Central Scotland Dairy Monitor Farm Auchenheath Farm, Lanarkshire ML11 9XA Meeting report: Fertility With John Cook from Valley Ag Software & Charles Marwood and Neil Laing, Clyde Vet Group Useful Contacts Gavin Ballantyne Monitor Farmer Sophie Kinnear- DairyCo facilitator Mobile: 07515122538 Mobile: 07717500877 E-Mail: gavballantyne@hotmail.co.uk E-Mail: sophie.kinnear@dairyco.ahdb.org.uk Archie Ballantyne Monitor Farmer Mobile: 07732371035 E-Mail: archie.ballantyne@hotmail.co.uk
Meeting Report: Fifth meeting of Lanarkshire Dairy Monitor Farm on 21 st January 2014 32 attended the fifth meeting of the Auchenheath Dairy Monitor Farm project, hosted by Archie and Gavin Ballantyne of Auchenheath Farm, ML11 9XA. Speakers John Cook, Valley Ag Software Charles Marwood, Clyde Veterinary Group Neil Laing, Clyde Veterinary Group Fertility Meeting Objectives Achieving heifer calving age of 24 months Appropriate KPIs to use Maximising cow conception rate at first service Meeting Overview Auchenheath Village Hall 1. Farm Update- Gavin & Archie Ballantyne 2. Fertility Basics - Charles Marwood, Clyde Vet Group 3. On-Farm walk, breeding heifers and milking cows 4. Auchenheath and Management Team KPIs - Neil Laing, Clyde Vet Group 5. Getting cows in calf quickly is the road to profit - John Cook, Valley Ag Software Farm Update (Gavin & Archie Ballantyne) There was a 3 week calving gap after the last meeting until the New Year so the calf shed was refurbished in light of the actions highlighted at the last meeting. - Housing changes- The water tap was shifted, ventilation holes and roof lights opened, a stihl saw used to cut drains in the concrete with everything washed down and left to dry. A frost-start and heat lamp have been purchased and installed in the shed. In the stirk shed the drinkers have been shifted away from the back wall to the passageway. - 60 cows AI in the past month. With all cows calved from 7 October having a pre-service check before Christmas; cows calved from Christmas onwards are currently undergoing fortnightly pre-service checks. Pre-service check carried out less than 50 days from calving. Aiming for June, July and August free of calving. - A weather station has also been installed, although not yet fully working as broadband has been out of action at the farm since before Christmas which has greatly hampered simple day to day activity. What does Fertility mean to the group? The key to profit Future of the herd Milk in the tank Days to conception Cow lactations Feed efficiency Cow longevity Genetic Gain The Basics of Fertility with Charles Marwood, Keep it simple Suggestions from the group for what herd data is commonly recorded for fertility indices included a range- calving date, service date, submission date, PD rates, and we were also encouraged to refer to our vet, med and mastitis records. How do we record? 6 farmers were already milk recording, with this data able to be passed to different companies to analyse and present relevant information to you. Group suggestions for data recorders included: pen & paper, magnetic Bray calendar, 3 week calendar, computer programmes (Gavin currently uses FarmWizard), CIS, NMR, Uniform Agri. The important factor is regular recording and data entry. Why do we record? To find problems, identify positives, and then take action. The important thing is to take action based on the information the data gives you.
KPIs, commonly used key performance indicators 1. Calving Interval is a historical record measuring when cows get back into calf so can be skewed by culls and past problems. It doesn t really tell you what to improve. 2. 100 day calving rate caused some discussion as it relies on like-for-like comparisons to be accurate (voluntary waiting periods). Regular and accurate PD-ing is necessary for accurate recording, but combine with other KPIs provide balanced information. 3. Submission Rate looks at the cows that have been served 26 days after heat detection. Combine with Calving Interval and 100-day Rate for in-depth analysis. 4. Calving to 1 st Service is a good indication of how quickly the cow comes back into heat after calving. The target should be 60-70 days but the National Average is 100. 5. Age at first calving Gavin is currently 36 months and the target is to reduce this to 24. 6. AI to conception in days- The National Average is 30 and target 45. 7. Entry Service Interval is the number of days between services (is she cycling normally) and is used to inform AI service dates. Record all cows, not just the ones you notice so good heat detection skills are needed. 8. 200 day Not In-calf rate is a more useful guide to how many cycles a cow takes to get in calf. Taken in conjunction with the Voluntary Waiting Period (days left from birth to first service). Physiology of the cow what happens prior to ovulation? The oestrus cycle commences with the Hypothalamus in the brain releasing the hormone GnRH to the pituitary gland, to release Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH) to the ovary. In response, the ovary releases a mass of follicles, one of which will mature to ovulation. The mass of follicles form the Corpus Luteum which release progesterone to stimulate thickening of the worm lining in readiness for implantation of the fertilised egg. The follicle is released from the Corpus Luteum (ovulation) by Leutininzing Hormone (LH) from the pituitary. If the timing of hormone release is correct, the uterus releases prostaglandin and this regresses the Corpus Luteum leaving the dominant follicle to ovulate in readiness for fertilisation from sperm. If there is no fertilisation, the uterus releases prostaglandin to reject the Corpus Luteum; rising levels of prostaglandin stimulates GnRH and the cycle commences again. What disrupts oestrus in a cow? Metabolic stress affects the release of GnRH. Not common, this type of anoestrus is easily treated by Dry cow period. The dry cow period will disrupt the manipulating the cow diet. normal production of hormones. Physiological stress- lameness Infection- whites. As little as 5% of white blood cells in the uterine environment will affect semen health and therefore the conception rate will be compromised. Environment- flooring, buildings, light. Cows in milk need up to 16 hours/day of natural daylight; whereas dry cows require only 8 hours of natural daylight per day Ovarian cysts- usually caused by hormone imbalance and the function of the Corpus Luteum, common. Normal oestrus is missed by the dairyman- very short heat period, winter daylight hours Pregnancy. If the cow is pregnant she will not cycle. Heat detection aids are useful and be prepared to use a combination of them including simple observation. Around 25% of cows ovulate but show no signs of heat, so record her cycle to know when to inseminate.
