Initial insights on the performances and management of dairy cattle herds combining two breeds with contrasting features.

PubMed

Magne, M A; Thénard, V; Mihout, S

2016-05-01

Finding ways of increasing animal production with low external inputs and without compromising reproductive performances is a key issue of livestock systems sustainability. One way is to take advantage of the diversity and interactions among components within livestock systems. Among studies that investigate the influence of differences in animals' individual abilities in a herd, few focus on combinations of cow breeds with contrasting features in dairy cattle herds. This study aimed to analyse the performances and management of such multi-breed dairy cattle herds. These herds were composed of two types of dairy breeds: 'specialist' (Holstein) and 'generalist' (e.g. Montbeliarde, Simmental, etc.). Based on recorded milk data in southern French region, we performed (i) to compare the performances of dairy herds according to breed-type composition: multi-breed, single specialist breed or single generalist breed and (ii) to test the difference of milk performances of specialist and generalist breed cows (n = 10 682) per multi-breed dairy herd within a sample of 22 farms. The sampled farmers were also interviewed to characterise herd management through multivariate analysis. Multi-breed dairy herds had a better trade-off among milk yield, milk fat and protein contents, herd reproduction and concentrate-conversion efficiency than single-breed herds. Conversely, they did not offer advantages in terms of milk prices and udder health. Compared to specialist dairy herds, they produce less milk with the same concentrate-conversion efficiency but have better reproductive performances. Compared to generalist dairy herds, they produce more milk with better concentrate-conversion efficiency but have worse reproductive performances. Within herds, specialist and generalist breed cows significantly differed in milk performances, showing their complementarity. The former produced more milk for a longer lactation length while the latter produced milk with higher protein and fat contents and had a slightly longer lactation rank. Our results also focus on the farmers' management of multi-breed dairy herds underlying herd performances. Three strategies of management were identified and structured along two main axes. The first differentiates farmers according to their animal-selection practices in relation with their objectives of production: adapting animal to produce milk with low-feeding inputs v. focussing on milk yield trait to intensify milk production. The second refers to the purpose farmers give to multi-breed dairy herds: milk v. milk/meat production. These initial insights on the performances and management of multi-breed dairy herds contribute to better understanding the functioning of ruminant livestock systems based on individual variability.

Within- and across-breed genomic predictions and genomic relationships for Western Pyrenees dairy sheep breeds Latxa, Manech, and Basco-Béarnaise.

PubMed

Legarra, A; Baloche, G; Barillet, F; Astruc, J M; Soulas, C; Aguerre, X; Arrese, F; Mintegi, L; Lasarte, M; Maeztu, F; Beltrán de Heredia, I; Ugarte, E

2014-05-01

Genotypes, phenotypes and pedigrees of 6 breeds of dairy sheep (including subdivisions of Latxa, Manech, and Basco-Béarnaise) from the Spain and France Western Pyrenees were used to estimate genetic relationships across breeds (together with genotypes from the Lacaune dairy sheep) and to verify by forward cross-validation single-breed or multiple-breed genetic evaluations. The number of rams genotyped fluctuated between 100 and 1,300 but generally represented the 10 last cohorts of progeny-tested rams within each breed. Genetic relationships were assessed by principal components analysis of the genomic relationship matrices and also by the conservation of linkage disequilibrium patterns at given physical distances in the genome. Genomic and pedigree-based evaluations used daughter yield performances of all rams, although some of them were not genotyped. A pseudo-single step method was used in this case for genomic predictions. Results showed a clear structure in blond and black breeds for Manech and Latxa, reflecting historical exchanges, and isolation of Basco-Béarnaise and Lacaune. Relatedness between any 2 breeds was, however, lower than expected. Single-breed genomic predictions had accuracies comparable with other breeds of dairy sheep or small breeds of dairy cattle. They were more accurate than pedigree predictions for 5 out of 6 breeds, with absolute increases in accuracy ranging from 0.05 to 0.30 points. They were significantly better, as assessed by bootstrapping of candidates, for 2 of the breeds. Predictions using multiple populations only marginally increased the accuracy for a couple of breeds. Pooling populations does not increase the accuracy of genomic evaluations in dairy sheep; however, single-breed genomic predictions are more accurate, even for small breeds, and make the consideration of genomic schemes in dairy sheep interesting. Copyright © 2014 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Application of microsatellite markers as potential tools for traceability of Girgentana goat breed dairy products.

PubMed

Sardina, Maria Teresa; Tortorici, Lina; Mastrangelo, Salvatore; Di Gerlando, Rosalia; Tolone, Marco; Portolano, Baldassare

2015-08-01

In livestock, breed assignment may play a key role in the certification of products linked to specific breeds. Traceability of farm animals and authentication of their products can contribute to improve breed profitability and sustainability of animal productions with significant impact on the rural economy of particular geographic areas and on breed and biodiversity conservation. With the goal of developing a breed genetic traceability system for Girgentana dairy products, the aim of this study was to identify specific microsatellite markers able to discriminate among the most important Sicilian dairy goat breeds, in order to detect possible adulteration in Girgentana dairy products. A total of 20 microsatellite markers were analyzed on 338 individual samples from Girgentana, Maltese, and Derivata di Siria goat breeds. Specific microsatellite markers useful for traceability of dairy products were identified. Eight microsatellite markers showed alleles present at the same time in Maltese and Derivata di Siria and absent in Girgentana and, therefore, they were tested on DNA pools of the three breeds. Considering the electropherograms' results, only FCB20, SRCRSP5, and TGLA122 markers were tested on DNA samples extracted from cheeses of Girgentana goat breed. These three microsatellite markers could be applied in a breed genetic traceability system of Girgentana dairy products in order to detect adulteration due to Maltese and Derivata di Siria goat breeds. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Modeling homeorhetic trajectories of milk component yields, body composition and dry-matter intake in dairy cows: Influence of parity, milk production potential and breed.

PubMed

Daniel, J B; Friggens, N C; van Laar, H; Ingvartsen, K L; Sauvant, D

2018-06-01

The control of nutrient partitioning is complex and affected by many factors, among them physiological state and production potential. Therefore, the current model aims to provide for dairy cows a dynamic framework to predict a consistent set of reference performance patterns (milk component yields, body composition change, dry-matter intake) sensitive to physiological status across a range of milk production potentials (within and between breeds). Flows and partition of net energy toward maintenance, growth, gestation, body reserves and milk components are described in the model. The structure of the model is characterized by two sub-models, a regulating sub-model of homeorhetic control which sets dynamic partitioning rules along the lactation, and an operating sub-model that translates this into animal performance. The regulating sub-model describes lactation as the result of three driving forces: (1) use of previously acquired resources through mobilization, (2) acquisition of new resources with a priority of partition towards milk and (3) subsequent use of resources towards body reserves gain. The dynamics of these three driving forces were adjusted separately for fat (milk and body), protein (milk and body) and lactose (milk). Milk yield is predicted from lactose and protein yields with an empirical equation developed from literature data. The model predicts desired dry-matter intake as an outcome of net energy requirements for a given dietary net energy content. The parameters controlling milk component yields and body composition changes were calibrated using two data sets in which the diet was the same for all animals. Weekly data from Holstein dairy cows was used to calibrate the model within-breed across milk production potentials. A second data set was used to evaluate the model and to calibrate it for breed differences (Holstein, Danish Red and Jersey) on the mobilization/reconstitution of body composition and on the yield of individual milk components. These calibrations showed that the model framework was able to adequately simulate milk yield, milk component yields, body composition changes and dry-matter intake throughout lactation for primiparous and multiparous cows differing in their production level.

Genome-wide association studies of growth traits in three dairy cattle breeds using whole-genome sequence data.

PubMed

Mao, X; Sahana, G; De Koning, D-J; Guldbrandtsen, B

2016-04-01

Male calves and culled cows of dairy cattle are used for beef production. However, unlike beef breeds, the genetics of growth performance traits in dairy breeds have not been extensively studied. Here, we performed a genome-wide association study (GWAS) on Holsteins ( = 5,519), Jerseys ( = 1,231), and Red Dairy Cattle ( = 4,410) to identify QTL for growth traits. First, a GWAS was performed within breeds using whole-genome sequence variants. Later, a meta-analysis was performed to combine information across the 3 breeds. We have identified several QTL that have large effects on growth traits in Holsteins and Red Dairy Cattle but with little overlap across breeds. Only 1 QTL located on chromosome 10 was shared between Holsteins and Red Dairy Cattle. The most significant variant (BTA10:59,164,533, rs43636323; -value = 2.8 × 10) in this QTL explained 2.4% of the total additive genetic variance in Red Dairy Cattle. The gene is a strong candidate for the underlying gene of this QTL. In Red Dairy Cattle, a QTL near 25 Mb on chromosome 14 was very significantly associated with growth traits, consistent with the previously reported gene , which affects growth in beef cattle and humans. No QTL for growth performance was statistically significant in Jerseys, possibly due to the low power of detection with the small sample size. The meta-analysis of the 3 breeds increased the power to detect QTL.

Background on the development of a nonfunded cooperative agreement between USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and the Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding (CDCB)

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Dairy producers, dairy record providers, breed associations, artificial-insemination companies, and the Animal Improvement Programs Laboratory, which is part of USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) in Beltsville, Maryland, have collaborated for many decades to provide the dairy industry with i...

Genomic predictions across Nordic Holstein and Nordic Red using the genomic best linear unbiased prediction model with different genomic relationship matrices.

PubMed

Zhou, L; Lund, M S; Wang, Y; Su, G

2014-08-01

This study investigated genomic predictions across Nordic Holstein and Nordic Red using various genomic relationship matrices. Different sources of information, such as consistencies of linkage disequilibrium (LD) phase and marker effects, were used to construct the genomic relationship matrices (G-matrices) across these two breeds. Single-trait genomic best linear unbiased prediction (GBLUP) model and two-trait GBLUP model were used for single-breed and two-breed genomic predictions. The data included 5215 Nordic Holstein bulls and 4361 Nordic Red bulls, which was composed of three populations: Danish Red, Swedish Red and Finnish Ayrshire. The bulls were genotyped with 50 000 SNP chip. Using the two-breed predictions with a joint Nordic Holstein and Nordic Red reference population, accuracies increased slightly for all traits in Nordic Red, but only for some traits in Nordic Holstein. Among the three subpopulations of Nordic Red, accuracies increased more for Danish Red than for Swedish Red and Finnish Ayrshire. This is because closer genetic relationships exist between Danish Red and Nordic Holstein. Among Danish Red, individuals with higher genomic relationship coefficients with Nordic Holstein showed more increased accuracies in the two-breed predictions. Weighting the two-breed G-matrices by LD phase consistencies, marker effects or both did not further improve accuracies of the two-breed predictions. © 2014 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

26 CFR 1.182-5 - Limitation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... from livestock (including livestock held for draft, breeding or dairy purposes). It does not include..., breeding, or dairy stock), and the net operating loss deduction (computed under section 172) shall not be... the sale, disposition, destruction, condemnation, or abandonment of assets (other than draft, breeding...

26 CFR 1.182-5 - Limitation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... from livestock (including livestock held for draft, breeding or dairy purposes). It does not include..., breeding, or dairy stock), and the net operating loss deduction (computed under section 172) shall not be... the sale, disposition, destruction, condemnation, or abandonment of assets (other than draft, breeding...

26 CFR 1.182-5 - Limitation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... from livestock (including livestock held for draft, breeding or dairy purposes). It does not include..., breeding, or dairy stock), and the net operating loss deduction (computed under section 172) shall not be... the sale, disposition, destruction, condemnation, or abandonment of assets (other than draft, breeding...

26 CFR 1.182-5 - Limitation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... from livestock (including livestock held for draft, breeding or dairy purposes). It does not include..., breeding, or dairy stock), and the net operating loss deduction (computed under section 172) shall not be... the sale, disposition, destruction, condemnation, or abandonment of assets (other than draft, breeding...

Feeding & Management of Dairy Calves & Heifers. Teacher's Guide.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bjoraker, Walt

This guide is designed to assist postsecondary and secondary teachers of agriculture in their use of the University of Wisconsin bulletin "Raising Dairy Replacements" in their dairy science instructional program. Eight lessons are provided in this unit: breeding decisions, management of cows from breeding to calving, care at calving time, the…

Breed base representation in dairy animals of 5 breeds

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Inheritance of DNA from different dairy breeds can be determined by genotyping, just as individual ancestors such as parents, grandparents, or even great grandparents can be identified correctly in a high percentage of the cases by genotyping even if not reported or reported incorrectly in pedigrees...

Status of genetic diversity of U. S. dairy goat breeds

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Genetic diversity underpins the livestock breeders’ ability to improve the production potential of their livestock. Therefore, it is important to periodically assess genetic diversity within a breed. Such an analysis was conducted on U.S. dairy goat breeds: Alpine, LaMancha, Nigerian Dwarf, Nubian, ...

The development of genomics applied to dairy breeding

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Genomic selection (GS) has profoundly changed dairy cattle breeding in the last decade and can be defined as the use of genomic breeding values (GEBV) in selection programs. The GEBV is the sum of the effects of dense DNA markers across the whole genome, capturing all the quantitative trait loci (QT...

Cow genotyping strategies for genomic selection in small dairy cattle population

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

This study compares how different cow genotyping strategies increase the accuracy of genomic estimated breeding values (EBV) in dairy cattle breeds with low numbers. In these breeds there are few sires with progeny records and genotyping cows can improve the accuracy of genomic EBV. The Guernsey bre...

21 CFR 522.2476 - Trenbolone acetate.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... breeding or in dairy animals. Safety and effectiveness have not been established in veal calves. A... animals intended for subsequent breeding or in dairy animals. Safety and effectiveness have not been...

21 CFR 522.2476 - Trenbolone acetate.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... breeding or in dairy animals. Safety and effectiveness have not been established in veal calves. A... animals intended for subsequent breeding or in dairy animals. Safety and effectiveness have not been...

21 CFR 522.2476 - Trenbolone acetate.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... breeding or in dairy animals. Safety and effectiveness have not been established in veal calves. A... animals intended for subsequent breeding or in dairy animals. Safety and effectiveness have not been...

21 CFR 522.2476 - Trenbolone acetate.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... breeding or in dairy animals. Safety and effectiveness have not been established in veal calves. A... animals intended for subsequent breeding or in dairy animals. Safety and effectiveness have not been...

21 CFR 522.2476 - Trenbolone acetate.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... breeding or in dairy animals. Safety and effectiveness have not been established in veal calves. A... animals intended for subsequent breeding or in dairy animals. Safety and effectiveness have not been...

Invited review: Current state of genetic improvement in dairy sheep.

PubMed

Carta, A; Casu, Sara; Salaris, S

2009-12-01

Dairy sheep have been farmed traditionally in the Mediterranean basin in southern Europe, central Europe, eastern Europe, and in Near East countries. Currently, dairy sheep farming systems vary from extensive to intensive according to the economic relevance of the production chain and the specific environment and breed. Modern breeding programs were conceived in the 1960s. The most efficient selection scheme for local dairy sheep breeds is based on pyramidal management of the population with the breeders of nucleus flocks at the top, where pedigree and official milk recording, artificial insemination, controlled natural mating, and breeding value estimation are carried out to generate genetic progress. The genetic progress is then transferred to the commercial flocks through artificial insemination or natural-mating rams. Increasing milk yield is still the most profitable breeding objective for several breeds. Almost all milk is used for cheese production and, consequently, milk content traits are very important. Moreover, other traits are gaining interest for selection: machine milking ability and udder morphology, resistance to diseases (mastitis, internal parasites, scrapie), and traits related to the nutritional value of milk (fatty acid composition). Current breeding programs based on the traditional quantitative approach have achieved appreciable genetic gains for milk yield. In many cases, further selection goals such as milk composition, udder morphology, somatic cell count, and scrapie resistance have been implemented. However, the possibility of including other traits of selective interest is limited by high recording costs. Also, the organizational effort needed to apply the traditional quantitative approach limits the diffusion of current selection programs outside the European Mediterranean area. In this context, the application of selection schemes assisted by molecular information, to improve either traditional dairy traits or traits costly to record, seems to be attractive in dairy sheep. At the moment, the most effective strategy seems to be the strengthening of research projects aimed at finding causal mutations along the genes affecting traits of economic importance. However, genome-wide selection seems to be unfeasible in most dairy sheep breeds.

Genetic tests for estimating dairy breed proportion and parentage assignment in East African crossbred cattle.

