Advancing your calf and heifer program
Taking calves to the next level
Brothers Ray and Roy Dykeman were tired of being average. The 2nd generation New York dairymen had grown a 120-cow dairy to over 1,300 cows, but production was around 75 pounds and components weren’t where they should be. “One time, they told me they didn’t want to be mediocre anymore,” comments Cargill Dairy Focus Ed Varnam. “So, we started improving things to be anything but that.”
Managing pregnant heifers: Monitor, monitor, monitor!
After the time and attention that has been invested in raising and breeding heifers, it can be easy to transition heifers to the pregnant pen and put them on autopilot until calving. This story covers the critical things that need to be monitored during this time period to ensure we are on target to meet dairy goals, and that those goals align to being a profitable dairy farm.
Heifer Nutrition: Start with the end in mind
Success begins with an end in mind. Think trajectory. Think reverse engineering. If you want age at first calving (AFC) to be 21 or 22 months old, you better have an “end” weight and frame modeled into your growth system. Once you know growth targets, you can align nutrition to meet those goals.
Feed only the ones you need.
Feeding too many heifers can drain profits. But, how many is too many for your dairy? When should they calve? Click on the download button below to help you find your sweet spot.