1. An Overlooked Opportunity To Improve Cow Health in the Transition Period
By Raul Sorto, Penn State
Lancaster Farming
March 26, 2026
The transition period, defined as the three weeks before and three weeks after calving, is one of the most challenging times in a dairy cow's life.
During this period, the cow goes through major metabolic and physiological changes as she transitions from a gestating nonlactational stage to a nongestating lactational stage.
Over the past decade, research has highlighted systemic inflammation as one of the most important physiological processes influencing transition cow health.
A certain level of inflammation around calving is normal and necessary because it plays an important role in the calving process and afterward. However, when inflammation becomes excessive or prolonged, cows face a higher risk of metabolic and infectious diseases. Exacerbated inflammation during this period has also been associated with low milk production and poor reproductive performance, which ultimately reduces farm profitability.
Traditionally, management strategies for modulating inflammation, such as feed supplements and anti-inflammatory treatments, have been developed primarily during the transition period. However, new research suggests that inflammation management should start much earlier, at dry-off.
2. H5N1 bird flu is advancing east, with roughly 10 million birds affected in the past month
Author(s): Abi Bautista-Alejandre, Assistant Editor
DVM360.com
Poultry farms in Pennsylvania, Indiana, Maryland, and Michigan have reported highly pathogenic avian influenza cases, contributing to the millions of birds affected over the last 30 days.
The highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) virus has continued spreading across US commercial and backyard poultry operations in recent weeks, with federal officials confirming new H5N1 detections in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Michigan, and Indiana. The activity reflects ongoing nationwide activity that has affected approximately 10 million birds in the past 30 days alone.
So far this month, the largest impact has been at a commercial table egg layer farm in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, where 870,000 birds were affected.1,2 In Cecil County, Maryland, a table egg pullet operation also experienced an outbreak involving 354,100 birds.
A commercial turkey farm in Kent County, Michigan, saw 51,700 birds affected. Indiana was also impacted, with 7600 birds at a commercial duck meat facility confirmed infected for the second consecutive week.
3. Strangles Case Confirmed at Virginia Boarding Facility
EDCC Health Watch
TheHorse.com
March 27, 2026
One horse at a boarding facility in Prince William County, Virginia, has tested positive for strangles. The horse is quarantined.
Full text: https://thehorse.com/1143175/strangles-case-confirmed-at-virginia-boarding-facility/
4. Earned Trust in the Feedlot: How One Veterinarian Is Building a Career in Cattle Consulting
Dr. Paige Schmidt is pairing practical field skills with education, relationships and a focus on earning the trust of the people who care for cattle every day.
By Andrea Bedford
Bovine Veterinarian
March 26, 2026
A uterine prolapse is one of the more physically demanding emergencies a cattle veterinarian can face. The organ is heavy and awkward to handle, and replacing it often requires both strength and patience.
Paige Schmidt, DVM, MS, had to reschedule our chat in favor of an emergency call from a client due to a prolapsed uterus. The producer and another rancher had already tried to push the prolapsed uterus back into place themselves, but it wasn't working.
Instead of trying to wrestle the organ back into place alone, Schmidt used a strategy she had learned from other veterinarians.
"You take a giant garbage bag and tie it to one side of the fence," she says. "Then I put it underneath the uterus and have the producer hold it on the other side. So they're holding the heavy uterus, and I'm pushing it in."
The setup makes the job easier in more ways than one.
"One, it saves me from holding it and pushing at the same time," Schmidt says. "And two, it makes them realize how heavy it is because they're the one holding it. Sometimes, that changes their perspective a little."
When the procedure was finished, the rancher was surprised by how quickly it had gone.
5. Nine sickened in E. coli outbreak tied to a California company's raw milk and cheese [edited]
By Jonel Aleccia
APNews.com
March 26, 2026
Nine people, including children, have been sickened in an expanding outbreak of E. coli food poisoning tied to raw milk and cheddar cheese made with it from Raw Farm, a Fresno, California, producer, health officials said.
Two cases in California were added Thursday to the outbreak first announced March 15, bringing the total number of ill people in that state to seven. Two others fell ill in Texas and Florida, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Over half of the illnesses are in children younger than 5. Three people were hospitalized and one developed a dangerous type of kidney infection, the CDC said.
No deaths have been reported in this outbreak.
FDA officials previously advised Raw Farm to recall its raw milk cheddar cheese from stores, but the company refused. To date, no Raw Farm products have tested positive for E. coli, the agency said.
Connecticut Rep. Rosa DeLauro and members of the Congressional Food Safety Caucus urged the FDA to use its mandatory recall authority to pull the Raw Farm products from stores. FDA officials have not said whether the agency will do so.
Full text: https://apnews.com/article/raw-farm-ecoli-sick-milk-cheddar-cheese-0dade23b618cc66e15cc3725fed1f946
6. Fire Recovery: Experts offer advice on caring for livestock following wildfires
Wyoming Livestock Roundup
March 27, 2026
Following devastating wildfires in Nebraska and Kansas in recent weeks, post-fire livestock care is becoming increasingly pertinent as producers turn their attention to recovery.
Additionally, in the face of heightened fire conditions and unseasonably warm, dry conditions throughout the West, understanding strategies for caring for livestock following wildfires can help producers prepare for and recover from fire-related devastation.
To help mitigate the impacts of fire on livestock health, industry experts offer key considerations for assessing injuries, aiding nutrition and supporting recovery in the wake of wildfires.
Cattle health
In the aftermath of a wildfire, assessing animals for signs of physical injury and stress is of utmost importance.
Throughout the weeks following a wildfire, cattle should be assessed frequently and kept away from recently-burned areas until all hot spots are totally extinguished to avoid further risk of injury.
"Ashes, smoldering fencelines, hay piles and hot spots can cause significant injury to hooves and soft tissues," writes Livestock Systems Extension Educator T.L. Meyer in a March 17 news release from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's (UNL) Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources.
Meyer adds burn-related damage - especially in hooves - can take time to show up in full.