PubMed

Strucken, Eva M; Al-Mamun, Hawlader A; Esquivelzeta-Rabell, Cecilia; Gondro, Cedric; Mwai, Okeyo A; Gibson, John P

2017-09-12

Smallholder dairy farming in much of the developing world is based on the use of crossbred cows that combine local adaptation traits of indigenous breeds with high milk yield potential of exotic dairy breeds. Pedigree recording is rare in such systems which means that it is impossible to make informed breeding decisions. High-density single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) assays allow accurate estimation of breed composition and parentage assignment but are too expensive for routine application. Our aim was to determine the level of accuracy achieved with low-density SNP assays. We constructed subsets of 100 to 1500 SNPs from the 735k-SNP Illumina panel by selecting: (a) on high minor allele frequencies (MAF) in a crossbred population; (b) on large differences in allele frequency between ancestral breeds; (c) at random; or (d) with a differential evolution algorithm. These panels were tested on a dataset of 1933 crossbred dairy cattle from Kenya/Uganda and on crossbred populations from Ethiopia (N = 545) and Tanzania (N = 462). Dairy breed proportions were estimated by using the ADMIXTURE program, a regression approach, and SNP-best linear unbiased prediction, and tested against estimates obtained by ADMIXTURE based on the 735k-SNP panel. Performance for parentage assignment was based on opposing homozygotes which were used to calculate the separation value (sv) between true and false assignments. Panels of SNPs based on the largest differences in allele frequency between European dairy breeds and a combined Nelore/N'Dama population gave the best predictions of dairy breed proportion (r 2  = 0.962 to 0.994 for 100 to 1500 SNPs) with an average absolute bias of 0.026. Panels of SNPs based on the highest MAF in the crossbred population (Kenya/Uganda) gave the most accurate parentage assignments (sv = -1 to 15 for 100 to 1500 SNPs). Due to the different required properties of SNPs, panels that did well for breed composition did poorly for parentage assignment and vice versa. A combined panel of 400 SNPs was not able to assign parentages correctly, thus we recommend the use of 200 SNPs either for breed proportion prediction or parentage assignment, independently.

Factors associated with age at slaughter and carcass weight, price, and value of dairy cull cows.

PubMed

Bazzoli, I; De Marchi, M; Cecchinato, A; Berry, D P; Bittante, G

2014-02-01

The sale of cull cows contributes to the overall profit of dairy herds. The objective of this study was to quantify the factors associated with slaughter age (mo), cow carcass weight (kg), price (€/kg of carcass weight), and value (€/head) of dairy cull cows. Data included 20,995 slaughter records in the period from 2003 to 2011 of 5 different breeds: 2 dairy [Holstein Friesian (HF) and Brown Swiss (BS)] and 3 dual-purpose [Simmental (Si), Alpine Grey (AG), and Rendena (Re)]. Associations of breed, age of cow (except when the dependent variable was slaughter age), and year and month of slaughter with slaughter age, carcass weight, price, and value were quantified using a mixed linear model; herd was included as a random effect. The seasonal trends in cow price and value traits were inversely related to the number of cows slaughtered, whereas annual variation in external factors affected market conditions. Relative to BS cows, HF cows were younger at slaughter (73.1 vs. 80.7 mo), yielded slightly lighter carcasses (242 vs. 246 kg), and received a slightly lower price (1.69 vs. 1.73 €/kg) and total value (394 vs. 417 €/head). Dual-purpose breeds were older and heavier and received a much greater price and total value at slaughter (521, 516, and 549 €/head, respectively for Si, Re, and AG) than either dairy breed. Of the dual-purpose cows, Si carcasses were heavier (271 kg), whereas the carcasses of local breeds received a higher price (2.05 and 2.18 €/kg for Re and AG, respectively) and Alpine Grey cows were the oldest at slaughter (93.3 mo). The price per kilogram of cull cow carcasses was greatest for very young cows (i.e., <3 yr of age) and the differential in price and value between younger and older cows was greater in dual-purpose than in dairy breeds. Large differences in cull cow whole carcass value (carcass weight × unit price) among dairy breeds suggest that such a trait could be considered in the breeding objectives of the breeds. Copyright © 2014 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

RAPD/SCAR Approaches for Identification of Adulterant Breeds' Milk in Dairy Products.

PubMed

Cunha, Joana T; Domingues, Lucília

2017-01-01

Food safety and quality are nowadays a major consumers' concern. In the dairy industry the fraudulent addition of cheaper/lower-quality milks from nonlegitimate species/breeds compromises the quality and value of the final product. Despite the already existing approaches for identification of the species origin of milk, there is little information regarding differentiation at an intra-species level. In this protocol we describe a low-cost, sensitive, fast, and reliable analytical technique-Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA/Sequence Characterized Amplified Region (RAPD/SCAR)-capable of an efficient detection of adulterant breeds in milk mixtures used for fraudulent manufacturing of dairy products and suitable for the detection of milk adulteration in processed dairy foods.

Design of a DNA panel for genomic studies in Russian cattle breeds

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

A panel of 96 DNA samples (Russian Cattle Genomic Diversity Panel 1.0 or RCGDP 1.0) characterizing the breadth of genetic diversity in popular Russian cattle breeds was designed. The panel contains from four to eight animals from each of 11 dairy and six dairy-meat and meat breeds. The main criterio...

The impact of body condition after calving on metabolism and milk progesterone profiles in two breeds of dairy cows.

PubMed

O'Hara, Lisa A; Båge, Renée; Holtenius, Kjell

2016-10-20

Optimal body condition in early lactation is generally accepted as a prerequisite for good reproductive performance. Examination of milk progesterone profiles offers an objective method for characterization of postpartum ovarian activity in dairy cows. The present study investigated the relationship between body condition after calving, some metabolic parameters in blood plasma, and fertility, as reflected by milk progesterone profiles in the two dairy breeds Swedish Red (SR) and Swedish Holstein (SH). Multiparous dairy cows (n = 73) of SR and SH breeds were selected and divided into three groups based on their body condition score (BCS) after parturition. Selected plasma metabolites were determined, milk progesterone profiles were identified and body condition was scored. Over-conditioned cows and atypical progesterone profiles were more common among SR cows. Insulin sensitivity was lower and IGF 1 higher among SR cows. Insulin was positively related to body condition, but not related to breed. Atypical progesterone profiles were more common and insulin sensitivity lower in SR than in SH cows, but the SR breed had a higher proportion of over-conditioned SR cows. It is reasonable to assume that breed differences in body condition contributed to these results.

Characterization of the bovine milk proteome in early-lactation Holstein and Jersey breeds of dairy cows.

PubMed

Tacoma, Rinske; Fields, Julia; Ebenstein, David B; Lam, Ying-Wai; Greenwood, Sabrina L

2016-01-01

Milk is a highly nutritious natural product that provides not only a rich source of amino acids to the consumer but also hundreds of bioactive peptides and proteins known to elicit health-benefitting activities. We investigated the milk protein profile produced by Holstein and Jersey dairy cows maintained under the same diet, management and environmental conditions using proteomic approaches that optimize protein extraction and characterization of the low abundance proteins within the skim milk fraction of bovine milk. In total, 935 low abundance proteins were identified. Gene ontology classified all proteins identified into various cellular localization and function categories. A total of 43 low abundance proteins were differentially expressed between the two dairy breeds. Bioactive proteins involved in host-defense, including lactotransferrin (P=0.0026) and complement C2 protein (P=0.0001), were differentially expressed by the two breeds, whereas others such as osteopontin (P=0.1788) and lactoperoxidase (P=0.2973) were not. This work is the first to outline the protein profile produced by two important breeds of dairy cattle maintained under the same diet, environment and management conditions in order to observe likely true breed differences. This research now allows us to better understand and contrast further research examining the bovine proteome that includes these different breeds. Within the last decade, the amount of research characterizing the bovine milk proteome has increased due to growing interest in the bioactive proteins that are present in milk. Proteomic analysis of low abundance whey proteins has mainly focused on human breast milk; however, previous research has highlighted the presence of bioactive proteins in bovine milk. Recent publications outlining the cross-reactivity of bovine bioactive proteins on human biological function highlight the need for further investigation into the bovine milk proteome. The rationale behind this study is to characterize and compare the low abundance protein profile in the skim milk fraction produced from Holstein and Jersey breeds of dairy cattle, which are two major dairy cattle breeds in the USA. A combination of fractionation strategies was used to efficiently enrich the low abundance proteins from bovine skim milk for proteomic profiling. A total of 935 low abundance proteins were identified and compared between the two bovine breeds. The results from this study provide insight into breed differences and similarities in the milk proteome profile produced by two breeds of dairy cattle. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Relative extended haplotype homozygosity signals across breeds reveal dairy and beef specific signatures of selection.

PubMed

Bomba, Lorenzo; Nicolazzi, Ezequiel L; Milanesi, Marco; Negrini, Riccardo; Mancini, Giordano; Biscarini, Filippo; Stella, Alessandra; Valentini, Alessio; Ajmone-Marsan, Paolo

2015-04-02

A number of methods are available to scan a genome for selection signatures by evaluating patterns of diversity within and between breeds. Among these, "extended haplotype homozygosity" (EHH) is a reliable approach to detect genome regions under recent selective pressure. The objective of this study was to use this approach to identify regions that are under recent positive selection and shared by the most representative Italian dairy and beef cattle breeds. A total of 3220 animals from Italian Holstein (2179), Italian Brown (775), Simmental (493), Marchigiana (485) and Piedmontese (379) breeds were genotyped with the Illumina BovineSNP50 BeadChip v.1. After standard quality control procedures, genotypes were phased and core haplotypes were identified. The decay of linkage disequilibrium (LD) for each core haplotype was assessed by measuring the EHH. Since accurate estimates of local recombination rates were not available, relative EHH (rEHH) was calculated for each core haplotype. Genomic regions that carry frequent core haplotypes and with significant rEHH values were considered as candidates for recent positive selection. Candidate regions were aligned across to identify signals shared by dairy or beef cattle breeds. Overall, 82 and 87 common regions were detected among dairy and beef cattle breeds, respectively. Bioinformatic analysis identified 244 and 232 genes in these common genomic regions. Gene annotation and pathway analysis showed that these genes are involved in molecular functions that are biologically related to milk or meat production. Our results suggest that a multi-breed approach can lead to the identification of genomic signatures in breeds of cattle that are selected for the same production goal and thus to the localisation of genomic regions of interest in dairy and beef production.

Major and trace elements in organically or conventionally produced milk.

PubMed

Hermansen, John E; Badsberg, Jens H; Kristensen, Troels; Gundersen, Vagn

2005-08-01

A total of 480 samples of milk from 10 organically and 10 conventionally producing dairy farms in Denmark and covering 8 sampling periods over 1 year (triplicate samplings) were analysed for 45 trace elements and 6 major elements by high-resolution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry and inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry. Sampling, sample preparation, and analysis of the samples were performed under carefully controlled contamination-free conditions. The dairy cattle breeds were Danish-Holstein or Jersey. Sources of variance were quantified, and differences between production systems and breeds were tested. The major source of variation for most elements was week of sampling. Concentrations of Al, Cu, Fe, Mo, Rb, Se, and Zn were within published ranges. Concentrations of As, Cd, Cr, Mn and Pb were lower, and concentrations of Co and Sr were higher than published ranges. Compared with Holsteins, Jerseys produced milk with higher concentrations of Ba, Ca, Cu, Fe, Mg, Mn, Mo, P, Rh, and Zn and with a lower concentration of Bi. The organically produced milk, compared with conventionally produced milk, contained a significantly higher concentration of Mo (48 v. 37 ng/g) and a lower concentration of Ba (43 v. 62 ng/g), Eu (4 v. 7 ng/g), Mn (16 v. 20 ng/g) and Zn (4400 v. 5150 ng/g respectively). The investigation yielded typical concentrations for the following trace elements in milk, for which no or very few data are available: Ba, Bi, Ce, Cs, Eu, Ga, Gd, In, La, Nb, Nd, Pd, Pr, Rh, Sb, Sm, Tb, Te, Th, Ti, Tl, U, V, Y, and Zr.

An interpretive review of selective sweep studies in Bos taurus cattle populations: identification of unique and shared selection signals across breeds

PubMed Central

Gutiérrez-Gil, Beatriz; Arranz, Juan J.; Wiener, Pamela

2015-01-01

This review compiles the results of 21 genomic studies of European Bos taurus breeds and thus provides a general picture of the selection signatures in taurine cattle identified by genome-wide selection-mapping scans. By performing a comprehensive summary of the results reported in the literature, we compiled a list of 1049 selection sweeps described across 37 cattle breeds (17 beef breeds, 14 dairy breeds, and 6 dual-purpose breeds), and four different beef-vs.-dairy comparisons, which we subsequently grouped into core selective sweep (CSS) regions, defined as consecutive signals within 1 Mb of each other. We defined a total of 409 CSSs across the 29 bovine autosomes, 232 (57%) of which were associated with a single-breed (Single-breed CSSs), 134 CSSs (33%) were associated with a limited number of breeds (Two-to-Four-breed CSSs) and 39 CSSs (9%) were associated with five or more breeds (Multi-breed CSSs). For each CSS, we performed a candidate gene survey that identified 291 genes within the CSS intervals (from the total list of 5183 BioMart-extracted genes) linked to dairy and meat production, stature, and coat color traits. A complementary functional enrichment analysis of the CSS positional candidates highlighted other genes related to pathways underlying behavior, immune response, and reproductive traits. The Single-breed CSSs revealed an over-representation of genes related to dairy and beef production, this was further supported by over-representation of production-related pathway terms in these regions based on a functional enrichment analysis. Overall, this review provides a comparative map of the selection sweeps reported in European cattle breeds and presents for the first time a characterization of the selection sweeps that are found in individual breeds. Based on their uniqueness, these breed-specific signals could be considered as “divergence signals,” which may be useful in characterizing and protecting livestock genetic diversity. PMID:26029239

Bovine renal lipofuscinosis: prevalence, genetics and impact on milk production and weight at slaughter in Danish cattle.

PubMed

Agerholm, Jørgen S; Christensen, Knud; Nielsen, Søren Saxmose; Flagstad, Pia

2009-02-12

Bovine renal lipofuscinosis (BRL) is an incidental finding in cattle at slaughter. Condemnation of the kidneys as unfit for human consumption was until recently considered the only implication of BRL. Recent studies have indicated a negative influence on the health of affected animals. The present study investigated the prevalence, genetics and effect of BRL on milk yield and weight at slaughter. BRL status of slaughter cattle was recorded at four abattoirs during a 2-year-period. Data regarding breed, age, genetic descent, milk yield and weight at slaughter were extracted from the Danish Cattle Database. The prevalence of BRL was estimated stratified by breed and age-group. Furthermore, total milk yield, milk yield in last full lactation and weight at slaughter were compared for BRL-affected and non-affected Danish Holsteins and Danish Red cattle. 433,759 bovines were slaughtered and 787 of these had BRL. BRL was mainly diagnosed in Danish Red, Danish Holstein and crossbreds. The age of BRL affected animals varied from 11 months to 13 years, but BRL was rarely diagnosed in cattle less than 2 years of age.The total lifelong energy corrected milk (ECM) yields were 3,136 and 4,083 kg higher for BRL affected Danish Red and Danish Holsteins, respectively. However, the median life span of affected animals was 4.9 months longer, and age-corrected total milk yield was 1,284 kg lower for BRL affected Danish Red cows. These cows produced 318 kg ECM less in their last full lactation. Weight at slaughter was not affected by BRL status.The cases occurred in patterns consistent with autosomal recessive inheritance and several family clusters of BRL were found. Analysis of segregation ratios demonstrated the expected ratio for Danish Red cattle, but not for Danish Holsteins. The study confirmed that BRL is a common finding in Danish Holsteins and Danish Red cattle at slaughter. The disorder is associated with increased total milk yield due to a longer production life. However, a reduced milk yield was detected in the end of the production life in Danish Red. The study supports that BRL is inherited autosomal recessively in the Danish Red breed and Danish Holsteins, but with incomplete penetrance of the genotype in Danish Holsteins.

Potential benefits of genomic selection on genetic gain of small ruminant breeding programs.

PubMed

Shumbusho, F; Raoul, J; Astruc, J M; Palhiere, I; Elsen, J M

2013-08-01

In conventional small ruminant breeding programs, only pedigree and phenotype records are used to make selection decisions but prospects of including genomic information are now under consideration. The objective of this study was to assess the potential benefits of genomic selection on the genetic gain in French sheep and goat breeding designs of today. Traditional and genomic scenarios were modeled with deterministic methods for 3 breeding programs. The models included decisional variables related to male selection candidates, progeny testing capacity, and economic weights that were optimized to maximize annual genetic gain (AGG) of i) a meat sheep breeding program that improved a meat trait of heritability (h(2)) = 0.30 and a maternal trait of h(2) = 0.09 and ii) dairy sheep and goat breeding programs that improved a milk trait of h(2) = 0.30. Values of ±0.20 of genetic correlation between meat and maternal traits were considered to study their effects on AGG. The Bulmer effect was accounted for and the results presented here are the averages of AGG after 10 generations of selection. Results showed that current traditional breeding programs provide an AGG of 0.095 genetic standard deviation (σa) for meat and 0.061 σa for maternal trait in meat breed and 0.147 σa and 0.120 σa in sheep and goat dairy breeds, respectively. By optimizing decisional variables, the AGG with traditional selection methods increased to 0.139 σa for meat and 0.096 σa for maternal traits in meat breeding programs and to 0.174 σa and 0.183 σa in dairy sheep and goat breeding programs, respectively. With a medium-sized reference population (nref) of 2,000 individuals, the best genomic scenarios gave an AGG that was 17.9% greater than with traditional selection methods with optimized values of decisional variables for combined meat and maternal traits in meat sheep, 51.7% in dairy sheep, and 26.2% in dairy goats. The superiority of genomic schemes increased with the size of the reference population and genomic selection gave the best results when nref > 1,000 individuals for dairy breeds and nref > 2,000 individuals for meat breed. Genetic correlation between meat and maternal traits had a large impact on the genetic gain of both traits. Changes in AGG due to correlation were greatest for low heritable maternal traits. As a general rule, AGG was increased both by optimizing selection designs and including genomic information.

