Piedmontese Beef Cattle Magazine Jan 2023

NAPA Directors

Marlin Will 81398 Rd 441 Broken Bow, NE 68822 Cell: 605-939-9574 marlin-will@piedmontese.com

Hiram Lambert 15081 10 Road Smith Center, KS 66967 Ph: 308-293-5444 tendergenetics@gmail.com

Jared Bauereiss Box 111

Inglis, Manitoba, Canada R0J0X0 Cell: 204-821-5034 jaredbauereiss@hotmail.com

Austin Soukup 38394 295th Street Lake Andes, SD 57356 Cell: 605-491-1736 Austin_L_S@hotmail.com

Ken Silva 24455 Shel Max Road Oak Run, California 96069 Cell: 530-351-2084 2tkranchinc@gmail.com

Tom Sperling 44386 SD Hwy 42 Canistota, SD 57012 Ph: 605-999-3279 sperling@svtv.com

Paul Harold 1910 Uler Road Newton, WV 25266 Ph: 304-549-8636 h-hfarm@hotmail.com

Vicki Johnson, Exec. Director

PO Box 283, Asquith, SK. Canada S0K 0J0 Ph: 306-329-8600 NAPA.piedmontese@gmail.com

YOUR PIEDMONTESE VOICE

Publisher/Editor - Vicki Johnson

The Official Publication of NAPA Published 4 times a year, Your Piedmontese Voice assumes no responsibility for the truth or accuracy of ads; but attempts to accurately publish all editorial and ads. We reserve the right to refuse or edit any ad copy or photos. It is recommended to submit editorial and advertising copy well prior to deadlines to ensure accurate dispensing of information. Editorial material is understood to be the opinion of the writer only, and is not necessarily that of NAPA. Letters to the Editor, manuscripts and photos are welcomed and, if printed, may be edited for content. Submit all material for Your Piedmontese Voice to Vicki Johnson at the address left.

Ad Rates In US Dollars (blk&white) Full Page - $240. 1/2 Page - $120. 1/4 Page - $ 60. NEXT ISSUE - April 2023 Ad Deadline March 1, 2023

These three Piedmontese calves are all from embryo transfer (ET) - the result of frozen embryos purchased at the NAPA Embryo Auction - looking healthy and growthy at Havlik Cattle Company in South Dakota. The Havlik’s posted an impressive 100% conception rate with 3 live calves from 3 embryos implanted.

North American Piedmontese Association (NAPA) JAN 2023 piedmontese.org

PIEDMONTESE NATIONAL

NAPA Annual Meeting

Certified Piedmontese Banquet & EMBRYO Consignment SALE

Schedule of events:

2023

2023 ITALIAN SEMEN IMPORTATION

s Host Hotel: Doubletree by Hilton, 4040 Quebec Street, Denver, Colorado [make your reservations by Dec. 20, 2022 online at the NAPA website piedmontese.org]

s Show cattle arrival at NWSS - Friday, Jan. 13, 2023

s 5:30 pm Monday, Jan 16 - AGM and Certified Grassfed Piedmontese Beef Banquet plus Embryo Consignment Sale [Please make your Banquet reservations via phone (no texts) 306-329-8600 or email NAPA.piedmontese@gmail.com by Jan. 8, 2023]

s 11 am, Tuesday Jan 17 - Piedmontese National Show

s Show cattle release - Wed. Jan. 18, 2023. Visit www.nationalwestern.com for information on the other exciting events at National Western.

The 2023 importation of Piedmontese semen from ANABORAPI-qualified AI sires via Nebraska Bull Service (NBS) final order deadline is Jan. 30, 2023. A variety of new Italian Piedmontese AI sires have been qualified for semen export, so there are numerous new bulls to select from. All available AI sires are priced at $40.USD/unit & the usual minimum order of 10 units per bull will apply. That fee covers the purchase of the semen plus all costs associated with importation from Italy to Nebraska Bull Service location (delivery of semen from NBS to your location will be charged overand-above the import cost/unit.)

Visit www.piedmontese.org “Italian AI Sires” page for links to the AI Sires list of exportable semen. Note, the main ANABORAPI webpage has a list of sires available within Italy, which are not necessarily available for export.

To order contact Taylor Sheffield of Nebraska Bull Service via email tsheffieldnbs@mccooknet.com or call 308-345-2900 http://nebraskabullservice.com/

North American Piedmontese Association (NAPA) JAN 2023 piedmontese.org

SHOW

You probably know a lot less about Piedmontese beef than the widely famous Wagyu. They have a lot more in common than many breeds and rearing style, but are very different too. Both have special genetic elements and diets that help make them what they are.

