On this episode of the DFD podcast, I had the pleasure of talking to Dr. Claira Seeley, an Assistant Professor in the Agriculture, Nutrition, and Food System Department at the University of New Hampshire. Dr. Seeley's research focuses on the integration of dairy cow biology and precision dairy technologies, with a specific emphasis on epidemiological methods. Her PhD was concentrated on the identification and management of hypocalcemia in early lactation cows. I hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast! If you have any questions about this episode or future ones, feel free to reach out: 📧 Email: keithschweitzer@wfs.ca📞 Phone: 1 (519) 872-0742🐦 Follow me on X: @keithschweitzer🎧 And don’t forget to follow the podcast on your favorite podcast player to stay updated on new episodes!

Today, I’m joined by Dr. Heather Dann, President of the William H. Miner Agricultural Research Institute in Chazy, NY. With over two decades at Miner Institute, Dr. Dann has led groundbreaking research in dairy nutrition, herd management, environmental impact, and animal welfare. In this episode, we dive deep into the transition period in dairy cows — a critical window that can make or break herd performance. Dr. Dann shares her insights on how managing this period effectively can boost productivity, animal health, and overall farm sustainability. It was a fascinating and informative conversation!  I hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast! If you have any questions about this episode or future ones, feel free to reach out: 📧 Email: keithschweitzer@wfs.ca📞 Phone: 1 (519) 872-0742🐦 Follow me on X: @keithschweitzer🎧 And don’t forget to follow the podcast on your favorite podcast player to stay updated on new episodes!    

On this episode of the DFD podcast, I have the pleasure of talking to Dr. Barry Bradford from Michigan State University. Dr. Bradford is a Professor, Researcher, and Extension specialist in the Department of Animal Science at MSU where he has a longstanding interest in data analysis and its use in making decisions that impact dairy farms on a daily basis. I hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast.  If you have any questions about this episode or future episodes of the podcast, please feel free to reach out to me by email at keithschweitzer@wfs.ca by phone at 1 (519) 872-0742 and please follow me on your favorite podcast player and on X @keithschweitzer

This month's episode of the podcast features a conversation I had with Dr. Christine Baes, a Professor and Acting Associate Dean of External Relations at the University of Guelph. She is also the Canadian Research Chair in Livestock Genomics at the same university. Dr. Baes is active in teaching University students, but her main focus is research. Some of the areas she researches include GHG emissions, feed efficiency and genetic trait selection in dairy animals. We had a great time talking about DNA structure, methane emissions, and feed efficiency. I hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast.  If you have any questions about this episode or future episodes of the podcast, please feel free to reach out to me by email at keithschweitzer@wfs.ca by phone at 1 (519) 872-0742 and please follow me on your favorite podcast player and on X @keithschweitzer

On this episode of the DFD, I had the opportunity to talk to Dr. Adam Lock.  Dr. Lock is a Professor and researcher at Michigan State University in the department of Animal Science. Adam has spent his career researching and teaching students about fatty acid digestion and the metabolism of the dairy cow, along with the effect of bioactive fatty acids on animal production and human health. Dr. Lock and I had a great discussion about this topic, with the main theme being that not all fats are created equal. I hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast.  If you have any questions about this episode or future episodes of the podcast, please feel free to reach out to me by email at keithschweitzer@wfs.ca by phone at 1 (519) 872-0742 and please follow me on your favorite podcast player and on X @keithschweitzer

Dr. Mike Steele is a professor and researcher in the Department of Animal Bio-Science at the University of Guelph. He is world-renowned for his work with young ruminants. In this episode, we discuss some of the experiments that his lab is currently conducting, as well as some of his past research and how it can be applied to today's dairy operations. I hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast.  If you have any questions about this episode or future episodes of the podcast, please feel free to reach out to me by email at keithschweitzer@wfs.ca by phone at 1 (519) 872-0742 and please follow me on your favorite podcast player and on X @keithschweitzer

On this episode of the DFD podcast, I have the pleasure of talking to Mark Carson, the Solutions Operation Manager at Semex. Mark and I have a great discussion about how genetics and data are influencing the dairy industry today and some trends that we will be seeing in the future. I hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast.  If you have any questions about this episode or future episodes of the podcast, please feel free to reach out to me by email at keithschweitzer@wfs.ca by phone at 1 (519) 872-0742 and please follow me on your favorite podcast player and on X @keithschweitzer

On this episode of the DFD, I had the pleasure to talk to Joanne Fallis from Fallis Immigration Consulting.  Joanne specializes in supporting and helping farmers in Canada steer through the Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW) program. Labour is the number one concern in the Agriculture industry.  Joanne and I cover lots of great topics related to navigating the rules and regulations involved in the TFW system. If you would like more information regarding Joanne's business or need help with the TFW program feel free to reach out to her at fallisimmigration@gmail.com  or 1 (226) 929-2907 I hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast.  If you have any questions about this episode or future episodes of the podcast, please feel free to reach out to me by email at keithschweitzer@wfs.ca by phone at 1 (519) 872-0742 and please follow me on your favorite podcast player and on X @keithschweitzer  

