Fertility issues on farm can often seem complex with many contributing factors.
There are many moving parts, but I like to simplify everything. When I investigate fertility problems, I always look at three keys areas:
The male factors – anything that affects the viability of a healthy sperm. Whether this is the stock bull health or the use or handling of AI. The female factors – the viable and healthy egg. For a cow to ovulate a healthy egg, there is a huge range of factors that might be involved in stopping this process. Finally, a healthy sperm must fertilise an egg in the womb in the right environment. So anything that affects this environment. The timing of AI and heat detection falls into this category too.This allows us systematically look at each area on the farm and see where the problems may be happening. Of course, fertility records and data can hold very valuable information around key management practices.
The fertility data can also give some economic perspective on what problems may be costing. I always like to look at records from a problem perspective, but also show the value of potential solutions.
Here are 14 areas that affect fertility, with some more important than others.
1 Genetics
The right genetics create the potential for a more fertile herd. Use genomics and all the data available to you to make better reproduction decisions.
2 Heifer management
Getting heifers to the right weight and size for breeding at 13 to 15 months is critical. This starts with colostrum and calf-rearing right up to parasite control and feeding. This can be a huge driver of profitable herds and heifers that are underweight now will probably not be cycling.
3 Nutrition
This probably has the biggest impact on the egg or ovulation. Heifers must reach a certain size and weight by a certain time for them to be cycling or producing a healthy egg. For cows that calve, to get back in calf quickly we must ensure they don’t lose a lot of body condition. A big loss in body condition means a big use of fat off the back. This means lots of ketones are produced, which will affect immunity and stop a cow cycling. When she starts cycling, she is producing a healthy egg roughly every three weeks.
Thin cows will benefit from once-a-day milking for three weeks during or leading up to breeding.
4 Heat detection
This is also fundamental to a successful breeding season when using artificial insemination (AI). It is an area many farmers could improve on. Use detection aids whenever possible. With tail paint, I find farmers tend to go in too early, so ideally clip hair and apply a thick line with plenty of paint in a narrow strip. Vasectomised bulls provide an expert opinion on heat detection when used after six weeks when activity is declining in herds. There are lots of options and aids; use them to your advantage. Optimum time for AI is the start of a standing heat or in the next 12 hours.
5 Lameness
For suckler cows this is generally not a huge issue but for dairy cows making four journeys a day in and out of the milking parlour it can be. This becomes a critical issue that can hugely affect cows going in calf and expressing heat. Lame cows are sore and pain limits all types of performance. A lame bull can be a disaster. He can lose his ability to work and even affect his sperm production. Take out lame cows now and look at why lameness might be occurring. Improve cow flow around the parlour and never rush cows.
6 Minerals
Maybe it’s just me but it seems Irish farmers like to blame minerals for most fertility issues – or sometimes it’s the solution that is sold to people. Minerals can play a role around breeding both in egg health and even in sperm viability. The key minerals to get right are iodine, selenium and copper. Is it worth building mineral profiles of grass swards for the four weeks leading up to breeding? Take a sample and freeze it from each rotation, building a long-term picture for more targeted supplementation.
7 Infectious disease
My usual advice around lepto is every herd should be vaccinated, but shortages in leptospirosis vaccines this spring have complicated matters. I’m saying prioritise any vaccine for heifers and booster shots can be given within 16 to 17 months. Beyond this, farmers and vets need to discuss vaccine regimes once the booster goes beyond 17 months. For now, don’t buy in stock from herds that are not vaccinating.
BVD is another disease about which vaccine questions arise. If vaccinating, keep doing so and if not, remain vigilant about boundaries and biosecurity. Hopefully BVD eradication will mean this vaccine can be dropped in the future.
8 The male factor
If using bulls, make sure they get a fertility test now or full MOT. Identifying a subfertile or infertile bull now saves headaches later. Have sufficient bull to cow numbers and don’t overwork young bulls.
When using AI, it probably pays to get professionals in at peak times to ensure the routine allows for maximum fertility. All equipment needs to be maintained and if using DIY AI, get a refresher course.