Impact of including growth, carcass and feed efficiency traits in the breeding goal for combined milk and beef production systems.

PubMed

Hietala, P; Juga, J

2017-04-01

Improving feed efficiency in dairy cattle could result in more profitable and environmentally sustainable dairy production through lowering feed costs and emissions from dairy farming. In addition, beef production based on dairy herds generates fewer greenhouse gas emissions per unit of meat output than beef production from suckler cow systems. Different scenarios were used to assess the profitability of adding traits, excluded from the current selection index for Finnish Ayrshire, to the breeding goal for combined dairy and beef production systems. The additional breeding goal traits were growth traits (average daily gain of animals in the fattening and rearing periods), carcass traits (fat covering, fleshiness and dressing percentage), mature live weight (LW) of cows and residual feed intake (RFI) traits. A breeding scheme was modeled for Finnish Ayrshire under the current market situation in Finland using the deterministic simulation software ZPLAN+. With the economic values derived for the current production system, the inclusion of growth and carcass traits, while preventing LW increase generated the highest improvement in the discounted profit of the breeding program (3.7%), followed by the scenario where all additional traits were included simultaneously (5.1%). The use of a selection index that included growth and carcass traits excluding LW, increased the profit (0.8%), but reduced the benefits resulted from breeding for beef traits together with LW. A moderate decrease in the profit of the breeding program was obtained when adding only LW to the breeding goal (-3.1%), whereas, adding only RFI traits to the breeding goal resulted in a minor increase in the profit (1.4%). Including beef traits with LW in the breeding goal showed to be the most potential option to improve the profitability of the combined dairy and beef production systems and would also enable a higher rate of self-sufficiency in beef. When considering feed efficiency related traits, the inclusion of LW traits in the breeding goal that includes growth and carcass traits could be more profitable than the inclusion of RFI, because the marginal costs of measuring LW can be expected to be lower than for RFI and it is readily available for selection. In addition, before RFI can be implemented as a breeding objective, the genetic correlations between RFI and other breeding goal traits estimated for the studied population as well as information on the most suitable indicator traits for RFI are needed to assess more carefully the consequences of selecting for RFI.

Economic values for health and feed efficiency traits of dual-purpose cattle in marginal areas.

PubMed

Krupová, Z; Krupa, E; Michaličková, M; Wolfová, M; Kasarda, R

2016-01-01

Economic values of clinical mastitis, claw disease, and feed efficiency traits along with 16 additional production and functional traits were estimated for the dairy population of the Slovak Pinzgau breed using a bioeconomic approach. In the cow-calf population (suckler cow population) of the same breed, the economic values of feed efficiency traits along with 15 further production and functional traits were calculated. The marginal economic values of clinical mastitis and claw disease incidence in the dairy system were -€ 70.65 and -€ 26.73 per case per cow and year, respectively. The marginal economic values for residual feed intake were -€ 55.15 and -€ 54.64/kg of dry matter per day for cows and breeding heifers in the dairy system and -€ 20.45, -€ 11.30, and -€ 6.04/kg of dry matter per day for cows, breeding heifers, and fattened animals in the cow-calf system, respectively, all expressed per cow and year. The sums of the relative economic values for the 2 new health traits in the dairy system and for residual feed intake across all cattle categories in both systems were 1.4 and 8%, respectively. Within the dairy production system, the highest relative economic values were for milk yield (20%), daily gain of calves (20%), productive lifetime (10%), and cow conception rate (8%). In the cow-calf system, the most important traits were weight gain of calves from 120 to 210 d and from birth to 120 d (19 and 14%, respectively), productive lifetime (17%), and cow conception rate (13%). Based on the calculation of economic values for traits in the dual-purpose Pinzgau breed, milk production and growth traits remain highly important in the breeding goal, but their relative importance should be adapted to new production and economic conditions. The economic importance of functional traits (especially of cow productive lifetime and fertility) was sufficiently high to make the inclusion of these traits into the breeding goal necessary. An increased interest of consumers in animal welfare and quality of dairy farm products should probably lead to the incorporation of health traits (clinical mastitis incidence and somatic cells score) into the breeding goal. However, keeping carcass traits in the breeding goal of the Slovak Pinzgau breed does not seem to be relevant to the long-term market situation. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Variance component and breeding value estimation for genetic heterogeneity of residual variance in Swedish Holstein dairy cattle.

PubMed

Rönnegård, L; Felleki, M; Fikse, W F; Mulder, H A; Strandberg, E

2013-04-01

Trait uniformity, or micro-environmental sensitivity, may be studied through individual differences in residual variance. These differences appear to be heritable, and the need exists, therefore, to fit models to predict breeding values explaining differences in residual variance. The aim of this paper is to estimate breeding values for micro-environmental sensitivity (vEBV) in milk yield and somatic cell score, and their associated variance components, on a large dairy cattle data set having more than 1.6 million records. Estimation of variance components, ordinary breeding values, and vEBV was performed using standard variance component estimation software (ASReml), applying the methodology for double hierarchical generalized linear models. Estimation using ASReml took less than 7 d on a Linux server. The genetic standard deviations for residual variance were 0.21 and 0.22 for somatic cell score and milk yield, respectively, which indicate moderate genetic variance for residual variance and imply that a standard deviation change in vEBV for one of these traits would alter the residual variance by 20%. This study shows that estimation of variance components, estimated breeding values and vEBV, is feasible for large dairy cattle data sets using standard variance component estimation software. The possibility to select for uniformity in Holstein dairy cattle based on these estimates is discussed. Copyright © 2013 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Short communication: Growth hormone receptor expression in two dairy breeds during the periparturient period.

PubMed

Okamura, C S; Bader, J F; Keisler, D H; Lucy, M C

2009-06-01

The growth hormone receptor (GHR) 1A mRNA decreases after calving in the liver of Holstein dairy cows and may coordinate nutrient partitioning. The hypothesis that the decrease in GHR1A mRNA around the time of calving was characteristic of a second dairy breed was tested by examining Guernsey cows in addition to Holstein cows. Holstein and Guernsey cows were housed together and paired by parity and expected calving date. Liver biopsies and blood samples were collected prepartum (d -20 +/- 1) and postpartum on d 3, and d 14 +/- 1. The amounts of GHR1A, GHR1B, GHR1C, and insulin-like growth factor (IGF)1 mRNA were determined by quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Blood concentrations of growth hormone (GH) and IGF1 were measured by RIA. Both breeds underwent a decrease in GHR1A mRNA, a decrease in liver IGF1 mRNA, a decrease in blood IGF1, and an increase in blood GH after calving. The decrease in liver GHR1A and IGF1 mRNA after calving may be an inherent characteristic of dairy breeds that enables nutrient partitioning for greater milk production. Independent genetic selection in 2 dairy breeds seemingly exploited a similar mechanism, reduced GHR1A expression, to decrease blood IGF1 and increase blood GH, a key hormone involved in nutrient partitioning.

BREEDING AND GENETICS SYMPOSIUM:Breeding heat tolerant dairy cattle: the case for introgression of the "slick" prolactin receptor variant into dairy breeds.

PubMed

Davis, S R; Spelman, R J; Littlejohn, M D

2017-04-01

Increasing environmental temperatures are a threat to the sustainability of livestock production and, because of the high metabolic demands of lactation, to dairy production in particular. Summer heat waves in temperate climates reduce feed intake, milk production, and cow comfort. In extreme heat events, there is an increase in cow mortality. In tropical climates, dairy cattle are mostly (zebu) type or zebu crossbred with temperate dairy breeds. Crossbreeding is undertaken to combine the heat tolerance and tick resistance of zebu with the productivity of temperate dairy breeds. In the absence of improved heat tolerance, milk production and fertility of temperate cattle is severely impaired. We have recently identified a key role for the prolactin pathway in regulating heat tolerance. A de novo mutation in prolactin that impairs prolactin activity was discovered in hairy and heat intolerant, New Zealand dairy cattle. The phenotypes produced were remarkably similar to those seen in fescue toxicosis, a syndrome seen in grazing cattle in the U.S. where ingestion of ergovaline, a fungal toxin from infected pasture, inhibits prolactin secretion. Recognition of the role of prolactin in hairy cattle led us to identify a deletion in exon 10 of the long-form of the prolactin receptor in Senepol cattle that causes truncation of the protein and determines the slick coat and heat tolerance traits found in this , beef breed. The short form of the prolactin receptor is predicted to be unaffected by the deletion. Knowledge of this dominant mutation has provided the impetus to begin a crossbreeding program to investigate performance and heat tolerance of temperate dairy cattle carrying the slick, prolactin receptor variant. The perceived opportunity is to introgress this variant into temperate dairy cattle to enable performance and welfare improvement in hot climates. Heat tolerance of cattle with slick coats appears to be mostly associated with coat type although sweating ability may also be enhanced. Further investigation is required of performance traits in cows homozygous for the slick variant because the published data are almost exclusively from heterozygous animals. Combination of the slick mutation with other favorable genes for heat tolerance, especially those for coat color, will be particularly enabled by gene editing technologies, offering opportunities for further improvement in bovine thermotolerance.

21 CFR 522.2477 - Trenbolone acetate and estradiol.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... subcutaneously in ear only. Do not use in animals intended for subsequent breeding or in dairy animals. Safety... intended for subsequent breeding or in dairy animals. Safety and effectiveness have not been established in... not use in calves to be processed for veal. (3) Pasture cattle (slaughter, stocker, and feeder steers...

21 CFR 522.2477 - Trenbolone acetate and estradiol.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... subcutaneously in ear only. Do not use in animals intended for subsequent breeding or in dairy animals. Safety... intended for subsequent breeding or in dairy animals. Safety and effectiveness have not been established in... not use in calves to be processed for veal. (3) Pasture cattle (slaughter, stocker, and feeder steers...

21 CFR 522.2477 - Trenbolone acetate and estradiol.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... subcutaneously in ear only. Do not use in animals intended for subsequent breeding or in dairy animals. Safety... intended for subsequent breeding or in dairy animals. Safety and effectiveness have not been established in... not use in calves to be processed for veal. (3) Pasture cattle (slaughter, stocker, and feeder steers...

21 CFR 522.2477 - Trenbolone acetate and estradiol.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... subcutaneously in ear only. Do not use in animals intended for subsequent breeding or in dairy animals. Safety... intended for subsequent breeding or in dairy animals. Safety and effectiveness have not been established in... not use in calves to be processed for veal. (3) Pasture cattle (slaughter, stocker, and feeder steers...

21 CFR 522.2477 - Trenbolone acetate and estradiol.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... subcutaneously in ear only. Do not use in animals intended for subsequent breeding or in dairy animals. Safety... intended for subsequent breeding or in dairy animals. Safety and effectiveness have not been established in... not use in calves to be processed for veal. (3) Pasture cattle (slaughter, stocker, and feeder steers...

Increased use of young bulls in dairy cattle breeding programs

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Availability of genomic evaluations since 2008 has provided many benefits with regard to improving the rate of genetic gain in dairy cattle breeding programs, one of which is a greater accuracy for young animals. As a result, AI organizations have been aggressively promoting young bulls and producer...

7 CFR 760.202 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... dairy cow means a female bovine dairy breed animal used for the purpose of providing milk for human... adverse weather or eligible loss condition. Adult beef cow means a female beef breed bovine animal that... eligible loss condition. A first-time bred beef heifer is also considered an adult beef cow if it was...

Estimation of genomic breeding values for milk yield in UK dairy goats.

PubMed

Mucha, S; Mrode, R; MacLaren-Lee, I; Coffey, M; Conington, J

2015-11-01

The objective of this study was to estimate genomic breeding values for milk yield in crossbred dairy goats. The research was based on data provided by 2 commercial goat farms in the UK comprising 590,409 milk yield records on 14,453 dairy goats kidding between 1987 and 2013. The population was created by crossing 3 breeds: Alpine, Saanen, and Toggenburg. In each generation the best performing animals were selected for breeding, and as a result, a synthetic breed was created. The pedigree file contained 30,139 individuals, of which 2,799 were founders. The data set contained test-day records of milk yield, lactation number, farm, age at kidding, and year and season of kidding. Data on milk composition was unavailable. In total 1,960 animals were genotyped with the Illumina 50K caprine chip. Two methods for estimation of genomic breeding value were compared-BLUP at the single nucleotide polymorphism level (BLUP-SNP) and single-step BLUP. The highest accuracy of 0.61 was obtained with single-step BLUP, and the lowest (0.36) with BLUP-SNP. Linkage disequilibrium (r(2), the squared correlation of the alleles at 2 loci) at 50 kb (distance between 2 SNP) was 0.18. This is the first attempt to implement genomic selection in UK dairy goats. Results indicate that the single-step method provides the highest accuracy for populations with a small number of genotyped individuals, where the number of genotyped males is low and females are predominant in the reference population. Copyright © 2015 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A comparison of economic performance between high-yielding temperate breeds and zebu-crossbreds on smallholder dairy farms in Southern Malawi with particular focus on reproductive performance.

PubMed

Gazzarin, Christian; Banda, M C; Lips, M

2018-04-23

As in other sub-Saharan African countries, purebred dairy genetics such as Holsteins were imported to Malawi. The study investigated their economic performance by comparing them with local Zebu-crossbreds based on 131 smallholder dairy farm observations from Southern Malawi. High-yielding purebred cows and crossbred cows showed no significant differences in lactation yield and calving interval. Looking at the farms' actual costs, by-products such as maize bran clearly dominated the cost structure for both breeds, but crossbreeds showed significantly lower concentrate costs. While there was no statistically significant difference in income for both breed types, a substantial share (23%) of farms under investigation shows negative incomes. Based on survey data, two typical farms were established representing standard costs with homogenous assumptions such as identical milk price. The comparison of typical farms covering the full dairy system clearly indicated that crossbred dairy cows outperformed purebreds. In addition, a simulation of a shorter calving interval for both typical farms revealed a substantial positive impact on income for both breed types with more than 30% increase. We conclude that focusing on crossbreds in combination with improved feeding and fertility management offers a more promising strategy for smallholder dairy farms in Southern Malawi than just acquiring high-yielding purebreds.

Short communication: Multi-trait estimation of genetic parameters for milk protein composition in the Danish Holstein.

PubMed

Gebreyesus, G; Lund, M S; Janss, L; Poulsen, N A; Larsen, L B; Bovenhuis, H; Buitenhuis, A J

2016-04-01

Genetic parameters were estimated for the major milk proteins using bivariate and multi-trait models based on genomic relationships between animals. The analyses included, apart from total protein percentage, αS1-casein (CN), αS2-CN, β-CN, κ-CN, α-lactalbumin, and β-lactoglobulin, as well as the posttranslational sub-forms of glycosylated κ-CN and αS1-CN-8P (phosphorylated). Standard errors of the estimates were used to compare the models. In total, 650 Danish Holstein cows across 4 parities and days in milk ranging from 9 to 481d were selected from 21 herds. The multi-trait model generally resulted in lower standard errors of heritability estimates, suggesting that genetic parameters can be estimated with high accuracy using multi-trait analyses with genomic relationships for scarcely recorded traits. The heritability estimates from the multi-trait model ranged from low (0.05 for β-CN) to high (0.78 for κ-CN). Genetic correlations between the milk proteins and the total milk protein percentage were generally low, suggesting the possibility to alter protein composition through selective breeding with little effect on total milk protein percentage. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Sharing reference data and including cows in the reference population improve genomic predictions in Danish Jersey

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Small reference populations limit the accuracy of genomic prediction in numerically small breeds, such as the Danish Jersey. The objective of this study was to investigate two approaches to improve genomic prediction by increasing the size of the reference population for Danish Jerseys. The first ap...

Milk protein concentration, estimated breeding value for fertility, and reproductive performance in lactating dairy cows.

PubMed

Morton, John M; Auldist, Martin J; Douglas, Meaghan L; Macmillan, Keith L

2017-07-01

Milk protein concentration in dairy cows has been positively associated with a range of measures of reproductive performance, and genetic factors affecting both milk protein concentration and reproductive performance may contribute to the observed phenotypic associations. It was of interest to assess whether these beneficial phenotypic associations are accounted for or interact with the effects of estimated breeding values for fertility. The effects of a multitrait estimated breeding value for fertility [the Australian breeding value for daughter fertility (ABV fertility)] on reproductive performance were also of interest. Interactions of milk protein concentration and ABV fertility with the interval from calving date to the start of the herd's seasonally concentrated breeding period were also assessed. A retrospective single cohort study was conducted using data collected from 74 Australian seasonally and split calving dairy herds. Associations between milk protein concentration, ABV fertility, and reproductive performance in Holstein cows were assessed using random effects logistic regression. Between 52,438 and 61,939 lactations were used for analyses of 4 reproductive performance measures. Milk protein concentration was strongly and positively associated with reproductive performance in dairy cows, and this effect was not accounted for by the effects of ABV fertility. Increases in ABV fertility had important additional beneficial effects on the probability of pregnancy by wk 6 and 21 of the herd's breeding period. For cows calved before the start of the breeding period, the effects of increases in both milk protein concentration and ABV fertility were beneficial regardless of their interval from calving to the start of the breeding period. These findings demonstrate the potential for increasing reproductive performance through identifying the causes of the association between milk protein concentration and reproductive performance and then devising management strategies to capitalize on them. Research should be conducted to understand the component of the relationship not captured by ABV fertility. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Genetic correlations between methane production and fertility, health, and body type traits in Danish Holstein cows.