Looking for a lean and incredibly tender beef? Try Piedmontese.

You may not have heard about the Piedmontese breed, but it’s is well worth trying.

It will surprise you at the first bite. Piedmontese beef is high in protein and has a very “beefy” flavor, making it a health-conscious approach to steak night.

Both Piedmontese and Wagyu come from breeds of cattle with unique genetics that affect their beef. Piedmontese benefits from a genetic composition that makes for beef that is incredibly lean while simultaneously tender and flavorful. Wagyu beef comes from Kuroge-washu cattle, with its own genetic make-up that results in more intramuscular fat and extremely marbled meat.

Piedmontese cattle originate from Northwestern Italy in the Piedmont region, but have been raised in North America since the 1970s. The inactive myostatin gene, a unique genetic strain in Piedmontese cattle, allows for the breed’s renowned “double muscling.” This feature increases tenderness without producing excess marbling, which results in a higher lean-to-fat ratio and lower cholesterol.

In blind taste tests, Piedmontese often beats 100% purebred and Japanese Wagyu steaks. While Piedmontese is completely different from Wagyu, it often comes out on top during taste tests and at dinner parties where beef tasting is on the agenda. cont. p.12

“... to give you what you never knew you always wanted ...”

Michael Mina

What Is Piedmontese Beef?

“The Italian Wagyu”

Is Piedmontese Cattle a breed?

The Piedmontese (Italian: Piemontese or razza bovina Piemontese) is a breed of domestic cattle that originated in the region of Piedmont, in north-west Italy. Piedmontese cattle carry a unique gene mutation identified as an inactive myostatin allele that causes hypertrophic muscle growth, or double muscling.

This breed is nowhere seen in the commodity feedlot market because their myostatin gene makes them unlikely to marble at the rates necessary for the USDA grading scheme.

Translation: even though the beef is incredibly tender and flavorful, because of its lean red looks, the commodity grading system doesn’t give it the credit it deserves. So the producers — very few as they may be — avoid the commodity system, and it remains a niche beef that is extremely hard to find.

[Editor’s note: Piedmontese crossbreds (1-copy for the myostatin gene) definitely CAN marble well enough to fit the commodity market, and excel with higher yield grade. Crosses with British-breeds like Angus have proven this.]

Efficiency of Beef Production - Time on Feed

WAGYU - are slow growing; typical crossbreds are 28+ months of age at slaughter with 60% dressing and 66% retail product yield.

Piedmontese crossbred (1-copy) steers data from USMARC at 14 months old had 63% dressing and 71% retail product yield... in 1/2 the time as Wagyu.

How do you cook Piedmontese?

When cooking roasts it is best to sear the beef first. This can be done either on the stove top in a hot pan with a little oil (we like grape seed oil for it’s high smoke point) until brown, then place in a preheated 225 degree oven until desired temperature is achieved. Don’t overcook.

How do you cook Piedmontese Ground Beef?

Not only does Piedmontese beef make the best tasting and juiciest burger you can eat, but it’s also the healthiest! It is good to know that Piedmontese beef is the preferred beef of many health conscious people, especially as it’s naturally lower in cholesterol, fat, and calories, and this holds true even when compared to skinless chicken. cont. p.13

What Is Piedmontese Beef?

“The Italian Wagyu”

Piedmontese vs Wagyu

Piedmontese beef is healthier than commercial alternatives. Piedmontese beef is higher in protein and Omega-3 fatty acids, while being consistently tender with fewer calories. The meat is lean without losing the rich, beefy flavor.

Is Piedmontese beef good?

Step into any Michael Mina restaurant and you will see Piedmontese beef prominently featured. The W Hotel in San Francisco serves up this beef variety to its customers.

Wine Spectator gave its Award of Excellence the Lambs Club to executive chef, Galen Zamarra, who previously owned two restaurants in the city, the now-closed Mas (Farmhouse) and Mas (La Grillade), delighting patrons with his Piedmontese steak tartare.

Chef Gaines Dobbins San Francisco Chenery Park and Eureka regularly uses Piedmontese.

Why is it called the “Next Wagyu”

Wagyu is famous as a breed and for the way the cows are raised; fed diets of beer, sung to by samurai warriors, and massaged day and night to make the beef extra fatty. This is a delicacy that makes the beef stand apart from traditional marbled steaks.

Piedmontese are a breed with special genetic gifts too; they’re fed special diets, and are equally tender, but not because they’re full of fat. That makes these in many ways similar, but also the opposite to wagyu. Given how rare Piedmontese cattle are, they’re something to be celebrated when available.

