New Heifer Weighing Service

Did your heifers get hammered by the drought last year?

Did you know a 10% gap in live weight at calving in your heifers costs $90 per head in decreased milk production and fertility?
We have seen numerous examples of heifers being under grown and have witnessed the effects on fertility and production.

Very often heifer rearing is a neglected part of dairy farming, yet everyone knows that their heifers are the future of the business!

There are many good reasons to make sure your heifers don't suffer a growth check this summer as feed availability and quality fall;

• The phasing out of inductions means bringing early-calving, well-grown heifers into your herd is vital for tightening up calving spread
• A heifer that calves late in her first year and is mated late after her first calving is likely to be a late calver for the rest of her life!
• Having well-grown heifers is vital for increasing submission rate and reducing non-cycler treatment rate

Unless your heifers are being reared on a weight gain contract, or you are weighing them yourself at key times, our heifer weighing service could help you to save thousands of dollars.

We offer a very competitively-priced heifer weighing service providing reports on individual weights, growth rate graphs and comparisons with target weights set for your individual herd.  These reports enable you to adapt management practices in time to achieve target weights.

 

If there is any question that your R2 heifers are not meeting their target weights, weigh them now to enable you to make changes in time for their first mating.  This job has often been put in the "too hard basket" until now.

 

Jessica Kingsland, Franklin Vets rural technician, can make this a quick and easy job for you, providing valuable information as you head into winter and feed management become even more important.

 

Contact your local branch of Franklin Vets today to make an appointment and avoid disappointing pregnancy test results next year.

Just because animals are in reasonable body condition, it doesn't mean they are hitting their targets.

Don't trust your eye!

If you would like to know more, or want to make a booking for our heifer weighing service please give us a call.