PubMed

Zetouni, L; Kargo, M; Norberg, E; Lassen, J

2018-03-01

Our aim was to investigate the genetic correlations between CH 4 production and body conformation, fertility, and health traits in dairy cows. Data were collected from 10 commercial Holstein herds in Denmark, including 5,758 cows with records for body conformation traits, 7,390 for fertility traits, 7,439 for health traits, and 1,397 with individual CH 4 measurements. Methane production was measured during milking in automatic milking systems, using a sniffer approach. Correlations between CH 4 and several different traits were estimated. These traits were interval between calving and first insemination, interval between first and last insemination, number of inseminations, udder diseases, other diseases, height, body depth, chest width, dairy character, top line, and body condition score. Bivariate linear models were used to estimate the genetic parameters within and between CH 4 and the other traits. In general, the genetic correlations between CH 4 and the traits investigated were low. The heritability of CH 4 was 0.25, and ranged from 0.02 to 0.07 for fertility and health traits, and from 0.17 to 0.74 for body conformation traits. Further research with a larger data set should be performed to more accurately establish how CH 4 relates to fertility, health, and body conformation traits in dairy cattle. This will be useful in the design of future breeding goals that consider the production of CH 4 . The Authors. Published by the Federation of Animal Science Societies and Elsevier Inc. on behalf of the American Dairy Science Association®. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/).

Farmer views on calving difficulty consequences on dairy and beef farms.

PubMed

Martin-Collado, D; Hely, F; Byrne, T J; Evans, R; Cromie, A R; Amer, P R

2017-02-01

Calving difficulty (CD) is a key functional trait with significant influence on herd profitability and animal welfare. Breeding plays an important role in managing CD both at farm and industry level. An alternative to the economic value approach to determine the CD penalty is to complement the economic models with the analysis of farmer perceived on-farm impacts of CD. The aim of this study was to explore dairy and beef farmer views and perceptions on the economic and non-economic on-farm consequences of CD, to ultimately inform future genetic selection tools for the beef and dairy industries in Ireland. A standardised quantitative online survey was released to all farmers with e-mail addresses on the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation database. In total, 271 farmers completed the survey (173 beef farmers and 98 dairy farmers). Both dairy and beef farmers considered CD a very important issue with economic and non-economic components. However, CD was seen as more problematic by dairy farmers, who mostly preferred to slightly reduce its incidence, than by beef farmers, who tended to support increases in calf value even though it would imply a slight increase in CD incidence. Farm size was found to be related to dairy farmer views of CD with farmers from larger farms considering CD as more problematic than farmers from smaller farms. CD breeding value was reported to be critical for selecting beef sires to mate with either beef or dairy cows, whereas when selecting dairy sires, CD had lower importance than breeding values for other traits. There was considerable variability in the importance farmers give to CD breeding values that could not be explained by the farm type or the type of sire used, which might be related to the farmer non-economic motives. Farmer perceived economic value associated with incremental increases in CD increases substantially as the CD level considered increases. This non-linear relationship cannot be reflected in a standard linear index weighting. The results of this paper provide key underpinning support to the development of non-linear index weightings for CD in Irish national indexes.

Characterization of recombination features and the genetic basis in multiple cattle breeds.

PubMed

Shen, Botong; Jiang, Jicai; Seroussi, Eyal; Liu, George E; Ma, Li

2018-04-27

Crossover generated by meiotic recombination is a fundamental event that facilitates meiosis and sexual reproduction. Comparative studies have shown wide variation in recombination rate among species, but the characterization of recombination features between cattle breeds has not yet been performed. Cattle populations in North America count millions, and the dairy industry has genotyped millions of individuals with pedigree information that provide a unique opportunity to study breed-level variations in recombination. Based on large pedigrees of Jersey, Ayrshire and Brown Swiss cattle with genotype data, we identified over 3.4 million maternal and paternal crossover events from 161,309 three-generation families. We constructed six breed- and sex-specific genome-wide recombination maps using 58,982 autosomal SNPs for two sexes in the three dairy cattle breeds. A comparative analysis of the six recombination maps revealed similar global recombination patterns between cattle breeds but with significant differences between sexes. We confirmed that male recombination map is 10% longer than the female map in all three cattle breeds, consistent with previously reported results in Holstein cattle. When comparing recombination hotspot regions between cattle breeds, we found that 30% and 10% of the hotspots were shared between breeds in males and females, respectively, with each breed exhibiting some breed-specific hotspots. Finally, our multiple-breed GWAS found that SNPs in eight loci affected recombination rate and that the PRDM9 gene associated with hotspot usage in multiple cattle breeds, indicating a shared genetic basis for recombination across dairy cattle breeds. Collectively, our results generated breed- and sex-specific recombination maps for multiple cattle breeds, provided a comprehensive characterization and comparison of recombination patterns between breeds, and expanded our understanding of the breed-level variations in recombination features within an important livestock species.

26 CFR 1.471-6 - Inventories of livestock raisers and other farmers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... animals within such classes. Thus, if a cattle raiser determines that it costs approximately $15 to... or for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes. The inventoriable costs of animals raised for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes can, at the election of the livestock raiser, be included in inventory or...

26 CFR 1.471-6 - Inventories of livestock raisers and other farmers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... animals within such classes. Thus, if a cattle raiser determines that it costs approximately $15 to... or for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes. The inventoriable costs of animals raised for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes can, at the election of the livestock raiser, be included in inventory or...

26 CFR 1.471-6 - Inventories of livestock raisers and other farmers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... animals within such classes. Thus, if a cattle raiser determines that it costs approximately $15 to... or for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes. The inventoriable costs of animals raised for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes can, at the election of the livestock raiser, be included in inventory or...

26 CFR 1.471-6 - Inventories of livestock raisers and other farmers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... animals within such classes. Thus, if a cattle raiser determines that it costs approximately $15 to... or for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes. The inventoriable costs of animals raised for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes can, at the election of the livestock raiser, be included in inventory or...

26 CFR 1.471-6 - Inventories of livestock raisers and other farmers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... animals within such classes. Thus, if a cattle raiser determines that it costs approximately $15 to... or for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes. The inventoriable costs of animals raised for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes can, at the election of the livestock raiser, be included in inventory or...

Breed group effects on milk production of Brazilian crossbred dairy cows.

PubMed

Freitas, A F; Wilcox, C J; Costa, C N

1998-08-01

Lactation records (n = 2362) of 1402 crossbred cows in 22 cooperating dairy herds in southeastern Brazil were evaluated. Cows were mixtures of Zebu (Gir, Guzera, and unknown) and European breeding (mostly Holstein). Lactation milk yields were expressed as total, 3050-d, or deviated 305-d yields, either adjusted or unadjusted for days in milk (DIM). Mean DIM was 280. Arithmetic means unadjusted for DIM were 1942, 1666, and 5 kg per record. Milk yields of daughters from sires of 6/8 and 7/8 European breeds were higher than yields of daughters from sires of 5/8 European breeds when data were either adjusted or unadjusted for DIM. The differences associated with breed group of sire were only slightly reduced when records were adjusted for DIM. There was no evidence of a decline in milk yield as the fraction of European breeding of the sire increased from 6/8 to 7/8. For a given breed group of sire, whether the grandsire was purebred or crossbred had no detectable effect. These results should be useful in determining strategies for crossbreeding of dairy cows in tropical areas, particularly when crossbred sires are used.

Common Starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) increasingly select for grazed areas with increasing distance-to-nest.

PubMed

Heldbjerg, Henning; Fox, Anthony D; Thellesen, Peder V; Dalby, Lars; Sunde, Peter

2017-01-01

The abundant and widespread Common Starling (Sturnus vulgaris) is currently declining across much of Europe due to landscape changes caused by agricultural intensification. The proximate mechanisms causing adverse effects to breeding Starlings are unclear, hampering our ability to implement cost-efficient agri-environmental schemes to restore populations to former levels. This study aimed to show how this central foraging farmland bird uses and selects land cover types in general and how use of foraging habitat changes in relation to distance from the nest. We attached GPS-loggers to 17 breeding Starlings at a Danish dairy cattle farm in 2015 and 2016 and analysed their use of different land cover types as a function of distance intervals from the nest and their relative availability. As expected for a central place forager, Starlings increasingly avoided potential foraging areas with greater distance-to-nest: areas ≥ 500 m were selected > 100 times less frequently than areas within 100 m. On average, Starlings selected the land cover category Grazed most frequently, followed by Short Grass, Bare Ground, Meadow and Winter Crops. Starlings compensated for elevated travel costs by showing increasing habitat selection the further they foraged from the nest. Our results highlight the importance of Grazed foraging habitats close to the nest site of breeding Starlings. The ecological capacity of intensively managed farmlands for insectivorous birds like the Starling is decreasing through conversion of the most strongly selected land cover type (Grazed) to the least selected (Winter Crops) which may be further exacerbated through spatial segregation of foraging and breeding habitats.

Common Starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) increasingly select for grazed areas with increasing distance-to-nest

PubMed Central

Fox, Anthony D.; Thellesen, Peder V.; Dalby, Lars; Sunde, Peter

2017-01-01

The abundant and widespread Common Starling (Sturnus vulgaris) is currently declining across much of Europe due to landscape changes caused by agricultural intensification. The proximate mechanisms causing adverse effects to breeding Starlings are unclear, hampering our ability to implement cost-efficient agri-environmental schemes to restore populations to former levels. This study aimed to show how this central foraging farmland bird uses and selects land cover types in general and how use of foraging habitat changes in relation to distance from the nest. We attached GPS-loggers to 17 breeding Starlings at a Danish dairy cattle farm in 2015 and 2016 and analysed their use of different land cover types as a function of distance intervals from the nest and their relative availability. As expected for a central place forager, Starlings increasingly avoided potential foraging areas with greater distance-to-nest: areas ≥ 500 m were selected > 100 times less frequently than areas within 100 m. On average, Starlings selected the land cover category Grazed most frequently, followed by Short Grass, Bare Ground, Meadow and Winter Crops. Starlings compensated for elevated travel costs by showing increasing habitat selection the further they foraged from the nest. Our results highlight the importance of Grazed foraging habitats close to the nest site of breeding Starlings. The ecological capacity of intensively managed farmlands for insectivorous birds like the Starling is decreasing through conversion of the most strongly selected land cover type (Grazed) to the least selected (Winter Crops) which may be further exacerbated through spatial segregation of foraging and breeding habitats. PMID:28771556

Introduction to Dairy Production. Instructor Guide [and] Student Reference.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Duncan, Kevin

This packet contains an instructor guide and student reference for a course in introduction to dairy production. The curriculum contains the following six lessons: (1) introduction to the dairy industry; (2) breeds of dairy cattle; (3) principles of dairy cattle selection; (4) herd management; (5) herd health; and (6) industry issues. The…

Mammary gland and milk fatty acid composition of two dairy goat breeds under feed-restriction.

PubMed

Palma, Mariana; Alves, Susana P; Hernández-Castellano, Lorenzo E; Capote, Juan; Castro, Noemí; Argüello, Anastasio; Matzapetakis, Manolis; Bessa, Rui J B; de Almeida, André M

2017-08-01

Goat dairy products are an important source of animal protein in the tropics. During the dry season, pasture scarcity leads animals to lose up to 40% of their body weight, a condition known as Seasonal Weight Loss (SWL) that is one of the major constraints in ruminant production. Breeds with high tolerance to SWL are relevant to understand the physiological responses to pasture scarcity so they could be used in programs for animal breeding. In the Canary Islands there are two dairy goat breeds with different levels of tolerance to SWL: the Palmera, susceptible to SWL; and the Majorera, tolerant to SWL. Fat is one of the milk components most affected by environmental and physiological conditions. This study hypothesises that feed-restriction affects Majorera and Palmera breeds differently, leading to different fatty acid profiles in the mammary gland and milk. An interaction between breed and feed-restriction was observed in the mammary gland. Feed-restriction was associated with an increase in oleic acid and a decrease in palmitic acid percentage in the Palmera breed whereas no differences were observed in the Majorera breed. Palmitic and oleic acids together constituted around 60% of the total fatty acids identified, which suggests that Palmera breed is more susceptible to SWL. In milk, feed-restriction affected both breeds similarly. Regarding the interaction of the breed with the treatment, we also observed similar responses in both breeds, but this influence affects only around 2% of the total fatty acids. In general, Majorera breed is more tolerant to feed-restriction.

A 100-year review: Methods and impact of genetic selection in dairy cattle—From daughter–dam comparisons to deep learning algorithms

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

In the early 1900s, breed society herdbooks had been established, and milk recording programs were in their infancy. Farmers were interested in improving the productivity of dairy cattle, but the foundations of population genetics, quantitative genetics, and animal breeding had not yet been laid. Li...

RAPD and SCAR markers as potential tools for detection of milk origin in dairy products: Adulterant sheep breeds in Serra da Estrela cheese production.

PubMed

Cunha, Joana T; Ribeiro, Tânia I B; Rocha, João B; Nunes, João; Teixeira, José A; Domingues, Lucília

2016-11-15

Serra da Estrela Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) cheese is the most famous Portuguese cheese and has a high commercial value. However, the adulteration of production with cheaper/lower-quality milks from non-autochthones ovine breeds compromises the quality of the final product and undervalues the original PDO cheese. A Randomly Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) method was developed for efficient detection of adulterant breeds in milk mixtures used for fraudulent production of this cheese. Furthermore, Sequence Characterized Amplified Region (SCAR) markers were designed envisioning the detection of milk adulteration in processed dairy foods. The RAPD-SCAR technique is here described, for the first time, to be potentially useful for detection of milk origin in dairy products. In this sense, our findings will play an important role on the valorization of Serra da Estrela cheese, as well as on other high-quality dairy products prone to adulteration, contributing to the further development of the dairy industry. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Genetic parameters for milk production traits and breeding goals for Gir dairy cattle in Brazil.

PubMed

Prata, M A; Faro, L E; Moreira, H L; Verneque, R S; Vercesi Filho, A E; Peixoto, M G C D; Cardoso, V L

2015-10-19

To implement an animal breeding program, it is important to define the production circumstances of the animals of interest to determine which traits of economic interest will be selected for the breeding goal. The present study defined breeding goals and proposed selection indices for milk production and quality traits of Gir dairy cattle. First, a bioeconomic model was developed to calculate economic values. The genetic and phenotypic parameters were estimated based on records from 22,468 first-lactation Gir dairy cows and their crosses for which calving occurred between 1970 and 2011. Statistical analyses were carried out for the animal model, with multitrait analyses using the restricted maximum likelihood method. Two situations were created in the present study to define the breeding goals: 1) including only milk yield in the breeding goal (HGL1) and 2) including fat and protein in addition to the milk yield (HGL2). The heritability estimates for milk, protein, and fat production were 0.33 ± 0.02, 0.26 ± 0.02, and 0.24 ± 0.02, respectively. All phenotypic and genetic correlations were highly positive. The economic values for milk, fat, and protein were US$0.18, US$0.27, and US$7.04, respectively. The expected economic responses for HGL2 and for HGL1 were US$126.30 and US$79.82, respectively. These results indicate that milk component traits should be included in a selection index to rank animals evaluated in the National Gir Dairy Breeding Program developed in Brazil.

Understanding farmers' preferences for artificial insemination services provided through dairy hubs.

PubMed

Omondi, I A; Zander, K K; Bauer, S; Baltenweck, I

2017-04-01

Africa has a shortage of animal products but increasing demand because of population growth, urbanisation and changing consumer patterns. Attempts to boost livestock production through the use of breeding technologies such as artificial insemination (AI) have been failing in many countries because costs have escalated and success rates have been relatively low. One example is Kenya, a country with a relatively large number of cows and a dairy industry model relevant to neighbouring countries. There, an innovative dairy marketing approach (farmer-owned collective marketing systems called dairy hubs) has been implemented to enhance access to dairy markets and dairy-related services, including breeding services such as AI. So far, the rate of participation in these dairy hubs has been slow and mixed. In order to understand this phenomenon better and to inform dairy-related development activities by the Kenyan government, we investigated which characteristics of AI services, offered through the dairy hubs, farmers prefer. To do so, we applied a choice experiment (CE), a non-market valuation technique, which allowed us to identify farmers' preferences for desired characteristics should more dairy hubs be installed in the future. This is the first study to use a CE to evaluate breeding services in Kenya and the results can complement findings of studies of breeding objectives and selection criteria. The results of the CE reveal that dairy farmers prefer to have AI services offered rather than having no service. Farmers prefer AI services to be available at dairy hubs rather than provided by private agents not affiliated to the hubs, to have follow-up services for pregnancy detections, and to use sexed semen rather than conventional semen. Farmers would further like some flexibility in payment systems which include input credit, and are willing to share the costs of any AI repeats that may need to occur. These results provide evidence of a positive attitude to AI services provided through the hubs, which could mean that AI uptake would improve if service characteristics are improved to match farmer preferences. The dairy hubs concept is currently in the implementation phase with most hubs at startup phase, hence understanding which AI service characteristics farmers prefer can inform the design of high-quality and cost-effective AI services in the future.

