The cheapest milk you make comes from matured cows

  As you will find from reading the bull highlights enclosed, the cows who make the exceptional lactations and breed back in the process, do these feats in and after a third lactation.

The theory behind “accelerating generations” to increase production carries with it the negative concept that a third lactation cow is “obsolete” fit only for Burger King.     Given Zoetis’ research still proves that a functional third-plus lactation cow will out yield heifer cows by at least 30% is a qualitative gain well above the marginal gains from genetic/genomic selection.   

Productive Life  (PTA-PL)  has done a decent job of screening out the short herdlife cows, but has accomplished nothing across five genetic base periods to increase the realized lifetime of a common dairy cow.    If you wish to breed for exceptional cows, you need to bring in maternal lines that express exceptional productivity in maturity.    This is common cow-sense that seems to be lacking among many who advise you on what sires to use and why you choose them.

When your breeding (and cow performance) gets stuck in a rut of fast turnover and a low percentage of third-plus lactation super cows, consider these concepts.