The New York State Horse Council’s (NYSHC) 52nd annual fall pleasure ride took place Oct. 8 – 11 at the highly acclaimed Brookfield Trail System. This popular event did not take place last year due to COVID-19 restrictions. Twenty attendees stabled their horses at the Madison County Fairgrounds. Pur...

The dog events include a Jack Russell terrier race, a sled dog demonstration, the Canine Grand Prix of dog agility, the Parade of GVH Hounds and a wiener dog race (for dachshunds and other similar breeds). It was amazing to see such a large pack of well-trained foxhounds respond to the huntsman’s ho...

“It’s tempting to report information only on your best performing animals,” according to Dr. Mark Enns, geneticist at Colorado State University (CSU) and director of the Western Center for Resource Management. “But eliminating the bottom end makes your best animals look worse.” Speaking at the 2021 ...

b y Deborah Jeanne Sergeant Feeding heifers right can both save a farm money and promote the health of the herd. Lifelong dairyman Tom Tylutki, Ph.D., recently presented “Heifer Strategies That Work Birth to Milking,” a virtual farm tour of McMahon’s EZ Acres in Homer, NY. He spoke on heifer nutriti...

ANKENY, IOWA – Jason Aldean’s song is back in play: “You can take a ride on my big green tractor” again. The 2021 John Deere strike that began Oct. 14, which involved about 10,000 employees for John Deere, is over. The United Auto Workers, which represents the workers from a dozen Midwest Deere & Co...

It was a beautiful, sunny October day when 20 attendees, mostly military veterans, descended on Great Northern Farm in southern Madison County, NY, for a day of sharing knowledge about livestock grazing systems. The event was sponsored by the Cornell Small Farms Veterans Program, Cornell Cooperative...

Associate Director of the Milk Quality Improvement Program at Cornell University Dr. Nicole Martin started her recent eOrganic webinar with a simple premise: The raw milk gathered on a dairy farm – and what is or isn’t in it – can greatly impact pasteurized dairy product quality. “What happens on th...

Calf feeders can be among most important personnel on the dairy when it comes to recognizing calf illness. Properly trained employees who learn and pay attention to the habits of healthy calves will be able to identify early signs of illness in young animals, which can save calves’ lives and result ...

World Dairy Expo is the premier place for all things dairy. The best of the best converge in Madison, WI, and this year, SUNY Cobleskill students were among the top in the Post-Secondary Dairy Judging Contest, placing third overall. This year, the team of four students, coached by professor Carrie E...

Children who show dairy heifers often lead to a life change for a family, and that’s how the Doody family started their own dairy farm. Although Amy Augur-Doody grew up on a dairy farm in Connecticut, her husband Patrick Doody did not have a farm background. They kept some milk cows and show heifers...

No matter how dairy calves are fed, the goal is the same: to make sure calves have a good start. While some farmers raise calves in pairs, historically, most calves are raised without direct contact with other calves. Using autofeeders for group-housed calves is a significant management switch and r...

The atmosphere in the barns is like no other. Everyone is there for the same reason: to see the best of the best compete on the colored shavings. World Dairy Expo is an experience that no exhibitor or spectator can forget. The barn aisles are filled to the brim with high-quality dairy cattle from al...

2021 marks the third year that Grow-NY will offer $3 million in prize money to seven food and agriculture startups from across the globe. Founded in 2019, Grow-NY is a food innovation and agriculture technology business challenge. Administered by Cornell University’s Center for Regional Economic Adv...

PENN YAN, NY – After the historic 2020 drought in the Finger Lakes, area grazing dairy farmers are enjoying 2021’s robust growing season with plentiful moisture, heat and a return to pasture walks with an emphasis on biology. However, this summer’s deluges of frequent rain have tested a farmer’s res...

Hi, folks! My name is Isabella Wallace, and I will serve as the 2021-22 student writer for Country Folks representing SUNY Morrisville. I am a sophomore and will graduate in 2024 with a bachelor’s in dairy management. I grew up in Homer, NY, across from E-Z Acres, owned by Pete and Mike McMahon. The...