Does Italy have Wagyu?

Yes. Italy does have Wagyu. Ferdinand Borletti (18881977) bought the estate Ca’Negra from a noble Venetian family - Baron Franchetti. His grandson, Stephen Borletti, brought Wagyu to this farm near Venice.

In addition, (some) Italians have a twist on kobe. They use Piedmontese cows and feed them exclusively hazelnuts. These are called Vicciola. Compared to other animal meats, Vicciola meat boasts lower levels of cholesterol than wild sea bass (48 mg/100g) and cod fish (50mg/100g). cont. p.15

North American Piedmontese Association

What Is Piedmontese Beef?

“The Italian Wagyu”

The (Piedmontese) Vicciola, since the beginning of its fattening, grows about three to five hectograms per day while cattle traditionally fed grow from one kilo to one and a half kilo per day.

What are North American Piedmontese. Piedmontese cattle are distinguished by a unique, naturally occurring gene identified as the myostatin allele mutation, or inactive myostatin gene. Myostatin prohibits muscle growth whereas an inactive gene has the opposite effect. Fullblood Piedmontese are homozygous, which means they have two identical alleles present for this unique gene.

Like the original Italian Piedmontese, North American Piedmontese cattle are distinguished genetically by the presence of the myostatin allele mutation which causes the breed’s hypertrophic muscle growth, or “double muscling”.

Research indicates that there is less connective tissue within the muscle of “double-muscled” cattle; this would imply less background toughness and therefore more tender meat.

There are 30 million head of cattle in USA; 70% of which are angus beef. There are less than 3,000 Piedmontese in USA.

[Editor’s Note: estimates are that there are some 9000 registered, homozygous Piedmontese seedstock animals alive today in North America, with tens-ofthousands of crossbred Piedmontese born each year for beef production.]

What do Piedmontese cattle look like?

The color of fullblood Piedmontese males is gray-white with a considerable amount of black hairs on the head, most notable around the eyes, neck, shoulders, and on the distal regions of the legs. They occasionally have dark stains or spots on their hind legs or lateral faces of the trunk. The cows are primarily white with varying shades of gray or light red. Calves are born a pale fawn color which changes to gray-white as they mature. Fullbloods are naturally horned, and have black pigmentation on the muzzle, eyelids, ears, tongue, tassel of the tail, anal opening, and on the outer skin of the sexual organs. l

Editor’s note: I hope you enjoyed this great ‘foody’ blog post from national distributor Buffalo Market. “Given how rare Piedmontese cattle are, they’re something to be celebrated when available.”

North American Piedmontese Association

Piedmontese at Oklahoma’s

Best Beef Competition 2022

The inaugural Oklahoma Best Beef Competition, a part of the 2022 Stockyards Steak Out, was held over the October 15th weekend in Oklahoma City at the Oklahoma National Stockyards and brought out plenty of tasty steaks from local producers into two categories: People’s Choice and The National Judges Award.

Beef Producers were teamed with local dignitaries to cook their best steaks and offer up samples to the public.

Governor Kevin Stitt, Debbie Harrison, Larry Stein, Jay Steagall, Bailey Ballou, and several others were on hand to help with the preparation of the steaks.

The competition consisted of teams cooking 60 steaks weighing 8 to 10 ounces each. Participants had to use the same grill, charcoal, and lighter fluid, but were allowed to choose their seasonings.

Mariah Reimer, the Foundation coordinator at Oklahoma Cattlemen’s Association, said this event was the brainchild of Oklahoma National Stockyards President Kelli Payne.

Payne has been hosting a State Cookoff Association Event for the past few years. They wanted to come up with an event in which the Oklahoma Cattlemen’s foundation could be the beneficiary of the event.

This means every entry fee from the National competition comes to the foundation and goes straight to scholarships and educational opportunities for students who are going to better the agricultural industry, “She came to me she said, how do we benefit Oklahoma? How do we benefit these producers?

And that’s where this event came to life. How do we take cattle producers to the next level? How do we go directly to the consumers and give people options?

Go Local.

Go Oklahoma, support local, Oklahoma beef.”

“We had such a positive response,” Reimer reported, but since this was the first time for the event, she said they only took ten finalists to see how the competition would go.

Piedmontese Grassfed Beef from Vickie Roop’s SER Ranch at Okarche, OK was selected as one of the top ten finalists for this inaugural event.

