Early preparation equals successful breeding season

MOUNTAIN GROVE, Mo. — Breeding season will be here before we know it. Is your herd prepped for success? Here are steps you can take to maximize your breeding season.

Schedule pre-breeding exams

The easiest thing you can do to prep for breeding season is make sure you have healthy, reproductively sound cattle. Have your vet come out to exam your herd, perform any needed testing and update vaccines. You can also schedule breeding soundness exams (BSEs) for your bulls if you’re planning on using one.

“Having your vet out also gives you a chance to update your vet-client-patient relationship (VCPR),” said Chloe Collins, dairy field specialist with University of Missouri Extension in Wright County, in a press release. “This will come in handy if you need certain drugs for your breeding protocols or for the upcoming calving season.”

Check your vaccination records

You can do this in conjunction with the vet visit prior to breeding season. The recommendation is that vaccines are administered 30-60 days before breeding to develop the immune response in cows and heifers, Collins said. A pre-breeding vaccination program can save you in the long run by making sure your cows are protected and prepared to carry healthy calves to full-term delivery. Several diseases and viruses are associated with reproductive loss, and it’s easy to miss unless there is a massive percentage of loss in the herd.

Make sure these vaccines are on your list to update:

• Infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR), a highly contagious respiratory disease that can cause abortion.
• Parainfluenza 3 (PI3), a respiratory disease that can cause secondary infections like pneumonia.
• Bovine viral diarrhea (BVD), a viral infection that can cause decreased fertility, abortion and malformations in calves.
• Leptospirosis, a bacterial infection than can cause infertility, reduced milk production and abortion.
• Bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV), a widespread respiratory virus.

Ensure proper nutritional health

To quickly evaluate the nutritional condition of your herd, you can use body condition scoring (BCS). This is a visual evaluation of the body composition of a cow. It’s best to have one person taking scores for consistency across the herd.

“In dairy cattle, we use a 1-5 score, while beef is a 1-9 score,” Collins said. “Making sure your cows are at an ideal BCS prior to breeding can help ensure successful conception. Making sure those cows have access to high-quality forages, feed and water can also increase their reproductive health. A complete and balanced diet is a critical part of a successful breeding season.”

Plan your breeding season

“The length of your breeding season can be helpful or hurtful when it comes time to market calves and put money back into your pocket,” she said. When you have a shorter breeding season, you’ll have a shorter calving season. Usually a 60-day season is ideal and leads to a more uniform calf crop, which sells better at market.

Ensure artificial insemination (AI) success

AI is an amazing tool to increase the genetic availability for your herd, Collins said. However, it does require more consideration and skill versus turning in your herd bull. Think about these questions when deciding to use AI:

• Are you skilled in the AI technique? If not, that’s OK. You can either hire an AI technician to breed for you or you can attend an AI course. MU Extension specialists offer courses every spring and fall covering classroom topics and supervised hands-on experience. For more information, email Collins at chloecollins@missouri.edu.
• Is your protocol ready to go? There are multiple protocols to choose from, with variations for cows and heifers, number of trips through the chute and supplies needed. Your extension specialist and veterinarian can help you choose a protocol that best fits your herd and stays within any limitations of equipment or facilities.
• Do you have enough AI supplies? Once you’ve picked your protocol, make sure you have everything you need to start breeding. The VCPR that you set up prior to breeding season can now be used to acquire any needed AI injectables. Other supplies, like CIDRs, breeding guns and gloves, can be purchased through your local genetics company or AI representative.

Keep accurate records

This is arguably the most important part of maintaining a successful breeding program, Collins said. Keep records of breeding dates, which sires were used on which heifers or cows, gestation periods, calving dates and financial expenditures. With this information, you can monitor for any trends or issues, keep track of what genetics worked for your herd and see how long your calving windows were. All of these records can be used to make informed decisions for the next breeding season.

“Going into breeding season can be both exciting and daunting for producers, but by remembering and utilizing these steps, you can ensure that your herd is ready to create the best next generation of offspring,” said Collins.