Dam inspections are always a rewarding time of year.
Not only do I get to travel to beautiful parts of the country in search of stunning cows, but it’s valuable to spend time re-engaging with some of the industry’s elite farmers and breeders.
For me this represents an opportunity to check-in to ensure that both parties are seeking the same breeding outcomes – these experiences continue to drive my passion for the sire analyst role.
On numerous occasions I’m ‘wowed’ by daughters of the recent graduate bulls, and I can see the best is yet to come.
Browsing the genomic Holstein-Friesian bulls in this year’s Genetics Catalogue, it became immediately clear I was going to have a challenge on my hands: when there are so many extraordinary bulls available, how do you narrow it down to just a handful to profile!?
What we’ve been working towards is now coming to fruition; 0.80 udders (genomic breeding value, gBV) are the old 0.45s, and production continues to increase, as does efficiency.
It’s truly thrilling to see we can now offer farmers polled sires which deserve to be in the catalogue on merit alone, not just because they are polled.
This is merely a sample of what we’re capable of delivering and we will continue to strive for more within our Holstein-Friesian offering. With that being said, it gives me great pleasure to showcase the following bulls.
122013 Dicksons AR Monopoll-ET-P S2F
Murray and Julie Dickson have done it again! Hailing from the illustrious Margy family, Monopoll is a heterozygous polled sire available in our 2023 Genetics Catalogue.
Bred from Marieta, who has a production worth (PW) of greater than 600, and scoring well for her type traits, this Arrow son is sure to leave daughters on the ground that will be well liked by farmers. Efficiency is strong here with close to 80kg (gBV) of combined fat and protein coming through in a compact liveweight, with positive fertility in tow. Supported by a commendable 0.71 udder overall gBV and A2A2 status, Monopoll has a 410gBW, and can be used across yearling animals.
122080 Wittenham CP Pollman-P S1F
Looking for the complete package? Then look no further than Pollman.
At a competitive 434gBW this heterozygous polled son provides a 50:50 chance of the progeny being polled. Sired by Pollish, who was polled himself, Pollman brings to the table 87kgs of fat and protein (gBV), with a 60kg liveweight genomic breeding value (gBV). Further, he’s both positive for fertility and A2A2.
His dam is sired by Mastermind so you can be reassured type traits have not been compromised.
Bred by Shaun and Anna Baxter in the Manawatū, this bull is a real testament to their breeding strategies.
122022 Mattajude MA Magnificent S3F
One of the highly anticipated Arena sons coming through the pipeline, Magnificent oozes production. Boasting 51kg (gBV) of fat and 53kg (gBV) of protein, Magnificent is sure to breed tidy, milky daughters.
A well-balanced sire, the production is carried by an exciting 0.81 udder overall gBV, a strong reaection of both Magnificent’s stunning dam and Arena’s exceptional type gBVs.
It’s exciting to see Magnificent score so highly throughout his farmer opinion traits.
Matthew and Judy Brady of Taranaki should feel extremely proud of what they’ve delivered here.
122093 Tronnoco AR Sadio-ET
Tony and Keri O’Connor from Timaru continue to deliver stellar bulls and Sadio is no exception.
From a proven cow family, Sadio is fortunate to have the highly respected Sunita as his grandam.
The maternal line has three generations of VG dams and this is reflected in Sadio’s 0.96 udder overall gBV. In addition, this Arena/Maxima combination has admirable production gBVs with more than 108kgs
of fat and protein coming via 1680 litres, with a 75kg liveweight gBV.
To ensure little is compromised, Sadio has a fertility gBV of 2.5.
