The document discusses how proper nutrition and management around the dry period and transition into lactation can optimize reproductive efficiency in dairy cows by maintaining body condition score, maximizing dry matter intake, balancing protein and minerals, and avoiding metabolic disorders linked to reduced fertility. It provides specific feeding recommendations for close-up dry cows, transition cows, and lactating cows to support reproductive health and performance.

1. Feeding for Fertility

2. Feeding for Fertility
The relationship b/w nutrition and reproduction
is a topic of concern among producers,
nutritionists and veterinarians alike.
Early research confirmed that nutrition played
an important role in reproduction but in most
cases severe nutritional deficiencies were
required to cause reproductive problems.
Today, however, it is accepted that nutrition
programs and management are highly
implicated in breeding problems in herds.

3. Feeding for Fertility

4. Feeding for Fertility
Achieving reproductive efficiency through
nutrition and feeding management involves:
1. Dry and transition cow nutrition and
management
2. Monitoring body condition (BCS)
3. Bunk management to maximize dry matter
intake
4. Proper protein nutrition
5. Balancing minerals and vitamins

5. Dry Cow Nutrition and Management
A good dry cow program, whether it is the traditional 2
group, 60 day system or the “new” one group, 40
day system, should accomplish the following
goals:
1. Provide nutrition for the developing fetus
2. Maintain proper BCS
3. Prepare the digestive tract (rumen) for the next
lactation
4. Heal and prepare the udder for the next lactation
5. Reduce metabolic, infectious, and reproductive
disorders
6. Improve future reproductive efficiency

6. Dry Cow Nutrition and Management
Maintaining a positive energy balance is
critical to the dry cow.
Close up dry cows (CUD) have a high energy
demand related to fetal needs, colostrum
production and mammary gland draw.
However, DMI drops up to 30% as cows
approach calving, depressed feed intake
puts the animal at risk for a number of
metabolic disorders.

7. Transition Management
Cows which develop metabolic disorders at or
around calving are significantly more likely to:
 Develop secondary disorders during the
next lactation
 Have lower production and impaired fertility
than cows calving problem free

8. Transition Management
RELATIONSHIP B/W PRIMARY DISORDERS AT/AROUND CALVING AND SECONDARY DISORDERS DURING
THE SUBSEQUENT LACTATION
PRIMARY DISORDER
SECONDARY FAT COW MILK DYSTOCIA RETAINED METRITIS DISPLACED KETOSIS
DISORDER SYNDROME FEVER PLACENTA ABOMASUM
DIFFICULT + +
CALVING
RETAINED + + +
PLACENTA
METRITIS + + + + ? ?
DISPLACED
ABOMASUM + + + + ? ?
MASTITIS + + + + + ?
LOW
CONCEPTION + + + + + + +
RATE

9. Transition Management
Milk fever is a significant risk factor for several other
disorders including retained placenta and displaced
abomasum.
Subclinical milk fever and/or ketosis or a combination
of the two can impact enormously on an animal’s
reproductive efficiency.
Factors which cause loss of muscle tone, increase the
risk of Displaced Abomasum (DA).
Other factors identified as risk for potential DA’s
include toxemia due to metritis and mastitis.

10. Feeding for Fertility
At the barn level:
 Strive for BCS of 3.5-4 @ drying off & calving
 Limit Ca to 80-100 g/h/d, and P to 40-50 g/h/d, during
the close up dry phase
 Avoid or limit legume forages due to high Ca, K
 Balance anion-cations in the ration and use anionic
salts if necessary (always measure urine pH, ~6)
 Supplement vitamin A @ 200 KIU/H/D; vitamin D @
50 KIU/H/D and vitamin E @ 1,000- 4,000 IU/H/D

11. Feeding for Fertility
At the barn level:
 If oral supplementation is not guaranteed, inject
vitamins A,D & E plus Se on the day of drying off and
3 weeks prepartum.
 Supply 7-8 mg/hd/day of Se orally to all milking and
dry groups
 Introduce fats, niacin, yeast, CRC Boluses, choline in
the CUD
 Close up dry (CUD) rations should mimic the high
group TMR: the same ingredients but balanced for
CUD (BUT NOT THE milking premix, salt and bicarb).

