Managing Reproduction in the Cowherd

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1 Managing Reproduction in the Cowherd The 30 day game changer My Background Raised on family ranch near Poteau, OK OSU 1985 TAMU 1988 ABS 28 years Family practices what we preach on home ranch Reproductive Management for Profit Or 30 day game changer 1

2 30 day game changer?? Manage to get as many females pregnant in the first 30 days of your breeding season as possible Manage distribution of those pregnancies..early early early Herd health Nutrition Reproductive management strategies Pounds of calf weaned per cow exposed is a better tool but difficult to measure Sale day is pretty important Every lost opportunity to get a bull through the sale ring costs us dearly 2

3 Strategy Combine multiple technologies for profitable reproductive management ES AI Short breeding season PregChecking Blood test Arm Ultrasound Improve cattle handling skills Where to start (ANSC 101) Pregchecking Arm Blood test Ultrasound Shorten breeding season Replace late calving cows with heifers out of early calving cows and manage them to calve early Improve cattle handling skills Cattle Handling Skills Effects of Temperament and Acclimation to Handling on Reproductive of Bos taurus Beef Females (R. F. Cooke et al., Oregon State University) J. Anim. Sci. (2012) 90:

4 Aggressive Temperament Cows Cows with aggressive temperament had reduced pregnancy (95% = adequate and 89% = aggressive) calving rate (92% adequate and 85% aggressive) Had reduced weaning rate Pound of calf weaned per cow reduced in aggressive cows. (491 pounds = adequate and 455 pounds = aggressive) Cattle Handling Educators Ron Gill Texas A&M University Tom Noffsinger Feedlot Veterinarian from NE Curt Pate South Dakota Rancher Rgill@ag.tamu.edu Publications Cattle Handling Pointers Designing a Bud Box Ron Gill Stockmanship 4

5 Why Have a calving season? Commercial Uniform age and weight at marketing Calves born in the first 30 days of your calving season generate all your potential profit Efficiency of a herd health plan Seed Stock Tight contemporary groups lead to good genetic selection AI sired progeny born early have most value This can be done Producer A Personal determination to have a 60 day breeding season Producer B Wanted to be successful but didn t know where to begin Both began as Trich infested herds with poor reproductive performance Why have a calving season? This question was asked in an article written by Glenn Selk and published in October 2015 by Drovers Journal 400 ranches SPA data TX, OK, NM Positive relationship between length of breeding season and cost to produce 100 pounds of calf Year round breeder has $13.50/cwt higher cost of production than producer with a 75 day breeding season 5

6 Reasons for Choosing a Calving Season Gives you a Marketing Advantage Gives you a management advantage match your production scheme to your ranch resources (environment) Allows you to manage a herd health strategy ESTROUS SYNCHRONIZATION AND AI IN BEEF CATTLE ESTROUS SYNCHRONIZATION AND AI IN BEEF CATTLE 6

7 My favorite protocols 7 day Co-Sync + CIDR Cows Heifers 14 day CIDR protocol in heifers Are you ready to AI? Start with heifers that are born early (ANSC 201) Maybe next year breed heifers and 2 s (ANSC 301) Maybe third year breed heifers 2 s and 3 s (ANSC 401) Pregnancy has 4 times greater economic impact than any other production trait! 7

8 Reproductive Pressure on heifers Sync and AI plus 50 days natural service Its Ok to have 15% opens 5 to 8% can be non breeders Another 5 to 8% can be slow to breed We do not need these females in the system Pregnancy rate to 30 days is of utmost importance Young Cows You can have 90% plus pregnancy rate in young cows if you put pressure on yearlings to perform Its better to cull as yearlings than lose her as a late calving two or three year old. Two Topics on Cow AI Sorting calves off Timed AI means breed em all! We are synchronizing ovulation more so than synchronizing estrus 8

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10 Recommendation for Synchronization Follow the rules!!! Lots of data exist The systems are tested Don t try to outthink them! Just like thawing semen properly is important compliance in administering sync protocols properly is important What can go Wrong with Synchronization?? Compliance with administering protocols Right product at right dosage at right time Plan for timing of CIDR removal Cows PPI too short BCS too low Heifers Prepubertal Already pregnant Inseminator fatigue 10

11 Economics of commercial AI today Right off Iowa State University website Iowa Beef Center Bull cost $5, calves per year three years Salvage value, feed, vet fees, risk, interest Cost per pregnancy $95 Bull cost $7,000 Cost per pregnancy $130 Economics of AI Today AI cost $17.50 GnRH, PGF, CIDR AI Service $10 Semen $18 Ranch labor $10 per 50% conception rate Cost per pregnancy = $95 Its more than just cost What else do you get? Higher percentage of heifers that calve in first 21 days stay in herd until 10 years of age than heifers that calve later Study included more than 16,000 heifers and second study had more than 2000 heifers Positive relationship between early calving heifers and longevity in the herd Kill et al

12 Time of first calving and weaning weight Heifers than calve in the first 21 days of first calving season weaned heavier calves through their 5 th calf than heifers that calve later the first year Cushman 2013 INFLUENCE OF CALVING PERIOD ON REPRODUCTIVELONGEVITY (Cushman et al., 2012) INFLUENCE OF CALVING PERIOD ON CALF WEANING WEIGHT (Cushman et al., 2012) 12

13 Heifers that calve in the first 21 days of their first season may represent as much of 75% of future ranch income Dr Patrick Gunn Iowa State They stay in the herd longer Wean heavier calves for five years Wean more total pounds of calves over lifetime You get an extra calf!!! Value of Reproductive Management Improved reproductive performance Increased calf weight because of earlier birth dates Decreased natural service sire needs Gain per cow exposed to TAI can be more than $100 Rodgers et al

14 Real World Results Producer A 45 heifers Bulls out 60 days 35 of the 45 were bred AI or one cycle behind 3 heifers bred two cycle behind 3 heifers bred 3 cycles behind ( they should have been open) 4 opens 84% bred in 45 days 16% open or should have been Real World Results (additional income stream sells his later bred females) Producer B 100 heifers bulls out 45 days 56 AI 25 1 st cleanup 3 second cleanup 16 opens 60 2 year olds 68% AI 24% 1 st cleanup 5% second cleanup 3% opens Real World Results WR 92 spring calvers 77 AI or 1 st cleanup 83% 6 second cleanup 7% 9 opens 10% heifers 14% open cows 8% open 14

15 PREGNANCY RATES BY HERDS 80 Pregnancy rate, % Herd Calving Distribution after Exposure to Bulls Planned 1 st day of calving season days postpartum at start of next breeding season! % calving 5 44% 43% of cows < 50 DPP at start of the next breeding season Calving season day Calving Distribution after Exposure to AI and ES Planned 1 st day of calving season days postpartum at start of next breeding season! % calving 5 88% 7% of cows < 50 DPP at start of the next breeding season Calving season day 15

16 Shipping Stress Stress from shipping causes a release of PGF 2 Small doses of PGF 2 can be embryo toxic Greatest opportunity for early embryo loss is from 5 to 45 days of pregnancy Move heifers within 5 days of breeding or wait until after 45 days Take Home Message Should you be preg checking and culling open cows and identifying late calving cows YES Can you get half of your females pregnant on day one? YES Can you reduce the number of natural service sires you need? YES Is Synchronization and TAI financially responsible? YES 16