Real Science Exchange
Balchem Real Science Exchange isn’t just any old boring podcast. You’ll get to know top researchers like you’ve never known them before. Go behind the scenes and hear the conversations that take place over a few drinks with friends. Join us as we discuss the hot topics in animal science and share a range of new ideas.
The Shift to Feed Efficiency-Based Herd Management: Driving Profitability with Advanced Data with Dr. Veronica Shabtai, Afimilk; Emily Starceski, ADK Dairy; Shane St. Cyr, ADK Dairy; Walt Cooley, Progressive Dairy Publishing
This episode was recorded in Reno, Nevada for the 2025 Western Dairy Management Conference.
Dr. Shabtai gives an overview of her presentation. Afimilk has a new technology that includes a feed efficiency sensor to determine eating, rumination, heat stress monitoring and more. The Feed Efficiency Service combined with the AfiCollar can estimate dry matter intake, which, when combined with Afimilk’s milk meter data, yields an efficiency value of milk income over feed cost for each cow. She details how the algorithm works to predict intake and some of the challenges faced during the development of this technology. The...
Mining the Liquid Gold: Strategies to Supercharge Colostrum Production with Dr. Sabine Mann, Cornell University; Dr. Don Niles, Dairy Dreams LLC; Joey Airosa, Airosa Dairy Farms; Dr. Will Mustas, Progressive Dairy Solutions
This episode was recorded at the 2025 Western Dairy Management Conference in Reno, Nevada.
Dr. Sabine Mann, Cornell University; Dr. Will Mustas, Progressive Dairy Solutions; Dr. Don Niles, Dairy Dreams LLC; and Joey Airosa, Airosa Dairy Farms, introduce themselves. (0:48)
Dr. Mann outlines the high points of her presentation. Giving an adequate amount of high-quality colostrum quickly after birth is essential to equip the calf with the best chances to stay healthy. Colostrum is more than a solution of water and immunoglobulins, and we are continuing to learn more about other nutrients and growth factors that colostrum c...
Domestic Investments in Dairy: The Future is Bright (Tariffs) with Gregg Doud, National Milk Producers Federation; Corey Geiger, CoBank; Dan Siemers, Siemers Holsteins
This episode was recorded at the 2025 Western Dairy Management Conference in Reno, Nevada.
Gregg Doud, National Milk Producers Federation, begins with an overview of his talk regarding recent and ongoing investments in the dairy industry. Dan Siemers, Siemers Holsteins, notes they were able to build a new dairy and find a new milk market because Agropur built a new plant in their area. Corey Geiger, CoBank, describes that the US is approaching $9 billion of new investment in dairy plants coming online through 2027, over half of that in cheese. High-quality whey protein isolates are in equal demand as c...
New Tools to Assess and Optimize Forage Quality and Diet Formulation with Dr. John Goeser, Rock River Laboratory, Inc.; Dr. Bob Kozlowski, PAS, Dairy NExT, LLC; Dr. Tom Overton, Cornell University
This episode was recorded at the 2025 Florida Ruminant Nutrition Symposium. Panelists Dr. John Goeser or Rock River Laboratory, Inc.; Dr. Bob Kozlowski, PAS of Dairy NExT, LLC and Dr. Tom Overton of Cornell University introduce themselves and give an overview of their backgrounds. (0:10)
Dr. Goeser begins with three different ways to define forage quality: energetic potential, particle size as an interaction factor, and anti-nutritional components. He asks Dr. Kozlowski if these are the hot topics for his consulting clients. (6:53)
When evaluating the energy potential in feed, Dr. Goeser states there’s nothing new as far as...
Nutrient Requirements of Pre-Weaning Calves with Dr. Jim Drackley, Professor Emeritus, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign; Dr. Rick Lundquist, Nutrition Professionals Inc.; Dr. Tom Overton, Cornell University
Dr. Drackley begins with an overview of his presentation at the 2025 Florida Ruminant Nutrition Symposium, focusing on the NASEM requirements for pre-weaned calves. He mentions some differences in energy and protein requirement calculations compared to the NRC system, as well as increased vitamin E recommendations and a more biologically based factorial approach to calculating mineral requirements. (5:59)
Dr. Overton notes that milk replacements can be formulated differently to account for changes in mineral or vitamin requirements. In herds that feed whole milk, is there any reason to think about supplementing those calves? Dr. Drackley suggests that Mother Nature...