12. Feeding for Fertility
At the barn level:
Most of my clients provide 30-40 litres of warm
electrolytes after calving.
For “at risk” animals, calcium and/or sugar products
are administered either as a drench, I.M. or I.V.
Monitor the fresh cow to make sure she has a
vigorous appetite.
Many Nutritionists like to feed a couple of kg’s of
high quality long forage to maintain rumen function.

13. Feeding for Fertility
At the barn level:
 Watch for depressed animals that may be suffering
from subclinical milk fever, ketosis and other
disorders.
 Record body temperature to get an early start on
animals that may be suffering from metritis or other
infections.
 Listen for rumen movement (one to two
ruminations/minute).
 Observe uterine discharge for odors and physical
condition.

14. Feeding for Fertility
At the barn level:
Other tools that I use on herd health calls besides
those already mentioned include:
 Monitoring milk components and SCC
 Manure scoring and screening
 Blood NEFA
 Urine ketone bodies
 Milk urea nitrogen (MUN)
 Rumen pH (rumenocentesis)

15. BCS and Reproduction
In North America we use the 1 to 5 scale, with 1 being
emaciated and 5 being obese.
We BCS ALL groups of animals (milking, dry heifers,
calves) at each herd health and adjust the rations
accordingly. Herd energy status impacts:
 Milk production
 Dry matter intake
 Reproduction
 Health of cows

16. Nutrient and Milk Yield Relationships in
the Lactation and Gestation Cycle
Periods
1 2 3 4 5
Body Stores Dry Matter Intake Body Stores Dry Period
Used for Regained for Rumen
Milk Production Next Lactation Rehab
Freshening
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
16
Month

17. BCS and Reproduction
BCS changes can cause problems when they
are too rapid, too much or too little:
Cows < BCS 2.0, or cows that lose +2 BCS
points in the first 100 days of lactation are at
risk of cystic ovaries, anestrus, fatty liver
disease and spontaneous abortion.

18. BCS and Reproduction
Cows > +4 BCS at dry off are 3X more likely to
experience the following reproductive
problems in their next lactation, than cows of
a normal BCS (fat cow syndrome):
 Dystocia
 Retained placenta
 Uterine infection
 Cystic ovaries
 Abortion

19. BCS and Reproduction
At the barn level:
 Add BCS on during the last 200 DIM and not in the
dry period (thin cows should go directly to the CUD)
 If cows are fat at dry off do not allow BCS loss
during dry period
 BCS ALL cows to monitor changes
 Maximize dry matter intake of close up and fresh
cows to limit negative energy balance

20. Optimizing Dry Matter Intake (DMI)
Manipulating DMI can:
 Increase milk production and components
 Minimize negative energy balance that leads to
metabolic disorders
 Improve reproductive performance by reaching
positive energy balance earlier in lactation.

21. Optimizing Dry Matter Intake (DMI)
At the barn level:
 Ideally, feed should be available to cows 24 hours a
day. The maximum amount of time w/o feed should
be limited to 4 hours per day.
 It is CRITICAL that feed bunks be kept clean!
 Don’t add fresh feed on top of old feed.
 Rations, specifically TMR’s, should contain 48-52%
dry matter. Most of my herds add water or wet
brewers grains to the TMR.
 The feeding surface of bunks can have a huge
impact on DMI. Surfaces should be tiled or painted
with an epoxy like substance.

22. Optimizing Dry Matter Intake (DMI)
At the barn level:
 All animals should have a minimum of ~ 1 m of bunk
space available at all times.
 Feed refusal should be weighed (2-4%) and
monitored using the “shaker” box test (+/- 10% in
each box).
 Frequent feedings decrease fluctuations in rumen
pH, stabilize the rumen environment and improves
DMI.
 Frequent feeding maintains fresher, more palatable
feed particularly in the summer months.

