Reproductive issues on a dairy farm aren’t always what they seem. Maintaining a holistic view of the precise profitability of a reproductive issue, such as mastitis, can help dairy producers evaluate the actual impact of reproduction inefficiencies.

A University of Wisconsin study did just that. In evaluating the number of pregnancies per artificial insemination and the occurrence of mastitis on an operation, the researchers reported that the odds of pregnancy are 25% to 36% less for cows with clinical mastitis than for healthy cows. Investigators enrolled more than 3,100 cows in their breeding risk period in the study.

Keeping a broad lens and tracking inefficiencies is critical to keep a productive operation and reproductive plan.

Read more on dairy cattle reproduction here.