Lesson Structure:  Dairy Cattle BAG205

There are 9 lessons as follows:

1  Dairy Breeds

• Dairy Breeds: Choosing a Dairy Breed
• Comparison of Dairy Breeds: The Ayrshire, The Guernsey, The Jersey, Holstein – Friesian, Brown Swiss, Milking or Dairy Shorthorn 
• Score Card: General Appearance, Dairy Character, Udder

2  Dairy Products

• Milk: The Composition of Milk, The percentage breakdown of the composition of milk, Protein, Lactose, Ash
• Factors Affecting the Composition of Milk: Feed, Weather, Stages of Milking, Incomplete Milking, Frequency of Milking, Disturbance, Dipping, Individuality of the Cow, Breed, Course of Lactation, Gestation, Age of the Cow, Oestrus and Gestation, Disease
• Milk: Oxidation, Lipolysis   

3  The Lactation Cycle

• The Lactation Cycle
• The Influence of the Farmer on Lactation
• Is Every Cow in My Herd Producing to its Genetic Potential?: Infertile Cows, Feeding, The Milking Shed
• Planning for Feed-Flow: Climate, Soil Type, Irrigation, Aspect, Slope, Natural pastures, Management, Present Feed Flow
• Planning the New Feed-Flow Program

4  Pests & Diseases of Dairy Cattle

• Mastitis: Types of Mastitis, Mastitis-Causing Organisms, Contagious Bacteria, Environmental Mastitis Organisms
• Mastitis Detection - Cell Counts: Mastitis Control, Effective Shed or Parlour Routine, Milking Equipment, Treating Mastitis
• Correct Treatment Techniques
• Dry Cow Therapy: Difficulties of treating lactating cows, Drying off - the danger period
• The Five-Point Plan Against Mastitis
• Viral & Bacterial Diseases in Cattle: Signs of Health in Cattle, Other signs which should be noted
• Disease Types in Cattle
• Viral Diseases
• Bacterial Diseases
• Parasitic Diseases
• Protozoal Diseases
• Other Diseases: Screw Worm, Ophthalmia

5  Feeding Dairy Cattle

• Feeding the Dairy Cow: Working out Dairy Rations, Maintenance Requirements for a Dairy Cow, Production Requirements, Working out the Total Needs of a Dairy Cow, Feeding a Ration to Meet the Nutrient Needs, Roughage, Concentrate Foods
• The Dairy Ration
• Working Out the Cost of Dairy Rations
• Model Answers to Dairy Feed Exercise

6  Managing Dairy Cattle

• The Dairy Heifer
• Managing the Heifer: Growth, Measuring Growth, Why emphasise growth?
• Feeding the Heifer: Factors Affecting Growth
• Age of Breeding: Effect of Early Breeding on Size of Animals, The Effect of Early Calving on Milk Production
• The Dairy Cow: Management of the Dairy Cow, Factors Affecting the General Health of a Cow
• Factors Affecting Milk Yield: Lactation Curve, Breed, Milking Frequency, Age, Milkings, Season, Heat Stress, Feeding

7  Breeding Dairy Cattle

• Selection: Animal Breeding Programs, Have a Clear Aim, Decide on your priorities, Dual Purpose Animals
• Artificial Selection: Understanding The Sire, Selection Intensity, The Generation Interval, The Heritability, Selection for Milk Yield, Gene Groups
• Regression
• Selection Using Family Groups
• Disadvantages of Inbreeding
• Performance Testing: Sib Testing, Progeny Testing, Contemporary Comparisons and Relative Breeding Values (R.B.V.), Relative Breeding Value (R.B.V.)
• Artificial Insemination: The Technique of Artificial Insemination, Synchronised Heats
• Ova Transplants

8  Managing Dairy Facilities

• The Dairy
• Basic Requirements of All Dairies: Siting of Dairy Premises, The Milking Shed, The Dairy Room and Wash-up Room, Milkers' Wash Room and Lavatory, Water Supply, Drainage, Equipment
• Cooling of Milk
• Machine Milking: Planning a Milking Machine System, Reasons for Using Milking Machines
• Components of a Milking Machine: The Vacuum Pump, Teat Cups and Liners (Inside the Clusters), Claw-piece or Beaker-cup, Cluster, Pulsator, Vacuum Controller, Sanitary Trap, Releaser, Pipelines
• Choosing a System
• Different Types of System: Normal Cowshed, Abreast Milking Shed, Turntable Milking, Open Sided Shed
• Other Considerations: Handling facilities, Computers
• Four Essential Points When Choosing a Milking System: Vacuum Stability, Udder Stimulation, Milk Quality, Emergency Facilities

9  Dairy Business Planning

• Economics of Dairying
• Business Plan Example
• Break-Even Production
• When Fodder is Bought In
• What is a Heifer Calf Worth at Birth?
• How Long a Cow (That is Not In Calf) Should Be Kept
• Months to Wait

Learning Goals:  Dairy Cattle BAG205

• Select appropriate dairy breeds for different farming situations.
• Describe the different characteristics, including their nature and scope, of dairy products.
• Explain the management of the lactation cycle in dairy cattle, on a farm property.
• Manage general husbandry operations for the dairy cow.
• Manage the wellbeing of a dairy cow, including consideration of its health and vigour, to optimise quality and quantity of production.
• Explain the significance of animal breeding programs for milk production.
• Explain the management of the facilities, including buildings and machinery, at a farm dairy.
• Develop a business plan for the management of a dairy property.

