Join us as we sit down with Dairy at Guelph faculty on the latest research – everything from dairy calf nutrition and management to designing breeding strategies for long-term and sustainable genetic improvement. New episodes are available each month on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, or you can listen right here on our website.
If you have questions about the podcast, suggestions for topics you’d like to hear or feedback, please email us at kdunca09@uoguelph.ca.
Episodes
Episode 9: Helping Canadian Farmers Improve Farm Sustainability and Herd Health Drs. Stephen LeBlanc and David Renaud
Drs. Stephen LeBlanc and David Renaud join us to discuss the status of their work announced in February 2023 aiming to help Canadian farmers improve sustainability and herd health with $4 million in funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) Alliance program, in addition to four industry collaborators, including Dairy Farmers of Ontario (DFO), Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC), Lactanet and Veal Farmers of Ontario. Alongside Dr. David Kelton, the research team from Ontario Veterinary College are tackling a series of 15 studies that target burning questions from the dairy and beef industries that require science-based answers.
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Episode 8: Calf Health and Welfare with Dr. David Renaud
During this episode, we talk to Dr. David Renaud, veterinary epidemiologist in the Department of Population Medicine at the Ontario Veterinary College, about his research program on risk factors and management strategies to improve calf health and welfare.
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Episode 7: Precision Feeding for Dairy Cows with Dr. John Cant
During this episode, we talk with Dr. John Cant, Professor in the Department of Animal Biosciences at the University of Guelph, about his research program on nutrition modeling and precision feeding for dairy cows.
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Episode 6: Transition Period and Reproduction of Dairy Cows with Dr. Eduardo Ribeiro
During this episode, Dr. Eduardo Ribeiro, Associate Professor in the Department of Animal Biosciences at the University of Guelph, talks about fertility, embryo development and pregnancy losses in dairy cows, as well as additional factors affecting pregnancy, including transition cow health, long-term effects of diseases and prevention strategies.
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Episode 5: Automated Milking Systems and Behaviour of Dairy Cattle with Dr. Trevor DeVries
During this episode, we talk to Dr. Trevor DeVries, Professor in the Department of Animal Biosciences, and Canada Research Chair in Dairy Cattle Behaviour and Welfare, about his research program on robotic (or automated) milking systems, cows’ personality traits, and sensor-based technologies.
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Episode 4: Welfare and Health of Dairy Calves, Cows and Farmers with Dr. Charlotte Winder
During this episode, we talk to Dr. Charlotte Winder from Ontario Veterinary College (OVC) about welfare and health in dairy farming, including heifer calf management, pain-control practices in youngstock, best strategies for dry-off and farmers’ mental health.
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Episode 3: Genetic Selection for Sustainable and Resilient Dairy Cows with Dr. Christine Baes
On this episode, we chat with Dr. Christine Baes, Professor and Chair in the Department of Animal Biosciences and Canada Research Chair in Livestock Genomics, about methane emissions, feed efficiency, health resistance, novel fertility traits and breeding programs, all of which are working to create sustainable and resilient dairy cows.
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Episode 2: Dairy Cattle Diseases, Biosecurity and Management Practices with Dr. David Kelton
On this episode we’re chatting with Professor Emeritus, Dr. David Kelton, from the Ontario Veterinary College’s Department of Population Medicine about infectious diseases in dairy cattle, biosecurity measures, bulk milk tank testing and management practices to minimize risk and spread of diseases.
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Episode 1: Calf Health and Management with Dr. Michael Steele
We’re talking to Dr. Michael Steele, Professor in the Department of Animal Biosciences at the University of Guelph, about best practices in calf nutrition and management. During this episode, dairy farmers will have access to the latest updates on topics including colostrum supplementation and maternal effects on colostrum production, as well as milk feeding and weaning strategies for purebred and crossbred calves.
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Hosts
Katie Duncan
Katie is a Communications Officer based at the Ontario Veterinary College (OVC) where part of her time is spent providing support to the Dairy at Guelph website, podcast and socials. She has worked in communications for the past 10 years, providing advice on how to communicate complex subjects into easy-to-understand information.
Guilherme Madureira
Guilherme joined Dairy at Guelph in 2023 as a Communications Coordinator where he hosted the first and part of the second season of the podcast. Guilherme is a PhD student in the Department of Animal Biosciences. His experience working with the Arrell Food Institute has given Guilherme a first-hand look into the importance of easy-to-read communication pieces that help researchers and farmers solve food production problems together.