With the arrival of lower-cost genomic testing options, an increasing number of registered purebred and commercial producers are using these tools for routine sorting and selection applications. While genomic testing costs have come down, they can still be substantial, and dairymen are searching for the most cost-effective applications of the technology. To address these issues, there are tools and strategies available that can help the producer make a good decision for their unique situation.

Do the continually changing industry selection indexes and recent genetic base change have you questioning what that means for your genetic plan? The recent genetic base change caused an industry-wide rollback for most traits for all bulls, cows and heifers. Previously, we determined proof values for a sire by comparing his daughters to the average cow born in 2005.

“I’m the cow guy here,” says dairy producer Steve Bollant, who runs a 695-cow dairy and grows 1,800 acres of crops together with his brother near Stitzer, Wisconsin. “I am the one who always walked all of the pens eight to 10 times a day, looking for heats and checking the cows. Physically, I was getting so I couldn’t do it anymore.”

Throughout December, extension educators from four universities across the country collaborated to provide dairy genomics workshops for producers, veterinarians and allied industry.

Most dairy producers have probably heard that in vitro fertilization (IVF) is expensive but may not know much more about it than that. It’s true, IVF can be expensive, but so is feed and labor.

In vitro fertilization (IVF) is finding its place on commercial dairies, but the way it is being used may come as a surprise.

What if you could improve your dairy’s 21-day pregnancy rate simply by taking the time to hold a bi-monthly team meeting? That is what happened to nearly all of the 40 dairies enrolled in the University of Wisconsin’s Repro Money program.

Back in November, the Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding (CDCB) began conducting preliminary genomic evaluations on a weekly basis. Prior to this change, genomic evaluations were provided each month, requiring producers to submit samples by a predetermined due date in order to deliver results as part of the next month’s official report.

When we talk about how to evaluate reproductive performance in a dairy herd, numerous terms come up in the discussion. Some of these terms are related to averages, and others are related to rates (or risks).

While certainly not a new concept, inbreeding has become a hot topic in recent years. Producer concern is on the rise over whether genomics is creating too much inbreeding in the dairy cattle population. The worry is that there will soon be limited options to which a herd can be bred to avoid negative effects of inbreeding.