Feeding Rumen-Protected Choline During the Peri-Conceptional Period Programs Postnatal Phenotype of Calves with Dr. Masroor Sagheer, University of Florida and Dr. Pete Hansen, University of Florida
Dr. Hansen’s lab conducted several in vitro experiments where choline chloride was supplemented to beef embryo culture media for the first seven days of embryonic development. Calves resulting from the choline-supplemented embryos were consistently 17-20 kilograms heavier at weaning. In the feeding experiment presented at the Florida Ruminant Nutrition Symposium, Dr. Sagheer fed rumen-protected choline to beef cows one day before AI through seven days post-AI, spanning ovulation, fertilization, and the first seven days of embryo development. In contrast to the in vitro studies, calves born to cows supplemented with choline during the peri-conception period were lighter at weaning th...
Beef on Dairy Cattle - Economic Decision Making on the Farm with Dr. Corwin Nelson, University of Florida; Dr. Tara Felix, Penn State University; Dr. Brad Johnson, Texas Tech University
This episode was recorded at the 2025 Florida Ruminant Nutrition Symposium.
Dr. DeVries’ research focuses on farm-level decisions and modeling. The University of Florida dairy has implemented the use of beef semen. Dr. DeVries describes some of the factors that go into a partial budget for this system as well as details some of the factors involved in implementing beef on dairy. The UF dairy genomically tests all their cows and the panel discusses some differences in beef and dairy selection based on genomics. (5:58)
Dr. Felix asks how the beef sires are selected for the UF dai...
Beef on Dairy Cattle - Advancing Beef Quality to the Next Level with Dr. Brad Johnson, Texas Tech University; Dr. Tara Felix, Penn State University
This episode was recorded at the 2025 Florida Ruminant Nutrition Symposium. Dr. Johnson and Dr. Felix begin with brief descriptions of their background. (1:26)
Dr. Johnson’s presentation at the symposium focuses on beef quality aspects of using beef sires on dairy cows. Using the same Angus semen, his research model compared Angus-sired beef calves raised in a conventional cow-calf system, Angus x Holstein calves, Angus x Jersey calves, and Angus-sired IVF beef embryos transplanted into Holstein and Jersey cows. The model evaluated how the management impacted feedlot performance and carcass quality. (6:37)
Dairy-influenced beef is tender and hi...
How Beef on Dairy Selection Impacts Beef and Dairy Production with Dr. Tara Felix, Penn State University; Dr. Brad Johnson, Texas Tech University
This episode was recorded at the 2025 Florida Ruminant Nutrition Symposium. Dr. Felix and Dr. Johnson begin with brief descriptions of their background and interest in beef on dairy research. (3:15)
Dr. Felix’s first study in this area compared dairy calves with beef on dairy calves of unknown origin. They were placed in the feedlot and fed and implanted the same. Beef on dairy calves grew faster, but they ate more, so there was no difference in feed efficiency. They also had larger ribeye areas and slightly heavier carcass weights. In subsequent studies, calf growers indicated that beef on...
Feeding Rumen-Protected Choline During the Peri-Conceptional Period Programs Postnatal Phenotype of Calves with Dr. Masroor Sagheer, University of Florida and Dr. Pete Hansen, University of Florida
Dr. Hansen’s lab conducted several in vitro experiments where choline chloride was supplemented to beef embryo culture media for the first seven days of embryonic development. Calves resulting from the choline-supplemented embryos were consistently 17-20 kilograms heavier at weaning. In the feeding experiment presented at the Florida Ruminant Nutrition Symposium, Dr. Sagheer fed rumen-protected choline to beef cows one day before AI through seven days post-AI, spanning ovulation, fertilization, and the first seven days of embryo development. In contrast to the in vitro studies, calves born to cows supplemented with choline during the peri-conception period were lighter at weaning th...
