2. TARGETING THE EMPTY COW Matthew Pugh MRCVS & Bill Main MRCVS

3. Fertility Issues - National Trends Increasing Yields Extended calving Intervals Poor conception rates Reduced heat expression High barren rates Is this true on our farms?

4. Average Lactation Yield Increased from 9000 litres to 10500 litres The net result of genetic improvement and better feeding

5. Milk Sold Per Cow / Year - only up 500 litres ! Less or equal amounts of milk being produced per cow in a year despite her total lactation yield going up.

6. Calving Interval410 – 430 days Cows are getting pregnant over a longer period of time, milk yield is declining in late lactation and the end result is a reduction in milk sold per cow as cows are less productive.

7. Average Days Dry – average 70 days but look at the range!!!!! The best example of this is an extra 10 days dry. At what cost to your pocket?

8. 100 day in % Calf Rate 100days + 282 days – 382 CI Only ~ 40 % of the cows in our NMR recorded herds are getting pregnant by 100 days. Why? Is it a failure to see them in heat or poor conception rates ? Combination of both factors.

9. The End results - Culling for failure to get in Calf National average 17% Target 6% TB!!!!!!

10. Extremes in GB Dairying Holstein BestWorstMean < = 100 cows 6.322.293.67 > 100 and < 200 cows 5.122.13.21 < 200 and < 300 cows 4.252.543.14 > 300 cows 4.041.982.97 Average lactation number: Jan 2006 Source: NMR KPI system

11. As You all know already your working harder! Trend in labour input per cow Herd Size 10 – 4041 - 7070 - 100101 - 150  150 Direct labour cost per cow 2002-0362.9041.1035.0027.3024.70 Direct labour cost per cow 1996-9762.2045.3035.2031.9027.20 Labour hours per 1000 litres 2002-0312.246.734.863.983.29 Labour hours per 1000 litres 1996-9711.528.245.935.214.31 Source: Colman, Farrar, Zhuang

12. Productivity, milk quality and fertility: A Summary Herd size and yields Milk quality and fertility or no change PROFITABILITY

13. Why 365 days? Milk per cow per year Optimal Calving Interval - 365 vs 400days?

15. Example herd – Extended Calving – 1 st service and decreasing conception rates They have lost 1000 litres /cow of their bottom line!

16. The Costs of Infertility – Lost milk 6000 litres / 305 days 10000 / litres 305 days % Yield Drop Per Month ~ 10.5%~ 6.5% Cost per Day’s delay £2.50£1.90 2002 – daisy costing

17. Fertility Yardsticks Calving interval 410 days (target 365) Failure to conceive cull rate of 17% (target 6%) Serves per conception of 2.5 (target 1.8) * National figures from Esslemont & Kossaibatti 2002 What is the overall financial impact of infertility?

18. Semen / AI CostCalf crop – exports???? Lost Milk DIRECT COSTS OF REDUCED FERTILITY

19. Replacement ‘cull’ cost Value of a replacement heifer

20. Costs of sub-fertility – 100 cow BVC herd Days empty : £1.90/ day CI 430 430-365=65 x 1.90 x 100 = £12350 Replacement cost: £60011 culls FTC 17% - 6% = 11cows @ 600 = £6,600 Service cost: £152.5 services / Conception 2.5 – 1.8 = 0.7serves @ 15 = £1,050 Cost for 100 cow herd = £20,000

21. The economics of sub-fertility Divide the £20,000 through a quota of 800,000 litres (100cows @ 8000litres sold /cow /year BVC average) Fertility cost to our average dairy farm equates to 2.5 pence per litre!

22. The Economics of sub fertility Accept 400 day CI is target ?????? Days empty : £1.90/ day CI 430 430-400=30 x 1.90 x 100 = £5700 Replacement cost: £60011 culls FTC 17% - 6% = 11cows @ 600 = £6,600 Service cost: £152.5 services / Conception 2.5 – 1.8 = 0.7serves @ 15 = £1,050 Cost for 100 cow herd = £13335 or 1.67p.p.l.

23. So what are we seeing on Farm?

24. Declining Conception Rates

25. Sub Oestrus Cows Traditional Fresian – 30 years ago Standing Oestrus lasted 15 hours and each cow averaged ~ 50 mounts Modern Holstein Standing oestrus last only ~ 7 hours and manages only 8-9 mounts More “inappropriate” behaviour – stale follicles which do not ovulate so cows show no heat and also cystic ovaries. Most cows are cycling either silently or are not being observed, Dutch Study – 32% of cows that ovulated never showed a standing heat Net result cows are inseminated on secondary bulling signs – chin resting / bellowing etc. Conception rate suffers as the semen has died if the cow is AI along time ahead of ovulation.

26. What can we do about it ? How can we improve our conception rates and our heat detection rates.

27. Improving Herd Performance Records & Analysis Heat Detection Conception Rate

28. Fertility Management – Recording and Analysis

29. What is the current situation? Returns identified quicklyDisaster!

30. The effect of a hard weekend?

31. We can see improvements.

32. Heat Detection

33. 100 day in calf rate The impact of better heat detection 100 CowsFarm AFarm B Conception Rate50% Heat detection Rate 50%75% Day 50 – 70 1 st service period 50 25 75 37 70 – 90 2 nd service period 38 19 48 24 90 – 100 ½ 3 rd service period 14 7 20 10 Number Pregnant at 100 days Number Empty 51 49 71 29 Seen in heat Number pregnant

34. Number of Mounts in relation to Number of Cows in Heat Diskin & Others 2002 Number Of Cows In Oestrus Duration of standing heat (hours) Number of Mounts per Cow 1813 21217 31431 41529 51538

35. When do Cows Show Heat ? TimePercent of Cows in Heat 6 am – noon22% Noon – 6pm10% 6pm – midnight25% Midnight – 6am43% Cornell University study

36. Action lists: Targeted surveillance Spend time with the Cows Time: 20min dedicated 3 x day

37. Aids to heat detection Freeze BrandsTail Paint KamarsTeaser Bulls Pedometers Progesterone testing - MOIRA

38. Oestrus Scoring - Cow reaches 50 points in a 24 hour period - Heat SignPoints Score Clear vulval slime3 Bellowing, butting & restlessness5 Sniffing or licking vagina10 Being mounted and walking off10 Chin resting on another cow15 Mounting other cows or attempting35 Head mounting another cow45 Standing Heat100

39. The “Teaser Bull”

40. Herd A – struggling to detect returns

43. Results 80%-90% PD+ at pregnancy diagnosis previously 50-60% PD+. Conception Rate – still national average 40% Block Calving Herd – stops autumn calving cows becoming spring calving cows !

44. Planning Get everyone on the farm involved. Set time aside to watch your cows. The evening check is the most important – 3 x 30 minutes. Make use of heat detection aids: Cows 45 days calved. Kamar / tail paint cows 10 days post AI – help detect returns Make sure that cows not seen in heat are cycling. “ONOs” – cows not seen in heat by day 60. Consider synchronisation of cows. Early pregnancy diagnosis – identifies the non pregnant cow and gets her served again quickly.

45. Thank you to James Hawkins & Dave Evans