NEWSFebruary/March 2016

Using the data made available through your regular DHI test day can uncover opportuni-ties to help your dairy be more profitable without additional labor or stress to your animals.

Previously I talked about the advantage of SCC information found on the DHI-402 Herd Evaluator Report. As you know, reproduction has a large impact on the productivity and profitability of your dairy so in this series’ second installment let’s take a look at the DHI-202 Herd Summary Report and how to use it to help manage your herd’s repro.

Voluntary Waiting Period (VWP)The VWP is a time during early lactation where cows are not inseminated, even if they show signs of estrus, to allow the cow to undergo a healing process called involution after calving. Seventy days in milk is a common VWP, and if a cow becomes pregnant on that first breeding (a

Pennies make dimes and dimes make dollars (2nd in series)~Kevin Haase, NorthStar Team Leader and DHI Services Specialist

280 day gestation period plus the 70 day VWP), it would result in an 11.5 month calving interval. Obviously not all cows will become pregnant on the first service, but starting early and monitoring VWP will increase the chances that you’ll hit your target. Getting the first breeding done before 100 days is a reasonable average for all cows, and a good goal for hitting a calving interval is 12-13.5 months. The 202 Report shows the value of the VWP in both the current breeding herd and total breeding herd sections.

Days OpenKeeping your herd’s days open below 140 days is crucial as increased days in milk leads to a steady decline of milk production, ultimately reducing profitability. I often see herds being bred within their VWP but miss the first opportunity to test cows for pregnancy. Without quick pregnancy confirmation, the herd loses time that could be spent with the A.I. specialist speeding up preg-nancy and reducing days open.

Confirming pregnancy status early is key to reduc-ing days open. While there are many pregnancy diagnosis options, the Milk Pregnancy Test may be a convenient way to check for pregnancy sooner, or between your scheduled herd health visits.

Reducing your herd’s days open can also add to your bottom line. Industry research indicates that each additional day a cow is open costs you any-where between $3 and $5. Consider for a moment the economic advantage of reducing days open in a 100-cow herd by ten days. Using the more conservative estimate of $3 lost per day x 10 days x 100 cows, the cost quickly adds up to $3,000 for the entire herd. Additionally, when reducing your herd’s days open, higher flows of milk are more prominent when it’s time to dry cows in prepara-tion for their next lactation. The 202 Report provides a great overview of days open.

Set Goals and Seek Help These are a few examples of how using your existing DHI data can help you pull more pennies

and dimes out of your reproduction program. Be sure to involve your farm partners (veterinarian, nutritionist, DHI Specialist, reproduction specialist, etc.) in the process, as we are all interested in helping your dairy be more profitable.

If you have questions con-tact me at haasek@north-starcooperative.com or visit with your DHI Specialist. We are here to help you.

HERD SUMMMARY - DHI 202

NorthStar Cooperative: 1.800.631.3510 • northstarcooperative.com

Milk Diagnostic testsTest Days/ Results Price Pregnancy 1 Contagious 3 Mastitis 2 Complete 16 Mastitis 3 Leukosis 5 Bulk Tank 5 BVD 5 Pooled (250:1) 10 – 20 Johne’s 5 Bulk Tank 10 Neospora 5

$4.50 $27.00$35.00$6.00

$18.00$6.00

$40.00$6.00

$40.00$6.00

Ask for any of these

options on your DHI

test day.