The Benefits of Mitigating Heat Stress in Dairy Cattle with Dr. Lance Baumgard, Iowa State University
This Real Science Exchange podcast episode was recorded during a webinar from Balchem’s Real Science Lecture Series. You can find it at balchem.com/realscience.
Dr. Baumgard begins with an overview of the structure and function of the gastrointestinal tract. More than 75% of an animal’s immune system resides in the gut. The focus of this webinar is how heat stress initiates leaky gut, how that leaky gut then influences the immune and hormonal systems, and ultimately, how that reduces productivity. (0:22)
Dr. Baumgard compares the metabolism of a cow 200 days in milk to a cow...
Potential for low-forage diets to maintain milk production in forage-limited situations with Dr. Adam Lock, Michigan State University; Dr. Bill Weiss, Professor Emeritus, The Ohio State University
In times of limited forage, dairy producers may need to feed diets lower in forage than is typical but would like to maintain milk production. In this study, two diets similar in neutral detergent fiber (NDF), starch, and crude protein with different amounts of forage were fed to 32 mid-lactation Holstein cows in a crossover design. The control diet (CON) contained high forage (55.5% of diet dry matter) with no supplemental fatty acids or amino acids. The low-forage diet (LF) contained 36.6% forage along with supplemental fat and rumen-protected methionine and lysine. As forage was removed from the LF diet, it was...
Transitioning to Success: The Intersection Between Nutrition, Health and Reproduction with Dr. Jose Santos, University of Florida
This Real Science Exchange podcast episode was recorded during a webinar from Balchem’s Real Science Lecture Series. You can find it at balchem.com/realscience.
Dr. Santos begins with a timeline of events that occur during the cow’s transition from the dry period to her exit from the fresh pen. He suggests that cows should be dried off at around 230 days of gestation, then moved to a closeup group at 250-255 days gestation which is around three to three-and-a-half weeks before calving. Dr. Santos recommends keeping multiparous cows separate from primiparous cows and feedi...
Legacy Series: Honoring Dr. Jim Drackley of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
In this episode, we honor and celebrate the remarkable career and contributions of Dr. Jim Drackley from the University of Illinois, a pioneer in dairy science and animal nutrition. Jim’s work has reshaped our understanding of dairy cow health, metabolism and nutrition. Dr. Cardoso, Dr. Overton, and co-host Dr. Jeff Elliott are former coworkers or graduate students of Dr. Drackley’s. (0:11)
Dr. Drackley begins by telling the audience about his background and how he became a dairy scientist. He talks about several of his mentors during his schooling. (9:20)
Speaking of mentors, Scott asks Dr. Elli...
Three Strategies To Implement Today That Increase Milk Protein & Producer Profits with Dr. Mike Van Amburgh, Cornell University
This Real Science Exchange podcast episode was recorded during a webinar from Balchem’s Real Science Lecture Series. You can find it at balchem.com/realscience.
How can we increase milk protein and capture that income opportunity? Dr. Van Amburgh describes the seasonal drop in milk protein observed in the summer months. Heat stress may play a role in altering insulin sensitivity and how the cow partitions nutrients. What can we do to avoid that seasonal decline in milk protein? (0:01)
Simple things like cooling, fans, and sprinklers can reduce heat stress and increase cow comfort. Dr...
Milk production responses of dairy cows to fatty acid supplements with different ratios of palmitic and oleic acids in low- and high-fat basal diets with Dr. Adam Lock, Michigan State University; Dr. Bill Weiss, Professor Emeritus, Ohio State University
In this study, two basal diets were fed, one low-fat and one high-fat. The low-fat diet contained cottonseed meal and cottonseed hulls and the high-fat diet contained whole cottonseed. This balanced fiber and protein to try and make the difference between the basal diets and just the fatty acids. Basal diets were supplemented with two different fat supplements that had different ratios of palmitic and oleic acids. The applied question at hand was “Does fat need to be supplemented to a high-fat basal diet?” (5:32)
The low-fat diet contained 1.93% fatty acids and the high-fat diet contained 3.15% fatty acids. Fatt...
