AgSourceCooperative Services

A Subsidiary of Cooperative Resources International

Herd Selection GuideMake breeding and replacement decisions for your herd based on each cow’s individual economic value.

Knowing which cows in your herd are the most profitable is very important, especially during times of high input costs and low margins. The “Herd Selection Guide” is an individual cow report - customized by dairy operation - that allows producers to make decisions based on a cow’s economic value in the herd.

Combining individual cow DHIA data and producer supplied information, each cow receives an “Expected Relative Value”. This value is the difference between her future economic value and the value of her potential replacement.

A positive Expected Relative Value means a cow is worth more than an average replacement animal in your herd. The higher the value, the more a cow is worth relative to an average replacement animal. If the value is negative, it implies that an average replacement animal in your herd could be worth more.

It is important to note that if information about the cow changes or if variables related to your production costs fluctuate, then the Expected Relative Value will change as well. For example an average third lactation cow 240 days in milk that is 180 days pregnant could be worth +$143 compared to an average replacement animal. Keeping all values the same but listing her as open reduces her value to -$339.

Knowing the expected relative value of a cow in the herd is useful for:1) Selecting animals to be replaced 2) Selecting animals not to breed3) Selecting top performers for genomic testing

How are these values calculated?This report was developed by AgSource and Dr. Victor Cabrera, Professor of Dairy Science, University of Wisconsin-Extension. The model used to calculate the individual cow economic values was developed by Dr. Cabrera (more information can be found at http://www.dairymgt.info). The model requires an extensive set of data to calculate each cow’s value, but AgSource makes the process simple. By using your DHI data, we only need to request data we do not record in our database. On the herd level, the following inputs are used:

•  Expected Genetic Improvement* •  Annual Herd Turnover Ratio*•  RHA Milk*•  21-Day Pregnancy Rate*•  Pregnancy Loss After 35 Days Pregnant*•  Last Month After Calving to Breed a Cow Individual cow data considered in the calculation of the future economic net benefits are:

•  Lactation Number•  Days in Milk•  Days Pregnant•  Expected performance for the current lactation (100% being average)•  Expected performance for future lactations (100% being average)

•  Reproduction Cost•  Do Not Breed Minimum Milk•  Salvage Value•  Calf Value•  Milk Price•  Feed Cost Lactating Cows

•  Average Cow Body Weight•  Feed Cost Dry Cows•  Fat %*•  Replacement Cost•  Interest Rate*Calculated based on DHI records

What does the report look like?Block A provides a summary by quartile. Quartiles are based on the Expected Relative Values calculated for all the cows. Each quartile features averages for current lactation and lifetime values for ME Milk, SCC and TCI. In addition, the average NM$ value and last test day average Milk and SCC are provided for each quartile. Block B features the individual cow data. Cows are ranked based on the Expected Relative Value sorted from top to bottom. Supporting information for each animal consists of the lactation number, last calving date, days in milk, last breeding date, service sire, # of services, days open, repro status and days carried calf, current lactation ME milk, LS SCC and TCI, lifetime ME milk, LS SCC and TCI, NM$, genomic indicator, test day milk and LS SCC. Red highlights are used for cows open more than 150 days, LS SCC greater than 4, and bottom 25th percentile for NM$.

How can I get this report for my herd?The report is fully customized to the individual herd, therefore it is not a standard test day DHI report. To request a report for your herd, please fill in the information below. To receive the greatest value out of this report, you should report breedings, breeding sires, pregnancy status and ID your animals. For more information, please contact AgSource at 608-845-1900, e-mail info@agsource.com, or visit www.agsource.com\HerdSelectionGuide.

Your Info DefaultsHerdcodeNameReproduction Cost, $/cow per month Default: $20Last Month After Calving to Breed a Cow Default: 10 monthsDo-not-Breed Cow Minimum Milk, lb/day Default: 50 lbsAverage Cow Body Weight, lb Default: 1306 lbsReplacement Cost, $/cow Default: $1300Salvage Value, $/lb live weight Default: $0.38

Calf Value, $/calf Default: $100Milk Price, $/cwt Default: $18.00Feed Cost Lactating Cows, $/lb dry matter Default: $0.10Feed Cost Dry Cows, $/lb dry matter Default: $0.08Interest Rate, %/year Default: 6%

Fill in the blanks and return to: AgSource, Attn: Customer Service, PO Box 930230, Verona, WI 53593