D Is For Doo-Doo

I'm taking you on a journey from A to Z through the land of dairy! 

There's no need to pack your bags, just come along!

D is for Doo-Doo.

It seems whenever I am asked to give a dairy presentation, questions eventually fall on the topic of poop, doo-doo, or what we farmers called manure. Yes, everyone poops! So here is the scoop on poop.

A cow will eat 30-50 pounds of food each day. She then poops about 10 times a day. According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) on average, a full grown cow produces approximately 120-148 lbs. of manure per day with an average of 65% to 70% of this being water. 

Now on to the bigger question, "What do you do with all the doo-doo?" The manure is removed everyday to keep every animal as clean and healthy as possible.

Farmer John uses a skid steer loader to clean the barns.

The manure is loaded into a wagon (pulled by a tractor) called a manure spreader that spreads the manure on the fields.

The skid steer loader fills the manure spreader.

We recycle the cow manure and use it as a fertilizer for crops. Federal, state and local clean water laws regulate how manure is applied on cropland, so nutrients are absorbed by crops, not groundwater.The manure helps the fields get back the important nutrients that help the crops grow. So there you have it...what we do with the doo-doo.

This equipment is used EVERY day. That's why it's a bit "soiled."

Learn more about dairy at Dairy Makes Sense

I am making a commitment to share as much as I can with you each day this month, about the life of our dairy farm family including what we do, how we share our passion for dairy, and dairy foods we enjoy.

 See you here tomorrow...E is for Every.

Thanks to Anna, for this topic idea! 

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