Freshening Herdsmen

Work description

Northside uses a managed reproductive program that generates a predictable, calendar-driven surge in fresh cow and calf-related labor from Winter - Spring each year. The Freshening Herdsman will perform the following primary duties, including baseline milking responsibilities, with additional duties concentrated during the winter–spring freshening season. Fresh Cow Management: monitoring cows in the fresh pen for post-partum illness including metritis, ketosis, displaced abomasum, and hypocalcemia; administering propylene glycol, calcium boluses, and IV fluids under veterinary supervision; recording treatments and outcomes in DairyComp; adjusting pen stocking and moving cows as health status changes. Calving Surveillance and Assistance: maintaining continuous monitoring of close-up pen during peak calving months (December through February); assisting with dystocia and difficult presentations; tagging and recording newborn calves; cleaning and resetting calving area following each event; ensuring cow-calf separation per biosecurity protocol. Colostrum Management: milking fresh cows to obtain first-milking colostrum; tube feeding or bottle-feeding neonatal calves within the first 2 hours of birth; labeling, dating, and refrigerating or freezing surplus colostrum for subsequent calves. Calf Transfer Preparation: processing each newborn calf for transport to DJF. Confirming colostrum intake, applying ear tag, completing individual calf health record, recording birth weight; coordinating transfer schedule and transport logistics with DJF staff; ensuring proper calf loading and biosecurity protocols are observed at transfer. Dry Cow Pre-Fresh Transition: moving cows from far-off dry pen to close-up pen at appropriate pre-calving interval; monitoring close-up cows for signs of imminent calving and early metabolic disease; body condition coring and reporting to herd manager. Pregnancy Diagnosis Support: drafting and moving cows to the preg-check chute; restraining individual cows for veterinary ultrasound or rectal palpation; recording pregnancy outcomes in DairyComp; sorting open cows for re-enrollment in synchronization protocols. Cull Cow Sorting and Documentation: identifying cows flagged for culling by herd manager; sorting culls from main herd; completing producer statements, health certificates, and transport paperwork; loading culls for shipment in coordination with contracted haulers. Milking: performing routine milking of assigned cows/pens as part of the farm's regular milking rotation, including udder preparation and sanitation, proper unit attachment and removal, monitoring for mastitis or abnormal milk, and adherence to milk quality and food-safety protocols. DairyComp Record Entry: entering all fresh cow events, treatments, diagnoses, calving outcomes, and calf transfers into DairyComp on same-day basis to maintain herd record integrity required for DHIA reporting and milk quality compliance.