News September - October 2020
Selecting for mastitis resistance by Jess Jakubik, Genetic Consultant, CentralStar Cooperative
As our industry has changed, so have the genetic traits you can select for your herd. While TPI® and Net Merit (NM$) have long been the standard, many producers CentralStar works with are placing more emphasis on health and wellness traits in their genetic selection process.
Production and functional type traits have improved greatly with the advent of genomics, creating cattle that yield more dollars in the bulk tank and have the structure needed to last in the herd. In recent years, this has led producers to place more emphasis on selecting for a healthier cow that makes more money and
WT$ Relative Value (%)
saves more in the form of reduced vet bills and costly recovery time.
by Zoetis, DWP$ and WT$ combine real-world economics with genetic evaluation data.
If you are among those that are interested in intensifying your selection for health traits, such as mastitis resistance, it may be time to use Dairy Wellness Profit® (DWP$) and Wellness Trait® (WT$) as selection indexes. Developed
That said, don’t make a rash decision. Genetic selection for your herd is extremely important and complex so meet with your CentralStar team to create a plan that best fits all of the genetic goals for your herd.
DWP$ Relative Value (%) Calf Wellness Traits
Lameness Mastitis
Ketosis DA RP
Metritis
WT$ focus is a combination of the six cow wellness traits (mastitis, lameness, metritis, retained placenta, displaced abomasum and ketosis) along with polled to directly estimate the additional dollars these traits contribute to overall profit.
Cow Wellness
Mastitis, Lameness, Metritis, RP, DA, Ketosis, Milk Fever, Respiratory Disease
Longevity, Milk Quality, Calving
Production
Fertility
Functional Type DWP$ acts similarly to TPI and NM$ as it combines traits for an overall rating, however it has added emphasis on health traits. Fifty-four percent of DWP$ is comprised of production, fertility, longevity, health and wellness traits, compared to only 40 percent in NM$.