Prediction of insemination outcomes in Holstein dairy cattle using alternative machine learning algorithms.

PubMed

Shahinfar, Saleh; Page, David; Guenther, Jerry; Cabrera, Victor; Fricke, Paul; Weigel, Kent

2014-02-01

When making the decision about whether or not to breed a given cow, knowledge about the expected outcome would have an economic impact on profitability of the breeding program and net income of the farm. The outcome of each breeding can be affected by many management and physiological features that vary between farms and interact with each other. Hence, the ability of machine learning algorithms to accommodate complex relationships in the data and missing values for explanatory variables makes these algorithms well suited for investigation of reproduction performance in dairy cattle. The objective of this study was to develop a user-friendly and intuitive on-farm tool to help farmers make reproduction management decisions. Several different machine learning algorithms were applied to predict the insemination outcomes of individual cows based on phenotypic and genotypic data. Data from 26 dairy farms in the Alta Genetics (Watertown, WI) Advantage Progeny Testing Program were used, representing a 10-yr period from 2000 to 2010. Health, reproduction, and production data were extracted from on-farm dairy management software, and estimated breeding values were downloaded from the US Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service Animal Improvement Programs Laboratory (Beltsville, MD) database. The edited data set consisted of 129,245 breeding records from primiparous Holstein cows and 195,128 breeding records from multiparous Holstein cows. Each data point in the final data set included 23 and 25 explanatory variables and 1 binary outcome for of 0.756 ± 0.005 and 0.736 ± 0.005 for primiparous and multiparous cows, respectively. The naïve Bayes algorithm, Bayesian network, and decision tree algorithms showed somewhat poorer classification performance. An information-based variable selection procedure identified herd average conception rate, incidence of ketosis, number of previous (failed) inseminations, days in milk at breeding, and mastitis as the most effective explanatory variables in predicting pregnancy outcome. Copyright © 2014 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Training in the Food and Beverages Sector in Denmark. Report for the FORCE Programme.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Holst, Ole

A study of the food sector in Denmark was limited to the slaughterhouse, dairy, beverages sectors. The food sector was the most important single industry in the Danish economy. It was the largest manufacturing sector, generated one-third of total manufacturing, and comprised approximately 8 percent of the total Danish gross domestic product. It…

Calculation and delivery of US genomic evaluations for dairy cattle

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

In April 2013, the responsibility for calculation and distribution of genomic evaluations for dairy cattle was transferred from the USDA to the US dairy industry’s Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding; the responsibility for development of evaluation methodology remained with the USDA. The Council on Da...

Livestock drivers' knowledge about dairy cow fitness for transport - A Danish questionnaire survey.

PubMed

Herskin, M S; Hels, A; Anneberg, I; Thomsen, P T

2017-08-01

Dairy cows are transported by road to slaughter after their productive life. Cull cows are vulnerable to transport stress, and can only be transported when fit for the intended journey. However, the decision, as to whether a cow is fit is rather subjective and relies on the farmer and the livestock driver. Using a questionnaire survey, we aimed to describe knowledge about, and experiences with, dairy cow fitness for transport among Danish livestock drivers. During nine days of data collection at the three largest Danish cattle slaughterhouses, 66 drivers (55% of the national population of cattle drivers) answered a questionnaire (response rate: 97%). They were Danish males (mean age: 49years), of which 94% stated that they knew the rules regarding fitness for transport. More than half of the respondents said that physical conditions (light, space) before loading animals allowed proper assessment of fitness for transport, and 85% answered that time constraints were not a challenge for this. Thirty-five percent reported to be in doubt regarding fitness for transport of specific cows at least frequently, and given two specific questions on legislation concerning fitness for transport, only 52% of the respondents answered both correctly. The results add new knowledge about livestock drivers' approach to animal welfare. As drivers are held partly responsible for fitness for transport of animals sent to slaughter, and descriptions of fit/unfit are rather vague, livestock drivers seem to need additional education, training, assessment tools or feedback in order to optimize the welfare of animals to be transported. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Differences in Voluntary Cow Traffic between Holstein and Illawarra Breeds of Dairy Cattle in a Pasture-based Automatic Milking System

PubMed Central

Clark, C. E. F.; Kwinten, N. B. P.; van Gastel, D. A. J. M.; Kerrisk, K. L.; Lyons, N. A.; Garcia, S. C.

2014-01-01

Automatic milking systems (AMS) rely upon voluntary cow traffic (the voluntary movement of cattle around a farm) for milk harvesting and feed consumption. Previous research on conventional milking systems has shown differences between dairy cow breeds for intake and milk production, however, the ability to manipulate voluntary cow traffic and milking frequency on AMS farms through breed selection is unknown. This study investigated the effect of breed (Holstein Friesian versus Illawarra) on voluntary cow traffic as determined by gate passes at the Camden AMS research farm dairy facility. Daily data on days in milk, milk yield, gate passes and milking frequency for 158 Holstein Friesian cows and 24 Illawarra cows were collated by month for the 2007 and 2008 years. Illawarra cows had 9% more gate passes/day than Holstein cows over the duration of the study; however, the milking frequency and milk yield of both breeds were similar. Gate passes were greatest for both breeds in early lactation and in the winter (June to August) and summer (December to February) seasons. These findings highlight an opportunity to translate increased voluntary cow movement associated with breed selection into increased milking frequencies, milk production and overall pasture-based AMS performance. PMID:25049992

Differences in Voluntary Cow Traffic between Holstein and Illawarra Breeds of Dairy Cattle in a Pasture-based Automatic Milking System.

PubMed

Clark, C E F; Kwinten, N B P; van Gastel, D A J M; Kerrisk, K L; Lyons, N A; Garcia, S C

2014-04-01

Automatic milking systems (AMS) rely upon voluntary cow traffic (the voluntary movement of cattle around a farm) for milk harvesting and feed consumption. Previous research on conventional milking systems has shown differences between dairy cow breeds for intake and milk production, however, the ability to manipulate voluntary cow traffic and milking frequency on AMS farms through breed selection is unknown. This study investigated the effect of breed (Holstein Friesian versus Illawarra) on voluntary cow traffic as determined by gate passes at the Camden AMS research farm dairy facility. Daily data on days in milk, milk yield, gate passes and milking frequency for 158 Holstein Friesian cows and 24 Illawarra cows were collated by month for the 2007 and 2008 years. Illawarra cows had 9% more gate passes/day than Holstein cows over the duration of the study; however, the milking frequency and milk yield of both breeds were similar. Gate passes were greatest for both breeds in early lactation and in the winter (June to August) and summer (December to February) seasons. These findings highlight an opportunity to translate increased voluntary cow movement associated with breed selection into increased milking frequencies, milk production and overall pasture-based AMS performance.

Integrating genomic selection into dairy cattle breeding programmes: a review.

PubMed

Bouquet, A; Juga, J

2013-05-01

Extensive genetic progress has been achieved in dairy cattle populations on many traits of economic importance because of efficient breeding programmes. Success of these programmes has relied on progeny testing of the best young males to accurately assess their genetic merit and hence their potential for breeding. Over the last few years, the integration of dense genomic information into statistical tools used to make selection decisions, commonly referred to as genomic selection, has enabled gains in predicting accuracy of breeding values for young animals without own performance. The possibility to select animals at an early stage allows defining new breeding strategies aimed at boosting genetic progress while reducing costs. The first objective of this article was to review methods used to model and optimize breeding schemes integrating genomic selection and to discuss their relative advantages and limitations. The second objective was to summarize the main results and perspectives on the use of genomic selection in practical breeding schemes, on the basis of the example of dairy cattle populations. Two main designs of breeding programmes integrating genomic selection were studied in dairy cattle. Genomic selection can be used either for pre-selecting males to be progeny tested or for selecting males to be used as active sires in the population. The first option produces moderate genetic gains without changing the structure of breeding programmes. The second option leads to large genetic gains, up to double those of conventional schemes because of a major reduction in the mean generation interval, but it requires greater changes in breeding programme structure. The literature suggests that genomic selection becomes more attractive when it is coupled with embryo transfer technologies to further increase selection intensity on the dam-to-sire pathway. The use of genomic information also offers new opportunities to improve preservation of genetic variation. However, recent simulation studies have shown that putting constraints on genomic inbreeding rates for defining optimal contributions of breeding animals could significantly reduce achievable genetic gain. Finally, the article summarizes the potential of genomic selection to include new traits in the breeding goal to meet societal demands regarding animal health and environmental efficiency in animal production.

Estimation of genetic parameters and detection of quantitative trait loci for minerals in Danish Holstein and Danish Jersey milk.

PubMed

Buitenhuis, Bart; Poulsen, Nina A; Larsen, Lotte B; Sehested, Jakob

2015-05-21

Bovine milk provides important minerals, essential for human nutrition and dairy product quality. For changing the mineral composition of the milk to improve dietary needs in human nutrition and technological properties of milk, a thorough understanding of the genetics underlying milk mineral contents is important. Therefore the aim of this study was to 1) estimate the genetic parameters for individual minerals in Danish Holstein (DH) (n=371) and Danish Jersey (DJ) (n=321) milk, and 2) detect genomic regions associated with mineral content in the milk using a genome-wide association study (GWAS) approach. For DH, high heritabilities were found for Ca (0.72), Zn (0.49), and P (0.46), while for DJ, high heritabilities were found for Ca (0.63), Zn (0.57), and Mg (0.57). Furthermore, intermediate heritabilities were found for Cu in DH, and for K, Na, P and Se in the DJ. The GWAS revealed a total of 649 significant SNP markers detected for Ca (24), Cu (90), Fe (111), Mn (3), Na (1), P (4), Se (12) and Zn (404) in DH, while for DJ, a total of 787 significant SNP markers were detected for Ca (44), Fe (43), K (498), Na (4), Mg (1), P (94) and Zn (3). Comparing the list of significant markers between DH and DJ revealed that the SNP ARS-BFGL-NGS-4939 was common in both breeds for Zn. This SNP marker is closely linked to the DGAT1 gene. Even though we found significant SNP markers on BTA14 in both DH and DJ for Ca, and Fe these significant SNPs did not overlap. The results show that Ca, Zn, P and Mg show high heritabilities. In combination with the GWAS results this opens up possibilities to select for specific minerals in bovine milk.

PrP genotype frequencies and risk evaluation for scrapie in dairy sheep breeds from southern Italy.

PubMed

Martemucci, Giovanni; Iamartino, Daniela; Blasi, Michele; D'Alessandro, Angela Gabriella

2015-12-01

Concerns regarding scrapie in sheep breeding have increased in the last few decades. The present study was carried out in dairy sheep breeds from southern Italy. In order to find breeding animals resistant to scrapie, the PrP genes of 1,205 animals from entire flocks of dairy native Apulian Leccese and Altamurana breeds, and Sicilian Comisana breed, were analysed for polymorphisms at codons 136, 154, and 171 related to scrapie resistance/susceptibility. The Altamurana breed was considered as two populations (Alt-Cav and Alt-Cra-Zoe), based on presumed cross-breeding. A total of five alleles and ten different genotypes were found. The ARQ allele was predominant for all breeds followed by ARR, the most resistant allele to scrapie, which was highly prevalent in Comisana (50%) and in native Alt-Cav (42.4%). The VRQ allele, associated with the highest susceptibility to scrapie, was detected at not negligeable levels in allocthonous Comisana (3.5%), at a low frequency (0.2%) in native Leccese and Alt-Cra-Zoe, while it was absent in Alt-Cav. The frequencies of PrP genotypes with a very low susceptibility risk to scrapie (R1) was higher in Comisana and Alt-Cav. The most susceptible genotype, ARQ/VRQ, was found only in Comisana. Within the Altamurana breed, there were notable differences between Alt-Cav and Alt-Cra-Zoe sheep. The Alt-Cav was characterised by the absence of VRQ and AHQ alleles and by the higher frequency of the ARR/ARR genotype (18.7%). Breeding programs, mainly in endangered breeds such as Altamurana, should be conducted gradually, combining resistance to scrapie, maintenance of genetic variability, and production. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Carcass measurements and meat quality characteristics of dairy suckling kids compared to an indigenous genotype.

PubMed

Ekiz, Bulent; Ozcan, Mustafa; Yilmaz, Alper; Tölü, Cemil; Savaş, Türker

2010-06-01

Effects of genotype on carcass measurements and meat quality were investigated by using 24 suckling kids from Turkish Saanen, Gokceada and Maltese breeds. Carcass quality characteristics of indigenous kids (Gokceada) were lower than those of dairy type (Turkish Saanen and Maltese) kids. Breed effect on ultimate meat pH, cooking loss, drip loss and Warner Bratzler shear force values were not significant. Meat samples from Turkish Saanen kids had higher redness (at 0, 1 and 24h) and yellowness (at 24h) values than Gokceada kids (P<0.05). Breed had no significant effect on sensory characteristics except flavour intensity. Flavour intensity scores given to meat samples of Maltese kids were higher than those of Turkish Saanen and Gokceada kids (P<0.01). In conclusion, dairy type breeds should be considered for meat production as well, with meat from Maltese kids potentially offering better colour and flavour intensity than that of Turkish Saanen kids. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Genomic predictions for crossbreds from all-breed data

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Genomic predictions of transmitting ability (GPTAs) for crossbred animals were computed from marker effects of 5 dairy breeds weighted by each breed’s genomic contribution to the crossbreds. Estimates of genomic breed composition are labeled breed base representation (BBR) and are reported since May...

Review: Applications and benefits of sexed semen in dairy and beef herds.

PubMed

Holden, S A; Butler, S T

2018-06-01

The use of sexed semen in dairy and beef cattle production provides a number of benefits at both farm and industry levels. There is an increasing demand for dairy and beef products across the globe, which will necessitate a greater focus on improving production efficiency. In dairy farming, there is surplus production of unwanted male calves. Male dairy calves increase the risk of dystocia compared with heifer calves, and as an unwanted by-product of breeding with conventional semen, they have a low economic value. Incorporating sexed semen into the breeding programme can minimise the number of unwanted male dairy calves and reduce dystocia. Sexed semen can be used to generate herd replacements and additional heifers for herd expansion at a faster rate from within the herd, thereby minimising biosecurity risks associated with bringing in animals from different herds. Furthermore, the use of sexed semen can increase herd genetic gain compared with use of non-sorted semen. In dairy herds, a sustainable breeding strategy could combine usage of sexed semen to generate replacements only, and usage of beef semen on all dams that are not suitable for generating replacements. This results in increased genetic gain in dairy herd, increased value of beef output from the dairy herd, and reduced greenhouse gas emissions from beef. It is important to note, however, that even a small decrease in fertility of sexed semen relative to conventional semen can negate much of the economic benefit. A high fertility sexed semen product has the potential to accelerate herd expansion, minimise waste production, improve animal welfare and increase profitability compared with non-sorted conventional semen.

Effect of pregnancy on the genetic evaluation of dairy cattle.

PubMed

Pereira, R J; Santana, M L; Bignardi, A B; Verneque, R S; El Faro, L; Albuquerque, L G

2011-09-26

We investigated the effect of stage of pregnancy on estimates of breeding values for milk yield and milk persistency in Gyr and Holstein dairy cattle in Brazil. Test-day milk yield records were analyzed using random regression models with or without the effect of pregnancy. Models were compared using residual variances, heritabilities, rank correlations of estimated breeding values of bulls and cows, and number of nonpregnant cows in the top 200 for milk yield and milk persistency. The estimates of residual variance and heritabilities obtained with the models with or without the effect of pregnancy were similar for the two breeds. Inclusion of the effect of pregnancy in genetic evaluation models for these populations did not affect the ranking of cows and sires based on their predicted breeding values for 305-day cumulative milk yield. In contrast, when we examined persistency of milk yield, lack of adjustment for the effect of pregnancy overestimated breeding values of nonpregnant cows and cows with a long days open period and underestimated breeding values of cows with a short days open period. We recommend that models include the effect of days of pregnancy for estimation of adjustment factors for the effect of pregnancy in genetic evaluations of Dairy Gyr and Holstein cattle.

Evaluation of temporal surveillance system sensitivity and freedom from bovine viral diarrhea in Danish dairy herds using scenario tree modelling.

