WHY wait? Bring cycling cows forward!

Some cows cycle at exactly the wrong time before mating starts.

A cow that cycles during the week immediately before planned start of mating will not naturally cycle again until approximately the third week of mating. Even though she is cycling normally, she misses the opportunity to be inseminated during the crucial first two weeks.

The Why Wait programme uses a single, strategically timed prostaglandin injection to bring these cows back on heat approximately one week earlier.

This gives them the opportunity to:

• Be inseminated seven days earlier

• Get in calf seven days earlier

• Calve seven days earlier next season

• Produce for roughly one additional week

• Have an extra week to recover and resume cycling next season

  
  

This earlier calving generates approximately (on average) $40–$50 of additional milk income per treated cow, although the exact return will depend on milk price and the cow’s production.

The benefits also flow into the following season. Earlier-calving cows have a longer interval between calving and mating, making them more likely to resume cycling and be submitted early. This helps reinforce a compact calving pattern rather than allowing cows to gradually slip later each year.

Particularly easy with wearables

Why Wait depends on knowing when each cow last cycled. Traditionally, this required accurate premating heat detection and good records. With wearables, that information is already available.

We can use the wearable data to identify cows that:

• Are confirmed to be cycling

• Cycled during the relevant premating window

• Would otherwise return during the second or third week of mating

• Are suitable for a well-timed prostaglandin injection

  
  

Only the cows likely to benefit need to be treated. The programme involves a single injection, making it straightforward and highly cost-effective, particularly when accurate wearable data removes much of the identification work.

Contact FVM before mating starts so we can review your wearable data, identify the right cows and schedule their Why Wait injections at the correct time.