Methyl Donor Nutrition in the Transition Dairy Cow with Dr. Joe McFadden, Cornell University
This Real Science Exchange podcast episode was recorded during a webinar from Balchem’s Real Science Lecture Series. You can find it at balchem.com/realscience.
Feeding rumen-protected choline in early lactation has consistently increased milk yield and energy-corrected milk yield, which is more pronounced when cows are fed diets low in metabolizable methionine. Choline feeding also increases milk fat and protein yield, minimizes body condition loss in early lactation, and reduces postpartum disease incidence. Dr. McFadden presents three topics about choline biology in the dairy cow. (01:45)
Why should we consider fatty acid feeding when feeding me...Dr. Laura Hernandez and Dr. Tom Overton: The role of the mammary gland in calcium metabolism
Dr. Hernandez recently presented a Real Science Lecture series webinar on this topic. You can find the link at balchem.com/realscience.
Dr. Hernandez begins with an overview of how she came to study calcium metabolism in the mammary gland. Over the past number of years, she has worked on research to manipulate what’s happening in the mammary gland in the prepartum period to ensure adequate endocrine, nutritional, reproductive, and immunological status. (5:55)
The panelists discuss how “normal” has changed when it comes to transition cow health. Dr. Overton reminds listeners that 25 years ago, 6-8% of fre...
Assessing Mineral Availability and Real-World Implications with Dr. Bill Weiss, Professor Emeritus, The Ohio State University
Please note the recording was before the new NASEM model was released. However, there is still a lot of good information from Dr. Weiss beyond those recommendations. This Real Science Exchange podcast episode was recorded during a webinar from Balchem’s Real Science Lecture Series. You can find it at balchem.com/realscience.
Most ration formulation software uses the 2001 NRC mineral equations. The basic concept of the 2001 NRC mineral requirements is to feed enough absorbable minerals to maintain adequate labile body stores and fluid concentrations. Minerals are lost each day via excretion in feces and urine, milk pr...
Understanding Dairy Cow Behavior to Optimize Nutritional Management with Dr. Trevor DeVries, University of Guelph
This Real Science Exchange podcast episode was recorded during a webinar from Balchem’s Real Science Lecture Series. You can find it at balchem.com/realscience.
Feeding behavior of dairy cows is inherently tied to their dry matter intake (DMI) which is tied to milk production. If we want to change a cow’s DMI, it must be mediated by changing her feeding behavior. (00:23)
In a multi-variable analysis, Dr. DeVries found that DMI was most associated with feeding time and meal frequency. It’s important to allow the cow to maximize the amount of time she ca...
Perspective and Commentary: Variation in nutrient composition of feeds and diets and how it can affect formulation of dairy cow diets with St-Pierre & Weiss
Dr. Weiss and Dr. St-Pierre co-authored this episode’s journal club paper in Applied Animal Science (ARPAS Journal). Bill and Normand share a career-long interest in how feedstuffs and diet variation impact cows. (6:31)
Bill and Normand discuss sources of variation, which they divide into true variation and observer variation. True variation means the feed has changed: a different field, change during storage, etc. Observer variation includes sampling variation and analytical variation. Some feeds may exhibit a lot of true variation and others may exhibit a lot of observer variation. And some feeds are high in both types of...
The Dual Essentiality of Choline and Methionine with Dr. Heather White, University of Wisconsin-Madison
This Real Science Exchange episode was recorded during a webinar, which was part of a series. Watch all the presentations from this series here: https://balchem.com/animal-nutrition-health/resources-categories/real-science-lecture-series/previous-lectures/page/10/
Early in lactation, the cow is incapable of eating enough to meet her dramatically increased requirements. As the cow’s intake decreases near calving, there are fewer nutrient contributions from dry matter intake and she must alter nutrient partitioning to meet her increased needs by mobilizing fat and muscle stores. (1:18)
Triglycerides from fat stores are broken down into non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA) and gl...
