ESTROTECT announced the release of the new ESTROTECT Breeding Indicator, which features a new and improved precision design that includes the patent-pending Breeding Bullseye to help producers and breeding specialists know exactly when animals are ready to breed.

The ESTROTECT Breeding Indicator takes the guesswork out of the breeding process and serves a variety of uses, including heat detection, confirming pregnancies, identifying potential embryonic loss and pinpointing timing for various modern artificial insemination (AI) and breeding protocols, the company said.

“We listened to our customers and leading researchers to launch a new product design that provides producers and breeding specialists with high accuracy on not only when an animal is in heat but precisely when to breed that animal,” ESTROTECT general manager Boyd Dingus said.

Third-party university research has demonstrated that when the new Breeding Bullseye (or the equivalent amount) is rubbed off of the patch by mounting activity, the confirmed pregnancy rate for those cows was up to three times higher than those where the Breeding Bullseye was not rubbed off. With a missed or failed pregnancy resulting in lost revenues anywhere between $42 and $126 per cow, the economics of utilizing the Breeding Indicator for breeding success is clear, the announcement said.

Just like the original ESTROTECT patches, the ESTROTECT Breeding Indicator has a unique, self-adhesive design with rub-off silver and now new black ink. When cows experience mounting activity, the indicator's silver and black surface ink is rubbed off by the friction of mounting activity to reveal one of five indicator colors: red-orange, green, blue, yellow or fuchsia. When the black Breeding Bullseye (or the equivalent amount) is rubbed off, it is time to breed the animal.

For more information about the Breeding Indicators, visit ESTROTECT.com.

ESTROTECT, based in Spring Valley, Wis., is a leader in innovative breeding management tools.