Technology continues to push the envelope when it comes to reproductive efficiency. Automated monitoring systems and sort gates have proven to be productive investments for dairy farms across the country.

Managing herd health and reproduction on a dairy farm is a constant challenge that requires keen observation, experience and timely interventions. For Calori-D Dairy, implementing the CowManager monitoring system in December 2022 marked a turning point in how they managed their cows – both for health and reproduction.

From reducing unnecessary culling to enhancing milk production, there are numerous opportunities to improve the efficiency and profitability of dairy farming. Here are five tips to improve reproduction on the dairy.

Proper semen handling may sound commonsensical to many; however, these are the factors that are often the easiest to overlook.

The 2023 Dairy Cattle Reproduction Council (DCRC) annual meeting had an agenda packed with presentations discussing reproductive health, new approaches to management, beef-on-dairy markets, fertility, and calfhood health effects on reproductive performance that kept the more than 200 attendees busy over the three-day event.

The integration of beef into the dairy industry has reshaped the market as we know it today and has furthered the potential to foster the development of a sustainable beef industry. Simplot Animal Sciences has elected Luis Davalos, who is a farm manager for Corrales Dairy in Roswell, New Mexico, to speak on this topic as he has extensive knowledge in what it takes to run a successful breeding program.

“I used to raise a lot of heifers just because it was cheap to raise them and if one didn’t work out, there were others to replace her,” Souza says. “That doesn’t work anymore. You have to be very intentional with the heifers you choose to raise.”