fbpx
Print this page
Monday, 23 February 2015 00:00

Indexes aim at breeding healthy cows

Written by 

Dairy farmers wanting to produce healthier and more efficient animals can now make this part of their breeding programme, says herd management firm CRV Ambreed.

 It says its two new breeding indexes, ‘Better Life Health’ and ‘Better Life Efficiency’, will enable farmers to breed specifically for an efficient, easy-to-manage herd that stays healthy as it ages.

Both indexes are expressed as percentages so farmers can easily pinpoint the expected health and efficiency value of an individual bull.

Peter van Elzakker, global grazing genetics product manager at CRV Ambreed, says the Better Life Health index identifies a bull’s overall contribution to a healthier herd. A higher percentage means the bull’s progeny will have a lower rate of health incidents like mastitis, lameness, difficult births or reproductive problems.

“The benefits to farmers are easier-to-manage animals, fewer treatments, fewer veterinary bills and, in the end, greater financial gain.”

The traits in this index for New Zealand include fertility, calving difficulty, somatic cell count, residual survival, condition score and TOP-predictors. Overseas genetics incorporate ketosis, udder health, fertility, hoof health, calving ease and calf vitality.

For example, Okura Lika Murmur S3J, one of CRV Ambreed’s top bulls, is claimed to excel in calving ease, fertility and cell count, giving him a Better Life Health value of 8%. Bulls pass on half their genes to their progeny, so Murmur’s daughters will be 4% healthier than daughters of a bull that scores 0%, the company says.

The Better Life Efficiency index supports sustainable dairy farming by helping to reduce feed costs and increase lifetime production.

“Better use of feed, lower feed costs and lower cost per kilo of milk is a good thing, especially when payout is low,” says van Elzakker.

The traits included in the Better Life Efficiency index for New Zealand are kilos of milk, fat, protein, live weight, longevity, and fertility. Overseas genetics incorporate the new feed intake breeding value.

www.CRV4all.co.nz

More like this

Clear breeding goals

Over the last 13 years, Southland dairy farmers Caleb and Paula Hamill have worked hard to realise their dream of farm ownership.

More testing as M. bovis resurfaces

As Mycoplasma bovis (M. bovis) resurfaces in Canterbury, CRV is reassuring dairy farmers it has rigorous production processes and health testing programmes in place within its supply chain.

New breeding index aims to beef up NZ genetics

A new beef breeding index is expected to be the talk of the bull sales over the next month or so. Six bull studs from around the country have got together and come up with new indexes for the sector, which they claim reflects what the market wants. David Anderson reports...

Fast-tracking genetic gain

North Otago farmer Francois Tillard is among farmers who have signed up for LIC’s female genotyping service to identify their best heifer calves long before they step up to the milking platform.

'Green bull' to help reduce urinary nitrogen emissions

A Canterbury Hereford stud specialising in providing beef genetics for the dairy industry is claiming a major breakthrough in breeding for more environmentally friendly animals, with reduced urinary nitrogen emissions.

Featured

Sheep drench resistance costly

Analysis by Dunedin-based Techion New Zealand shows the cost of undetected drench resistance in sheep has exploded to an estimated $98 million a year.

Dairy sheep and goat turmoil

Dairy sheep and goat farmers are being told to reduce milk supply as processors face a slump in global demand for their products.

Hurry up and slow down!

OPINION: We have good friends from way back who had lived in one of our major cities for many years.

National

Knowing bugs means fewer drugs

A mastitis management company claims to deliver the fastest and most accurate mastitis testing available at scale for New Zealand…

Machinery & Products

AGTEK and ARGO part ways

After 12 years of representing the Landini and McCormick brands in New Zealand, Bay of Plenty-based AGTEK and the brands’…

100 years of Farmall Tractors

Returning after an enforced break, the Wheat and Wheels Rally will take place on the Lauriston -Barhill Road, North-East of…

JD unveils its latest beast

John Deere has unveiled its most powerful tractor ever, with the launch of the all new 9RX Series Tractor line-up…

Biggest Quadtrac coming to NZ!

In the biggest announcement that Case IH Australia/New Zealand has made around its tractor range, its biggest tractor is about…