Will Missouri dairy producers be able to compete in the future dairy market? I don't know, but I would like to discuss the "Kiss of Death" in today's market.

In today's market, we have good-quality, springing dairy heifers with no history of their genetics bringing $1,300 to $1,500 per head. We have cull cows bringing $300 to $400 per head depending on weight. We have weaned 2-month-old heifer calves bringing $400 per head. What is the problem? We have $12 per cwt milk.

How do we milk out $1,200 difference in a fresh springer heifer versus that same heifer only months later? It is impossible!

To be able to compete, Missouri dairy producers need to be able to keep cows healthy and milking well. Previously, when milk prices were good, springers cheap and cull prices good, the more cows we culled, the better off we were. In the early '70s, a dairy producer could cull a cow, take the check for the culled cow and buy the best commercial springing heifer available.

Today Missouri dairy producers still need to cull problem cows, but the main profit for the operation is not having cows go bad. If Missouri producers don't have to cull as excessively as our western competitors, we have excess springers to sell or to expand the herd. What we cannot afford is to have so many problems that the culling rate exceeds the heifer replacement. This is what I call the "Kiss of Death."

The most common problems for culling are mastitis and reproduction. But other problems are becoming prevalent. They are displaced abomasums, rumen acidosis and foot problems. I will try to briefly cover each.

The displaced abomasum is a movement of the third stomach into an uncompromising position. DAs can be either right side or left side with the right side being deadly. The left side DA is the most common and is when the abomasum slips underneath the rumen (first stomach). This creates the feeling that someone is bear hugging you around the stomach. Though the cow isn't sick, she can hardly eat because of this pressure on her fourth stomach. She only nibbles, the manure is pasty, milk production drops and she slowly wastes away from not eating enough.

There are three things necessary for a cow to have a displaced abomasum. 1) The rumen must be shrunk up or contracted for the back part of the abomasum to slip underneath it. If the rumen is in its normal position, it will not slip underneath the rumen. 2) The muscular attachments holding the abomasum in place must be stretched to permit the abomasum to move. 3) Gases in the abomasum result from carbon dioxide from rumen-fermented feed and hydrochloric acid from the abomasum coming into contact. These gases are expelled back into the rumen. This is why one can hear a pinging, which is a gas pocket.

Cause: It can be one of many causes or a combination. The most typical causes are low blood calcium and shrunk up rumen. This happens at freshening when the space the fetus took up is not filled back in by the rumen. The abomasum slips into this space. The other is mild or subclinical milk fever. This causes abnormal muscular reactions internally as well as external skeletal muscles.

Prevention is based on reducing milk fever whether it is clinical or subclinical and filling the cow's belly. This is why it is important to avoid the reductions in feed intakes at freshening and after. In later lactation, having large enough particle size to promote cud chewing to prevent acidosis and adequate calcium levels will stop these problems.

Along with acidosis comes tender feet. This allows the foot rot organism (fusobacterium necrophorum) to enter the foot. This is the same organism that causes abscessed livers. This explains why liver abscesses have been on the rise in dairy herds. Liver abscesses can be deadly.

A Kansas State University study showed 24 percent of the dairy cows going to slaughter had liver abscesses. A similar study at Brigham Young University showed 80 percent of first-calf heifers got abscessed livers unless they were vaccinated. Controlling foot rot and liver abscesses involves controlling the things that cause it--acidosis and the foot rot organism. Some vaccinate for foot rot, which helps decrease the problem.

Controlling the acidosis is a much better approach. Cows should be consuming 1.5 to 2 percent of body weight as long-stem roughage. If you are feeding silage or haylage, include five pounds per head per day of long-stem hay. Sodium bicarbonate should be included in the diet at 1/8 to 1/4 pound per head per day.

Grain rations should not have all their carbohydrates from corn. Different starches and sugars provide what we call Rumen Sync, which allows digestion to occur at different times. Feed MFA Turbo or Heartland dairy feeds that contain Rumen Sync plus sprouts, which is a prebiotic. This prebiotic provides the optimal environment for desirable bacteria to flourish. The cow's manure will tighten, milk fat tests will increase and there will be an increase in cud chewing.

No longer will dairy producers have to feed some grass hay when feeding good-quality alfalfa to keep the cows from scouring. Because of this, the total nutrition plane increases. No more sore feet, abscessed livers and cows off feed. The health of cows and the herd average will increase, and the culling rate will decrease.