Auchenheath Farm, walk to show community group the heifers and milking cows There were 26 heifers ranging from 10-14 months in the slatted shed, the group viewed them and it was agreed they were all fit in size and age to bull. Considering their diet in the coming months to ensure they are fit for first estrus. John Cook reminded the group that the first 60 days of a calf s life is essential in lifetime fertility and milk production of that animal. A question was raised about cubicle training for heifers; the University of Minnesota has conducted research into training, it is easily achieved by spending time with each animal leading her to feed, water and cubicle for approximately 20 minutes/day, for five days In the cow shed the group asked about the new building and how it would fit into the existing shed. There was a mix of cows to see, late lactation/ dry and fresh calved and all in good condition throughout. Metabolic profiling has just started at Auchenheath and so far there are no energy deficits amongst the cows. Key Performance Indicators with Neil Laing Clyde Vet Group, Interherd and Auchenheath Neil presented charts of the performance at Auchenheath, inputted to the Interherd programme. Using data removes the element of PERCEPTION of what is happening on the farm. Neil Laing offered to assist in the facilitation of KPI data if the management team wished. John Cook, Valley Ag Software, Getting cows in calf quickly is the road to profit - The Biological Life Cycle of the Cow should be broken into individual steps and each step analysed for the profitability of the animal. For each step in the process challenge What will it cost? and How do we make more money? - When the Biological Life Cycle breaks down (disease, diet etc) take corrective action. Utilise the support network around your farm vet, nutritionist, DairyCo to work with you on corrective action. Corrective Action in the Biological Life Cycle is a better return on investment than wasting money in fire fighting emergencies. KPIs Analysing the Biological Life Cycle tells us that it really only comes down to two key questions on cow fertility: How many cows got pregnant? and How quickly did they get pregnant? These two questions can simply be answered by calculating the Pregnancy rate: HEAT DETECTION RATE x CONCEPTION RATE = PREGNANCY RATE (a) 70 x 50 = 35 cows (b) 60 x 40 = 24 cows John explored this formula further. If you take 100 cows and heat detect them for 21 days you may inseminate 70% of them. If the conception rate is 50%, 35 cows will be pregnant. If you take another 100 cows and heat detect them for 21 days, you may inseminate 60% of them. If the conception rate is 40%, 24 cows will be pregnant. John advised the pregnancy rate (PR) is recorded every time you PD so that any Corrective Action can be taken immediately. PR is the recommended KPI as it will inform all other KPIs. 1. Metabolic Instability is the key area to monitor for Corrective Action in Cow Fertility. Research shows the source of fertility problems can be sourced to the 7 days prior to calving. Identify the Parturition-minus-7 date (P-7) for all cows and eliminate any potential causes of metabolic instability eg dry matter intake, medicines, human intervention, shed environment.
2. Voluntary Waiting Period If the key date for metabolic instability is P-7 and the target date for Conception is 60 days then the VWP is 53 days. 3. Attrition Rate of a foetus is 15% within 28 days so use PD to inform you whether conception has occurred or not. 4. Getting the bulling heifers into calf, working towards achieving a 24month age at 1 st calving target The slatted shed is not suitable for natural service so Gavin and Archie have two options for the 12month old heifer that the group thought fit and ready for bulling now: wait until turnout and plan an early turnout make more space by selling cattle, building or renting a shed OBJECTIVES FOR AUCHENHEATH Gavin & Archie Charles & Neil John Look at calf growth in first 60 days of life KISS Record data 84% calving rate Use CIS Compare like-for-like Establishing a service pattern for Make the most of the data you Decide on your KPIs and don t replacement heifers based on 13 collect deviate mo service to calve at 24 mo The next Lanarkshire Monitor Farm community group meeting: Managing grass for productivity and profit Date: Tuesday 11 March Time: 10.30am for 10.45am start - 2.00pm Venue: Auchenheath Hall, Auchenheath Lanarkshire ML11 9XE Lunch provided for those who RSVP