More on the Dairy Cow Birthing Center Changes at the Fair

From the New York Animal Agriculture Coalition:

The New York Animal Agriculture Coalition has announced the Dairy Cow Birthing Center exhibit that debuted at the 2013 New York State Fair will return in the same location in 2014, only bigger and better.  

 

The exhibit, which showcased 30 dairy cows giving birth to baby calves, was one of the most popular exhibits at the New York State Fair last year, attracting over 160,000 fairgoers.

“NYAAC is pleased to return this educational exhibit to the New York State Fair, and expand upon the success we achieved last year,” said Jessica Ziehm, executive director for NYAAC.  “The dairy industry couldn’t have been more pleased with the overwhelmingly positive response we received from fairgoers who visited the Birthing Center last year.  Our tent was filled to capacity during most births and the level of interest exhibited by the public was impressive.”

The Dairy Cow Birthing Center will return to the New York State Fair in the same location, on the west end of the fairgrounds, inside Gate 9 and adjacent to the FFA exhibit. In doing so, the exhibit will be housed in a 40 percent larger tent and will offer double the seating for those who wish to observe the birth of a baby calf. In addition to seating, NYAAC will also add large TV screens to enhance the viewing. The TVs will display the live births, as well as show scenes from the featured dairy farm that day.

The Birthing Center will continue to provide a 24-hour live webcam so people can view the births at home, courtesy of Cornell University. Even more exciting, fairgoers this year will have the opportunity to sign in at the exhibit to be alerted via text or email as to when labor commences. These improvements and others made to the Dairy Cow Birthing Center this year are all being done to improve the experience and environment for both fairgoers and animals.  

“During this day in age when good information is hard to find, NYAAC wants consumers to know they can go right to the source when they have questions about dairy farms and milk produced in New York State,” Ziehm said.  “Having real-life dairy farmers and veterinarians available for questions was the second most popular aspect of the Birthing Center and we are thrilled to report that they too are planning to return to the State Fair this year.”

The Dairy Cow Birthing Center is a free, educational exhibit that provides fairgoers the opportunity to witness the live birth of baby calves daily.  Over 100 dairy farmers, veterinarians, affiliated business representatives and agricultural students volunteer their time at the exhibit to assist with the births, explain the process to the public, and answer any questions.  The exhibit also offers calves for petting and educational exhibits about the dairy industry.  Another new feature this year will be year-old calves that were born last year during the State Fair.

NYAAC organizes the exhibit in partnership with the New York State Fair and Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine. NYAAC is a farmer founded and funded organization that strives to enhance the public’s understanding of and appreciation for animal agriculture and modern farm practices by engaging the public in conversations about animal agriculture and empowering farmers to tell their story firsthand.

If you or your organization cares to support this initiative by either making a contribution or volunteering your time at the State Fair, contact Jessica Ziehm with NYAAC at jessica@nyanimalag.org or at 518-527-3949.  Visit NYAAC’s website at www.nyanimalag.org for regular updates about the Dairy Cow Birthing Center, along with other dairy farm advocacy efforts taking place around the state.