The route from the dry pen to the lactating pen is a very important stage in a cow’s life. Fresh cows set the pace for the entire herd, and the first 60 days post-calving define a cow’s lactation.

When it comes to your herd’s reproduction program, you might be satisfied with a 20 percent pregnancy rate, considering the national 21-day rate average is between 13 and 15 percent. But even 20 percent no longer sets the bar – that’s yesterday’s number. Today’s top herds are pushing that figure higher and higher into the upper 20s and even past 30 percent.

In order to achieve any goal in life, the first step is to believe it is possible. Perhaps your herd is averaging 26,000 or 28,000 pounds of milk. That’s nothing to shake your head at.