A2B-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, April 5, 2003 Penn State Cooperative Extension Capitol Region Dairy Team LEARNING ABOUT MEXICAN HOLIDAYS Vinton E. Smith Dairy Management Agent Capitol Region You might first ask yourself, “Why is this guy who works with dairy farms writing about Mexi can holidays?” Well, it is quite an interesting story. About five years ago, I was working with dairy farms in cen tral New York, many of which were employing Mexican and other Latin American workers. At that time, I knew very little about the workers’ cultural back ground. However, I realized that there was a growing need for training programs to help the workers and farm owners to be more successful. Hence, my inter est really began to grow. Since that time, I have been in volved with many different pro grams that have broadened my perspective and understanding of the Mexican culture. These in clude coordinating a milker training school in Spanish, facili tating four Spanish For Dairy men classes with 48 farm owners or employees, and I helped to de velop and coordinate four “Man aging the Hispanic Workforce” conferences. Now my family and I live and work in Adams County, an area with a growing Mexican and Latin American population. Vis iting with and leaning about our Latino neighbors has been a very rewarding and enriching experi ence! One of the most interesting things I have learned about the Mexican culture is their apprecia tion of traditional and religious “das festivos” or holidays. Here are highlights of a few of the most important: • Semana Santa. Semana Santa or Holy Week celebrates the Christian holiday of Easter and runs from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday. Since about 90 percent of Mexicans are Catholic, attending Mass on Good Friday and Easter Sunday are typical traditions. This is also a time that Mexicans enjoy celebrating with their families and communities. • Cinco de Mayo. The Cinco de Mayo or “The Fifth of May” commemorates Mexico’s victory over the French in The Battle of Puebla in 1862. France had in vaded the Gulf Coast of Mexico with their army of 6,500 well-pre pared soldiers. They were in route to Mexico City when they were defeated by a smaller, poor ly outfitted Mexican army of 4,500 that was lead by Mexican General Ignacio Zaragoza Se i>uin. The victory was a splendid moment for the Mexican people, however, Napoleon sent 30,000 nore troops and was eventually able to defeat the Mexican army, fake over Mexico City, and install fjench rule over Mexico. This only lasted a few years, ending as the U.S began providing more political and military assistance to Mexico. Even though the French did eventually defeat Mexico, Cinco de Mayo honors the bravery of General Zarago za’s small, outnumbered militia at the Battle of Puebla. • Mexican Independence Day. Mexican Independence Day is celebrated on Sept. 16 and com memorates the start of the battle for independence from Spain. Early on the morning of Sept. 16, 1810, Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, a Catholic priest in the village of Dolores, delivered “El Grito de Dolores.” This “Cry of Dolores” was “Mexicanos, Viva Mexico!” and was directed toward the In dian and mestizo people who had been exploited by the Spaniards. Hidalgo’s cry inspired the revolu tion and he became known as the father of Mexican independence. • Dade los Muertos. The “Day of the Dead” celebrations take place on Nov. 1 and 2, All Saints Day and All Souls Day, re spectively. This tradition stems from ancient indigenous people of Mexico who believed that the souls of the dead “return” to be with the living every year. While the celebration varies across dif ferent regions of Mexico, the fes tivities often begin with families fixing up the graves of deceased relatives and even building elabo rate altars at the cemeteries. One candle is placed for each dead soul. The altars are often decora ted with marigolds (the tradition al flower of the dead), mementos, photos and other remembrances of the dead. They celebrate by eating traditional foods such as “pan de muerto” (bread of the dead) and favorite foods of their deceased relatives. • Dade Nuestra Seora de Guadalupe. The “Virgin of Gua dalupe Day” is in honor of Mexi co’s patron saint and is cele brated on Dec. 12. The history of this holiday dates back to 1531 when Juan Diego was crossing a barren hill called Tepeyac Hill to attend Mass. Suddenly, he was stopped by a bright light and the sound of heavenly music. Then a beautiful dark-skinned woman declared herself to be the Virgin Mary and mother of Jesus Christ. She told Juan Diego of her desire to have a church built on that barren hill and asked him to relay that message to the Bishop. When Diego was finally able to speak to the Bishop, the Bishop asked for proof that this encoun ter really took place. A few days later, The Virgin once again ap peared to Diego on Tepeyac Hill. He explained the Bishop’s re quest. She instructed him to pick roses from the hill, a place where roses didn’t typically grow, and deliver them to the Bishop as a sign of this encounter. When Diego laid the roses out for the Bishop, a perfect image of “La Virgen Morena” (the Dark Vir gin) was revealed on Juan Die go’s cloak. The Bishop then or dered that a small church be built on the site of the “appearance.” Today, a much larger Basilica has been built in honor of the “Virgen de Guadalupe.” Careful ly preserved inside is Juan Die go’s miraculous cloak that still has a very clear image of the “Virgen de Guadalupe” imprint ed on it. Interestingly, just last ‘Moo University * Looks At Cow Health ANDY ANDREWS Editor NEW HOLLAND (Lancaster Co.) Vaccination programs for heifers should start not real early, but at the right time about 4-6 months of age to get maximum herd health benefits, according