PubMed

Foddai, Alessandro; Stockmarr, Anders; Boklund, Anette

2016-06-21

The temporal sensitivity of the surveillance system (TemSSe) for Bovine Viral Diarrhea (BVD) in Danish dairy herds was evaluated. Currently, the Danish antibody blocking ELISA is used to test quarterly bulk tank milk (BTM). To optimize the surveillance system as an early warning system, we considered the possibility of using the SVANOVIR ELISA, as this test has been shown to detect BVD-positive herds earlier than the blocking ELISA in BTM tests. Information from data (2010) and outputs from two published stochastic models were fed into a stochastic scenario tree to estimate the TemSSe. For that purpose we considered: the risk of BVD introduction into the dairy population, the ELISA used and the high risk period (HRP) from BVD introduction to testing (at 90 or 365 days). The effect of introducing one persistently infected (PI) calf or one transiently infected (TI) milking cow into 1 (or 8) dairy herd(s) was investigated. Additionally we estimated the confidence in low (PLow) herd prevalence (<8/4109 infected herds) and the confidence in complete freedom (PFree) from BVD (< 1/4109). The TemSSe, the PLow, and the PFree were higher, when tests were performed 365 days after BVD introduction, than after 90 days. Estimates were usually higher for the SVANOVIR than for the blocking ELISA, and when a PI rather than a TI was introduced into the herd(s). For instance, with the current system, the median TemSSe was 64.5 %, 90 days after a PI calf was introduced into eight dairy herds. The related median PLow was 72.5 %. When a PI calf was introduced into one herd the median TemSSe was 12.1 %, while the related PFree was 51.6 %. With the SVANOVIR ELISA these estimates were 99.0 %; 98.9 %, 43.7 % and 62.4 %, respectively. The replacement of the blocking ELISA with the SVANOVIR could increase the TemSSe, the PLow and PFree remarkably. Those results could be used to optimize the Danish BVD surveillance system. Furthermore, the approach proposed in this study, for including the effect of the HRP within the scenario tree methodology, could be applied to optimize early warning surveillance systems of different animal diseases.

Evaluation of test-strategies for estimating probability of low prevalence of paratuberculosis in Danish dairy herds.

PubMed

Sergeant, E S G; Nielsen, S S; Toft, N

2008-06-15

Paratuberculosis is a chronic infection affecting cattle and other ruminants. In the dairy industry, losses due to paratuberculosis can be substantial in infected herds and several countries have implemented national programmes based on herd-classification to manage the disease. The aim of this study was to develop a method to estimate the probability of low within-herd prevalence of paratuberculosis for Danish dairy herds. A stochastic simulation model was developed using the R programming environment. Features of this model included: use of age-specific estimates of test-sensitivity and specificity; use of a distribution of observed values (rather than a fixed, low value) for design prevalence; and estimates of the probability of low prevalence (PrLow) based on a specific number of test-positive animals, rather than for a result less than or equal to a specified cut-point number of reactors. Using this model, five herd-testing strategies were evaluated: (1) milk-ELISA on all lactating cows; (2) milk-ELISA on lactating cows4 years old; (4) faecal culture on all lactating cows; and (5) milk-ELISA plus faecal culture in series on all lactating cows. The five testing strategies were evaluated using observed milk-ELISA results from 19 Danish dairy herds as well as for simulated results from the same herds assuming that they were uninfected. Whole-herd milk-ELISA was the preferred strategy, and considered the most cost-effective strategy of the five alternatives. The five strategies were all efficient in detecting infection, i.e. estimating a low PrLow in infected herds, however, PrLow estimates for milk-ELISA on age-cohorts were too low in simulated uninfected herds and the strategies involving faecal culture were too expensive to be of practical interest. For simulated uninfected herds, whole-herd milk-ELISA resulted in median PrLow values>0.9 for most herds, depending on herd size and age-structure. None of the strategies provided enough power to establish a high PrLow in smaller herds, or herds with a younger age-structure. Despite this, it appears as if the method is a useful approach for herd-classification for most herds in the Danish dairy industry.

The genomic architecture of mastitis resistance in dairy sheep.

PubMed

Banos, G; Bramis, G; Bush, S J; Clark, E L; McCulloch, M E B; Smith, J; Schulze, G; Arsenos, G; Hume, D A; Psifidi, A

2017-08-16

Mastitis is the most prevalent disease in dairy sheep with major economic, hygienic and welfare implications. The disease persists in all dairy sheep production systems despite the implementation of improved management practises. Selective breeding for enhanced mastitis resistance may provide the means to further control the disease. In the present study, we investigated the genetic architecture of four mastitis traits in dairy sheep. Individual animal records for clinical mastitis occurrence and three mastitis indicator traits (milk somatic cell count, total viable bacterial count in milk and the California mastitis test) were collected monthly throughout lactation for 609 ewes of the Greek Chios breed. All animals were genotyped with a custom-made 960-single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) DNA array based on markers located in quantitative trait loci (QTL) regions for mastitis resistance previously detected in three other distinct dairy sheep populations. Heritable variation and strong positive genetic correlations were estimated for clinical mastitis occurrence and the three mastitis indicator traits. SNP markers significantly associated with these mastitis traits were confirmed on chromosomes 2, 3, 5, 16 and 19. We identified pathways, molecular interaction networks and functional gene clusters for mastitis resistance. Candidate genes within the detected regions were identified based upon analysis of an ovine transcriptional atlas and transcriptome data derived from milk somatic cells. Relevant candidate genes implicated in innate immunity included SOCS2, CTLA4, C6, C7, C9, PTGER4, DAB2, CARD6, OSMR, PLXNC1, IDH1, ICOS, FYB, and LYFR. The results confirmed the presence of animal genetic variability in mastitis resistance and identified genomic regions associated with specific mastitis traits in the Chios sheep. The conserved genetic architecture of mastitis resistance between distinct dairy sheep breeds suggests that across-breed selection programmes would be feasible.

Spatiotemporal patterns, annual baseline and movement-related incidence of Streptococcus agalactiae infection in Danish dairy herds: 2000-2009.

PubMed

Mweu, Marshal M; Nielsen, Søren S; Halasa, Tariq; Toft, Nils

2014-02-01

Several decades after the inception of the five-point plan for the control of contagious mastitis pathogens, Streptococcus agalactiae (S. agalactiae) persists as a fundamental threat to the dairy industry in many countries. A better understanding of the relative importance of within- and between-herd sources of new herd infections coupled with the spatiotemporal distribution of the infection, may aid in effective targeting of control efforts. Thus, the objectives of this study were: (1) to describe the spatiotemporal patterns of infection with S. agalactiae in the population of Danish dairy herds from 2000 to 2009 and (2) to estimate the annual herd-level baseline and movement-related incidence risks of S. agalactiae infection over the 10-year period. The analysis involved registry data on bacteriological culture of all bulk tank milk samples collected as part of the mandatory Danish S. agalactiae surveillance scheme as well as live cattle movements into dairy herds during the specified 10-year period. The results indicated that the predicted risk of a herd becoming infected with S. agalactiae varied spatiotemporally; the risk being more homogeneous and higher in the period after 2005. Additionally, the annual baseline risks yielded significant yet distinctive patterns before and after 2005 - the risk of infection being higher in the latter phase. On the contrary, the annual movement-related risks revealed a non-significant pattern over the 10-year period. There was neither evidence for spatial clustering of cases relative to the population of herds at risk nor spatial dependency between herds. Nevertheless, the results signal a need to beef up within-herd biosecurity in order to reduce the risk of new herd infections. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Economic considerations of breeding for polled dairy cows versus dehorning in the United States

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Dairy producers today face labor, equipment, and medical costs associated with dehorning heifers. Further, complications requiring veterinary intervention occur with some probability. The objective of this work is to develop preliminary cost estimates of selecting for polled dairy heifers. Stochasti...

Identification of the mutation causing progressive retinal atrophy in Old Danish Pointing Dog.

PubMed

Karlskov-Mortensen, P; Proschowsky, H F; Gao, F; Fredholm, M

2018-06-01

Progressive retinal atrophy (PRA) is a common cause of blindness in many dog breeds. It is most often inherited as a simple Mendelian trait, but great genetic heterogeneity has been demonstrated both within and between breeds. In many breeds the genetic cause of the disease is not known, and until now, the Old Danish Pointing Dog (ODP) has been one of those breeds. ODP is one of the oldest dog breeds in Europe. Seventy years ago the breed almost vanished, but today a population still exists, primarily in Denmark but with some dogs in Germany and Sweden. PRA has been diagnosed in ODP since the late 1990s. It resembles late onset PRA in other dog breeds, and it is inherited as an autosomal recessive trait. In the present study, we performed whole-genome sequencing and identified a single base insertion (c.3149_3150insC) in exon 1 of C17H2orf71. This is the same mutation previously found to cause PRA in Gordon Setters and Irish Setters, and it was later found in Tibetan Terrier, Standard Poodle and the Polski Owczarek Nizinny. The presence of the mutation in such a diverse range of breeds indicates an origin preceding creation of modern dog breeds. Hence, we screened 262 dogs from 44 different breeds plus four crossbred dogs, and can subsequently add Miniature Poodle and another polish sheepdog, the Polski Owczarek Podhalanski, to the list of affected breeds. © 2018 Stichting International Foundation for Animal Genetics.

Sharing reference data and including cows in the reference population improve genomic predictions in Danish Jersey.

PubMed

Su, G; Ma, P; Nielsen, U S; Aamand, G P; Wiggans, G; Guldbrandtsen, B; Lund, M S

2016-06-01

Small reference populations limit the accuracy of genomic prediction in numerically small breeds, such like Danish Jersey. The objective of this study was to investigate two approaches to improve genomic prediction by increasing size of reference population in Danish Jersey. The first approach was to include North American Jersey bulls in Danish Jersey reference population. The second was to genotype cows and use them as reference animals. The validation of genomic prediction was carried out on bulls and cows, respectively. In validation on bulls, about 300 Danish bulls (depending on traits) born in 2005 and later were used as validation data, and the reference populations were: (1) about 1050 Danish bulls, (2) about 1050 Danish bulls and about 1150 US bulls. In validation on cows, about 3000 Danish cows from 87 young half-sib families were used as validation data, and the reference populations were: (1) about 1250 Danish bulls, (2) about 1250 Danish bulls and about 1150 US bulls, (3) about 1250 Danish bulls and about 4800 cows, (4) about 1250 Danish bulls, 1150 US bulls and 4800 Danish cows. Genomic best linear unbiased prediction model was used to predict breeding values. De-regressed proofs were used as response variables. In the validation on bulls for eight traits, the joint DK-US bull reference population led to higher reliability of genomic prediction than the DK bull reference population for six traits, but not for fertility and longevity. Averaged over the eight traits, the gain was 3 percentage points. In the validation on cows for six traits (fertility and longevity were not available), the gain from inclusion of US bull in reference population was 6.6 percentage points in average over the six traits, and the gain from inclusion of cows was 8.2 percentage points. However, the gains from cows and US bulls were not accumulative. The total gain of including both US bulls and Danish cows was 10.5 percentage points. The results indicate that sharing reference data and including cows in reference population are efficient approaches to increase reliability of genomic prediction. Therefore, genomic selection is promising for numerically small population.

Signatures of positive selection in African Butana and Kenana dairy zebu cattle.

PubMed

Bahbahani, Hussain; Salim, Bashir; Almathen, Faisal; Al Enezi, Fahad; Mwacharo, Joram M; Hanotte, Olivier

2018-01-01

Butana and Kenana are two types of zebu cattle found in Sudan. They are unique amongst African indigenous zebu cattle because of their high milk production. Aiming to understand their genome structure, we genotyped 25 individuals from each breed using the Illumina BovineHD Genotyping BeadChip. Genetic structure analysis shows that both breeds have an admixed genome composed of an even proportion of indicine (0.75 ± 0.03 in Butana, 0.76 ± 0.006 in Kenana) and taurine (0.23 ± 0.009 in Butana, 0.24 ± 0.006 in Kenana) ancestries. We also observe a proportion of 0.02 to 0.12 of European taurine ancestry in ten individuals of Butana that were sampled from cattle herds in Tamboul area suggesting local crossbreeding with exotic breeds. Signatures of selection analyses (iHS and Rsb) reveal 87 and 61 candidate positive selection regions in Butana and Kenana, respectively. These regions span genes and quantitative trait loci (QTL) associated with biological pathways that are important for adaptation to marginal environments (e.g., immunity, reproduction and heat tolerance). Trypanotolerance QTL are intersecting candidate regions in Kenana cattle indicating selection pressure acting on them, which might be associated with an unexplored level of trypanotolerance in this cattle breed. Several dairy traits QTL are overlapping the identified candidate regions in these two zebu cattle breeds. Our findings underline the potential to improve dairy production in the semi-arid pastoral areas of Africa through breeding improvement strategy of indigenous local breeds.

A deterministic evaluation of heat stress mitigation and feed cost under climate change within the smallholder dairy sector.

PubMed

York, L; Heffernan, C; Rymer, C; Panda, N

2017-05-01

In the global South, dairying is often promoted as a means of poverty alleviation. Yet, under conditions of climate warming, little is known regarding the ability of small-scale dairy producers to maintain production and/or the robustness of possible adaptation options in meeting the challenges presented, particularly heat stress. The authors created a simple, deterministic model to explore the influence of breed and heat stress relief options on smallholder dairy farmers in Odisha, India. Breeds included indigenous Indian (non-descript), low-grade Jersey crossbreed and high-grade Jersey crossbreed. Relief strategies included providing shade, fanning and bathing. The impact of predicted critical global climate parameters, a 2°C and 4°C temperature rise were explored. A feed price scenario was modelled to illustrate the importance of feed in impact estimation. Feed costs were increased by 10% to 30%. Across the simulations, high-grade Jersey crossbreeds maintained higher milk yields, despite being the most sensitive to the negative effects of temperature. Low-capital relief strategies were the most effective at reducing heat stress impacts on household income. However, as feed costs increased the lower-grade Jersey crossbreed became the most profitable breed. The high-grade Jersey crossbreed was only marginally (4.64%) more profitable than the indigenous breed. The results demonstrate the importance of understanding the factors and practical trade-offs that underpin adaptation. The model also highlights the need for hot-climate dairying projects and programmes to consider animal genetic resources alongside environmentally sustainable adaptation measures for greatest poverty impact.

Major advances in globalization and consolidation of the artificial insemination industry.

PubMed

Funk, D A

2006-04-01

The artificial insemination (AI) industry in the United States has gone through many consolidations, mergers, and acquisitions over the past 25 yr. There are 5 major AI companies in the United States today: 3 large cooperatives, 1 private company, and 1 public company. The latter 2 have majority ownership outside of the United States. The AI industry in the United States progeny-tests more than 1,000 Holstein young sires per year. Because healthy, mature dairy bulls are capable of producing well over 100,000 straws of frozen semen per year, only a relatively small number of bulls are needed to breed the world's population of dairy cows. Most AI companies in the United States do not own many, if any, females and tend to utilize the same maternal families in their breeding programs. Little differences exist among the selection programs of the AI companies in the United States. The similarity of breeding programs and the extreme semen-production capabilities of bulls have contributed to difficulties the AI companies have had in developing genetically different product lines. Exports of North American Holstein genetics increased steadily from the 1970s into the 1990s because of the perceived superiority of North American Holsteins for dairy traits compared with European strains, especially for production. The breeding industry moved towards international genetic evaluations of bulls in the 1990s, with the International Bull Evaluation Service (Interbull) in Sweden coordinating the evaluations. The extensive exchange of elite genetics has led to a global dairy genetics industry with bulls that are closely related, and the average inbreeding level for the major dairy breeds continues to increase. Genetic markers have been used extensively and successfully by the industry for qualitative traits, especially for recessive genetic disorders, but markers have had limited impact for quantitative traits. Selection emphasis continues to migrate away from production traits and towards nonproduction traits, especially towards health and fitness traits. Specifically, fertility has arguably become the major breeding and management issue facing dairy farmers today. Some producers have implemented crossbreeding programs in an effort to capitalize on heterosis, and crossbreeding will almost certainly need to be a bigger part of the AI companies business in the years ahead.

Genetic profile of scrapie codons 146, 211 and 222 in the PRNP gene locus in three breeds of dairy goats.

PubMed

Vouraki, Sotiria; Gelasakis, Athanasios I; Alexandri, Panoraia; Boukouvala, Evridiki; Ekateriniadou, Loukia V; Banos, Georgios; Arsenos, Georgios

2018-01-01

Polymorphisms at PRNP gene locus have been associated with resistance against classical scrapie in goats. Genetic selection on this gene within appropriate breeding programs may contribute to the control of the disease. The present study characterized the genetic profile of codons 146, 211 and 222 in three dairy goat breeds in Greece. A total of 766 dairy goats from seven farms were used. Animals belonged to two indigenous Greek, Eghoria (n = 264) and Skopelos (n = 287) and a foreign breed, Damascus (n = 215). Genomic DNA was extracted from blood samples from individual animals. Polymorphisms were detected in these codons using Real-Time PCR analysis and four different Custom TaqMan® SNP Genotyping Assays. Genotypic, allelic and haplotypic frequencies were calculated based on individual animal genotypes. Chi-square tests were used to examine Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium state and compare genotypic distribution across breeds. Genetic distances among the three breeds, and between these and 30 breeds reared in other countries were estimated based on haplotypic frequencies using fixation index FST with Arlequin v3.1 software; a Neighbor-Joining tree was created using PHYLIP package v3.695. Level of statistical significance was set at P = 0.01. All scrapie resistance-associated alleles (146S, 146D, 211Q and 222K) were detected in the studied population. Significant frequency differences were observed between the indigenous Greek and Damascus breeds. Alleles 222K and 146S had the highest frequency in the two indigenous and the Damascus breed, respectively (ca. 6.0%). The studied breeds shared similar haplotypic frequencies with most South Italian and Turkish breeds but differed significantly from North-Western European, Far East and some USA goat breeds. Results suggest there is adequate variation in the PRNP gene locus to support breeding programs for enhanced scrapie resistance in goats reared in Greece. Genetic comparisons among goat breeds indicate that separate breeding programs should apply to the two indigenous and the imported Damascus breeds.