This was also Roop’s first time ever involved in a cook-off competition! With her family support and her “We can do this!” attitude, the SER Ranch team made their plans to promote the 1-copy crossbred grassfed Piedmontese beef.

“It was a family affair at the competition. It was evident from the crowd response that people are interested in a healthier beef choice. The judges were pleasantly surprised at how tender the beef was, with a great beef flavor. We seasoned with salt and pepper and let rest with butter. I received calls the following Monday and filled 3 beef orders from the beef competition –and that’s a win for Piedmontese!!” said Roop.

Vickie Roop with son-in-law and event chef Michael Endres

Piedmontese at Oklahoma’s Best Beef Competition 2022

Vickie Roop shared the Judges written comments on her Piedmontese beef:

• “Great tenderness, fantastic flavor, felt like I was eating something heathy.”

• “Distinct flavor, well cooked, very lean.”

• “Very light piece of meat, good flavor, loved just salt and pepper.”

• “Great flavor, lean meat very tender.”

Roop’s one-copy grassfed Piedmontese beef finished an impressive fourth-place in this competition, coming in ahead of notable entries including Wagyu. We certainly congratulate Vickie Roop and the SER Ranch team on their success and positive Piedmontese promotion!

“The people came out for the people’s choice. National sanctioned judges judging Oklahoma Beef and blown away by their product compared to national steak competitors is just phenomenal when you think about it,” Reimer said.

Producers came from all across the state, and Reimer said the Steak Out offered all types of steak, “It’s all across the board, and that’s what we wanted local Oklahomans to experience. Some are grass-fed, and some are grain fed, come see, educate yourself, and learn about the different varieties. It’s not just a hamburger; it’s not just a steak. For these producers, this is their livelihood. So they poured everything they know into it, and it shows through every piece of sample steak today, and just a phenomenal job by every single one of those people.”

Reimer said the National judges were very impressed by what Oklahoma producers were serving and the story of each producer, “That’s what makes them unique, their story, every time people walked out they said, “wow, this is what Oklahoma is serving our consumers, this quality of steak.”

Huge inflatable steer greeted guests at the OK National Stockyards.

Reimer said next year would be even bigger and better, “We’re hoping to open it up. We’ve had many calls, many producers wanting in on this, and many sponsors wanting in on this. We had phenomenal sponsors, but we’re hoping to open it up to as many as we can handle. We really want to build this and make it its own competition. Fill the entire Stockyard and get as many producers and let’s promote them as much as we can. And let’s really educate the public and allow them to show what Oklahoma producers are made of and what they’re working day in and day out to do.” l

BIF 2023 - Precision Breeding

Make plans now to attend the 2023 Beef Improvement Federation (BIF) Research Symposium and Convention that will be hosted July 3-6 in Calgary, Canada.

The BIF Symposium features two and one-half days of educational programming with focused on this year’s theme “Precision Breeding.” Monday, July 3, kicks off with the Young Producer Symposium and Monday evening the National Association of Animal Breeders (NAAB) will host its biennial symposium at 7 p.m.

Tuesday’s general session will feature presentations by Dr. Peter Amer, AbacusBio Limited managing director; Dr. Eileen Wall, Scotland’s Rural College head of research & professor of integrative livestock genetic; Dr. Filippo Miglior, Lactanet Canada scientist and innovation executive; and Dr. Brian Kinghorn, University of New England, Australia.

Wednesday’s general session speakers will include Dr. John Crowley, AbacusBio Limited; Dr. Juan Pedro, Iowa State University Stieble Lush Chair for Animal Breeding & Genetics; and a representative from OneCup AI.

Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday late morning technical breakout sessions will focus on a range of beef-production and genetic-improvement topics. A highlight of this year’s symposium will be the Technology showcase at Olds College on Tuesday afternoon.

Thursday, July 6 (optional) tour:includes a personal tour through Rimrock Feeders, one of Canada’s most cutting edge feedlots that applies technologies such as biodigesters and roller compacted concrete to improve production efficiency and animal health and welfare.

Travelling through the heart of Alberta’s ranch lands, we will also visit Hamilton Farms, a seedstock operation that is eager to show case its application of genomic technology, High Immune Response testing (see p. 31 for more on this topic) , and genetic improvement through an integrated value chain and data sharing system. Further west, the University of Calgary, WA Ranch, is a working commercial operation that allows for in field research on calving interventions, human – animal interactions, the effects of wildlife (wild boars for example) on cattle, bull behaviour, and calf preconditioning. The tour will include lunch against a backdrop of our majestic Rocky Mountain range.

For registration and more symposium details, including hotel information, visit BIFSymposium.com.

