Western Canadian Dairy Seminar

March 4 - 7, 2025

Red Deer Resort & Casino, Red Deer, Alberta, Canada

Excellence in Efficiency 

 

Click Here for the Full Program 

Tuesday, March 4, 2025

Once again, there will be no pre-conference tour as the Virtual Farm Tours will be returning as part of the Producer Panel on Thursday March 6.

Pre-conference workshops are hosted by various sponsors and will be promoted as they are confirmed.

6:30 pm - 9:00 pm Registration

7:00 pm - 10:00 pm Opening Reception

Please join us at our opening reception for cocktails, refreshments and live music. 

Entertainment by The BixMix Boys

Wednesday, March 5^th

7:30      Breakfast

Wednesday AM, Plenary Sessions

8:30       Welcome: Miriam Sweetnam, Dairy Farmers of Manitoba, Chair, WCDS Advisory Committee

Introduction and Conference Overview: Karin Orsel, University of Calgary, Chair, WCDS Program Committee

Keynote Session

8:45        The Impact of Herd Longevity on Sustainability, Animal Welfare, and Farm Profitability presented:

A Fireside Chat with – Dr. Steve Eicker, Valley Ag Software & Dianne Finstad, Ag Journalist

9:45       Nutrition break

Session     I. Dairy     Products:     Emerging Opportunities for Dairy and Dairy Products

10:30      An Evolving Dairy Consumer Marketplace– Dr. Mike von Massow, University of Guelph

11:10     Supply Management and Supply Chain Management: Dairy Processor Perspectives– Dan Wong, Western Dairy Council

11:50         Harnessing     precision    technologies for improving dairy herd performance and management– Dr. Julio Giordano, Cornell University

12:20 Lunch

Wednesday PM, Plenary Sessions

Session II. Nutrition: What is Needed to Feed Our Cows?

2:00         Keys to Corn Silage Success in

Western Canada – John Winchell, Alltech

2:40        New Insights about the Fat Cow Syndrome and Insulin Resistance in High-Yielding Dairy Cows by? – Dr. Geert Opsomer, University of Ghent

3:15       Nutrition break

Session      III. Reproduction:      Making Reproduction More Efficient

3:45 Improving Dairy Herd Fertility: Genomics & Beyond – Dr. Jodi Wallace, Ormstown Veterinary Hospital

4:20        Demystifying Reproductive Performance Data – Why Randomness Matters – Dr. Paul Fricke, University of Wisconsin

6:00        Cash Bar

7:00        Banquet Dinner

 

Entertainment – The Denim Daddies
The banquet is optional. Separate registration required.

Thursday, March 6^th

7:30   Breakfast

Thursday AM, Plenary Sessions

Session IV. Student Research

8:30   Student Research Presentation Oral Competition

− The effect of Saccharomyces cerevisiae var. boulardii CNCM I-1079 supplementation during late gestation in - Marijke Boerefyn, University of Guelph

− The effect of colostrum supplementation following a triggered disease - Alison Welk, University of Guelph

−     Bioengineering     a     bacteriophage     used     in Johne’s Disease prevention trial to abolish phage resistance- Natali Shafer, University of Calgary

−     Pre-partum training of dairy heifers to an automated milking       system   affects   their adaptation              and performance- Jessica Brasier, University of Guelph

− Herd-level prevalence of contagious mastitis pathogens, Johne’s disease, and Salmonella Dublin in Alberta - Waseem Shaukat, University of Calgary

9:45   Nutrition break

Session V.    Producer Panel and Virtual Farm Tours

10:30       Succession Planning: Panel and Virtual Farm Tours Transition Tactics for Canadian Dairy Families

– Annessa Good-Hassard

Virtual Farm Tours

Lone Pine Jersey, Didsbury, Alberta &

El Shaddai Dairy Farm, Leduc County, Alberta

Panel Discussion

12:30     Lunch

Thursday PM, Plenary Sessions

Session VI. Animal Welfare: Finding Your Feet: Pathways to Improved Locomotion

2:00        A problem shared: A collaborative approach to tackling lameness – Dr. Sara Pedersen, Farm Dynamics

2:40       Healthy Feet Initiatives – finding our hidden mojo

– Dr. Nick Bell, HerdHealth

3:15 Nutrition break

Announcement of Student Presentation and Poster Competition Winners

 

Session VII.       Future Proofing: Topics for Progressive Dairy Management

4:00        Adult Cow Barn Ventilation and Assessment by – Courtney Halbach, University of Wisconsin

4:40         Manure Management – Dr. Mario de Haro- Martí, University of Idaho

5:30 – 6:30  Cocktail Reception

Friday, March 7^th

7:30       Breakfast

Friday AM, Plenary Sessions

Session VIII. Other Things You Need to Know

8:40        Avian influenza in cows, a virus in a new animal species – Dr. Frank van der Meer, University of Calgary

9:20          Creating  and  Maintaining  an  Elite

Dairy Workforce – Mireille Chahine, University of Idaho

10:00     Nutrition break

Session IX. Feeding the Youngstock for an Efficient Future

10:30 Early-life management of crossbred calves: Where we are today and where we’ll be tomorrow– Dr. Mike Steele, University of Guelph

11:10 Feeding the post-weaned heifer benchmarks for growth and calving, feed additives, and alternative feeds. – Dr. Pete Erickson, University of New Hampshire

11:50  The Impact of Fat Levels in Milk Replacer for Dairy Calves – Dr. Marco Marcondes, William H. Miner Agricultural Research Institute

12:30  Closing Remarks