Step 4: Create Your Strategy

Create Your Strategy is the fourth and final step of the planning process. In this step, you can set the current prices of semen, bull and beef calves, as well as the latest conception and cull rates for the herd. You can also control which females in your herd receive each type of semen (Sexed, Conventional, and Beef).

At the top of the page, you can see a brief summary of your plan's projected costs and requirements, as well as determine whether you want to maintain the current size of your herd or if you want to expand your current number of milking females. If you're unsure about your current settings, you can even create alternative scenarios to ensure you're making the right choices for your herd. PULSE then incorporates your input and generates a report with the proposed costs and herd implications of the plan.

Expand the sections below to learn more:

  1. Review the projected results of your plan (economic impact) and the projected and required female calf counts needed to meet your goal.

    To review the inventory projection data as a graph, click the Average Monthly Inventory Projection drop-down.

  2. To set your goal herd size:
    • Maintain Herd Size: Select this option to keep the herd at the current size.
    • Expand Your Milking Female Herd: Select this option to grow your herd. In the Growth Reference drop-down, selecting either the Annual Expansion (%) or Desired number of milking females option displays different options.
      • NOTE: If necessary, the Annual Expansion % can be set to a negative percentage to reduce your herd size. Add a - (hyphen) before the number to set a negative value.
  3. Select the semen distribution strategy you want to use: you can choose to assign the semen types to females by index, lactation group and service, or index and service. After you select the strategy, enter the distribution percentages:

    Use this strategy to assign semen types based on the animals' genetic index values. Animals with the highest index scores receive sexed semen and the animals with the lowest index score receive beef semen. All three percentages must add up to 100%.

    To learn more about the benefits of using each semen type, see Learn more about each semen type.

    Use this strategy to assign semen types based on lactation and number of breeding attempts. For example, you can select Sexed semen for a heifer's (Lact 0) first and second service. If the first two insemination attempts are unsuccessful and the heifer does not become pregnant, you can select Conventional semen for a heifer's (Lact 0) next service attempts.

    To learn more about the benefits of using each semen type, see Learn more about each semen type.

    Use this strategy to assign semen types based on genetic index and number of breeding attempts. For example, you can indicate that a percentage of the animals at the top of the index distribution list should receive Sexed semen for the animal's first and second service. If the first two insemination attempts are unsuccessful and the animal does not become pregnant, you can select Conventional or Beef semen for the next service attempts.

    To learn more about the benefits of using each semen type, see Learn more about each semen type.

    These are three standard types of semen available:

    Sexed semen dramatically increases the chance of having a female calf (from 49% to 90+%). If you are trying to expand the herd and need a large number of replacement female calves, increasing this value will make achieving your goal easier. Also, because the bulls typically used for sexed semen tend to be high-quality, the female calves resulting from the mating will continue to improve the genetics of the herd.

    The largest portion of the herd is bred using conventional semen due to cost savings of using conventional semen instead of sexed semen. Using conventional semen typically results in pregnancies with 49% female calves. Due to the additional cost of sexed semen, most dairies tend to use conventional semen for most of their breeding activity.

    When animals are bred with beef semen, the resulting calves will be sold and not be added to the herd. Typically, females bred with beef semen are below average genetically and tend to be older animals.

    After you configure the semen distribution values, click the Females Eligible drop-down to view the data as a table. If you selected Distribute Females by Index, you can also view the data as a graph.

    TIP: Adjust the semen type percentages and watch the graph and table update to reflect your changes. Use the Normal Distribution line to see how the animals' index values compare to the median value and corresponding data across the herd.
  4. Enter or review the automatically populated prices.

    Entering accurate prices generates a more accurate plan, associated costs, and ROI values. Enter or review the values for each of the following: 

    • Average price of each type of semen (per dose), based on the latest Alta marketing list.
    • Average calf prices (per head), based on the latest regional data.
    • If your plan includes manually added bulls, you have additional pricing options. You can use the same prices for all semen, not include the additional bull semen cost in the plan, or set unique prices for the added bulls.

    PULSE automatically populates prices from the last genetic plan if the values are greater than 0. If there are no previous plans available, PULSE inserts industry-standard prices.

  5. Enter or review the automatically populated conception and cull rates for heifers and cows.

    Conception Rate:PULSE automatically populates conception rates if they exist in the system and are greater than 0. If no rates are available in PULSE, the system uses values that were entered in a previous genetic plan. If there are no previous plans available, PULSE inserts industry-standard conception rates.