On this episode of the DFD, I have the pleasure of talking to Dr. Luiz Ferraretto.  Dr. Ferraretto is an Associate Professor and Extension Specialist in Ruminant nutrition and Research at the University of Wisconsin - Madison. The 2024 Corn Silage season is upon us and it has been a trying season for growers and producers.  Dr. Ferraretto and I have a great conversation about dealing with the challenges the 24 season has presented to us, and how what we do at harvest can and will impact the crop throughout the next year. Luiz has a plethora of knowledge and experience when it comes to making the highest quality silages for our ruminant herds and it was great of him to share some of those with us. I hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast.  If you have any questions about this episode or future episodes of the podcast, please feel free to reach out to me by email at keithschweitzer@wfs.ca by phone at 1 (519) 872-0742 and please follow me on your favorite podcast player and on X @keithschweitzer  

On this episode of the DFD podcast, I have the pleasure of talking to Trent Westhoff.  Trent is currently conducting research at Cornell University and will soon be defending his dissertation to earn his PhD. Trent and I have a fascinating conversation about colostrum, and why we sometimes see reduction in volume as well as a research paper that he worked on focused on pre-fresh and post-fresh nutrition. Trent is an up and coming researcher in the dairy world, and I'm sure we are going to hear a lot more about his cutting edge work in the future. I hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast.  If you have any questions about this episode or future episodes of the podcast, please feel free to reach out to me by email at keithschweitzer@wfs.ca by phone at 1 (519) 872-0742 and please follow me on your favorite podcast player and on X @keithschweitzer

On this episode of the DFD podcast, I had the pleasure of talking to Tom Kilcer from Advanced Ag Systems and one of the pioneers in the photosynthetic forage wilting process more commonly known as "Hay in a day" We have a great conversations about best management practices for this years forage crops with special attention paid to Winter Cereals and hay.  We also talk about a novel crop that he's been working with in Tennessee. Tom has been doing work around making the best possible forages for ruminant producers for almost 50 years and brings a vast knowledge to primary producers all over North America.  If you want to learn more about Tom and his research, have a look at his website.  https://advancedagsys.com/ I hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast.  If you have any questions about this episode or future episodes of the podcast, please feel free to reach out to me by email at keithschweitzer@wfs.ca by phone at 1 (519) 872-0742 and please follow me on your favorite podcast player and on X @keithschweitzer

On this episode of the DFD podcast, I have the pleasure of talking to Nick Thurler.  Nick is the President of Green Energy Trading Corporation (GET-Corp). GET-Corp offers a viable avenue for dairy farmers to positively impact their sustainability efforts through the conversion of on-farm organic wastes to renewable natural gas (RNG), while creating nutrient dense fertilizer and providing revenue streams for dairy farms. The RNG generated from the digesters is sold to the market. Nick and I have a great conversation about GET-corps mission and vision around producing RNG from on farm waste products. I have a real interest about learning about RNG production and how it can affect a producers bottom line. If you would like to learn more about GET-Corp, check out their website https://www.get-corp.ca/  I hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast.  If you have any questions about this episode or future episodes of the podcast, please feel free to reach out to me by email at keithschweitzer@wfs.ca by phone at 1 (519) 872-0742 and please follow me on your favorite podcast player and on twitter @keithschweitzer

On this week's episode of the podcast, we have something a little different for the listeners.  I had the opportunity to host a panel where we discussed our careers.  I wanted to say thanks to our participants, Dr. Sara Robson from Grand Valley Fortifiers, Justine Dodson MSc from Sharpe's Feed Supply, Dr. Bruna Mion from Lactanet and Dr. Chris Church from Trouw Nutrition Canada.   Also a special thanks to Dr. David Innes from the University of Guelph's Dairy at Guelph faculty who hosted the podcast for his fourth year Nutrition Group. I hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast.  If you have any questions about this episode or future episodes of the podcast, please feel free to reach out to me by email at keithschweitzer@wfs.ca by phone at 1 (519) 872-0742 and please follow me on your favorite podcast player and on twitter @keithschweitzer  

On this episode of the podcast, I have a great conversation with Aaron Keunen.  Aaron is part owner of Mapleview Agri, a milk replacer, animal health product manufacturer and veal/calf research facility in Palmerston Ontario, Canada. Aaron and I have a great talk about calves, what we are seeing in the country side currently and what is coming down the pipe with regards to calf health and calf performance. I hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast.  If you have any questions about this episode or future episodes of the podcast, please feel free to reach out to me by email at keithschweitzer@wfs.ca by phone at 1 (519) 872-0742 and please follow me on your favorite podcast player and on twitter @keithschweitzer

