Fertilization rates range from 55% to 88% in high-producing dairy cows, resulting in calving rates of 30% or less following a single A.I. Pregnancy loss remains a major factor inhibiting reproductive performance...

Achieving excellent reproductive performance is a critical management goal that impacts milk production and therefore dairy farm profitability. The good news is that we have witnessed an unprecedented...

From a management perspective, having a broad lens and putting pieces together is critical to tackle inefficiencies and take advantage of opportunities. Do not limit yourself to evaluating heat detection...

Back to the basics: Semen handling and tank management Presented by Joe Dalton, University of Idaho sponsored by Select Sires After semen purchase, sire fertility is in the hands of the produ

Location matters — in real estate, business, and A.I. During natural service, a mature bull deposits 8 to 10 billion sperm in the anterior vagina, near the cervix of the cow. One of the advantages...

Appropriate semen storage and handling is critical to the success of A.I. The liquid nitrogen semen storage tank actually consists of two tanks, with a smaller tank housed inside a larger tank

This July, USDA estimated there were 3.75 million dairy heifers over 500 pounds on farms across the United States

To all the avid Hoard’s Dairyman readers out there — thank you! Over the nearly 15 years since graduate school, I’ve written articles for different publications

We know that inbreeding rates accelerated after the introduction of genomic selection in 2009. Part of this shift is simply because we are turning our generations over more rapidly, which raises inbre

One of the three largest expenses on a dairy farm is raising replacements, and the greatest cost in that category is the feed it takes to get a heifer from birth to first lactation

Most dairy farms today collect data by which they attempt to make informed decisions about how to manage their herds

Heat detection on our farm got more technical yet simpler over time

Calves and heifers that grow well and become productive cows is a target every dairy farm aims for. To reach this end goal, it is helpful to have benchmarks to work toward along the way

Some could argue that the upward trend in reproductive efficiency achieved by U.S. dairy farms started around 2009 with the advent of genomic testing, giving us more information about our animals

With good reason, many people get upset when I start answering a question saying, “It depends.” Generally speaking, people seek straight and simple answers

When I was 8 years old, a tiny, premature calf was born that I absolutely fell in love with. Her body was somewhat average in size, but her legs were short and stubby

Providing A.I. services for hobby farms has become a fun side job for me

Over the past decade, inseminations to sexed semen have grown from 9% of Holsteins and 23% of Jersey heifers and cows in 2009 to 21% of Holstein females and 46% of Jersey females in 2020

“Reproductive efficiency improves the farm’s lifetime production and lifetime profitability if done correctly,” said Rob Lynch, D.V.M., a veterinarian with Cornell’s PRO-DAIRY group