    Cull Rate: The cull rate is the percentage of animals that were SOLD or DIED per year. If available, Alta analyzes the last three years' worth of dairy event data for heifers and the last year's worth of data for cows.

    • If the dairy has fewer than three years' worth of event data for heifers, PULSE includes events from the last year or all available events, whichever is greater.
    • If the dairy does not capture SOLD or DIED events, PULSE inserts industry-standard cull rates.
  6. Enter or review the automatically populated optional values.

    Entering optional values generates a more accurate plan, associated costs, and ROI values. Enter or review the following optional values:

    • Abort Heifers: Percentage of heifer pregnancies that end due to an abort.
    • Abort Cows: Percentage of cow pregnancies that end due to an abort.
    • DOA (Females) Heifers: Percentage of dead on arrival female calves delivered by heifers.
    • DOA (Females) Cows: Percentage of dead on arrival female calves delivered by cows.
    • Pregnant Heifers Cull Rate: Rate at which pregnant heifers are culled from the herd.
    • Pregnant Cows Cull Rate: Rate at which pregnant cows are culled from the herd.
    • Abort Heifers and Cows: Alta BLUE LINK evaluates PULSE abort events for heifers and cows in the last 365 days and calculates the rate as follows: 

      Abort % = (total aborts) / (total pregnant animals)

    • DOA and Pregnant Cull Rates: PULSE automatically populates the DOA and Pregnant Cull rates from the last genetic plan if the values are greater than 0. If there are no previous plans available, PULSE inserts industry-standard values.
  7. Click Add New Scenario to add a second set of values and compare the results side by side.

    For more information, expand the Compare Scenarios section below.

  8. Click the Options button Options button to access the Mating Options, Females List, Detail Value of Proposal, and Set Semen Type of Choice options.

  9. Click See Report. Your Value of Proposal report is generated and displays. Continue to Reports to learn more about the reports that are generated for your plan.
    NOTE: If any of the required fields marked with an * (asterisk) are empty, the See Report button becomes grayed out and inactive until all required fields are added.

When determining the specifics of your strategy, using the Scenario feature is a great way to experiment with different approaches while keeping a "control" version available to undo any unwanted changes.

As you use scenarios to develop your plan, keep the following in mind:

  • You can only have two scenarios active at any given time.
  • Sections you expand or close in one scenario display expanded or closed in the other scenario. Click the short animation below to see scenarios in action.

  • If you click the See Report button while both scenarios are active, the scenario with the green border and the filled bubble is the one that will be used for the plan.

To open the Mating Options window, click the Options button Options button and select Mating Options.

To see more mating options, click See More Options at the bottom of the window. Follow the steps below to continue:

  1. Select the Mating Type.

    Two different Mating Types are available:

    • Genomic & Pedigree: Mating assignments will be based on the plan goals and traits identified as important for this genetic plan.
    • Reverse Mate: This mating process is also known by the Alta brand name, Pen-Mate, and is intended to find bulls that should NOT be used for mating with specific females. That includes bulls that score high for haplotypes, recessive traits, and inbreeding. The least desirable bulls are returned as SIR1Closed 1st choice mating sire, SIR2Closed 2nd choice mating sire, and SIR3Closed Sire preference 3 for Reverse Mate genetic plans. Some dairies choose to use this method to simplify the breeding process and make it more efficient, while also minimizing the risks of inbreeding. The dairy worker handling breeding tasks only has to worry about which bulls NOT to use with specific females.
  2. Set Lactation Group(s) to include in the plan.

    All eligible animals are included by default. Click the toggles to disable or enable animals by lactation group: 

    • Include heifers (LACTClosed Lactation number 0): Includes heifers.
    • Minimum Heifer breeding age (months): If enabled, enter the minimum age (in months) at which to include heifers in the genetic plan. Default: 12. Minimum: 2. Maximum: 20.
    • Include 1st lactation Cows (LACT 1): Includes cows in their first lactation.
    • Include 2nd lactation cows (LACT 2): Includes cows in their second lactation.
    • Include 3rd (and greater) lactation Cows (LACT 3+): Includes cows in their third or latter lactation.
    • Eligible mating period (months): If enabled, enter the number of months in the future animals are eligible for breeding in this plan. For example, if you set the period to 4, then all animals eligible today and those that will become eligible during the next 4 months are included in the mating plan. Eligibility may change for heifers as they reach the minimum mating age, or for cows after they freshen and complete the voluntary wait period. Default: 4. Minimum: 1. Maximum: 12.
  3. Set animals to include by Reproductive Status.

