Must Keep Fertility Focus in Dairy Cross Breeding Program

9-12 Week Block Calving….Target 80+% in first 6 weeks
Now that we are using the 12 Week Block Calving Analysis we have a much better idea of what must be improved with our Herd Fertility.

All too often I see farmers either hesitant to cross breed or of more concern just trying any breed to see what happens????

The main advantage of cross breeding in grass fed pasture systems is fertility & cow longevity......more cows incalf quicker & fewer empties. This creates opportunities to increase the number of lactations per cow......a seriously important outcome & a major factor in the Moorepark trials showing the JFX being the most profitable breed. Bulls or AI sires MUST be selected for fertility NUMBER 1
To their credit some farmers are hitting all the Targets (Fantastic result!) mainly thru cross breeding, front end loading with heifers (75%+ calving in the 1st 3 weeks), disease control, culling late calvers (those outside the 12 week window) & ensuring that problem cows if they exist, are sorted early. This includes cows that are in light condition or have for some reason lost condition score recently. The best fertility herds have very few problems…..surprise, surprise!

Heterosis
When two breeds are crossed, intuitively we expect the performance of the crossbred offspring to fall midway between that of the parent breeds. However, in practice the performance of crossbreds is often better than we expect, due to heterosis or hybrid vigour. This is measured by the difference between observed and expected for the measured trait and is usually greatest in traits associated with reproduction, survival and overall fitness, while being less for production traits such as milk production and growth.
So for farmers who have serious concerns about the survival rate of their cows, crossbreeding is the most practical tool currently available in relation to breeding decisions.
Farmers are sometimes put off crossbreeding by uncertainty about how to proceed with a crossbreeding program beyond the first cross. The strategy that captures the greatest amount of the first cross hybrid vigour is called "rotational crossing". In this scheme you mate the cross‑bred cow to the opposite breed of sire of her own sire. For example, if the cow is by a Holstein‑Friesian bull you mate her to a Jersey. If she is by a Jersey bull herself, then you mate her to a NZ Friesian or a carefully selected high fertility Holstein.
On a whole herd basis, this rotational crossing preserves two thirds of the original first cross hybrid vigour if you are working with two parent breeds.

Current Research at Hillsborough in Northern Ireland suggests the major advantage of cross breeding is in increased fertility. Comparing Holstein 1st & 2nd lactation cows with Jersey X Holsteins……The XBred cows had less days to first observed heat cycle, fewer days to 1st AI service, higher conception to 1st AI & a much higher % in calf in the 1st 12 weeks. Interestingly the value of the milk produced was very similar due to the higher components of Milkfat & Protein.
Fertility measure
Holsteins vs Jersey X Holsteins
Conception to 1st AI
36%
63%
Cows Incalf after 12 wks
61%
96%
Trial data from Hillsborough Northern Ireland using 1st & 2nd lactation cows (Conrad Ferris)

Elaine Vance's work with cross breeding at Hillsborough in Northern Ireland shows higher conception rates to 1st service & higher pregnancy rates after 12 weeks to the crossbred JFX cows. This data is very similar to the Moorepark Strain trial where the profitability of the three strains of Holstein-Freisians was compared. The profitability of the NZ Friesian strain herd was consistently the highest mainly because the cost of replacement heifers was always lower due to the higher fertility of the NZ bred cows.

Getting cows in calf is a complicated set of “getting it right management” yet the successful farms keep it simple.
Calves must get off to a good start. Too few herds are getting the 75% target for heifers & much of this goes back to the rearing!
Heifers need to be carefully watched, weighed & fed.
Disease must be eliminated eg BVD which I suspect is rife in both UK & Ireland
Front end load the calving pattern with heifers Plus plenty of bull power for heifers. Minimum 1:20 ratio.
Be very conscious of cow condition & changes in condition for individual cows

Be prepared to use OAD milking to retain cows in the front 9 weeks

Excellent heat detection eg. Spray paint tail paint on heifers with a second colour
Cross Breeding selecting breeds & bulls on fertility & components
Good records…..especially of cows “with a history” of problems at calving
Excellent staff, who know the targets & are focussed on the goals
Courage to go “cold Turkey” if your calving is too spread
Everyone is refreshed after calving & keen to succeed
Analyse your 12 week block & focus on what needs to change in your herd.

What do you think? Please add your comments below

December a Crucial Month for Spring Calving Dairy Cows in UK

Dry cow feeding in December is really important. For February calvers December is make or break month. Young stock have target weights to achieve & most spring calving dairy cows need to gain condition.

Today at Stafford I saw a group of extremely well grown heifers outwintering on Swift forage crop. Not only were they well grown but they were in great condition as well. At last weighing these heifers were on target LWTs. Makes a huge difference when you actually know the weights. Too few farmer weigh the young stock.

NZ targets at 21months (630 days) are Friesian 475kgs, XBred 420kgs & Jersey 365kgs LWT. For 24month (730 days) targets add 60-110kgs. The 10 week calf target is 100kgs....these calves need at least 17MJ/day for maintenance alone.

So lets look at the feed requirements for heifers....a 212kg LWT heifer (10months of age) requires 30MJ/day for maintenance. A 440 kg LWT Heifer (22 months) requires 46MJ/day for maintenance. To acheive winter weight gains above 0.5 kgs/heifer/day the 22month heifer needs approx 9kgsDM/day...(2% of LWT).....whereas the younger heifer (10months) requires nearly 5kgsDM/day(2.2% LWT). This assumes top quality feed.