North American Piedmontese Association (NAPA) JAN 2023 piedmontese.org

On How To Take Better Livestock Photographs TIPS

A picture is worth a thousand words and will always help you sell your stock more easily.

Before you begin to capture cattle and livestock, it is important that you have prepared the correct equipment and have set up the environment you are shooting in so that it looks good and works well for the camera. Your camera equipment should be of good quality and have the correct lenses, depending on how far you intend to capture the animals.

If you are going to be up close, a less expensive camera or a high-quality smartphone camera can work well. If you will be photographing livestock from afar, it is vital that your camera lens can zoom to the distance you require and still maintain a high quality of image or video.

If all you have is your smartphone take the time to give the lens a clean before you get started. Oils and dirt on the lens can make your pictures blurry. AND – if you intend on using the pictures for print purposes, it is extremely important to set your smartphone camera to take the largest possible size image!

Keep the sun behind you. (This is important!!)

The light is always better early in the morning or late in the day about an hour before sunset.

Think about the backdrop: Make sure you don’t photograph the animals in front of a pile of farmyard junk, or frame it in a way that they look like they’ve got a fence post sticking out of their back. The most appealing ‘herd’ pictures happen when all the animals are relaxed like the picture at the top of the page - the opposite of when they are bunched together fighting flies!

Take your time. Take a LOT of pictures.

Make sure your animals aren’t caked in mud or manure. They don’t need to be in showring clean condition – but really dirty animals aren’t likely to attract as many sales inquiries. And if they are in poor (thin) body condition, know that the images will reflect that as well. Summer hair coat is normally better than the winter shaggy-look, for ungroomed photo subjects.

Try to take the photograph from the same height as the animal’s ribcage, and definitely not higher than the animal’s head. If you (the photographer) are approaching 6 feet in height, you will want to squat down or even kneel on the ground if necessary. Otherwise, your animals will look smaller than they are. The angle you choose to photograph livestock at can make or break a photo. Ideally, your main photographs should be straight on the animal, not above or below. Taking a photo from an angle looking down or up to the animal will affect how large or small the cow looks. cont. p.25

These photos were taken by different pro photographers

19 years apart. The difference is subtle but the 2003 bull was taken at an angle looking ‘up’ at the animal (the camera man was squatting down low to make the animal look taller.) The 2022 bull angle is better, directly at his ribcage.

above: 2003 NAPA Piedmontese Champion Bull below: 2022 NAPA Piedmontese Champion Bull

Tips On Taking Better Pictures

Shown on the right - the SAME cow on the SAME DAY. One image is outdoors in good natural light, the other is indoors under bright overhead lights in the showring. The top picture is a better angle, straight at the ribcage of the cow representing her real size and scale, but her leg placement is not flattering with her hind legs too far forward. The bottom picture is taken from an angle looking ‘down’ on the cow from above, making her appear much smaller. However her leg placement is ideal.

The best promotional pictures are of single animals, filling the frame of the shot with their head up in a natural pose (not grazing) and with their head turned very, very slightly towards the camera. This can be achieved by getting a helper to attract the animal’s attention. You will first want to position yourself directly broadside to the animal, straight away from the middle of its ribcage. It can improve the shot then to move about six inches sideways towards the hip-end of the animal, and also move about six inches away from the animal. This provides an angle where the front end of the animal is just slightly further away from you. In professional photos you can see this angle by noticing that the front legs of the animal are ever-so-slightly further away than the back legs of the animal. cont. p.27

North American Piedmontese Association (NAPA) JAN 2023 piedmontese.org

Tips On Taking Better Pictures

One of the most challenging beef cattle photos to take is from the front threequarter angle. Bull pictures from this angle can be outstanding, if the subject is in good flesh and standing with the legs all square – but you have to get the angle just perfect.

It’s also important to be honest about the strengths and weaknesses of the animal, and bulls with excess dewlap / brisket or that are very coarse-fronted, knock-kneed or splay-footed probably won’t shine from this angle. The three pictures shown on the left show variations of the front angle image - with the top picture breaking a number of rules!

Feet and leg placement is important! (An old joke in livestock photography is to ask that the animal’s feet all point the same direction.)

The legs need to be positioned squarely under the animal, neither spraddled out (over extended) or camped under (where the animal appears “tucked up” because

the fore and hind legs are too close together: see the cow image on page 25), with space between the front feet and between the back feet.

