Making the most from mating

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Recommended mating lengths of 10 weeks are considered optimal to ensure all cows are calved by the 10th of October (if the PSM was the 23rd of October) to retain a healthy calving spread.  In this scenario a 10 week mating period would have bull removal occurring on the 1st of January.

The number of lactation days is one of the key economic drivers of your farms profitability.  Therefore success of mating should be measured in how quickly they get in calf (3 and 6 week in-calf rate) as well as the empty rate.  The reality of a 10 week mating period is that cows have just over 3 cycles to get back in calf.  The average cow has a ~50% chance of getting in calf at each cycle.  If given every opportunity she would have a 12.5% chance of being empty after 3 cycles.  However if she was to miss the first round of AI she will have a 25% chance of being empty.  Likewise if a heat is missed in the second round she has a 50% chance of being empty!

If your 3 week submission rate is tracking below the >90% target, review your heat detection practices immediately and look to get non-cyclers examined and treated.  Ideally all eligible non-cyclers (calves >40 days) should be mated inside of 3 weeks.  This involves hormonal treatment by day 11 of mating at the latest, or day 18 to achieve 3 cycles within 70 days.  Failure to take proactive action will result in not only a protracted calving spread but also a higher empty rate.

All eligible cows not mated after day 24 of mating should also be examined and treated accordingly.

Avoid Over Milking

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Mating is only a matter of weeks away.  The daily drafting of on heat cows can cause disruption to the milking routine.  This can result in over milking which is a risk factor for mastitis.  Now is the ideal time to make sure all staff are milking your cows in a way that reduces the chance of them getting mastitis.  Quickly check the following before milkings get busier with heat detection:

  • Does every teat of every cow get teat-sprayed every milking?
  • Is there an easy recipe to follow so that anyone can make up the teat-spray?
  • Does everyone break the vacuum before removing the cups?
  • Is there a BMSCC trigger level above which the herd gets stripped?
  • Can everyone recognise the signs of over milking?
    • Red or blue teats when the cups comes off
    • A ring of swelling at the top of the teat
    • Open teat ends
  • Can everyone recognise mastitis?

If over milking is occurring you may have to hang up clusters between rows or possibly not use the last few clusters.  Above all make sure everyone is aware that over milking is possible due to disruption caused by drafting and is a risk factor for mastitis.  Have a successful mating.

Nursing Downer Cows

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A recent conference session with Victorian vet Phil Poulton, PhD, highlighted the importance of nursing care given to downer cows.  A recently published study of Phil's showed 43% of cows with good nursing care recovered after 10 days - regardless of the initial cause of being down - compared to only 6%  with poor nursing care.  Downer cows are prone to a host of secondary problems including nerve damage, dislocated hips, muscle and spinal problems, which can be minimised when nursed appropriately.

Good nursing care includes:

  • Providing shelter from cold and rain (ideally in a clean, dry shed)
  • Thick bedding of hay, straw, sawdust, rice hulls or sand
  • Barriers to prevent crawling and walking (if unable to walk when lifted)
  • Lifted 1-2 times daily when able to support some weight, lowered when unable
  • Rolled several times daily to take pressure off lower leg
  • Access to high quality feed and water
  • Teat disinfection twice daily, milking if udder leaking
  • Moved using front-end loading bucket, not hip lifters.

For more detailed information see the Dairy Australia website or contact your prime vet.