On this episode of the podcast, I talk to Dr. Bill Mahanna.  Bill is the Global Nutritional Services Manager with Pioneer, he is also an adjunct professor in the Department of Animal Science at Iowa State University. Bill and I cover all things corn silage, we touch on plant health, starch deposition, kernel processing and some new and exciting technology coming down the pipeline. He has an incredible wealth of knowledge and experience when it comes to making high quality forages, especially corn silage.  He has worked for Pioneer for over 30 years and he has travelled all over the world educating dairy, beef and small ruminant producers and industry professionals.  If you have questions, you can reach him at bill.mahanna@pioneer.com or on Twitter @billmahanna I hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast.  If you have any questions about this episode or future episodes of the podcast, please feel free to reach out to me by email at keithschweitzer@wfs.ca by phone at 1 (519) 872-0742 and please follow me on your favorite podcast player and on twitter @keithschweitzer

On this week's episode of the podcast, I have the pleasure of talking to Michelle Durnin.  Michelle is an agronomist and the owner of Prosperity Ag, located in Huron County, Ontario. Michelle has worked for several years in Ontario with a focus on forage crops.  We have a great conversations about this years corn crop, whether or not we should look at fungicide and we also cover some options for forage crops after this years wheat. Michelle have several iron in the fire outside of being an agronomist.  She is the owner of Durnin Farm and Ranch wear (www.dfrwear.ca), a company that designs work and ranch clothes for women.  She is also the host of the Propsperity Ag Out Loud Podcast, you can find that on Apple Podcast and Spotify.  She can also be found across social media platforms. I hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast.  If you have any questions about this episode or future episodes of the podcast, please feel free to reach out to me by email at keithschweitzer@wfs.ca by phone at 1 (519) 872-0742 and please follow me on your favorite podcast player and on twitter @keithschweitzer

On this weeks episode of the Dairy Farmer's Digest, I have the pleasure of talking to Dr. Geoffrey Dahl from the University of Florida.  Geoffrey is the Director of the Feed the Future Innovations Lab for Livestock Systems and a Professor - Harriette B. Weaks Professor President of the ADSA. Dr. Dahl is the leading experts in the world when it comes to the topic of heat stress and its impact biology and physiology of the dairy production animals.  He has won a multitude of professional service honors and awards, he has also been sited more than 10,000 times for research that he has conducted. Heat stress has both a huge physiological and financial impact on today's dairy operations and it is one of the most important management areas with regards to production animal agriculture. I hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast.  If you have any questions about this episode or future episodes of the podcast, please feel free to reach out to me by email at keithschweitzer@wfs.ca by phone at 1 (519) 872-0742 and please follow me on your favorite podcast player and on twitter @keithschweitzer

On this week's episode of the Dairy Farmer's Digest, I talk with Gary Markus, who along with his wife and four kids run Markhill Holsteins in Ingersoll Ontario.   In addition to milking cows, Gary also works as an Elite account manager with Alta Genetics in SW Ontario.  Gary and I have a great discussion about developing a plan and choosing criteria to cull animals, it is a tough decision to move on from these animals, but with the right data we can make these decisions a little bit easier, and make your operation more profitable. If you have any questions about this episode or future episodes of the podcast, please feel free to reach out to me by email at keithschweitzer@wfs.ca by phone at 1 (519) 872-0742 and please follow me on your favorite podcast player and on twitter @keithschweitzer  

On this on the DFD podcast, I have a great conversation with Dr. Luis Ferraretto.  Dr. Ferraretto is an Assistant Professor and Extension Specialist in Dairy Nutrition at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The spring is one of the most important times of year, not only is it planting season but it brings the first opportunity to make high quality forages for the upcoming year.  Luis and I touch on several topics related to this years winter forages and hay crops.  We also touch a bit on the upcoming corn crop. I hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast.  If you have any questions about this episode or future episodes of the podcast, please feel free to reach out to me by email at keithschweitzer@wfs.ca by phone at 1 (519) 872-0742 and please follow me on your favorite podcast player and on twitter @keithschweitzer

On this episode of the Dairy Farmer's Digest (DFD) podcast, I talk to Cox Wensink.  Cox is the owner and herd manager at Hoenhorst Farms in Woodstock Ontario where her and her team milk 500 cows with 10 Lely A4 milking robots on two locations utilizing temporary foreign workers (TFW).  We have a great discussion around how she came about using TFW and how to get the process started and the learning curve involved in going down this route. Cox is a Mechanical Engineer with a Masters in Strategic Product development and she has worked in Canada and in Europe before returning to the farm to take over the family farm nearly a decade ago. The main goal at Hoenhorst farms is to fill quota efficiently and maintain a positive team culture at the farm which lead her down the road of employing TFW to meet and exceed her goals. I hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast.  If you have any questions about this episode or future episodes of the podcast, please feel free to reach out to me by email at keithschweitzer@wfs.ca by phone at 1 (519) 872-0742 and please follow me on your favorite podcast player and on twitter @keithschweitzer