Getting the best start at breeding

The cycle begins all over again this month (April). No sooner have we finished calving cows than we are looking at putting them back in calf again. Now is the time to reflect on your calving period and how breeding went last year. While serving cows is a month away on many farms, we have entered the pre-season and what we do now will get us off to the best possible start, come breeding.
When it comes to fertility, getting your head around all the parameters involved can be a complicated task. Split calving and cross-breeding decisions have been made to work around fertility issues. Put simply, fertility is all about pregnancy rate, which is submission rate multiplied by conception rate.

Submission rate, measured over a three-week period, refers to the percentage of cows eligible for breeding, that are in heat, and that have been served. The target here is >90 per cent. Conception rate reflects how many of those services result in a confirmed pregnancy. There is a target of 65 per cent conception rate to first and second service. It is important to calculate these figures for your farm. 

1. How many cows did you serve in the first three weeks as a percentage of cows that are greater than six weeks calved (submission rate)? 
2. How many of those cows held in the first three weeks – conception to first service – and in the second three-week period – conception to second service?

To hit the targets above you will end up with 85 per cent of cows in calf and calving in a six-week period. As you can imagine, small weaknesses in either figure can quickly become bigger losses overall. Submission rate can slip due to missed heats, poor tail paint use, or inadequate observation. Get the basics right by having a protocol for visual observation using paint/aids, rising to wearable technologies. Management can also cause issues around cow flow and comfort. Conception rate can drop due to nutrition (NEB, minerals), cow and uterine health, and quality of, and timing of, the service.
Pre-breeding checks in the month of April are the most cost-effective ways to protect pregnancy rate. Try to have all cows confirmed to be cycling at the beginning of May. Veterinary intervention might be needed for the final few, especially cows that might have had issues around calving that would affect their energy balance and uterine conditions. Also, it gives you an opportunity to reflect on cows you don’t want to breed or get replacement from if they have any negative breeding characteristics.
Ultimately, strong fertility performance is not about good luck. It is about having a protocol/method and removing the bottlenecks in the system to improve the chances of cows going in calf.