the cost of raising replacement dairy heifers
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The Cost of Raising Replacement Dairy Heifers. Brian Lang, OMAFRA, Woodstock Bill Grexton, CanWest DHI, Guelph. Average Age at First Calving with 20 and 80 Percentiles. The average age at first calving in Ontario has remained between 26.6 and 27.0 months. Age at First Calving. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Brian Lang, OMAFRA, WoodstockBill Grexton, CanWest DHI, Guelph
The Cost of Raising Replacement Dairy Heifers
Average Age at First Calving with 20 and 80 Percentiles
The average age at first calving in
Ontario has remained between 26.6 and
27.0 months
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
Month
s of
Age
Average Age at First Calving
11,350
29,489
34,48433,038
25,269
20,584
14,514
11,764
8,1376,575
4,6403,723
2,708 2,3373,823
0
5,000
10,000
15,000
20,000
25,000
30,000
35,000
22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36
Age @ 1st Calving
Nu
mb
er
of
An
ima
ls
63% of heifers 41% of
heifers calved at 27
months of age
or older
Age at First Calving
CanWest DHI 2008-09 (212,435 heifers)
Comparison of Age at First Calving and Productive Life
32.1
32.833.1
33.7 33.633.3 33.1 33.0
32.6 32.632.0 32.2
31.0
30.1 29.9
25
27
29
31
33
35
37
22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36
Age at First Calving (months)
Tim
e S
pe
nt
in H
erd
(m
o)
Heifers calving at
25-26 months have the longest herd life
CanWest DHI 2008-09
Productive life in a dairy herd is similar across all ages with a range of less than 4 months
Age at First Calving and Lifetime Milk Production
20,000
22,000
24,000
26,000
28,000
22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36Age at First Calving
Lifeti
me p
rod
uct
ion
kg
Highest lifetime
production is from heifers
calving at 23 to 25
months of age
CanWest DHI 2008-09
Heifers required to supply replacements for 100-cow herd
15% allowance for culling, non-breeders and death loss
Replacements Required
If calving interval is 14 months for both farms and 15% allowance for culling
Farm 1 has 12 heifers to sell each year
Farm 2 must buy 5 heifers each year
Wisconsin 2007 (US$)
Preweaned (n=40)
Wean to Calving
(n=44) Total
Feed $ 112 684 796Labour $ 153 244 397Other variable $ 49 233 282Fixed Costs $ 12 162 174
$ 326 1,323 1,649
Ave. weaning age 7 weeks; age at first calving 24.1 months
The effect of body weight and age on costs of raising one heifer in
WisconsinApproximate
Total Cost $/head/dayWeight (lbs) Age (months)
Preweaned 5.42215 2.5 1.75309 4.0 1.66398 5.5 1.71514 8.0 1.62618 10.0 1.75705 11.5 1.88815 13.5 2.33896 15.0 2.46
1,016 18.0 2.381,114 19.5 2.261,209 21.5 2.60 Zwald et al, 2007
Preweaned calves have the
highest daily cost.
After weaning, costs are fairly
flat until breeding then
rise again in late pregnancy.
Tie Stall vs. Free Stall - Wisconsin
Tie Stall Free stall
Preweaned cost 381 315
Wean to calving cost 1,416 1,362
Total $US 1797 1,677
Zwald et al, 2007
Tie Stall vs. Free Stall – Wisconsin 2007
Tie Stall Free stallPreweaned 381 315Wean to calving 1416 1362Total $ 1797 1677
Biggest expense difference was labour
Labour (ave. 21.3 hours) 27.7 hr 17.7 hrpaid $ 157 258unpaid $ 348 71
$ 505 329
New York 2007
Feed 885Labour 234Bedding 63Health 40Breeding 47Mach. & Building
Operating Expenses 60 Deprec/Taxes/Insur 150
Manure Spreading & Storage 57Interest 137Other Expenses 61
Total $ US 1734
17 farms
ave. 865 heifers
22.9 months @ first calving
18.2 hrs. labour/heifer
Age at First Calving and Net Farm Income Ontario 2006
Age at First Calving
Net Farm Income / Cow
Lowest 35 24.3 $ 1,571
Middle 35 26.5 $ 1,440
Highest 35 29.1 $ 1,283
All 105 26.6 $ 1,431
$288 difference
105 Ontario Dairy Farms - OFMAP 2006
Ontario Dairy Farm Analysis Project 2010
Purchased Feed $ 275Crop Production Input Costs 127Vet, Medicine & Breeding 109Other Animal Costs 133Building & Land Repair & Maint. 183Machinery & Equip Repair & Maint. 99Fuel and Lubricants 78Custom Work 81Property Tax & Insurance 85Hydro & Telephone 23Hired Labour 73Other Cash Expenses 49Interest 167
Total Cash Costs $ 1,483
Ontario Dairy Farm Analysis Project 2010
Total Cash Costs $ 1,483
Machinery/Building Depreciation 121
Unpaid Labour & Management (30.4 hours)
@ $12.00 ($365)@ $17.00 ($517) 517@ $22.00 ($669)@ $26.60 ($809)
Total Cost to Raise Replacement $2,252
Hours of Labour to Required to Raise a Heifer from Birth to Calving 2000-2010
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
Hou
rs
Ontario Dairy Farm Accounting Project
In recent years, the
labour required to
raise a heifer has ranged
from 35 to 48 hours
(includes family and employee
labour)
Replacement Costs 2010 46 farms, averaged 218 cows, 9,681 kg
11% of milk revenue Range 9-13% (25 to 75 percentile range)
Average cost $900 / per 12 months ~ $1,995/heifer
+ interest and depreciation costs
Profit Profiler
COP of heifer may not be the best indicator of success
1st Lactation Production compared to herd average is needed to see other side Most herds = 89% Range 87- 91% (25 to 75 percentile range) Some herds as low as 80% = program is not working
You need a good indicator to know if your heifer program is working
How to Measure Impact
Impact of Age @ Calving
2 groups of herds based on age @ 1st Calving (24 and 28 mo)
Low Age Group … Produced 1400 kg milk more per cow ($885) with higher % margin Spent .9% of milk cheque LESS to raise a heifer Spent $14 more per heifer per year but… Spent $281 LESS overall to bring heifer into milking line 1st lactation production was 1,170 kg higher
Good overall management dictates that in addition to getting economical high milk production, you need to get higher production heifers into the milking line sooner - it can be done!
Summary
$2,000 - $2,500 average cost to raise a replacement heifer
Remember overhead costs
Unpaid labour
Plus value of calf
Summary
Herds that calve earlier get higher 1st lactation and lifetime production
There is a wide range of costs between farms to raise heifers. There is no advantage to delaying the age to 1st calving. Herds with good management can raise heifers which perform
better than those who do not. Herds that combine good management with wise cost of
production decisions not only have good results but also add considerably the overall profit of the business.
The difference in cost can be in excess of $25,000 per year for the heifer program and $60,000 in the overall farm profit for a herd size of 100 cows.
Thank you