ADSA Industry of Interest Research, Part Two
In part two of a two-part series, the Balchem technical team selected industry research of interest from the 2024 American Dairy Science Association meetings to feature on this episode of the Real Science Exchange.
Smart Cows, Smart Farms: Unleashing the Potential of Artificial Intelligence in the Dairy Sector
Guest: Dr. Jeffrey Bewley, Holstein Association USA (1:58)
Dr. Bewley is the Dairy Analytics and Innovation Scientist at Holstein Association USA, where part of his role is collaborating with Western Kentucky University at the WKU Smart Holstein Lab. The group works with more than 30 technologies, including wearable, ca...
Who Let The Dogma Out Of Transition Cow Management? Dr. Lance Baumgard, Iowa State University
Nutritionists are often blamed for transition cow problems like high NEFAs, clinical and subclinical ketosis, and subclinical hypocalcemia. Dr. Baumgard suggests these symptoms are a result of one of two situations: 1. These are highly productive, healthy, and profitable cows; or 2. The symptoms are the metabolic reflection of immune activation, likely stemming from metritis, mastitis, pneumonia, or GI tract inflammation. In the first scenario, the nutritionist deserves a raise; in the second, these are mostly management issues not caused by nutrition. (1:26)
If listeners are interested in more detail on this topic, Dr. Baumgard suggests reading this 2021 review in t...
ADSA University Research of Interest
The Balchem technical team selected abstracts of interest from the 2024 American Dairy Science Association meetings to feature on this episode of the Real Science Exchange.
Whole Cottonseed and Fatty Acid Supplementation Affect Production Responses During the Immediate Postpartum in Multiparous Dairy Cows
Guests: Jair Parales-Giron and Dr. Adam Lock, Michigan State University (0:58)
The experiment had four treatment groups: no fat supplement, 10% of the diet from whole cottonseed, a 60:30 mix of calcium salts of palmitic and oleic acid at 1.5% of the diet dry matter, and a combination of both whole cottonseed and fatty acid s...
Keep Them Breathing Easy - Diagnosing Calf Respiratory Problems With Ultrasound; Dr. Terri Ollivett, UW-Madison
This Real Science Exchange podcast episode was recorded during a webinar from Balchem’s Real Science Lecture Series.
Shakespeare wrote, “The eyes are the windows of the soul.” Dr. Ollivett believes the lungs are the window to calf health management. The lungs are an indicator organ: respiratory disease is a symptom of management failure. Failure of passive transfer, diarrhea, septicemia, poor nutrition, a dirty environment, and heat or cold stress can all negatively impact the lungs. Often, this can manifest as subclinical pneumonia, where the lungs are abnormal but the calf externally appears completely normal. (3:51)
Dr. Oll...
Epidemiology - Understanding Dairy Studies with Dr. Daryl Nydam, Cornell University; Dr. Stephen LeBlanc, University of Guelph
Dr. Nydam and Dr. LeBlanc recently presented a Real Science Lecture series webinar on August 7, 2024. You can find the link at balchem.com/realscience.
Dr. Nydam begins with a brief overview of the concepts from the webinar, all based on understanding and applying information from different types of studies on dairy cow health and performance. Dr. LeBlanc adds that their goal was for the webinar to be useful for people with a practical interest in feeding and managing dairy cows. (4:12)
Dr. Nydam discusses different kinds of bias in research. All studies have some bias in...
Successfully Developing High-Performing Heifers with Dr. Mike Van Amburgh from Cornell University
This Real Science Exchange podcast episode was recorded during a webinar from Balchem’s Real Science Lecture Series.
The primary goal of a replacement program is to raise the highest quality heifer that can maximize profits when she enters the lactating herd. She carries no limitations that would detract from her ability to produce milk under the farm’s management system. Ideally, one would wish to optimize profits by obtaining the highest quality heifer at the lowest possible cost, usually in the least amount of time. Dr. Van Amburgh presents a snapshot evaluation of benchmarks to assess the p...
Sustainable Livestock, Sustainable Future: Why We Need a Toolkit of Solutions to Improve Sustainability in Animal Agriculture with Dr. Mitloehner & Dr. Nichols; UC Davis
Dr. Mitloehner recently presented a Real Science Lecture series webinar on September 11, 2024. You can find the link at balchem.com/realscience.