For broadside pictures, ideally the front and back legs closest to the photographer will be in a slightly wider stance than the far side legs. For a three-quarter angle image, it is more important to ensure that the feet are squarely under the animal with space between the front feet and between the back feet. Nothing looks worse than a cow whose front feet or back feet are basically touching each other.

If possible, try to profile photograph cows going slightly uphill. Cattle photograph much better when their front legs are higher than their hind legs. Do NOT photograph cows going downhill. A downhill orientation can give the impression of a hollow back, while slightly up-hill produces a flatter backline.

Not always easy, but it’s worth trying to encourage the animal to position its head correctly. Straight ahead is not ideal, but much worse is fully ‘rotated’ looking towards the camera!

Having the head turned just slightly toward the camera, with the ears perked forward, is ideal.

Above and below: SAME bull - SAME day. This 11 month old Piedmontese bull looks quite different in these 2 images. Above, I squatted down too low and am looking ‘up’ at the bull making him appear taller (plus his back leg is cocked forward). Below I have the right angle and feet placement.

Tips on Taking Better Pictures

As mentioned earlier, if you intend to use the pictures in print - for brochures / posters / print magazine ads – you must set the camera to take the largest file size images it’s capable of. For print purposes, there is no such thing as too large! Finding the right image to use for print or web can be confusing. There are different acronyms and terms that all mean different things, such as PPI, resolution and DPI.

It starts with a pixel…The word pixel stands for picture element. Each digital image contains pixels (data dots) that hold the colour information that make up the whole picture. If you zoom far enough into an image on a screen, you will see the pixels of that image. Resolution refers to the number of pixels in an image. Resolution is usually identified by the width and height of the image as well as the total number of pixels in the image. PPI stands for pixels per inch, and DPI stands for dots per inch. This is what digital resolution is measured in.

Most monitors will display images in the neighborhood of 67-100ppi. The standard resolution for web images is 72ppi. This will display your image so that it looks crisp and sharp on screen

When it comes to online digital displays, increasing PPI will not make your image appear any clearer, instead, it

will just increase the size and loading time of your image. However, decreasing concentration or density of PPI/DPI by blowing up a small image will cause it to appear blurry on screen.

PPI / DPI really matters for printing, because you are transferring a digital image onto a non-digital surface. If you want to use a web image in print, you will most likely run into problems. There is no way to generate extra pixels and print a crisp brochure biography image from a small website thumbnail.

For example, if you increase the size of your image by 300%, the print on the paper will become three times as large, but it will result in a more rough-looking or blurry image (by making more space between the dots or pixels). The more pixels per inch, the greater the resolution. Generally, the higher the resolution of your image, the better the printed image quality. Resolution determines the fineness of detail you can see in an image. cont.p.29

North American Piedmontese Association (NAPA) JAN 2023 piedmontese.org

Tips on Taking Better Pictures

Although a digital image contains a specific amount of image data, it doesn’t have a specific physical output size or resolution. As you change the resolution of an image, its physical dimensions change, and as you change the width or height of an image, its resolution changes. When you have a choice of image sizes at your disposal, it’s best to go for the largest image you can get.

Any image can be made smaller as needed, but it can’t be sized up without losing quality. An image that is 3000 pixels wide by 3000 pixels high is more suitable for print, and an image that is only 300 pixels wide by 300 pixels high will generally only work well for on-screen display.

For example, the effect of printing a low resolution image versus a medium-high resolution image is shown above.

On the right the image is 248 pixels wide by 152 pixels tall, at a print size of 3.75 inches wide, total file size is 61.8KB.

On the left the image is 1125 pixels wide by 693 pixels tall, at a print size of 3.75 inches wide, total file size is 861KB.

On a computer screen, both of these images would look the same displayed at 3.75 inches wide. In print, however, at 3.75 inches wide, you can see the difference in image quality.

- by Vicki Johnson l

North American Piedmontese Association

High Immune Response Testing in Beef Cattle

Dr. Bonnie Mallard, PhD, is an award winning researcher and professor of Pathobiology at the University of Guelph College of Veterinary Medicine, Ontario, Canada. Mallard has spent over 30 years researching High Immune Response Technology, and has developed and patented her own technology, Immunity+, which is used to identify and select animals with naturally optimized immune responses.

The technology is able to calculate breeding values, the same genetic theory that has been widely and successfully utilized in the dairy industry to enhance production traits, to help select for genetic traits associated with an animal’s immune system and ability to resist disease.

“We’ve found through research that the high immune responders, the animals with the best immune response genes, have about half the disease occurrence of average immune responders, which was what we were hoping to accomplish with the technology,” she said, “But we also have found that high responders possess benefits in terms of their reproductive traits, colostrum quality, and they grow faster. There is so much innovation on the horizon of this technology, I don’t think there is a ceiling on it.”

