318 | The Hidden Costs of Heat Stress with Jimena Laporta
Filmed at the Adisseo VIP Seminar, Peggy Coffeen interviews Dr. Jimena Laporta, associate professor and lactation physiologist at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, about how heat stress during late gestation programs calves for lifelong—and even multi-generational—effects.
Dr. Laporta explains that fetuses exposed to maternal heat stress are more likely to be born smaller and weaker, absorb fewer immunoglobulins, experience higher sickness and early herd exit rates, and produce less milk across multiple lactations. Florida data shows 12–18% higher culling rates and significant long-term milk losses in animals exposed to in utero heat stress, with an estimated $800 million annual impact across the U.S. dairy industry.
This Episode is brought to you by Adisseo
This episode is sponsored by Uplevel Dairy Podcast Founding Partner Adisseo, a global leader in nutritional solutions and premier provider of rumen-protected methionine for dairy producers who want to optimize milk production, capture more value from components, and maintain the health of their high-performing herds. Learn more at https://www.adisseo.com/en/
00:00 Heat Stress Before Birth
01:32 Meet Dr. Laporta
04:21 Fetal Programming Explained
07:42 Economic Impact
12:04 Multi-Generation Effects
14:06 Dry Cow Mitigation
17:22 Pre-Weaned Calf Cooling Research
21:14 Measuring Mammary Development
23:23 Key Takeaways