to a Penn State veterinarian. Dr. Arlen Mills noted that modified live vaccines are used to protect the young cow for a host of diseases he reviewed last week at a special beginning and young dairy farmer meeting called “Moo University” at Yoder’s Restaurant in New Holland. Mills, along with Penn State Dairy Agent Beth Grove, spoke to a couple dozen dairy produc ers and agri-industry representa tives at the Penn State event. The capitol region extension veterinarian, based in Lebanon County, noted how important it is to maintain good biosecurity when using vaccines. “Don’t put a used needle into the bottle of vaccine,” he caution ed the young dairy farmers. He told them that several doses are needed to protect the cow from disease. “If you use only one dose, the heifer is not vaccinated,” Mills said. “You have to follow up with a second dose. Follow the instruc tions on these items.” Also, it’s important not to let the vaccines, especially modified live, to sit in the sun. And don’t use a disinfectant in the syringe, because that kills the vaccine. Mills reviewed various diseases at the “Moo University”: • IBR. Known as infectious bovine rhinotracheitis virus, the agent is a herpes virus that in fects through the respiratory sys tem). It causes abortions. • PI 3. Also called para-influ enza, the disease infects the respi ratory system. A mild infection follows, which gives bacteria the opportunity to invade. • BRSV. The bovine respirato ry syncitial virus causes pneumo nia. Acidosis seems to be a trig ger, but it can affect cows and calves. • BVD. Bovine virus diarrhea affects the respiratory, digestive, and reproductive tracts, affecting the immune system as well. It creates lesions and ulcers over different parts of the body. It’s important to know that the per sistently infected cow becomes so only when it is exposed as a fetus (cows get only a transient or mild infection that doesn’t last, but can infect the growing r fetus). BVD causes lots of reproduction problems. year, Pope John Paul II raised Juan Diego to Sainthood. • Las Posadas y Navidad. Las Posadas is the start of the Christ mas season and celebrates Joseph and Mary’s search for a room at an inn in Bethlehem. Navidad is similar to our traditional reli gious Christmas celebration. Navidad is one of the biggest fies tas of the year. People all across Mexico take time off and make spending time with family and friends a priority. One of the big gest traditions is “Las Posadas,” which takes place during the 12 days before Christmas and is a procession that grows in numbers as it makes it way to the church. Once at the church, a celebration of mass is held. Then, the adults visit and enjoy everyone’s compa ny while the children enjoy play ing games and breaking piatas. Overall, Christmas is more then just one day, it truly is a cele bration of the Christmas season. Special thanks to Leticia Be tances for her review of and con tributions to this article. Refer ences: http://www.mexonline.com and http://span»shiabeutiC6m-. - - - Dr. Arlen Mills, Penn State herd health veterinarian, joins Beth Grove, Lancaster County dairy agent, at the re cent Moo University at Yoder’s Restaurant in New Hol land. Photo by Andy Andrews, editor • Leptospirosis. Producers can vaccinate for five strains. Bacte ria infect kidneys and abortions can be caused at 6-9 months. Source may be water or rodents. It’s important to get the heifers vaccinated as early as possible, Mills noted, before they are in fected. Also, it’s important to focus on the overall herd immunity by looking at colostrum manage ment, ventilation, and not to vac cinate too young (at 3-5 weeks, a calf’s immune system is only be ginning to build up). Keep a wary eye on the calf s health at a month of age, accord ing to Mills, because “the calf is in a precarious place” in terms of its health. Also, watch body conditioning on the cows, supplement with Vi tamin E and selenium in the diet, and feed the cow “to feed the calf,” Mills said. Mills reviewed key health guidelines in maternity pens, keeping pens clean, and keeping calves away from the older ani mals to prevent Johne’s Disease. When calving, learn how to wait and be patient, noted the veterinarian. Beth Grove, Lancaster dairy agent, reviewed where Lancaster herds stand in terms of overall production. Grove noted that Lancaster falls short on days to first service (a good goal should be 75, she noted, while Lancaster stands, on average, at 96). Shortening those days can add up to major dollars for producers. Greater dry matter intake could be key to a cow ovulating earlier after calving. Cow comfort and footing are essential. Producers could also be selecting for poor reproductive traits as they search for improved production genetics. Herd managers should have roughly half the herd pregnant at any given time, she said, with a 13.5-month calving interval. Grove reviewed some of the new research that debunks sever al accepted norms. The old rea soning that cows would stay in heat 18 hours, be observable in heat at night, and go back to being in heat every 21 days is being rethought. Cows today are different, according to one study, that showed cows stay in heat only eight hours, with only nine mounts or stands per heat period (Holstein) or 12 mounts for Jer seys. Cows are also more likely to show heats not necessarily at night, but when first turned out or when not eating or resting. “Cows do not fit into the mold that we used to think they did,” said Grove. Grove spoke about technology to detect heat, such as Heat- Watch, using a pressure-type pad and radio signal telemetry. Cost for a 100-cow dairy to detect mounts is about $6,000, she said. Grove noted that meetings such as “Moo University” could be continued at later dates around the county.
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