Dr. Mitloehner begins by sharing about the Clarity and Leadership for Environmental Awareness and Research (CLEAR) Center at UC Davis. He established this research and communications center to combat misinformation about sustainability in animal agriculture. One unique aspect of the center is a diverse communications department composed of journalists, filmmakers, and social media experts to help scientists communicate with the public. (6:04)
In his webinar, Dr. Mitloehner focused on animal agriculture’s impact on the cl...
Journal Club: Effects of feeding rumen-protected lysine during the postpartum period on performance and amino acid profile in dairy cows: A meta-analysis with Dr. Usman Arshad, ETH Zürich & Dr. Bill Weiss with the Ohio State University
Dr. Arshad begins by reviewing the inclusion criteria in the meta-analysis he conducted. He wished only to look at studies where lysine was supplemented in a rumen-protected form. The meta-analysis did not include studies that infused lysine into the abomasum or intestine. In addition, only completely randomized design or randomized complete block design studies were included. Feed ingredients and chemical composition of diets for each experiment were run through NASEM to predict the metabolizable lysine content using the same model so all studies were on the same scale. (6:04)
The bioavailability of the different rumen-protected lysine products used...
Understanding Choline: An Overlooked Nutrient in Pigs and Chickens with Dr. Dilger from the University of Illinois
This episode of the Real Science Exchange podcast was recorded during a webinar from Balchem’s Real Science Lecture Series.
Choline was discovered in 1862 in pig and ox bile (“chole” in Greek). It is a simple nutrient containing five carbons and a nitrogen. Choline is considered a quasi-vitamin since its requirements and de novo synthesis are both higher than the B vitamins it’s similar to. Pigs can synthesize more choline than chickens. Choline is considered to be a conditionally essential nutrient depending on the physiological stage and choline production ability of the species being considered. (3:29)
Choline...
Estimation of the nutrient variation in feed delivery and impacts on lactating dairy cattle with Dr. Paul Kononoff, University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Dr. Bill Weiss, The Ohio State University Professor Emeritus
Dr. Kononoff’s lab evaluated retrospective feed mixing records collected from eight commercial dairy farms. Data was divided into 28-day periods. Daily TMR nutrient deviation was automatically calculated from feed mixer data as the actual amount of a nutrient fed minus the target amount from the original diet formulation, divided by the target amount. (5:43)
Crude protein, NDF, fat, and starch were the nutrients evaluated in the study. (13:40)
Variation was positive for every nutrient on the vast majority of days. Dr. Kononoff attributes that to more feed being delivered than the diet formulation predicted animals would co...
ADSA 2024 - New Research from Balchem
Balchem sponsored several abstracts presented at the 2024 ADSA Annual Meeting. This episode consists of five segments, each focused on an abstract.
Segment 1: Evaluating the total mixed ration stability of rumen-protected lysine products.
Guests: Kari Estes, Balchem; Dr. Mark Hanigan, Virginia Tech
This research compared the TMR stability of a Balchem prototype, several commercially available rumen-protected lysine products and a positive control of unprotected lysine. (3:39)
A sample of TMR and the equivalent of one gram of lysine from each product were mixed and placed in a plastic zip bag for 0, 6, 12, or 24 hours. A...
The Future of Milk Protein as a Functional Food with Dr. John Lucey form the University of Wisconsin
This episode of the Real Science Exchange podcast was recorded during a webinar from Balchem’s Real Science Lecture Series.
Throughout the last 30 years, the dairy industry has moved to producing highly concentrated versions of milk proteins. In cows’ milk, about 80% of the protein is casein and 20% is in the serum or whey phase. These ratios vary by species. There are three major caseins in cows’ milk: alpha-S-casein, beta-casein, and kappa-casein. The first two are rich in phosphate for calcium binding. Kappa-casein is critical in a micellar structure that allows these structures to stay suspended in the milk...