Factors affecting ewe performance in a crossbred dairy sheep research flock in the United States.

PubMed

Murphy, T W; Berger, Y M; Holman, P W; Baldin, M; Burgett, R L; Thomas, D L

2017-05-01

The Spooner Agricultural Research Station operated the only dairy sheep research flock in North America through 2016. The original nondairy ewe flock was "bred up" to a crossbred dairy flock through the use of rams and semen of the East Friesian (EF) and Lacaune (LA) dairy breeds. The objective of this study was to determine the environmental and nonadditive genetic effects that influence performance of dairy ewes. The traits analyzed were 180 d adjusted milk (180d MY), fat (180d FY), and protein (180d PY) yields, percentage fat (%F) and protein (%P) in milk, lactation average somatic cell score (LSCS), and number of lambs born per ewe lambing (NLB). The univariate repeatability models included the fixed effects of year of lambing, age, weaning system (except for the trait of NLB), individual breed composition, and individual retained heterosis along with the random additive genetic, permanent environmental, and residual effects. Estimates of heritability were moderate for 180d MY (0.32 ± 0.04), 180d FY (0.26 ± 0.04), and 180d PY (0.29 ± 0.04), high for %F (0.54 ± 0.04) and %P (0.61 ± 0.04), and low for LSCS (0.12 ± 0.03) and NLB (0.08 ± 0.02). Ewes that reared their lambs had lower ( < 0.01) 180d MY, 180d FY, 180d PY, %F, and %P and higher ( < 0.001) LSCS than ewes that had their lambs removed shortly after parturition. Relative to nondairy breeding, EF and LA breeding had positive ( < 0.001) effects on 180d MY, 180d FY, and 180d PY, but a negative ( < 0.03) effect on %P. Purebred EF ewes were predicted to have lower ( < 0.001) %F than purebred LA or nondairy ewes. Purebred LA ewes were predicted to have a higher ( < 0.001) LSCS than purebred EF or nondairy ewes. Purebred EF ewes were expected to be more ( < 0.001) prolific than purebred LA or nondairy ewes. Individual retained heterosis had a favorable ( < 0.01) effect on 180d MY, 180d FY, 180d PY, and NLB. Knowledge of the factors affecting dairy ewe performance are important for dairy sheep producers to make more informed husbandry and breeding decisions.

Relationships of efficiency to reproductive disorders in Danish milk production: a stochastic frontier analysis.

PubMed

Lawson, L G; Bruun, J; Coelli, T; Agger, J F; Lund, M

2004-01-01

Relationships of various reproductive disorders and milk production performance of Danish dairy farms were investigated. A stochastic frontier production function was estimated using data collected in 1998 from 514 Danish dairy farms. Measures of farm-level milk production efficiency relative to this production frontier were obtained, and relationships between milk production efficiency and the incidence risk of reproductive disorders were examined. There were moderate positive relationships between milk production efficiency and retained placenta, induction of estrus, uterine infections, ovarian cysts, and induction of birth. Inclusion of reproductive management variables showed that these moderate relationships disappeared, but directions of coefficients for almost all those variables remained the same. Dystocia showed a weak negative correlation with milk production efficiency. Farms that were mainly managed by young farmers had the highest average efficiency scores. The estimated milk losses due to inefficiency averaged 1142, 488, and 256 kg of energy-corrected milk per cow, respectively, for low-, medium-, and high-efficiency herds. It is concluded that the availability of younger cows, which enabled farmers to replace cows with reproductive disorders, contributed to high cow productivity in efficient farms. Thus, a high replacement rate more than compensates for the possible negative effect of reproductive disorders. The use of frontier production and efficiency/inefficiency functions to analyze herd data may enable dairy advisors to identify inefficient herds and to simulate the effect of alternative management procedures on the individual herd's efficiency.

Selection with inbreeding control in simulated young bull schemes for local dairy cattle breeds.

PubMed

Gandini, G; Stella, A; Del Corvo, M; Jansen, G B

2014-03-01

Local breeds are rarely subject to modern selection techniques; however, selection programs will be required if local breeds are to remain a viable livelihood option for farmers. Selection in small populations needs to take into account accurate inbreeding control. Optimum contribution selection (OCS) is efficient in controlling inbreeding and maximizes genetic gain. The current paper investigates genetic progress in simulated dairy cattle populations from 500 to 6,000 cows undergoing young bull selection schemes with OCS compared with truncation selection (TS) at an annual inbreeding rate of 0.003. Selection is carried out for a dairy trait with a base heritability of 0.3. A young bull selection scheme was used because of its simplicity in implementation. With TS, annual genetic gain from 0.111 standard deviation units with 500 cows increases rapidly to 0.145 standard deviation units with 4,000 cows. Then, genetic gain increases more slowly up to 6,000 cows. At the same inbreeding rate, OCS produces higher genetic progress than TS. Differences in genetic gain between OCS and TS vary from to 2 to 6.3%. Genetic gain is also improved by increasing the number of years that males can be used as sires of sires. When comparing OCS versus TS at different heritabilities, we observe an advantage of OCS only at high heritability, up to 8% with heritability of 0.9. By increasing the constraint on inbreeding, the difference of genetic gain between the 2 selection methods increases in favor of OCS, and the advantage at the inbreeding rate of 0.001 per generation is 6 times more than at the inbreeding rate of 0.003. Opportunities exist for selection even in dairy cattle populations of a few hundred females. In any case, selection in local breeds will most often require specific investments in infrastructure and manpower, including systems for accurate data recording and selection skills and the presence of artificial insemination and breeders organizations. A cost-benefit analysis is therefore advisable before considering the implementation of selection schemes in local dairy cattle breeds. Copyright © 2014 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Invited review: Genetic considerations for various pasture-based dairy systems.

PubMed

Washburn, S P; Mullen, K A E

2014-10-01

Pasture-based dairy systems use grazing to supply significant percentages of the dry matter intake of cows and heifers. Such systems vary from those for which pasture is used only as a supplemental feed for cows primarily fed a total mixed ration to those for which pasture is the primary source of dry matter for the herd. Cows that are optimal in a pasture system share many general characteristics with cows that are appropriate for a nonpasture system, including feed efficiency, maintenance of body condition, reproductive fitness, udder health, longevity, and the ability to adapt to various management systems. However, in such divergent feeding systems, the relative importance of various traits can differ. In pasture systems where cow nutrient demand intentionally coincides with seasonal forage availability, the focus of selection has emphasized fertility and other fitness traits, as well as yields of milk or milk components. Breeds or strains with higher yields of protein and fat typically have advantages in grazing systems that supply milk to solids-based or cheese markets. Holstein cows with high percentages of North American ancestry can work well in grazing systems that include supplemental concentrates or partial mixed rations, particularly if calving intervals are less restrictive. Crossbred cows can be selected for use in specific grazing systems as well as for specific milk markets, with the added advantage of heterosis. Breeds and crosses with high fertility are important for seasonal breeding and calving. The ability of cattle to both milk and maintain sufficient body condition for reproduction is important for any dairy production system but is critical in a seasonal system. Dairy farms that depend on pasture for most of dry matter for cows typically have lower production per cow than nongrazing dairies but have the potential to be economically competitive because of lower operating and overhead costs. Although the principles of selection are similar across a variety of pasture-based and nonpasture systems, we document from studies and observations covered herein that optimal breeds, breed strains, and selection strategies can differ based on varying management constraints and objectives. Copyright © 2014 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Genomic Selection Improves Heat Tolerance in Dairy Cattle

PubMed Central

Garner, J. B.; Douglas, M. L.; Williams, S. R. O; Wales, W. J.; Marett, L. C.; Nguyen, T. T. T.; Reich, C. M.; Hayes, B. J.

2016-01-01

Dairy products are a key source of valuable proteins and fats for many millions of people worldwide. Dairy cattle are highly susceptible to heat-stress induced decline in milk production, and as the frequency and duration of heat-stress events increases, the long term security of nutrition from dairy products is threatened. Identification of dairy cattle more tolerant of heat stress conditions would be an important progression towards breeding better adapted dairy herds to future climates. Breeding for heat tolerance could be accelerated with genomic selection, using genome wide DNA markers that predict tolerance to heat stress. Here we demonstrate the value of genomic predictions for heat tolerance in cohorts of Holstein cows predicted to be heat tolerant and heat susceptible using controlled-climate chambers simulating a moderate heatwave event. Not only was the heat challenge stimulated decline in milk production less in cows genomically predicted to be heat-tolerant, physiological indicators such as rectal and intra-vaginal temperatures had reduced increases over the 4 day heat challenge. This demonstrates that genomic selection for heat tolerance in dairy cattle is a step towards securing a valuable source of nutrition and improving animal welfare facing a future with predicted increases in heat stress events. PMID:27682591

Caprine and ovine Greek dairy products: The official German method generates false-positive results due to κ-casein gene polymorphism.

PubMed

Tsartsianidou, V; Triantafillidou, D; Karaiskou, N; Tarantili, P; Triantafillidis, G; Georgakis, E; Triantafyllidis, A

2017-05-01

Caseins are widely used for species identification of dairy products. Isoelectric focusing (IEF) of para-κ-casein peptide is used as the official German method for the differentiation between caprine (isoform A) and ovine (isoform B) dairy products, based on their different isoelectric points. The discrimination between Greek goat and ewe dairy products using IEF has, however, been shown to be problematic because of the existence of the ewe isoform in milk from Greek indigenous dairy goats. This could be due to nucleotide polymorphisms within the goat κ-casein gene of Greek indigenous breeds, which alter the isoelectric point of the para-κ-casein peptide and lead to false positive results. Previous DNA analysis of the goat κ-casein gene has shown high levels of polymorphism; however, no such information is available for Greek indigenous dairy goats. Therefore, 87 indigenous dairy goats were sequenced at exon IV of κ-casein gene. In total, 9 polymorphic sites were detected. Three nonsynonymous point mutations were identified, which change the isoelectric point of the goat para-κ-casein peptide so that it appears identical to that of the ewe peptide. Ten composite genotypes were reconstructed and 6 of them included the problematic point mutations. For the verification of genetic results, IEF was carried out. Both goat and ewe patterns appeared in the problematic genotypes. The frequency of these genotypes could be characterized as moderate (0.23) to high (0.60) within Greek indigenous breeds. However, this is not an issue restricted to Greece, as such genotypes have been detected in various non-Greek goat breeds. In conclusion, IEF based on the official German method is certainly inappropriate for ovine and caprine discrimination concerning Greek dairy goat products, and consequently a new method should be established. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The variation in the eating quality of beef from different sexes and breed classes cannot be completely explained by carcass measurements.

PubMed

Bonny, S P F; Hocquette, J-F; Pethick, D W; Farmer, L J; Legrand, I; Wierzbicki, J; Allen, P; Polkinghorne, R J; Gardner, G E

2016-06-01

Delivering beef of consistent quality to the consumer is vital for consumer satisfaction and will help to ensure demand and therefore profitability within the beef industry. In Australia, this is being tackled with Meat Standards Australia (MSA), which uses carcass traits and processing factors to deliver an individual eating quality guarantee to the consumer for 135 different 'cut by cooking methods' from each carcass. The carcass traits used in the MSA model, such as ossification score, carcass weight and marbling explain the majority of the differences between breeds and sexes. Therefore, it was expected that the model would predict with eating quality of bulls and dairy breeds with good accuracy. In total, 8128 muscle samples from 482 carcasses from France, Poland, Ireland and Northern Ireland were MSA graded at slaughter then evaluated for tenderness, juiciness, flavour liking and overall liking by untrained consumers, according to MSA protocols. The scores were weighted (0.3, 0.1, 0.3, 0.3) and combined to form a global eating quality (meat quality (MQ4)) score. The carcasses were grouped into one of the three breed categories: beef breeds, dairy breeds and crosses. The difference between the actual and the MSA-predicted MQ4 scores were analysed using a linear mixed effects model including fixed effects for carcass hang method, cook type, muscle type, sex, country, breed category and postmortem ageing period, and random terms for animal identification, consumer country and kill group. Bulls had lower MQ4 scores than steers and females and were predicted less accurately by the MSA model. Beef breeds had lower eating quality scores than dairy breeds and crosses for five out of the 16 muscles tested. Beef breeds were also over predicted in comparison with the cross and dairy breeds for six out of the 16 muscles tested. Therefore, even after accounting for differences in carcass traits, bulls still differ in eating quality when compared with females and steers. Breed also influenced eating quality beyond differences in carcass traits. However, in this case, it was only for certain muscles. This should be taken into account when estimating the eating quality of meat. In addition, the coefficients used by the Australian MSA model for some muscles, marbling score and ultimate pH do not exactly reflect the influence of these factors on eating quality in this data set, and if this system was to be applied to Europe then the coefficients for these muscles and covariates would need further investigation.

[Epidemiological and financial considerations for the control of Neospora caninum on Swiss dairy farms].

PubMed

Häsler, B; Stärk, K; Gottstein, B; Reist, M

2008-06-01

Neospora caninum is widely recognized as one of the most important abortifacients in cattle and causes substantial financial losses to bovine livestock production. This study aimed to calculate the losses caused by N. caninum on Swiss dairy farms and to evaluate the efficacy and profitability of the control strategies culling, not breeding replacements and chemotherapy of calves on farm level. Three different farm sizes with high, medium and low herd prevalences were defined. Epidemiological and financial models were used to simulate the effect of control strategies on the prevalence over time and to perform a cost-benefit analysis. The median annual losses on farm level ranged between CHF 3094.- (= Euro 1875; 60 dairy cattle, high prevalence) and CHF 134.- (= Euro 81; 15 dairy cattle, low prevalence). Culling of animals that had any abortion or a N. caninum abortion, or not breeding replacements from such animals, respectively, were neither effective nor profitable. Only the strategy "not breeding replacements from N. caninum seropositive cows" on farms with a high prevalence was financially attractive. The strategy "chemotherapy of calves" should be re-evaluated as soon as new data regarding the efficacy of treatment and a corresponding protocol have been scientifically validated.

Using L-M BP Algorithm Forecase the 305 Days Production of First-Breed Dairy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wei, Xiaoli; Qi, Guoqiang; Shen, Weizheng; Jian, Sun

Aiming at the shortage of conventional BP algorithm, a BP neural net works improved by L-M algorithm is put forward. On the basis of the network, a Prediction model for 305 day's milk productions was set up. Traditional methods finish these data must spend at least 305 days, But this model can forecast first-breed dairy's 305 days milk production ahead of 215 days. The validity of the improved BP neural network predictive model was validated through the experiments.

Variation of milk coagulation properties, cheese yield, and nutrients recovery in curd of cows of different breeds before, during and after transhumance to highland summer pastures.

PubMed

Zendri, Francesco; Ramanzin, Maurizio; Cipolat-Gotet, Claudio; Sturaro, Enrico

2017-02-01

This paper aimed at evaluating the effect of summer transhumance to mountain pastures of dairy cows of different breeds on cheese-making ability of milk. Data were from 649 dairy cows of specialized (Holstein Friesian and Brown Swiss) dual purpose (Simmental) and local (mostly Rendena and Alpine Grey) breeds. The Fourier-Transform Infra-Red Spectra (FTIRS) of their milk samples were collected before and after transhumance in 109 permanent dairy farms, and during transhumance in 14 summer farms (with multi-breeds herds) of the Trento Province, north-eastern Italy. A variety of 18 traits describing milk coagulation, curd firming, cheese yield and nutrients recovery in curd/loss in whey were predicted on the basis of FTIRS collected at the individual cow level. Moving the cows to summer farms improved curd firming traits but reduced cheese yields because of an increase of water and fat lost in the whey. During summer grazing, most of cheese-making traits improved, often non-linearly. The milk from summer farms supplementing cows with more concentrates showed better curd firming and cheese yield, because of lower fat lost in the whey. The breed of cows affected almost all the traits with a worst cheese-making ability for milk samples of Holsteins through all the trial, and interacted with concentrate supplementation because increasing compound feed tended to improve cheese-making traits for all breed, with the exception of local breeds for coagulation time and of Brown Swiss for curd firming time. In general, summer transhumance caused a favourable effect on cheese-making aptitude of milk, even though with some difference according to parity, initial days in milk, breed and concentrate supplementation of cows.

Genome wide linkage disequilibrium and genetic structure in Sicilian dairy sheep breeds.

