Elanco’s John Lee offers catchy insight about replacement dairy heifer management from beef industry practices.
“After three to four unsuccessful services and a maximum of six, 21-day cycles, stop breeding those heifers. In most herds, 95 percent of heifers will be pregnant by the third or fourth service and only 5 percent of heifers will be culled. However, these infertile heifers will be the source of a lion’s share of ongoing problems.”
Source: Hoard’s Dairyman, January 30, 2017.
Breeding should start when heifers reach 55 percent of adult weight and 85 percent of adult height,” said Lee, citing Penn State recommendations. “Breeding heifers is not a voluntary wait period, it’s a voluntary weight period,” Lee went on to say using a play on words.