    All animals except DNBClosed Do Not Breed and pregnant animals are included by default. Click the toggle to disable or enable animals by reproductive code (RCClosed Reproductive code):

  4. Set Other Filters.
    • Include Pregnant Heifers (MIN DCCClosed Days carrying calf/pregnant): Enter a minimum DCC to include pregnant heifers.
    • Filter Female by Calculated Index: Enter a minimum and maximum health index to include females within your index range.
    • Filter Females by Age in Days: Enter a minimum and maximum age in days to limit the plan to a specific age group.
  5. Set Mate options.
    • Mate to High Fertility bulls after (x) breeding: Enter the maximum number of breedings to attempt before switching to high fertility semen.
    • Mate Animals over (x) failed breeding attempts to beef: Enter the maximum number of breedings to attempt before switching to beef semen.
    • Mate Animals after (x) DIMClosed Days in milk to beef: Enter the number of days in milk after which to mate the animal to beef semen.
    • Apply your custom Genetic Plan Index for mating or Consider all traits equal for mating: You can choose only one of these options. Applying your Genetic Plan implements the specific goals and weights you outlined in Step 3: Choose Your Bulls. If you consider all traits equal, the best mates are selected without applying your plan's unique goals.
  6. Set Restrictions & Protections. 

    Use Restrictions & Protections to minimize inbreeding and protect heifers from calving difficulties: 

    • Maximum inbreeding: If enabled, enter the allowed inbreeding value. Default: 6.25. Minimum: 3. Maximum: 10.
    • Allow additional inbreeding if no matching choice: If enabled, enter the additional inbreeding value allowed if no bulls are matched. If this exception occurs, a flag is included in the mating plan to notify the dairy.
    • Calving ease protection on Heifers: If enabled, the sire's calving ease (SCE) value is considered for pairings in the mating plan. You can adjust the value as needed. Default: 2.2. Minimum: 1.5. Maximum: 3.
    • Force minimum mating recommendation: If enabled, each animal is assigned a mate in the plan. If the mating exceeds allowed inbreeding value, a flag is included in the mating plan to notify the dairy that an exception was made. Default: 1. Minimum: 1. Maximum: 3.
      NOTE: The mating plan always performs a check to ensure the animal's sire is not her assigned mating sire.
  7. Click Save to capture your settings and close the options window.
NOTE: All lactation groups are included and only DNB and pregnant animals are excluded by default in the first genetic plan for the dairy. Subsequent plans default to the last plan's mating options.

Click the Options button Options button and select Females List to view a list of all females to be mated, their index values, and other details.

Use this option to allow whether each bull in a mating plan can appear as only the first, second, or third choice (SIR1, SIR2, or SIR3) or a combination for female groups. You can use this option to ensure that you have an even distribution for all bulls or you can match the best bull to the best female.

Follow the steps below to continue:

  1. Click Options button Options button and select Bulls Restrictions.
  2. Click Add Restriction.
  3. Select the Female Group that will be limited to these bull selections.
  4. Select the bulls you want to limit to first, second, or third choice or a combination.
  5. Check the boxes to denote whether the selected bulls should be selected as a first choice, second choice, and/or third choice.
  6. Save your changes.

Follow the guidelines below when setting restrictions:

  • If you only check the First Choice Available box for a bull, the bull will never be chosen as a second or third choice. Likewise, if you only check Second Choice Available box for a bull, the bull will never be chosen as a first or third choice.
  • Restrictions are not available for reverse matings.
  • If you add a restriction to a dairy bull, you should not add the same restriction to a beef bull. Conversely, if you add a restriction to a beef bull, you should not add the same restriction to a dairy bull.

    • For example, if you want to select a beef bull as the first choice for sexed females, you should not add a dairy bull as the first, second, or third choice for sexed females.

  • RESET won’t clear your options; it resets to the previously-saved settings.

To see your values in action, click the Options button Options button and select Detail Value of Proposal. The economic details display in a side panel.

Each section is expandable by clicking its expand icon expand icon. Click the x or Close to hide the side panel.

AltaBLUE LINK allows you to capture the semen type used for each animal in the dairy's mating plan and send it back to PULSE as a standard item, STOCClosed semen type of choice. This option is turned off by default. To enable it, click the Options button Options button and select Semen Type of Choice. In the pop-up window, click the toggle to enable the setting and save your changes.

To see the STOC codes for the animals in the plan, view the Mating Report.

Supported codes: 

  • BF: beef semen
  • CN: conventional semen
  • SX: sexed semen

Once enabled, the STOC setting remains enabled for future genetic plans for the dairy.

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