The ICBF HerdPlus tool uses herd data to deliver tailored dairy and beef AI matings, helping farmers maximise genetic gain and long-term profitability.
What is Sire Advice?
Sire Advice is a breeding decision support tool available to dairy farmers through the ICBF HerdPlus service. It helps farmers plan strategically for the breeding season by matching the most suitable dairy and beef AI bulls to individual cows in the herd — maximising genetic gain while managing risk.
Using existing herd data, Sire Advice aims to maximise the Economic Breeding Index (EBI), balance milk and fertility traits, and eliminate the risk of inbreeding. The programme also recommends optimum beef AI matings, helping to improve the quality and value of dairy-beef calves.
By analysing each cow individually, Sire Advice moves breeding decisions away from a “one size fits all” approach and towards a targeted, data driven and tailored breeding programme for your herd.
Why should farmers run Sire Advice?
Running Sire Advice allows farmers to make more informed and consistent breeding decisions while saving time during the busy breeding season. The mating programme can help dairy farmers improve their herds and achieve their long-term breeding goals.
Sire Advice aims to:
1. Maximise EBI
2. Prevent inbreeding
3. Breed a more balanced herd in milk and fertility
4. Improve the beef merit of dairy beef calves produced
5. Avoid mating carriers of lethal recessive mutations such as HH1 and HH3 in genotyped herds
From a practical perspective, Sire Advice simplifies breeding-season management. Recommended matings can be uploaded directly to AI technician handheld devices, accessed through the HerdPlus app, or printed on HerdPlus breeding charts.
Once bulls are selected, Sire Advice automatically matches them to individual cows. Farmers are advised to follow the first bull recommendation where possible, supporting even bull usage and optimise outcomes for milk and fertility. Bull usage can also be monitored throughout the season using the ICBF weekly fertility report, with a recommended maximum usage of 15% per bull.
Overall, Sire Advice helps farmers align breeding decisions with their specific herd goals, improving efficiency and future profitability.
How do farmers run Sire Advice?
Sire Advice can be generated quickly and easily through HerdPlus and can be run multiple times before and during the breeding season.
New for 2026: Sire Advice is now available on the ICBF HerdPlus app, giving farmers greater flexibility to plan and adjust matings on the go. The HerdPlus app is free and available from your app store. The ICBF HerdPlus app is free and available in your app store.
5 easy steps to run Sire Advice:
Step 1: Female Selector
· Select females for dairy AI (sexed and conventional), beef, cross-breeding, and contract/selective mating.
Step 2: Bull Selector
· Use the Bull Selector tool in Sire Advice to choose your dairy and beef bull teams based on your herd’s strengths and weaknesses such as fertility, milk solids or TB resistance.
Steps 3 & 4: Decide straw usage and review the bull team
· Adjust each bull’s target usage (percentage or number of straws) based on the selections made in the Female Selector.
Step 5: Save to AI handheld / breeding chart
· Once you are happy with your selections, send the final Sire Advice run to the AI technician’s handheld device or generate a breeding chart to keep the correct bull recommendations available on farm throughout the breeding season. (Sire Advice can be run multiple times).
Top Tip: Dairy farmers are reminded to switch to beef mating only once they are finished with dairy AI on the Sire Advice landing page.
Industry advice for the 2026 breeding season
With the breeding season approaching, now is the time to fine-tune your bull team and mating plan to maximise genetic gain while managing risk on farm. Below, industry representatives share their key advice for 2026.
Stuart Childs, Teagasc Dairy Specialist, says the priority for 2026 is to use Sire Advice to minimise risk, plan replacements realistically, and keep a close eye on beef merit where beef AI is used.
“Sire Advice avoids inbreeding and prevents lethal recessive gene matings such as HH1 and HH3.”
He also advises farmers to complete contract matings where required and to plan replacement numbers carefully:
“In reality, farmers need to generate a 25% replacement rate in order to achieve a replacement rate of 18–20%.”
Where beef AI is part of the breeding plan, he adds:
“Focus on a beef sub-index of greater than €100 within the DBI to improve the beef merit and potential of the beef calves produced.”
Graham Swanton, Farm Relationship & Sales Manager with Munster Bovine, says:
“Sire Advice helps farmers match the correct bulls for their breeding goals and selected cows, supports improved on-farm delivery with AI technicians, and provides a practical plan for DIY AI.”
Michelle Egan, Sire Advice & Coloured Breed Specialist with Dovea Genetics, highlights the flexibility of the tool:
“Sire Advice can help farmers drive faster progress while balancing dairy and beef decisions to suit their herd goals. It allows farmers to accelerate genetic gain, optimise both dairy and beef matings, and improve calf revenue, while pushing the herd towards the ideal cow.”
Eamonn Coleman, National Sales Manager with Eurogene, says Sire Advice makes on-farm delivery more straightforward, regardless of whether farmers are using an AI technician or doing DIY AI.
“When Sire Advice is done, the bull options appear on the technician’s handheld. For DIY AI, the breeding chart shows exactly which bull each cow should get when she’s bulling.”
He also advises farmers to plan ahead:
“Get your semen ordered in time, as the best bulls do tend to run out.”
Dan O’Riordan, Business Analyst with ICBF, encourages farmers to step back and assess where their herd needs to improve before selecting bulls:
“Use your Spring Breeding guidelines and EBI scorecard to identify your herd’s strengths and weaknesses when picking a team of bulls.”
He also notes how accessible Sire Advice has become for busy farmers:
“Sire Advice is now available on the HerdPlus app, making it easier for farmers to run the mating tool during a busy time of year.”
Finally, he reminds farmers that plans can be adjusted as the season progresses:
“Sire Advice can be re-run at any stage if changes need to be made during the breeding season.”
Support and contact details
For help running Sire Advice this breeding season, please contact your Agricultural Adviser or AI company representative.
The HerdPlus team are also available to answer any queries you may have. You can contact HerdPlus by calling 023–8820452 or emailing [email protected].