9 Problem cows
Those farmers who are tail-painting pre-breeding and marking cows not seen cycling after 35 days calved can pull out these cows for closer examination. Any cow that had twins, a hard calving, retained cleanings or milk fever should also be routinely checked pre-breeding. Some people will scan these but at a minimum check the vagina for any discharges or dirt.
10 Hormones
By using hormones we can manipulate the cycle of healthy cows to help the odds of getting them in calf. You will hear mixed reports about people’s experiences with them. Remember that unless cows or heifers are cycling normally, hormone treatments will have little benefit. So hormones, although a cost, can really help with cows getting back in calf sooner, particularly when we aim to use more AI. They also can make life much easier in heifers and save on management time this spring.
11 Cow behaviour
Anything that stresses cows and particularly heifers can affect fertility. It is interesting that even the very hot weather of 2018 seemed to disrupt some breeding. Things such as flies also need to be watched and keep the routine as consistent as possible. If AI is being used, consider your handling facilities and the time cows spend standing waiting to be served.
12 Metritis and mastitis
Any diseases that cause infection around breeding time may have an effect on the cow and her ability to begin cycling. If the bull picks up any infections, a high temperature can knock out sperm production. Infection may be lingering post-calving in the womb in the form of metritis. Dirty cows need to be picked out now by scanning or using a device called a metricheck. This is a little rubber scoop with which you can check vaginal discharges in cows. Early treatment of these womb infections with a local antibiotic preparation often gives the best results.
13 Early embryonic losses
When the hard work of fertilisation occurs, there can be a danger time in the first 40 days where the tiny embryo can be lost. In dairy farms I often monitor bulk milk urea levels at this time and make sure in both dairy and suckler cows we have no disease risks or stress.
14 People
With any fertility issues we often end up back with some changes to be made or adjusted. While infectious diseases may be out of our control, most problems we see revolve around people and management. One of the key areas to improve is heat detection. Look at inter-heat intervals, aiming for greater than 80% between 18 and 24 days. This means we are picking up cows bulling correctly. Also, AI techniques are important to get right and always worth refreshing before the breeding season. Every farmer should make an effort to keep records and help them benchmark for improvements.
Improving reproduction performance can be one of the most rewarding and profitable things you can do this year.
Fertility issues on farm can often seem complex with many contributing factors.
There are many moving parts, but I like to simplify everything. When I investigate fertility problems, I always look at three keys areas:
The male factors – anything that affects the viability of a healthy sperm. Whether this is the stock bull health or the use or handling of AI. The female factors – the viable and healthy egg. For a cow to ovulate a healthy egg, there is a huge range of factors that might be involved in stopping this process. Finally, a healthy sperm must fertilise an egg in the womb in the right environment. So anything that affects this environment. The timing of AI and heat detection falls into this category too.This allows us systematically look at each area on the farm and see where the problems may be happening. Of course, fertility records and data can hold very valuable information around key management practices.
The fertility data can also give some economic perspective on what problems may be costing. I always like to look at records from a problem perspective, but also show the value of potential solutions.
Here are 14 areas that affect fertility, with some more important than others.
1 Genetics
The right genetics create the potential for a more fertile herd. Use genomics and all the data available to you to make better reproduction decisions.
2 Heifer management
Getting heifers to the right weight and size for breeding at 13 to 15 months is critical. This starts with colostrum and calf-rearing right up to parasite control and feeding. This can be a huge driver of profitable herds and heifers that are underweight now will probably not be cycling.
3 Nutrition
This probably has the biggest impact on the egg or ovulation. Heifers must reach a certain size and weight by a certain time for them to be cycling or producing a healthy egg. For cows that calve, to get back in calf quickly we must ensure they don’t lose a lot of body condition. A big loss in body condition means a big use of fat off the back. This means lots of ketones are produced, which will affect immunity and stop a cow cycling. When she starts cycling, she is producing a healthy egg roughly every three weeks.
Thin cows will benefit from once-a-day milking for three weeks during or leading up to breeding.
4 Heat detection
This is also fundamental to a successful breeding season when using artificial insemination (AI). It is an area many farmers could improve on. Use detection aids whenever possible. With tail paint, I find farmers tend to go in too early, so ideally clip hair and apply a thick line with plenty of paint in a narrow strip. Vasectomised bulls provide an expert opinion on heat detection when used after six weeks when activity is declining in herds. There are lots of options and aids; use them to your advantage. Optimum time for AI is the start of a standing heat or in the next 12 hours.
