
When I started practicing at The Dairy Authority 15 years ago, heifers were viewed as an asset to dairies, and bankers liked seeing a lot of them on the balance sheet.
By Chris Malherbe, DVM
When I started practicing at The Dairy Authority 15 years ago, heifers were viewed as an asset to dairies, and bankers liked seeing a lot of them on the balance sheet.
Today, I would say heifers are viewed almost as a liability – especially any extra ones a dairy is carrying. With rapidly rising feed costs and relatively low prices for heifers today, it doesn’t make sense to raise any more of them than the ones you need to meet your own replacement needs.
With that in mind, there are a number of ways you can zero in on your replacement strategies and raise the “right” number of heifers, while improving replacement quality and boosting revenue for the dairy at the same time.
Before you create your action plan, you’ll need to get an accurate handle on your heifer inventory needs. This requires answering the following questions:
When you know these figures, you can calculate the number of heifers you ultimately want to grow into replacements, and the number you need to create to get there. As an insurance policy, I recommend adding a cushion of about 10% to your “creation” number.
Then, you can select the strategies that will maximize your replacement quality and minimize the “waste” of raising too many heifers. These might include:
Every dairy’s approach will be a bit different, and input from your veterinarian, nutritionist, and genetics supplier can help customize the best plan for your enterprise. As a part of almost any dairy breeding program, the strategic use of beef semen currently is very beneficial. The demand and market price for beef crossbred calves is exceptionally strong, adding more value to the animals that are not needed as replacements.
After you’ve put your plan in place, evaluate it about every 6 months to ensure that your animal numbers still are on track with your goals. And be sure to monitor market conditions and changes. If the demand and price for heifers suddenly go up (or feed prices drop dramatically – not likely!), you can pivot your strategy and make more heifers.