The best cows are more efficient at turning feed into milk – they produce more, weigh less, have a fertility advantage, and are more emissions-efficient.
Accuracy of selection
The more information you have on an animal, the more confident you can be when making breeding and culling decisions.
Applying ‘selection pressure’ and being specific about what cows you are going to breed from
results in faster genetic gain.
Farmers have a number of levers to pull:
Herd testing: Herd testing provides valuable information to help manage your herd and monitor milk quality and production. Herd test reports provide confidence you’re making the right calls and knowledge that you’re heading in the right direction.
Animal Health: We can provide you with more insights about your cows using milk and tissue samples. BVD, Johne’s Disease, Pregnancy Testing, mastitis testing, GeneMark Genomics.
MINDA records: Use MINDA to rank your herd on gBW, PW, and LW, and to produce reports such as the Selective Culling Guide, Herd Breeding Value report, and to check individual trait information available in genomic evaluations.
- Target the right cows to breed replacements from.
- Use replacement-quality semen on cows with the traits/metrics you desire, and use beef or short gestation length (SGL) semen on cows you don’t wish to breed milkers from; this will secure good genetic progress and is an efficient and sustainable use of resource.
