Set heifer goals
By Dairy Herd staff  |  Monday, May 18, 2009

Dave Fischer, University of Illinois extension dairy educator, outlined three goals of a good replacement-heifer program during a heifer-management Webinar hosted by the University of Illinois last month:

• Strive for 95 percent survival rate from birth to calving.
• Aim for 60 percent of mature bodyweight at first breeding. “We’re looking at size versus age,” Fischer stressed.
• Calve at 23 to 24 months of age. Aim for an average daily gain of 1.8 pounds per day for large-breed heifers and about 1.4 pounds for smaller breeds. The post-calving weight of Holsteins should be 1,250 pounds.