Why Test Your Cow For Pregnancy?

Improved productivity is something every farmer yearns for. There are so many factors that can determine how productive a herd is and every serious dairy farmer needs to be aware of every factor and how to make improvements for better production. Apart from ensuring that your cows are well fed, you ought to be in control of their reproduction. The cow pregnancy test is amongst the things that you should consider doing for your cattle. Here are some of the reasons why the test can be helpful to your herd.

Accurate heat detection

One of the reasons behind low conception rates in a herd is inaccurate heat detection or heat detection that is inefficient. A pregnancy test tool can help the herd manager and even veterinarians deal with poor reproductive performance. It helps in increasing profitability and reproductive management for better and healthier herds.

Early pregnancy detection

The cow pregnancy test makes it possible for dairy farmers and managers to detect pregnancy early enough for the right measures to be out of place for the pregnant cows. It is actually very helpful to test the cows after the end of the mating season or after insemination so you can decide when to go back to the same in case conception has not yet taken place with the first trial.

Estimation of calving dates

A pregnancy test can in some cases tell the age of the calf thus making it possible to estimate the likely calving date. This way, a farmer is able to separate cows with a likelihood of calving early from those expected to calve later. The calving spread reduction is made manageable for the farmer if need be.

Culling cows

A pregnancy test can also help a dairy farmer have an easy time culling cows where it is necessary to reduce the size of the herd. This can be necessitated by issues such as shortage of feed. When there is proper pregnancy detection, it is possible for a farmer to know what is expected and hence make the right decisions in terms of keeping the herd sizeable.

Identification of abnormalities

Cows are exposed to a number of diseases and abnormalities that can be responsible for infertility. A pregnancy test can help identify such issues and have them dealt with on time. When such abnormalities are taken care of, fertility is improved hence there are better reproduction rates and healthier calves for that matter.

Marketing decisions

Overwintering cows that are not likely to produce calves can be costly for farmers, but with the pregnancy test, a farmer can make marketing decisions on time and the best ones for that matter. When selling, it is also easier to inform the buyer about the status of the cows and get the real value of it in case it has a calf in waiting. It is best for both the buyer and seller to know the real state of the cows in question to get the best returns and satisfaction with the transactions.

A Cow pregnancy test strip is one of the best methods you can use to test your cows for pregnancy. It is easy to use and non-invasive in that you can use it on your own on the farm without any assistance.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Jovia_D'Souza/2007086