	1.5	BARGMANN FARMS INC	101	50	2.2
DONALD + DARLENE MATROS	75	77	1.6	LARSON BROS. DAIRY	101	78	2.4
D & J  DAIRY	75	103	1.9	JEREMY E BEYER	103	40	1.7
MOGER FARMS	76	89	1.5	DEAN FRISLE	103	67	1.8
DAVID SMITH	76	30	1.7	STEVE MARTIN	103	52	2
WAYNE AND WADE ATHEY	78	50	2.2	PETERM&LYNN HENDRICKSON	103	70	2.3
ROGER BRADLEY	79	38	2	ROLLING SPUR CATTLE CO.	104	1269	2.1
LYLE AND WANDA HONEBRINK	80	89	1.9	JIM MIREAU	104	21	2.7
MIKE KUGATH	81	48	2	ZUMBRO VIEW FARMS LLC	105	49	2.4
JAMES C PFEIFER	81	57	2	MATT BERKTOLD	106	173	1.8
STACY & JULIE MILLER	82	79	2	STANLEY MARTIN	106	33	1.9
MARVIN RADEMACHER	82	59	2.1	TERRY KOLSTAD	106	26	2
BOB L LIESER	82	59	2.1	ALICIA THURK	106	34	2.1
JASON + NANCY BACHMANN	84	35	1.8	JEFF PALUBICKI	106	44	2.4
CLYDE R JOHNSON	84	40	2.3	SHIR-MAN HOLSTEIN FARM	106	106	2.4
TODD & KATHY JOHNSTON	85	61	1.8	L & D DAIRY	107	328	1.9
SELKE FARMS	85	173	1.9	DEVOINE KRUSE	107	138	2.1
RKB DAIRY	85	88	2	LARRY AND SHARON WISTE	107	32	2.2
SCHUFT DAIRY	85	46	2.1	GEHL ACRES	108	72	1.8
JOE GOSS	86	50	2.3	METOGGA LAKES DAIRY LLC	108	295	1.9
RONALD AND SUSAN JOHNSON	87	61	1.8	WALLY W WIESE	108	29	2.6
JERON NATHE	87	232	1.8

Use That Computer for Dairy Management!

Shuffling through notebooks and papers to find out when Suzy was bred or when Martha is due? Can’t seem to remember if cow 368 had ketosis or a DA last year? Keep track of all of your health events with on farm software from Minnesota DHIA. Both Dairy Comp and Scout provide:

• Traditional Event Tracking: Calvings, Breedings, Dry, Sold, etc
• Generate work lists such as: Cows to Breed, Cows to Dry Off, Cows Due, Vet lists, and Vaccination lists
• Set up Synchronization programs
• Look at current and previous lactation individual cow records with health events, test information, production graphs, and more.
• Information available for consultants upon herd owner requests
• Summaries and graphs can be generated to identify areas where gains can be made in reproduction, production, and disease incidence
• Your program backup provides your DHIA Field Representative with complete and up to date herd information on test day.

Which one is for you?

Scout – Ideal for herds under 250 cows.  Very affordable for the smaller scale producer.

Dwane Martin and his sons Dorvin, Neil and Russell milk about 240 cows near Sauk Centre and started using Scout in September of this year. We customized the “Open Cow” report so it can be used with their Presynch/Ovsynch program, and setup the Vet Report the way they wanted. According to Dorvin these reports have been very helpful in managing the dairy. And he really appreciates being able to access everything he needs to know about a cow by clicking on her cowcard in Scout.

Dairy Comp 305 – Ideal for herds 250 cows and greater. Dairy Comp offers more flexibility to customize the program to meet your herd management needs. Some additional features of Dairy Comp are:

• Interfacing with Daily milk meters and other software.
• Daily task scheduler can be set to automatically print reports when needed.
• Comes with many standard Events and Items, and allows creation of Events and Items specific to the herd owners needs.
• More extensive options to monitor herd performance on parameters such as production, SCC, inventory, reproduction and herd health.
• Manage hospital cows – treatment protocols, treatment status, milk and beef withhold dates.
• Setup other reports such as customized Vaccination or Foot Trim lists.

Ryan Stone dairy farms with his parents Bruce and Arleen on their 400 cow dairy near Henning, and Dairy Comp has been an important management tool for them for 7 years. The Stones record health Events such as DA’s, and Milk Fevers and like the ability to go into cowcards to see exactly what has happened for each animal. They import Service Sire matings from an electronic file into Dairy Comp and have those matings on the “Cows To Breed” report. The Dairy Comp Scheduled tasks automatically prints some of the reports they use, so they can just come into the office, grab the report, and go.

For more information on pricing and deciding which program is for you, call Minnesota DHIA at 1.800.827.3442.

“Every time we love, every time we give, it's Christmas.”--Dale Evans