Service sire selection and breeding management for successful heifer development

“Successful heifer development is key to rebuilding the cattle herd,” says Patrick Davis, University of Missouri E Extension livestock field specialist. A previous article covered heifer selection and herd health strategies for developing heifers for your operation or for sale. Service sire selection and breeding management are also essential to a successful heifer development program and to the productivity and profitability of a cattle operation.

This article focuses on strategies for replacement heifer service sire selection, breeding management and heifer management to help optimize productivity and profitability.

“Service sire selection is important to the success of both the heifer and her progeny, whether in your herd or a buyer’s herd,” says Davis. Heifers should be bred to service sires that produce calves with ease and are aligned with your herd goals or your buyers’ goals. Also, Davis urges cattle producers to use tools such as artificial insemination (AI) and estrous synchronization as well as considering breeding season length to manage heifers so they produce the most pounds of calf at weaning.

Davis further discusses these management strategies below:

Artificial insemination (AI) versus natural service (NS). One round of AI can benefit your operation and your buyers’ operations. AI-bred heifers typically calve earlier than NS-bred heifers, producing calves that are older and heavier at weaning. AI also allows producers to use bulls with more proven genetics, which can improve progeny performance. These advantages often lead buyers to pay more for AI-bred heifers. NS bulls remain important for breeding heifers that do not conceive through AI.

Service sire selection. Expected progeny difference (EPD) information is valuable when selecting service sires for heifers. EPDs predict progeny performance based on available data; as data increases, so does accuracy. Producers should prioritize high-accuracy calving ease EPDs to help heifers calve with ease while also selecting bulls with EPDs for traits valued by their own operation and by heifer buyers. AI sires generally offer the best opportunity to use high-accuracy EPDs. If using a NS sire, choose one that has been genomically tested to improve EPD accuracy.

Estrus synchronization. If using AI, select and follow an estrus synchronization protocol. These protocols increase the likelihood that heifers will be ready to breed and conceive on the AI date, which is the first day of the breeding season. This can result in more AI-sired calves born early in the calving season, increasing calf age, weight and total pounds sold at weaning. Refer to MU Extension guide G2025 for more information.

Short breeding season. Use a breeding season of 60 days or less and cull open heifers afterward. This approach helps retain highly fertile heifers since they are more likely to conceive in a short breeding window. It also improves the likelihood that heifers will rebreed and remain in the herd. Their calves are more likely to be born early in the calving season, making them older and heavier at weaning.

“Pregnancy check heifers and cull open females about 90 days after the breeding season begins,” says Davis. This timing allows for fetal sexing and provides a more accurate expected calving date for both your operation and your customers. Identifying and selling open heifers quickly increases their value to the feedyard and improves profitability by avoiding unnecessary feed costs.

Many of these strategies have been used by participants of the Show-Me-Select (SMS) Replacement Heifer Program, which has provided a reliable source of heifers for participants herds or to sell to cattle producers for over 25 years. Hopefully these strategies will help you produce an efficient set of replacement heifers that can be used to rebuild your herd or sell and rebuild your buyer’s herd. For more information on the SMS program, upcoming fall sales, replacement heifer service sire selection and breeding management, contact your local MU Extension livestock field specialist.