23. FOOT PROBLEMS…A NUTRITIONIST’S NIGHTMARE
Foot problems both infectious (“straw berry foot”) and non-
infectious (laminitis) continue to plaque the global dairy
herd. They have a HUGE impact on herd reproduction.
Why? Cows who cannot walk:
 Do not eat, go down in a stall and stay there.
 They are reluctant to show heats (even if they are
cycling) because it hurts to be on their feet.
 They are more prone to reproductive and metabolic
disorders
 Are likely to be prematurely culled from the herd.

24. Protein Nutrition and Reproduction
The effect of protein nutrition on reproduction
is still not completely clear.
About 20 years ago, the Degradable Protein
System was adopted for diet formulation for
dairy cows.
The objective of this system is to provide
sufficient soluble/degradable protein to
maximize rumen microbial fermentation and
growth with un-degraded intake protein
supplying amino acids to the small intestine
above microbial supply.

25. Protein Nutrition and Reproduction
This balance of protein types would prevent
excess ammonia production in the rumen
which leads to elevated blood urea nitrogen
(BUN) levels.
Increased BUN (blood urea nitrogen) or MUN
(milk urea nitrogen) levels causes a “toxic”
environment around the reproductive tract.

26. Protein Nutrition and Reproduction
These nitrogen compounds result in decreased
viability of the sperm cells, ovulated egg and
the embryo itself.
Decreased fertility would result with increased
services: conception and days open.
What I see at the barn level is cows diagnosed
as , and 3 months latter coming back into heat.

27. Minerals, Vitamins and Reproduction
Micronutrients, minerals and vitamins, are also
important in achieving efficiency and profitable
levels of production.
There has been a trend to over supplement
some traces minerals; this can lead to
toxicities (liver damage) and deficiencies of
other trace mineral competing for receptor
sites in the gut.
It is essential that all vitamins and minerals be
supplement at a good level but not a toxic
level.

28. Minerals, Vitamins and Reproduction
 In the milking herd supply Ca at 0.98-1.1% of
the total ration DM. This translates to ~ 200-
250 g/h/d.
 P should be 0.36 – 0.4%.
 Mg should be balanced at 0.35%.
 It is important that the Ca:P ratio be 2:1, a
minimum of 1.75:1.

29. Minerals, Vitamins and Reproduction
Two micro-minerals associated with enhancing
reproductive performance are zinc and
selenium.
Both are involved with membrane integrity and
influence udder and the reproductive tract
health. This role could enhance the uterine
environment and support increased fertility.

30. Minerals, Vitamins and Reproduction
Se and Vitamin E work together to decrease the
incidence of retained placenta (RP), metritis
and increase the rate of uterine involution.
• I supplement Vitamin E in the close-up dry
ration b/w 1000 to 4000 IU/day (new); in the
milking ration I supplement Vitamin E at a
minimum of 1000 IU/day.

31. Minerals, Vitamins and Reproduction
At the barn level:
Retained Placentas?
1. Milk fever (sub or clinical)→Ca shortage
2. Ketosis (sub or clinical)→Energy shortage
3. Protein deficiency →Protein shortage
4. Se &/or Vit. E deficiency →Vitamin and
mineral
5. Twins, hard calving, late/early calf etc.
→Life!
All will have a negative effect on future fertility.

32. Minerals, Vitamins and Reproduction
The water soluble vitamins Niacin, Biotin and Choline
are usually manufactured in the rumen.
However, in high production animals this synthesis
may not be adequate. Rumen protected products are
available and are getting very favorable reviews.
Niacin, part of many metabolic pathways, helps cows
with “fat cow syndrome”.
Biotin has been very successful in aiding membrane
integrity at the hoof level, resulting in healthier hooves.
Choline is involved in the smooth transitioning from
the dry phase to the milking phase.

33. Other Considerations on Herd Fertility
 Molds and mycotoxins in feed. There is no place for
moldy feed on the modern dairy farm!
 STRESS (housing, handling, lameness, diseases and
their effects on cows’ hormones)
 High production and it’s affects on the production of
luteinizing hormone, progesterone, estrogen, and
follicular development. Related to the current
increase in twins.
 Photo-period and environmental light.
 Temperature and humidity.

34. Other Considerations on Herd Fertility