Since 2012, Dr. Mallard’s Immunity+ technology has been marketed and sold by Semex, a global biotechnology company that specializes in dairy and beef genetics. In dairy, the technology is 30% heritable, these cattle will show less disease incidents, and they will respond better to treatments.

Following is research published in 2022 on the potential application of this technology in beef cattle:

In the past, selection of livestock mainly focused on production traits with less attention on health traits.

However, recently more attention is paid to animal health and welfare, particularly in light of consumer concern about food management systems and antibiotic treatment of livestock (Tirado et al., 2010).

Vaccination and management strategies are used to improve animal health. Nonetheless, vaccine efficacy can still be a challenge for certain complex diseases, such as bovine respiratory disease (BRD; Anholt et al., 2017). Genetic selection is another approach to enhance livestock health.

cont. p.32

High Immune Response Testing in Beef Cattle

Studies have shown that selective breeding of dairy cattle for balanced, superior, and robust immune responses not only reduces the incidence of disease but also improves the quality of their milk and colostrum (Thompson-Crispi et al., 2014a; Fleming et al., 2016; Stear et al., 2017; Emam et al., 2019), as well as certain reproduction and growth traits (Mallard and Wilkie, 2007; Thompson-Crispi et al., 2012; Aleri et al., 2015). Aleri et al. (2015) reported in their study of Australian Holstein heifers in which cattle with high immune responses (HIR) had higher daily weight gains compared with low immune response cattle.

The patented HIR (patent # US7258858B2) methodology measures the genetic performance of the adaptive immune system to identify and breed animals with balanced and robust immunity. Using HIR methodology, dairy cattle and pigs with superior immunity have been identified and bred for these heritable health traits (Mallard et al., 2015).

This technology ranks animals by measuring the response of both arms of the adaptive immune system such as antibody- (AMIR) and cell-mediated immune responses (CMIR), and classifies individuals as high, average, or low responders. Thompson-Crispi et al. (2012, 2014a) reported that the incidence of disease in high immune responder dairy cattle is about half that of low immune responders. Additionally, these high responders are able to pass this fitness trait to future generations with a heritability similar to the trait of milk production (approximately 0.20–0.35). cont. p.33

Definitions:

AMIR is Antibody-Mediated Immune Response and

CMIR is Cell-Mediated Immune Response.

The Antibody component (AMIR) fights bacterial infections that are outside the cells of the body such as those responsible for Mastitis, metritis and digital dermatitis (foot rot).

The Cell component (CMIR) fights viral and mycobacterial infections that reside inside the cells of the body such as those responsible for viral pneumonia, retained placenta and Johne’s.

North American Piedmontese Association (NAPA) JAN 2023 piedmontese.org

High Immune Response Testing in Beef Cattle

Given the health benefits of selecting dairy cattle using the HIR methodology, the first objective of the current study was to determine if the standard HIR methodology (dose, time interval between sample collections, and protocol) developed for use in Holstein dairy cattle was appropriate for immune phenotyping of Canadian beef cattle of mixed breeds. The second objective was to compare options as to the most practical age to phenotype beef cattle.

New and novel approaches that do not rely on antibiotics are essential to improve animal health and wellbeing. The HIR methodology has been shown effective for immunophenotyping of dairy and swine. This method can be used to classify individual animals based on their ability to make AMIR and CMIR, with those having the highest adaptive immune responses having the lowest occurrence of infectious disease. However, the HIR methodology had not previously been evaluated in beef cattle of various ages.

The results indicate that the HIR methodology established for Holstein dairy cattle and used successfully for years, can also be applied in beef cattle.

Immuno-phenotyping for AMIR can be performed in beef calves as young as 2 wk of age and immuno-phenotyping for CMIR as young as 3 wk. Three weeks of age is therefore the youngest age recommended to evaluate both AMIR and CMIR. It was noted that mature beef cows have significantly lower AMIR than beef calves and mature Holstein cows, and mature beef cows and 9-mo-old beef calves both had significantly higher CMIR than historically encountered in Holstein cows. These findings should motivate more detailed, longitudinal studies in purebred beef cattle to examine how AMIR and CMIR drift and diverge as beef cattle age. Clearly, to analyze the genetic component of immune responses, it is critical to evaluate AMIR and CMIR within subpopulations of beef cattle of consistent age that have been raised within the same environment.