Turbocharge Your Fresh Cow Diets with Dr. Overton from Cornell University & Dr. Faldet with GPS Dairy
Dr. Overton presented on this topic in a Real Science Lecture series webinar on July 10, 2024. You can find it at www.balchem.com/realscience. This episode takes a deeper dive into the conversation.
Dr. Overton begins by reminding listeners of the vast number of changes occurring in the fresh cow during the first two to three weeks after calving. Body fat and protein mobilization, some systemic inflammation, the potential for elevated NEFAs and ketones, and calcium dynamics all play a role in how the fresh cow starts her lactation period. (7:31)
When consulting with clients, Dr...
Are Probiotics Just Magic Foo Foo Dust? With Dr. Callaway from the University of Georgia & Dr. Steele from the University of Guelph
Dr. Callaway presented on this topic in a Real Science Lecture series webinar on June 4, 2024. You can find it at www.balchem.com/realscience. The following podcast takes a deeper dive into the conversation.
For years, probiotics were known as direct-fed microbials (DFMs) in livestock and probiotics in humans. Terminology has been updated to reflect different modes of action and composition. (9:07)
A probiotic is defined as a living microorganism that will be beneficial to the health and/or performance of the host. Prebiotics are fermentable substrates that the host can’t use, but the microbes ca...
Why Cows Become Hypocalcemic and Steps to Reduce Impact with Dr. Goff- ISU
This episode of the Real Science Exchange podcast was recorded during a webinar from Balchem’s Real Science Lecture Series.
Dr. Goff sees three main challenges for transition cows: negative energy and protein balance, immune suppression, and hypocalcemia. About half of all older cows experience hypocalcemia, and around 3% will experience milk fever. Cows develop hypocalcemia if they are unable to replace the calcium lost in milk from either their bone or diet. Compared to the day before calving, a cow needs around 32 extra grams of protein the day of calving to meet her increased requirements. (2:00)
Dr...
Lessons Learned in Research on Nutritional Management of Robot Milked Cows with Dr. DeVries- U of G, Dr. Penner- USask, & Todd Ward-Direct Dairy Nutrition
Dr. DeVries presented a Real Science Lecture webinar on May 8, 2024, titled “Lessons Learned in Research on Nutritional Management of Robot Milked Cows.” You can find the webinar recording at balchem.com/realscience.
Dr. DeVries begins with an overview of how his robotic milking research has evolved. In Canada, around 20%-plus of farms are using robotic milkers. He describes survey research in the US and Canada as to why producers choose to implement robotic milkers. (9:19)
In Trevor’s webinar, he discussed the large amount of variation in nutritional management of robot-milked cows across Canada. Some of his rese...
Balancing Diets of Highly Productive Sheep & Goats: Combining Performance and Health with Dr. Cannas from the University of Italy & Dr. Teixeira from the University of Idaho
Dr. Cannas presented a Real Science Lecture webinar on October 17, 2023, titled “Diets of Productive Sheep & Goats: Performance & Health.” You can find the webinar recording at balchem.com/realscience.
Dr. Cannas outlines the topics he covered in his webinar, including nutritional requirement differences between small and large ruminants, particularly in late gestation. Small ruminants have a shorter gestation and are more prolific than cattle, for example, and this means they have more nutritional challenges in late gestation. Dr. Cannas covered supplementation, basal diet quality, and sorting ewes or does by number of fetuses. He also discussed how high milk-p...
Real Science Exchange: Not All Encaps Are Created Equal with Dr. Zimmerman, Kari Estes & Dr. Hanigan
Dr. Zimmerman presented a Real Science Lecture webinar on December 12th, 2023, titled “Not All Rumen-Protected Products Are Created Equal.” You can find the webinar recording at balchem.com/realscience.
Clay outlines four attributes of a good rumen-encapsulated product. They are feed and TMR stable, ruminal stable, nutrient bioavailability, and good efficacy biologically in the animal. (6:21)
Kari describes a TMR stability test that Balchem has been perfecting based on a paper published in 2016. One to two grams of a rumen-protected product (based on the nutrient composition) is mixed with a half pound of TMR in a Ziploc...
