A.I. & Breeding

It takes “management energy” to get cows pregnant.

One of my friends Tim called in April of last year.

“Marc,” he said, “One of my dairy clients, might be interested in working with us over the summer on a reproduction project – would you like to help?”

The answer to the question “Why artificially inseminate heifers?” is quite simple: to increase the number of genetically superior heifers available for herd replacement and sale.

As dairies look to become more efficient in all aspects of their operation, the industry’s major breed organizations have answered the call by providing online cattle registration.

Crossbreeding has recently gained a lot of attention in popular press articles; however, in 2008, the amount of semen from non-traditional breeds (Swedish Red [SR], Montbeliarde [MO], etc.) imported into the U.S. was reportedly down from previous years.

Anyone who has spent time breeding dairy cows over the years has seen the reproductive changes that have occurred. Cows no longer exhibit signs of heat like they did just a couple of decades ago.