Dry Cows need very good feeding in December if they are to calve in good calving condition. A mature aged 500kg cow has a maintenance requirement of 54MJ-60MJ/day. To gain a Condition Score (NZ) in a month requires at least an additional 55MJ/day above maintenance. Remember in the last 30-40 days before calving you can't expect to put extra condition on a cow that is about to calve.

I am working with three keen Discussion Group members to both monitor Cow Condition & to develop a decision making tool that combines Cow Condition Score with Calving Date information.

To date there are some interesting findings.....most cows continue to lose condition in late lactation even with very good feeding (this maybe genetic??)...........Cows initially lose additional condition when they are dried off (possibly change of diet??).......Dry Cows need to be fed very well to put on 1kg LWT/day....its a tough target!......and finally maybe heifers need extra time compared to mature aged cows to gain condition.

Can dry cows gain the necessary condition when outwintered on forage crops......the jury is out!

Lastly some interesting Irish work showed that dry cows of high genetic merit could gain weight faster than 1kg LWT per day.......mind you they tended to lose it more easily in late lactation too.

Achieving good cow condition at calving is key to good milk production & better fertility results. A lot hinges on a good December.

Pasture Based Dairy Farmers Must Commit to Research

Last week I attended the UK Nuffield Farming Scholarship Conference in Chester. I was very impressed by the obvious learning & excitement that is the "Journey" that Nuffield takes young people in Agriculture. A "Nuffield" creates an opportunity to travel the world & enter into the wonderful experience of personal research in something agricultural.

Every 'Pasture to Profit Discussion' Group member should be aiming to win a Nuffield....its a journey that changes peoples lives & businesses forever.

Yet within the excitement of Nuffield there was also reason for deep concern. As each scholar spoke about their travels & research.........I got more troubled about where agriculture in the UK is going...what is the future? Why? Each Nuffield speaker spoke of the amazing advances in agricultural research, on farm innovation, the large scale of farming in some advanced countries like NZ, Australia, USA, Brazil, Canada & Argentina.

How are we going to compete???? In Europe agriculture is besieged by regulators, research is under funded (& in the UK almost wiped out completely) & farming innovation has been squashed by decades of debilitating subsidies. Sadly there is a culture within agriculture that does not include research as a focus for progress.

This very sad culture includes UK politicians who clearly don't respect nor value research. The inane politicians are more likely to be influenced by popular 'of the day' lobby groups (eg TB eradication & GM technology) rather than 'Good Science'.

'Pasture to Profit' grass based dairy farmers & their Discussion Groups need to totally embrace agricultural research. Our very future depends on it. Make no mistake without research & active on farm innovation there is NO future.

There are a number of different levels of research that we need to consider.

Dairy Research Funding in the UK

Recently Discussion groups financially contributed to fund young Irish researchers to travel to NZ. This is a great illustration of commitment to research.

However it begs the question about the value of DairyCo levies & the research return we get as grass based dairy farmers from DairyCo. I see little tangible evidence of research that is of value to grass based dairy farmers in the UK. Dairy research in the UK is in serious trouble in my view.

Participation in On Farm Research in the UK

At every opportunity we must get involved with & encourage on farm research projects in the UK. We can contribute, enhance the research & effectively back good science & top research teams. Being part of the projects also means we have quicker access to the results & can spread it amongst the groups. Good research will be taken up quickly.

We (members of Discussion Groups across the UK) are currently working with Dr Christina Marley's group from Aberystwyth measuring green house gases with dairy farmers who outwinter on saved pasture. A Dairy Cross Breeding research project headed by Gillian Butler from Newcastle University is about to start with another group of 'Pasture to Profit' dairy farmers. Several OMSCo grass based organic farmers are acting as Demo farms for research into energy use on dairy farms. This involvement must continue at a pace.

Access & Face to Face Contact with Top Researchers

Dairy farmers must get access to the very best Agricultural researchers & their work. We must establish a dialogue & create opportunities for direct Face to Face contact where ever possible. Many group members have benefitted by their conversations with the likes of Dr Padraig French from Moorepark, Valerie Brocard from Travarez in France or Dr Jock MacMillan from Melbourne University Australia or Dr John Roche from Ruakura NZ.

On Farm Innovation & Personal Research

Dairy farmers in grass based Discussion Groups must be at the forefront of new ideas & innovation. This involves personal research, accurate recording & bright ideas. We in the UK should 'walk tall'...........I think we lead the world in some areas eg Dairy Cow fertility & Outwintering techniques & are leaders in grass management & utilization in the Northern Hemishere.

Doing a Nuffield is an extension of this concept of 'do it yourself research'.

We in the UK are going to have to fight for our right to exist in a very competitive world. For this to be reality we must embrace research in all of its forms & spread good agricultural science & the results of the research to our Discussion Groups as fast as possible.

We are going to have to initiate change in the UK......compared to the rest of the world we are being left behind. So what are we going to do about it NOW.

"The foundation of every state is the education of its youth" quote Diogenes (Ancient Greek Philosopher 412BC-323BC)

I wonder what Diogenes would make of the state of dairy research in the UK???