PR - The Value Of Pregnancy Testing Spring-calving Beef Cows

Implementation of best management practices into the beef cow enterprise is critical for long-term success. Previous literature suggests that pregnancy testing is valuable to the beef cow operation; however, less than half of producers in the southern Plains region of the United States utilize pregnancy testing. The objective of this research is to determine the expected value of pregnancy testing and the subsequent adoption of an effective culling practice on first-time non-pregnant beef cows relative to a system that does not use pregnancy testing or a culling strategy. Results show that the value of adopting pregnancy testing and an effective culling practice for first-time non-pregnant cows ranged between $54 and $76 head-1, depending upon the year. With the cost of pregnancy testing ranging between $2 and $5 head-1, the value of the risk-reducing information gleaned from pregnancy testing tends to warrant adoption.

Keywords: adoption, beef cows, culling, pregnancy testing.