Practicals:

• Distinguish between three different breeds of dairy cattle, which are either significant in the learner's locality, or have potential in the learner's locality, including: size, appearance, preferred conditions, milk, cost per head
• Evaluate the suitability of three different dairy cattle breeds to a specified property, in a locality with which the learner is familiar.
• Select three appropriate dairy cattle breeds for each of four specified situations, with regard to: pasture varieties, climatic conditions (eg. temperature and weather patterns), locality, market requirements for the product
• Judge a dairy cow, using a standard score card, such as the dairy cow unified score card produced (and revised in 1982) by the Purebred Dairy Cattle Association.
• List the different dairy products which are commonly available, in the learner's locality.
• Describe the composition of milk, with reference to different characteristics, including: Economics of Dairying, bacteria count, chemical impurities, somatic cell count, added water, flavour
• Explain the different types of flavours in milk, referring to both cause and prevention factors, and using relevant terminology, including: feed, rancid, flat, unclean, foreign, salt, acid, oxidised flavours
• Explain how milk composition can affect its use for different purposes.
• Explain how milk is processed, on a property visited by the learner, including the process of pasteurisation (sanitisation).
• Explain how cheese is made, on a specific property.
• Explain how yoghurt is made, on a specific property.
• Explain how milk is processed to obtain cream, at a typical dairy.
• Describe the lactation cycle of a dairy cow.
• List the farm husbandry factors which can influence the lactation cycle.
• Explain how three different variations in a cow's diet may affect lactation.
• Prepare a plan for a feed flow program to support milk production on a specified property.
• Produce a log book record of management tasks carried out, over a period of 1 month, to control the lactation cycle in dairy cattle on a specified property.
• Milk a cow, verifying the proper undertaking of the task.
• List the routine husbandry tasks carried out on different dairy cows, including those in milk and those that are dry.
• Explain the routine husbandry tasks carried out on two different types of dairy cows, including those in milk and those that are dry.
• Compare the management of heifers with that of milking cows on a specified dairy farm.
• Describe the management of dairy cattle for meat production on a specified dairy farm.
• Evaluate a production system on a dairy farm, in a locality familiar to the learner.
• List the pests and diseases that are significant for dairy cattle in the learner's locality.
• Develop a checklist for the signs of ill health, which should be routinely checked, in dairy cattle.
• Describe three significant pests or diseases of dairy cattle, including mastitis.
• Explain treatments for three different pests or diseases in dairy cattle.
• Explain the irregularities which can occur in the functioning of the digestive system of dairy cattle.
• Distinguish between a maintenance ration and production ration for a dairy cow.
• Explain the nutritional requirements of a typical dairy cow on a specific property.
• Calculate the rations for a dairy cow in accordance with specified characteristics, including: weight, quantity of milk being produced, butterfat concentration, 
• Prepare a collection of pasture plant species from two different dairy properties, and including: samples of plants (ie. pressings of different plants in the pasture), comments on the suitability of the pasture for dairy cattle.
• Produce a twelve month plan to manage the vigour of dairy cattle, on a specified property, which includes: a list of disease management procedures, feed program variations throughout the year
• Explain a breeding program in use for dairy herd improvement on a specified property.
• Explain the artificial insemination methods used with dairy cattle on a specified property.
• List the criteria for selecting cattle for a dairy breeding program, in a locality which is familiar to the learner.
• Plan a hypothetical breeding program, to improve milk quality and production for dairy cattle.
• List the minimum physical facilities required for a viable dairy farm.
• List factors affecting the siting of a dairy on a farm.
• Prepare a plan for the construction of dairy facilities on a specified site, including: sketch or concept plans of buildings, fencing surrounding buildings, and interior layout, a list of materials, including types and quantities required for construction, a list of equipment to be installed, a schedule of construction tasks
• Develop a profile of an ideal dairy farm site.
• Select the machinery needed to operate a specified, hypothetical dairy farm.
• Develop a maintenance program for dairy farm machinery, on a farm investigated by the learner.
• Explain the operation of typical milking machinery.
• Explain the significance of farm water to the operation of a dairy farm.
• Develop procedures for control of goods on a typical dairy farm, including: ordering, receipt, dispatch
• Explain two different ways to manage waste effluent from a typical dairy.
• Develop guidelines for safe working practices at a typical dairy farm.
• Explain legal requirements which are relevant to a dairy farm in a specified location.
• Report on research, conducted by the learner from an information search, into innovations in the dairy industry.
• Report on the implementation of recent innovations in the dairy industry.
• List factors affecting profitability of a dairy property.
• Explain factors affecting the cost of dairy production on a specified farm.
• Write a job specification for one member of staff on a specific dairy property.
• Develop criteria for assessing the management of a dairy property.
• Prepare or evaluate a dairy farm budget for a specified property.
• Prepare or evaluate a dairy farm financial report for a specified property.
• Analyse marketing systems for marketing dairy products produced by a specified enterprise.
• Explain factors affecting sales of dairy products on a specified farm.
• Describe the selection and preparation of dairy cattle for sale in the learner's locality.
• Develop a marketing plan for a specified dairy product which addresses: product presentation, delivery of product, promotions, customer relations
• Develop a business plan for a specified dairy property.
• Describe how the sale of dairy meat can be managed, in accordance with a business plan, while adhering to relevant regulations.

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