Now is the Time to Get Your Herd Ready for Hot Weather
David Balbian, Area Dairy Specialist
Central New York Dairy and Field Crops
Last Modified: May 1, 2014
- Check over & clean your fans and other ventilation equipment to be sure it is in proper working order so that it is ready when you need it.
- Consider installing tunnel ventilation in your tie stall barn. You can contact me for an unbiased assessment of your needs. I can spec out fan capacity needs and inlet requirements.
- Water intake goes up during hot weather. Be sure plenty of water is available. Cows like to drink right after they are milked. Cows will almost always stop to drink water when leaving the milking parlor or when leaving a tie-stall barn right after milking. If you can strategically place a water tub near that exit path it will prove to be beneficial.
- Open up sidewalls on free stall barns. Sidewall curtains are popular, but simply removing the siding will do the same thing.
- Fans in free stall barns should be located in the holding area, over the stalls, and over the area where cows stand to eat at the feed bunk.
- If you have an adequate water supply, sprinklers add an extra measure of relief to cows in free stall housing.
- The use of fans and sprinklers need to be coordinated and designed to work properly together. Consult with someone experienced with these systems to be sure your system is operating properly. A poorly designed system can do more harm than good!
- If you employ intensive rotational grazing and do not have enough pasture to totally satisfy your herd's forage needs, you may want to consider grazing at night only. This assumes you have tunnel ventilation in the barn to keep the cows comfortable during the day.
Dairy
Livestock
Forages
Grains
Upcoming Events
IPM Strategies to Protect Corn and Soybean Seed in NYS
July 22, 2025
Cobleskill, NY
Free event. DEC Credits available
Clearing Hurdles to Improve Milk Quality Conference
July 22 - July 24, 2025
Rochester, NY
three day conference with short courses, seminars, and farm tours
Announcements
Sign Up for Our Weekly E-Newsletter
We send out a bi-weekly e-newsletter that has announcements, upcoming programs, and opportunities for you! Registration is quick, easy, and free. Click here to sign up today!Document and Share Storm Damage
Mother nature has really been difficult over the last few days. Significant damage has been seen throughout NYS. Please let us know what types of damage your farm may have sustained during this time. This could be in the form of property damage, lost power, milk dump due to lost power, loss of livestock, loss of stored feed or growing crops.Farms are encouraged to DOCUMENT AND SHARE any impacts the weather may have had on their home or business. This could include structure damage, crop loss, inventory loss due to power outages, damage to equipment or fencing, and more.
If your farm experienced any sort of damage, please reach out to any of the folks listed below (or all of them). The more impact information that is collected, the greater the likelihood of a disaster declaration which can bring vital emergency support and awareness. The CNYDLFC Team will continue to collect detail and submit to NYSDAM and the EDEN network.
Reporting Weather Related Impacts (For your home or farm business)
- First, ensure that all the people and animals on your farm are safe, and that there aren't any unsafe working conditions created because of the weather (check your structures!). If there's an emergency, call 911 - don't try to manage it all on your own.
- Second, document all negative weather impacts for your farm and their estimated financial cost. Take photos, make estimates, and put it all in a safe place.
- Reach out to your insurance providers - farm, vehicle, crop, etc. to initiate the claim process as needed.
- Then, share your farm's damage with any (or all) of the ag support agencies listed below. We all work together to collect storm damage information and funnel it up to Ag and Markets which can initiate a natural disaster declaration.
Your local Cornell Cooperative Extension Association Office.
- Chenango: 607-334-5841
- Fulton/Montgomery: 518-853-2135
- Herkimer: 315-866-7920
- Madison: 315-684-3001
- Otsego: 607-547-2536
- Schoharie: 518-234-4303
- Saratoga: 518-885-8995
Any of our CNYDLFC Team members (calls/emails/texts/site visit requests all ok)
Your county USDA/FSA service center.
Your county farm bureau manager
Please let us know how we can help you.
- Erik Smith: 315-219-7786
- Daniela Gonzalez: 315-749-3486
- Ashley McFarland- 315-604-2156
Your county USDA/FSA service center.
- Chenango: 607-334-3231
- Fulton/Montgomery: 518-853-4015
- Herkimer: 315-866-2520
- Madison:315-824-9076
- Otsego: 607-547-8131
- Schoharie: 518-295-8600
- Saratoga: 518-692-9940
Your county farm bureau manager
- Region 3: Bailey Coon: 518-937-0566
- Region 5: John Wagner: 315-761-9770
- Region 6: Natally Batiston: 518-937-0269
- Region 7: Todd Heyn: 518-431-9338
Please let us know how we can help you.
Cash Rent and Custom Harvest Survey
To date, there is limited information available about rental rates and fees for crop harvesting. Farms can use this valuable information for their farm business planning to help improve decision making and profitability.The data that is collected, and the subsequent reports/findings/resources will be helpful for all of us to answer that call of "What's the average rental rate in my area?" and "How much do people charge to combine oats?"
Farmers Can Join MeatSuite For Free!
MeatSuite.com is a free resource provided by Cornell University where NY meat farmers can create a farm profile and list their bulk (wholes, halves, quarters) and bundled (i.e. Grilling Bundle) meat products.Why should farmers join?
1. It's free and easy!
2. Connect with more local customers. In the past year the MeatSuite.com farm directory had 8,300 visits from New York consumers. Farm profiles get as many as 25 views per month from potential local customers. We also spotlight MeatSuite farms on social media and bring attention and purchases to farms through highlights and giveaways.
How do I join?
Farmers can visit https://www.meatsuite.com/farmers/ to create a free farm profile. You must list at least one product for your farm's profile to go live. You'll also have access to Cornell's free Meat Price Calculator, a helpful tool for pricing your meat to make a profit.
While you're on MeatSuite, check out the "Creating Consumer-Friendly Bulk Meats" publication on the log-in page. It has tips on how to create bulk meat products that are easier for first-time buyers to say "yes" to.
If you have any questions as you create your farm profile or products, we're here to help! Please email Matt LeRoux at mnl28@cornell.edu.