What does Genesis 30:38 mean?

Then Jacob set up the branches he’d peeled right in front of the animals at the watering troughs, where they came to drink. That way, when they came to mate, they’d be looking straight at those branches. Genesis 30:38 - Modern Text Bible

(Jacob is using a kind of folk method, hoping the sight of the branches will influence the animals’ offspring. He’s trying to tip the odds in his favor.)