Many dairy farmers’ minds are beginning to shift towards the breeding season and making the final selection of bulls that they will be using in 2023.
By this stage most will have some, if not all the bulls picked for use on their farms in 2023.
The use of sexed semen is likely to increase once again this year on farms, with more straws than ever before now available to farmers.
This now begs the question; what is the best way for farmers to obtain the most genetic gain from using sexed semen on their cows?
Breeding season
The first animals that should be targeted for the use of sexed semen, or even just dairy semen, are heifers.
These are likely the highest-ranking animals on the farm for the economic breeding index (EBI) and therefore have the potential to produce high-EBI animals.
Some farmers use Angus bulls on their heifers, but this just delays the herd’s progress and if the correct bulls are selected and used there should be no issues with calving difficultly.
The next group to target with dairy semen is the top cows within the herd, based on EBI ranking and data from milk recording.
It is important to determine how many heifers are needed. Most herds are now at a point where expansion has stopped and there is no need for extra heifers.
Beef bulls should then be selected using the Dairy Beef Index (DBI) for cows that are not receiving dairy semen or those that do not hold to dairy semen.
It is important to select bulls for each type of cow/heifer within the herd. You should have a bull or bulls selected to use on the heifers, young cows, mature cows and older cows.
Each of these groups can handle a different level of calving difficultly, which is why different bulls should be used.
Producing a high-quality beef calf is also important. It is likely by the time you go to sell these calves that they will have a Commercial Beef Value (CBV) – meaning that purchasers will be able to determine the quality of the calf easier.
To summarise
Target the heifers for the quickest genetic gain, whether you are using sexed or conventional semen.
Move to beef sires after heifers have been given at least two rounds of dairy artificial insemination (AI).
Only breed the top cows within the herd to dairy AI. These cows should be picked based on EBI figures and data from milk recording.
Pick high-quality beef sires for all the different types of cows within your herd to produce the best beef calves for sale.