5 Lameness
For suckler cows this is generally not a huge issue but for dairy cows making four journeys a day in and out of the milking parlour it can be. This becomes a critical issue that can hugely affect cows going in calf and expressing heat. Lame cows are sore and pain limits all types of performance. A lame bull can be a disaster. He can lose his ability to work and even affect his sperm production. Take out lame cows now and look at why lameness might be occurring. Improve cow flow around the parlour and never rush cows.
6 Minerals
Maybe it’s just me but it seems Irish farmers like to blame minerals for most fertility issues – or sometimes it’s the solution that is sold to people. Minerals can play a role around breeding both in egg health and even in sperm viability. The key minerals to get right are iodine, selenium and copper. Is it worth building mineral profiles of grass swards for the four weeks leading up to breeding? Take a sample and freeze it from each rotation, building a long-term picture for more targeted supplementation.
7 Infectious disease
My usual advice around lepto is every herd should be vaccinated, but shortages in leptospirosis vaccines this spring have complicated matters. I’m saying prioritise any vaccine for heifers and booster shots can be given within 16 to 17 months. Beyond this, farmers and vets need to discuss vaccine regimes once the booster goes beyond 17 months. For now, don’t buy in stock from herds that are not vaccinating.
BVD is another disease about which vaccine questions arise. If vaccinating, keep doing so and if not, remain vigilant about boundaries and biosecurity. Hopefully BVD eradication will mean this vaccine can be dropped in the future.
8 The male factor
If using bulls, make sure they get a fertility test now or full MOT. Identifying a subfertile or infertile bull now saves headaches later. Have sufficient bull to cow numbers and don’t overwork young bulls.
When using AI, it probably pays to get professionals in at peak times to ensure the routine allows for maximum fertility. All equipment needs to be maintained and if using DIY AI, get a refresher course.
9 Problem cows
Those farmers who are tail-painting pre-breeding and marking cows not seen cycling after 35 days calved can pull out these cows for closer examination. Any cow that had twins, a hard calving, retained cleanings or milk fever should also be routinely checked pre-breeding. Some people will scan these but at a minimum check the vagina for any discharges or dirt.
10 Hormones
By using hormones we can manipulate the cycle of healthy cows to help the odds of getting them in calf. You will hear mixed reports about people’s experiences with them. Remember that unless cows or heifers are cycling normally, hormone treatments will have little benefit. So hormones, although a cost, can really help with cows getting back in calf sooner, particularly when we aim to use more AI. They also can make life much easier in heifers and save on management time this spring.
11 Cow behaviour
Anything that stresses cows and particularly heifers can affect fertility. It is interesting that even the very hot weather of 2018 seemed to disrupt some breeding. Things such as flies also need to be watched and keep the routine as consistent as possible. If AI is being used, consider your handling facilities and the time cows spend standing waiting to be served.
12 Metritis and mastitis
Any diseases that cause infection around breeding time may have an effect on the cow and her ability to begin cycling. If the bull picks up any infections, a high temperature can knock out sperm production. Infection may be lingering post-calving in the womb in the form of metritis. Dirty cows need to be picked out now by scanning or using a device called a metricheck. This is a little rubber scoop with which you can check vaginal discharges in cows. Early treatment of these womb infections with a local antibiotic preparation often gives the best results.
13 Early embryonic losses
When the hard work of fertilisation occurs, there can be a danger time in the first 40 days where the tiny embryo can be lost. In dairy farms I often monitor bulk milk urea levels at this time and make sure in both dairy and suckler cows we have no disease risks or stress.
14 People
With any fertility issues we often end up back with some changes to be made or adjusted. While infectious diseases may be out of our control, most problems we see revolve around people and management. One of the key areas to improve is heat detection. Look at inter-heat intervals, aiming for greater than 80% between 18 and 24 days. This means we are picking up cows bulling correctly. Also, AI techniques are important to get right and always worth refreshing before the breeding season. Every farmer should make an effort to keep records and help them benchmark for improvements.
Improving reproduction performance can be one of the most rewarding and profitable things you can do this year.
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