Since You Asked... Updates to Sending DNA Samples

6 months have come and gone since Shorthorn breeders started the new process of sending DNA samples directly to Neogen. As we have been advertising, July starts another new aspect of this DNA submission process. The goal is to have all DNA samples sent directly to Neogen – none to the office for pre-processing. The grace period from January ’23 through June ’23 allowed a buffer for those who weren’t aware of the new standard process, to still send samples into the Shorthorn office. Now, if samples are sent to the office (and in hopes of encouraging breeders to follow our new protocol), there will be added fees – an additional $5 per head will be tacked onto orders sent to the Shorthorn office for preprocessing. Along with that, a registration number (or recorded ‘U’ number) is also required to test any animal. Any samples sent to the office for testing (or to the lab, for that matter) which are from unregistered/recorded animals will receive additional $5 fees as well, per head. Please see below a brief how-to regarding our new standard practice for submitting/sending DNA samples for testing.

Below and to the right, you will find step by step instructions along with pictures.

1. To begin, please make sure that you have an up-to-date email address on file. If you are unsure how to check this, see the screenshot below (above). Look for your ‘Address’ tab. The email address listed on the ‘Primary’ line will be where your DNA form will be sent once we are all said and done. If you need to update it, simply click the little icon to the right of it.

2. To queue your animals up for testing, click ‘Herd Mgmt’ followed by ‘DNA’.

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If you are not comfortable using DigitalBeef, feel free to call the office. We are happy to walk you through the process.

3. Here, click ‘Choose From my Animals’.

4. A list of all your animals - currently active, recorded, and even legacy pops up. Click the box to the left of the animal you want to test to put it in the testing queue.

5. You’ll notice that the selected animal’s info auto populates. The first column you should see is ‘Reason’. This is not a required column, however if you are testing your animal as an AI Sire or Donor Dam, you can choose either one from this dropdown list and it will automatically check the boxes for the tests needed.

6. Next up is the column ‘Type’. This IS a required field. Select which sample type you are using.

7. ‘Barcode’ is the next column. This is also a required field. Enter the barcode of the blood or hair card, or the number on the Allflex Tag (also called a TSU or tissue sampling vile). *If you are sending a semen straw or another sample type that doesn’t have a barcode, call the office and we will assign a barcode for you.

8. If you are testing you animal to narrow down which sire it is out of, you can type the registration number of a second/alternate sire in the column titled ‘Alt Sire’, but this is not required.

9. If you want to add any additional testing onto the AI Sire or Donor Dam testing, you can do so by checking the corresponding boxes.

10. If you have multiple animals to test, you will click the ‘Add Request’ button (or the ‘Choose From my Animals’ button) to add another line/ animal.

If you are ready to submit your DNA testing request, click ‘Submit to Staff’.

**Please note, this is not a fully automated process. Once you click ‘Submit to Staff’, we need to doublecheck your data and upload it to Neogen’s database. Once we are able to do this, you will receive an email from DigitalBeef which will contain the printable PDF to send directly to Neogen along with your sample(s). This is also when your DigitalBeef account will be billed for the testing. You can pay for the tests via credit card through DigitalBeef (click ‘View’ underneath ‘My Account’ on the left-hand menu to get to your main profile screen), you can call in a card, or you can send a check. When results are in, you’ll be sent an email containing those and the registry will reflect the results as well.