Heritability estimates for AMIR and CMIR were 0.43 (SEM = 0.10) and 0.18 (SEM = 0.10), respectively, and were consistent with estimates previously found for dairy and beef cattle suggesting that genetic improvement of immune responsiveness is probable for beef cattle.

[Source: Immuno-phenotyping of Canadian beef cattle: adaptation of the high immune response methodology for utilization in beef cattle. - Translational Animal Science, Volume 6, Issue 1, January 2022] l

Piedmontese Semen For Sale

Semen Codes:

NBS - Nebraska Bull Service: 308.345.2900

DEFINITIONS: BW - Birth Weight - expressed in pounds - a lower value is better; CE - Calving Ease - a higher number indicates improved calving ease; WG - Weaning Gain - expressed in pounds, a higher number indicates increased average 205-day weights in offspring; YG - Yearling Gain - expressed in pounds, a higher number indicates better growth in offspring to 365-days of age; H.Ht. - Hip Height - a higher number indicates taller, larger framed offspring; REA: Rib Eye Area - a higher number indicates improved rib eye size in offspring; FG - Feed To Gain - a lower number indicates improved feed efficiency in offspring; FI - Feed Intake - a lower number indicates offspring consume less feed; SC - Scrotal Circumference - a higher number indicates increased scrotal size in offspring; BW 1C - Birth Weight of 1-copy offspring from non-Piedmontese females, a lower value is better; CE 1C - Calving Ease of 1-copy offspring from non-Piedmontese females, a higher value is better.

605 - 605 Sires: 605-925-7473

HOF - Hoffman AI Breeders Inc: 435.753.7883

GHW - Genex-Hawkeye: 406.656.9034

JLG - JLG Enterprises Inc: 209.847.4797

ALT - Alta-Genetics, Canada: 403.226.0666

ZCF - Zimmerman, PA: 717-940-1430

CGS - Mitchell, SD: 605-996-7883

DUNG BEETLES

When you hear the words “dung beetle” you probably think of poop. After you read this article, a different picture may come to mind: The Milky Way.

In 2009, entomologists made an astonishing discovery. Nocturnal dung beetles (Scarabaeus satyrus) can navigate using the Milky Way. Although the compound eyes of beetles cannot resolve individual stars, this species can see the Milky Way as a stripe across the sky and perhaps even sense features within it such as the galactic center and lanes of stardust.

“Currently, dung beetles are the only animals we know of that use the Milky Way for reliable orientation,” says James Foster of the University of Konstanz in Germany. “They are excellent little astronomers.”

A quick review of dung beetles: They are nature’s sanitation crew. Whenever a pile of brown material is dumped, dung beetles converge to clean up the mess. Each beetle sculpts a dung ball, which they roll away in a straight line. Far from the pile, the ball will be buried and eaten, and sometimes used as bedding for dung beetle eggs. cont. p.38

In the summer 2020 issue of Your Piedmontese Voice, we published an article discussing dung beetles and soil health. “Dung beetles help regulate rangeland health through dung dispersal. They work to rapidly remove dung from the surface and bury it underground to feed their offspring (Figure 1). By burying dung, the beetles contribute to increasing organic matter content and overall soil fertility. Breaking down dung piles also assists with the suppression of dung-breeding livestock pests. These pests include flies, parasitic nematodes, and protozoa that can infest or prey upon livestock, which eventually results in economic losses. Through their daily activity, dung beetles help speed up dung decomposition and disrupt the life cycles of any developing pests.”

sounds simple, but there’s a problem. Dung beetles are very combative. If two beetles leaving the pile bump into one other, they can get into a brutal wrestling match often ending with overhead judo-style full body throws. Wandering around in circles (like lost humans do) boosts the odds of a fight even more. Dung beetles have therefore evolved the ability to navigate to safety in quick straight lines. During the day they steer by the sun. Dung beetles can see polarization patterns in the daytime sky, and use these patterns to hold course. A single patch of blue sky is sufficient. The trick works at night, too.

Dung beetles are the only known creatures who can see the polarization of moonlight, which is 100 million times weaker than daylight polarization. Studies show that dung beetles walk straight as accurately at night as during the day, even when the Moon is a faint crescent.

But what happens when there’s no sun or Moon? In the early 2000s, this question troubled two pioneers of dung beetle research, Eric Warrant and Marie Dacke of Lund University in Sweden.

To find the answer, they took some beetles to the planetarium at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa, and projected the Milky Way onto the domed ceiling.

The beetles saw it, and navigated. Their discovery prompted a veritable explosion in dung beetle research. James Foster is a leader in the field, publishing new results every few years. l