THE DESIRE by ABS to make better cows faster has never been more evident than in the August ABV proofs, delivering top sires in both the Holstein genomic rankings and sires with Australian milking daughters.
The success of the ABS genomic program is reflected in the number eight proven sire Glomar Superlucky, whose first proof with 180 daughters is the fastest sire ever proven by ABS in Australia — with a 272 BPI and positive milk and components, plus very good health traits and high farmer likeability.
National sales manager Paul Quinlan said ABS was confident Glomar Superlucky was always going to be up near the top because of excellent early genomic data and customers saying how much they loved milking the daughters.
Genomic testing is making breeding decisions more reliable at a much younger age, and the Genetic Management System and genetic audit allows dairy farmers to choose both elite genomic sires and reliable Australian proven sires based on breeding records kept on the home computer.
“GMS removes the guesswork and makes it easy to customise breeding plans that demonstrate the desired outcomes in an easily understood and transparent form,” Mr Quinlan said.
“We’ve been saying for some time that we want to make better cows faster and we’re finding more and more farmers are taking up our offer to assess where they are when it comes to their breeding program and goals. Some are achieving their breeding goals, but many have found themselves going off-track with their breeding development program.”
The genetic audit report focuses on breeding the right cows along with the best to maintain continuous improvement.
“The question we always ask is, why do cows leave your herd? Do you really know how good or bad your replacement heifers are?
“A breeding plan isn’t too difficult if you have the data and focus on what matters to you, and making the correct choices is critical for long-term viability.”
Sexed genetics
ABS offers Sexcel sexed genetics to breeding programs, offering an even greater opportunity to accelerate genetic progress.
Along with elite dairy sires, ABS offers a complete breeding solution to maximise farm profitability. The audit tool identifies the best cows and heifers to breed to conventional or sexed semen and the lesser genetic progeny (cows and/or heifers) to the ABS Beef InFocus product line.
“It’s becoming more and more important to value-add with the livestock available on farm, and with smart tools and clever breeding decisions around Sexcel sexed genetics and ABS’ Beef InFocus, long-term dairy operations are adding multiple income streams rather than relying just on milk payments,” Mr Quinlan said.
Jersey fertility is a key ingredient
ABS’ partnership with Central Sires Co-operative continues to bring a balanced group of quality Jersey sires to breeders. Three new exciting sires are being added to the ABS Jersey team this year.
CSCDYNAMITE Gelbeado Park DYNAMITE comes from the number one genomically tested cow in Australia, Gelbeado Park Raceway Cocoa 4608. This sire offers excellent health traits which includes 103 for Daughter Fertility and a BPI of 264.
CSCJAMIEO Murray Brook JAMIEO is another sire that expresses very good health traits including exceptional overall type 110 and udders 113 with a BPI of 231.
CSCTOYOTA Auburn Vale TOYOTA has a deep and successful cow family that dates back to the 1940s and features fertility and longevity. The family has passed through three different owners and for the past 40 years has been a centrepiece of the Trotman breeding program. The dam of Toyota, Auburn Vale Laurette 2696 and family consistently classify 86 to 87 points. As expected, Toyota has exceptional health traits, which includes breed-leading daughter fertility of 107. His proof is very good across all traits, production, health and type and fits into the ABS team very well with a BPI of 227.