DHI records are an excellent method for keeping many of the records discussed. DHI is supervised by managers and state boards. Each state association must conform to uniform national rules. There are many options for recording data including traditional DHI, where a supervisor visits the herd for a morning and evening milking to weigh and take samples of the milk approximately once per month. DHIR is a similar program, but records are forwarded to breed associations for official registry.
Supervisors collect data on all calvings, breeding dates, dry dates and identification.
They may also record data for extra options such as calf data, nutritional records, pregnancy checks and other items. A complete DHI program will include many of the records discussed previously. DHI is an improvement over manual on farm systems because summary sheets and herd statistics are produced monthly. Many of the summary sheets are part of the basic program. Others are available as options such as genetic herd summaries, somatic cell testing, ration balancing and action sheets such as lists of cows to dry off or heifers to breed and cull candidates.