PubMed

Mastrangelo, Salvatore; Di Gerlando, Rosalia; Tolone, Marco; Tortorici, Lina; Sardina, Maria Teresa; Portolano, Baldassare

2014-10-10

The recent availability of sheep genome-wide SNP panels allows providing background information concerning genome structure in domestic animals. The aim of this work was to investigate the patterns of linkage disequilibrium (LD), the genetic diversity and population structure in Valle del Belice, Comisana, and Pinzirita dairy sheep breeds using the Illumina Ovine SNP50K Genotyping array. Average r (2) between adjacent SNPs across all chromosomes was 0.155 ± 0.204 for Valle del Belice, 0.156 ± 0.208 for Comisana, and 0.128 ± 0.188 for Pinzirita breeds, and some variations in LD value across chromosomes were observed, in particular for Valle del Belice and Comisana breeds. Average values of r (2) estimated for all pairwise combinations of SNPs pooled over all autosomes were 0.058 ± 0.023 for Valle del Belice, 0.056 ± 0.021 for Comisana, and 0.037 ± 0.017 for Pinzirita breeds. The LD declined as a function of distance and average r (2) was lower than the values observed in other sheep breeds. Consistency of results among the several used approaches (Principal component analysis, Bayesian clustering, F ST, Neighbor networks) showed that while Valle del Belice and Pinzirita breeds formed a unique cluster, Comisana breed showed the presence of substructure. In Valle del Belice breed, the high level of genetic differentiation within breed, the heterogeneous cluster in Admixture analysis, but at the same time the highest inbreeding coefficient, suggested that the breed had a wide genetic base with inbred individuals belonging to the same flock. The Sicilian breeds were characterized by low genetic differentiation and high level of admixture. Pinzirita breed displayed the highest genetic diversity (He, Ne) whereas the lowest value was found in Valle del Belice breed. This study has reported for the first time estimates of LD and genetic diversity from a genome-wide perspective in Sicilian dairy sheep breeds. Our results indicate that breeds formed non-overlapping clusters and are clearly separated populations and that Comisana sheep breed does not constitute a homogenous population. The information generated from this study has important implications for the design and applications of association studies as well as for development of conservation and/or selection breeding programs.

Signatures of positive selection in African Butana and Kenana dairy zebu cattle

PubMed Central

Salim, Bashir; Almathen, Faisal; Al Enezi, Fahad; Mwacharo, Joram M.; Hanotte, Olivier

2018-01-01

Butana and Kenana are two types of zebu cattle found in Sudan. They are unique amongst African indigenous zebu cattle because of their high milk production. Aiming to understand their genome structure, we genotyped 25 individuals from each breed using the Illumina BovineHD Genotyping BeadChip. Genetic structure analysis shows that both breeds have an admixed genome composed of an even proportion of indicine (0.75 ± 0.03 in Butana, 0.76 ± 0.006 in Kenana) and taurine (0.23 ± 0.009 in Butana, 0.24 ± 0.006 in Kenana) ancestries. We also observe a proportion of 0.02 to 0.12 of European taurine ancestry in ten individuals of Butana that were sampled from cattle herds in Tamboul area suggesting local crossbreeding with exotic breeds. Signatures of selection analyses (iHS and Rsb) reveal 87 and 61 candidate positive selection regions in Butana and Kenana, respectively. These regions span genes and quantitative trait loci (QTL) associated with biological pathways that are important for adaptation to marginal environments (e.g., immunity, reproduction and heat tolerance). Trypanotolerance QTL are intersecting candidate regions in Kenana cattle indicating selection pressure acting on them, which might be associated with an unexplored level of trypanotolerance in this cattle breed. Several dairy traits QTL are overlapping the identified candidate regions in these two zebu cattle breeds. Our findings underline the potential to improve dairy production in the semi-arid pastoral areas of Africa through breeding improvement strategy of indigenous local breeds. PMID:29300786

Comparison of meat quality characteristics and fatty acid composition of finished goat kids from indigenous and dairy breeds.

PubMed

Yalcintan, Hulya; Ekiz, Bulent; Ozcan, Mustafa

2018-03-03

The aim of the study was to compare the certain carcass and meat quality traits and also fatty acid composition of goat kids from indigenous breeds (Gokceada and Hair Goat) and dairy breeds (Saanen and Maltese). A total 40 male kids from Saanen, Gokceada, Maltese and Hair Goat breeds were collected from commercial farms after weaning. Kids were finished for 56 days with grower concentrate and alfalfa hay in the sheepfold until slaughter. Higher mean values were found for Saanen kids in terms of slaughter weight, hot carcass weight and real dressing compared with Maltese, Hair Goat and Gokceada kids under the same intensive conditions. On the other hand, there were no significant differences between breeds in terms of instrumental meat quality traits, except meat colour. Meat from Gokceada and Hair Goat kids had higher lightness and Hue angle values than Saanen kids after 24 h of blooming. High meat redness values were observed for Saanen kids after 0 and 1 h of blooming. Panellist appreciated cooked meat from Saanen and Maltese kids in overall acceptability. If the fatty acid composition of meat was taken into consideration, kids from Saanen and Gokceada breeds displayed better values, because of the lower ƩSFA percentage and higher desirable fatty acids (C18:0 + ΣMUFA + ΣPUFA) percentage than Maltese and Hair Goat kids. Our results indicate that male kids for Saanen which is dairy breed could be assessable for quality goat meat production.

Body traits, carcass characteristics and price of cull cows as affected by farm type, breed, age and calving to culling interval.

PubMed

Gallo, L; Sturaro, E; Bittante, G

2017-04-01

Beef production from cull cows is an additional source of income for dairy farms and greatly contributes to red meat production, but the sources of variation of live animal characteristics and the carcass traits of cull cows have rarely been examined. This study investigated the effects of the farm type, breed, age at slaughter (AGE) and calving to culling interval (Calv_Cull) on the body traits and carcass characteristics of dairy and dual-purpose cull cows. Data from 555 cull cows from 182 herds belonging to five farm types, characterised by a combination of housing and feeding systems, were recorded and analysed. Dairy breeds, such as Holstein Friesian and Brown Swiss, and dual-purpose breeds (Simmental, Rendena) were included in the trait assessments. The day before slaughter, the cows were weighed and scored for body condition (BCS) and fleshiness, and then, their heart girth and wither height were measured. At the slaughterhouse, the carcass weight (CW), dressing percentage (DP), carcass conformation and fatness scores, carcass price per kg and carcass total value were obtained. On average, the cows were slaughtered at nearly 71±27 months of age, 285±187 days after the last calving; 615±95 kg BW; and provided a 257±51 kg CW. Nearly 50% of the cows fell within the BCS range of 2.75 to 3.50, and the carcasses were mostly graded in the lowest class of conformation and fatness scores. Cull cows from free-stall farms had a higher DP, carcass conformation score and price than those from traditional tie-stall farms. The breed influenced the AGE, live animal characteristics and carcass traits. Cows from dairy breeds were younger at slaughter, had a lower BCS and fleshiness, and greater body measurements, but a lower DP and carcass price than those from dual-purpose breeds, although differences between the breeds were found within both groups. The age of the cows at slaughter influenced the Calv_Cull and increased the BW, body measurements and CW, but not the fleshiness and fatness appreciation (both in vivo and postmortem) or carcass price. The increasing Calv_Cull improved the BW, BCS, fleshiness, CW and carcass conformation and fatness. In conclusion, the decision to cull dairy cows should also take into account the factors that affect their carcass value in regards to improving the carcass price of cows.

21 CFR 558.185 - Coumaphos.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... chapter. (e) Conditions of use—(1) Beef and dairy cattle—(i) Amount. 0.0002 lb. (0.091 gram) per 100 lb... of stress; treatment of colored breeds of commercial layers should be avoided while in production since these breeds appear to be more sensitive to coumaphos than white breeds; as sole medication...

21 CFR 558.185 - Coumaphos.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... chapter. (e) Conditions of use—(1) Beef and dairy cattle—(i) Amount. 0.0002 lb. (0.091 gram) per 100 lb... of stress; treatment of colored breeds of commercial layers should be avoided while in production since these breeds appear to be more sensitive to coumaphos than white breeds; as sole medication...

21 CFR 558.185 - Coumaphos.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... chapter. (e) Conditions of use—(1) Beef and dairy cattle—(i) Amount. 0.0002 lb. (0.091 gram) per 100 lb... of stress; treatment of colored breeds of commercial layers should be avoided while in production since these breeds appear to be more sensitive to coumaphos than white breeds; as sole medication...

21 CFR 558.185 - Coumaphos.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... chapter. (e) Conditions of use—(1) Beef and dairy cattle—(i) Amount. 0.0002 lb. (0.091 gram) per 100 lb... of stress; treatment of colored breeds of commercial layers should be avoided while in production since these breeds appear to be more sensitive to coumaphos than white breeds; as sole medication...

26 CFR 1.1251-2 - Excess deductions account.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

..., and livestock used in the trade or business of farming which is held for draft, breeding, dairy, or... $13,000 (b) Gain from disposition of breeding herd to which section 1251(c)(1) applies (computed... include all expenditures paid or incurred for producing the animal, such as for stud, breeding, and...

Systems Biology in Animal Breeding: Identifying relationships among markers, genes, and phenotypes

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The Breeding and Genetics Symposium titled “Systems Biology in Animal Breeding: Identifying relationships among markers, genes, and phenotypes” was held at the Joint Annual Meeting of the American Dairy Science Association and the American Society of Animal Science in Phoenix, AZ, July 15 to 19, 201...

Economic opportunities for using sexed semen and semen of beef bulls in dairy herds.

PubMed

Ettema, J F; Thomasen, J R; Hjortø, L; Kargo, M; Østergaard, S; Sørensen, A C

2017-05-01

Dairy farmers can increase the number of dairy heifer calves born in their herd by using sexed semen. They can reduce the number of both dairy bull and heifer calves by using beef semen. Long before sexed semen became commercially available, it was believed that it would provide opportunities for increasing genetic level in both herds and populations. In this study, we studied the potential for increasing the genetic level of a herd by using beef semen in combination with sexed semen. We tested the hypothesis that the potential of increasing the genetic level and the overall net return would depend on herd management. To test this hypothesis, we simulated 7 scenarios using beef semen and sexed semen in 5 herds at different management levels. We combined the results of 2 stochastic simulation models, SimHerd and ADAM. SimHerd simulated the effects of the scenarios and management levels on economic outcomes (i.e., operational return) and on technical outcomes such as the parity distribution of the dams of heifer calves, but it disregarded genetic progress. The ADAM model quantified genetic level by using the dams' parity distributions and the frequency of sexed and beef semen to estimate genetic return per year. We calculated the annual net return per slot as the sum of the operational return and the genetic return, divided by the total number of slots. Net return increased up to €18 per slot when using sexed semen in 75% genetically superior heifers and beef semen in 70% genetically inferior, multiparous cows. The assumed reliability of selection was 0.84. These findings were for a herd with overall high management for reproductive performance, longevity, and calf survival. The same breeding strategy reduced net return by €55 per slot when management levels were average. The main reason for the large reduction in net return was the heifer shortage that arose in this scenario. Our hypothesis that the potential for beef semen to increase genetic level would be herd-specific was supported. None of the scenarios were profitable under Danish circumstances when the value of the increased genetic level was not included. A comparable improvement in genetic level could be realized by selectively selling dairy heifer calves rather than using beef semen. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Construction of a large collection of small genome variations in French dairy and beef breeds using whole-genome sequences.

PubMed

Boussaha, Mekki; Michot, Pauline; Letaief, Rabia; Hozé, Chris; Fritz, Sébastien; Grohs, Cécile; Esquerré, Diane; Duchesne, Amandine; Philippe, Romain; Blanquet, Véronique; Phocas, Florence; Floriot, Sandrine; Rocha, Dominique; Klopp, Christophe; Capitan, Aurélien; Boichard, Didier

2016-11-15

In recent years, several bovine genome sequencing projects were carried out with the aim of developing genomic tools to improve dairy and beef production efficiency and sustainability. In this study, we describe the first French cattle genome variation dataset obtained by sequencing 274 whole genomes representing several major dairy and beef breeds. This dataset contains over 28 million single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and small insertions and deletions. Comparisons between sequencing results and SNP array genotypes revealed a very high genotype concordance rate, which indicates the good quality of our data. To our knowledge, this is the first large-scale catalog of small genomic variations in French dairy and beef cattle. This resource will contribute to the study of gene functions and population structure and also help to improve traits through genotype-guided selection.

Impact of heat stress on conception rate of dairy cows in the moderate climate considering different temperature-humidity index thresholds, periods relative to breeding, and heat load indices.

PubMed

Schüller, L K; Burfeind, O; Heuwieser, W

2014-05-01

The objectives of this retrospective study were to investigate the relationship between temperature-humidity index (THI) and conception rate (CR) of lactating dairy cows, to estimate a threshold for this relationship, and to identify periods of exposure to heat stress relative to breeding in an area of moderate climate. In addition, we compared three different heat load indices related to CR: mean THI, maximum THI, and number of hours above the mean THI threshold. The THI threshold for the influence of heat stress on CR was 73. It was statistically chosen based on the observed relationship between the mean THI at the day of breeding and the resulting CR. Negative effects of heat stress, however, were already apparent at lower levels of THI, and 1 hour of mean THI of 73 or more decreased the CR significantly. The CR of lactating dairy cows was negatively affected by heat stress both before and after the day of breeding. The greatest negative impact of heat stress on CR was observed 21 to 1 day before breeding. When the mean THI was 73 or more in this period, CR decreased from 31% to 12%. Compared with the average maximum THI and the total number of hours above a threshold of more than or 9 hours, the mean THI was the most sensitive heat load index relating to CR. These results indicate that the CR of dairy cows raised in the moderate climates is highly affected by heat stress. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Physico-chemical and sensory characteristics of young dairy bull beef derived from two breed types across five production systems employing two first season feeding regimes.

PubMed

Nian, Yingqun; Allen, Paul; Prendiville, Robert; Kerry, Joseph P

2018-03-01

The present study aimed to assess the physico-chemical and sensory characteristics of Longissimus thoracis muscle from young dairy bulls: Holstein-Friesian (HF) and Jersey × Holstein-Friesian (JEX). Bulls slaughtered at 15 months of age differed with respect to the finishing system, whereas 19-month-old bulls differed in energy consumption during a second grazing season and finishing period. All bulls were offered different diets during the first grazing season. Insoluble and total collagen contents increased with slaughter age, whereas collagen solubility and hue angle reduced with age. Bulls fed a higher concentrate finishing diet held a longer beef flavour. Intramuscular fat (IMF) content and beef flavour score were enhanced by higher concentrate intake during the second season and finishing period. Beef from a higher forage diet displayed a more intense red colour and higher thawing loss. There was limited effect of silage finishing or first and second grazing season on quality traits. Beef from JEX breed had a higher IMF content, higher flavour, juiciness and texture-related scores while lower moisture content compared to HF beef. The eating quality of beef from young dairy bulls was generally good. Slaughter age and the energy level of diet had obvious effects on quality characteristics. Cross-breeding Jersey with the HF breed can improve the beef quality of young dairy bulls. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

Impact of grazing dairy steers on winter rye (Secale cereale) versus winter wheat (Triticum aestivum) and effects on meat quality, fatty acid and amino acid profiles, and consumer acceptability of organic beef

PubMed Central

Phillips, Hannah N.; Delate, Kathleen; Turnbull, Robert

2017-01-01

Meat from Holstein and crossbred organic dairy steers finished on winter rye and winter wheat pastures was evaluated and compared for meat quality, fatty acid and amino acid profiles, and consumer acceptability. Two adjacent 4-ha plots were established with winter rye or winter wheat cover crops in September 2015 at the University of Minnesota West Central Research and Outreach Center (Morris, MN). During spring of 2015, 30 steers were assigned to one of three replicate breed groups at birth. Breed groups were comprised of: Holstein (HOL; n = 10), crossbreds comprised of Montbéliarde, Viking Red, and HOL (MVH; n = 10), and crossbreds comprised of Normande, Jersey, and Viking Red (NJV; n = 10). Dairy steers were maintained in their respective replicate breed group from three days of age until harvest. After weaning, steers were fed an organic total mixed ration of organic corn silage, alfalfa silage, corn, soybean meal, and minerals until spring 2016. Breed groups were randomly assigned to winter rye or winter wheat and rotationally grazed from spring until early summer of 2016. For statistical analysis, independent variables were fixed effects of breed, forage, and the interaction of breed and forage, with replicated group as a random effect. Specific contrast statements were used to compare HOL versus crossbred steers. Fat from crossbreds had 13% greater omega-3 fatty acids than HOL steers. Furthermore, the omega-6/3 ratio was 14% lower in fat from crossbreds than HOL steers. For consumer acceptability, steaks from steers grazed on winter wheat had greater overall liking than steers grazed on winter rye. Steak from crossbreeds had greater overall liking than HOL steers. The results suggest improvement in fatty acids and sensory attributes of beef from crossbred dairy steers compared to HOL steers, as well as those finished on winter wheat compared to winter rye. PMID:29099863

Impact of grazing dairy steers on winter rye (Secale cereale) versus winter wheat (Triticum aestivum) and effects on meat quality, fatty acid and amino acid profiles, and consumer acceptability of organic beef.

PubMed

Phillips, Hannah N; Heins, Bradley J; Delate, Kathleen; Turnbull, Robert

2017-01-01

Meat from Holstein and crossbred organic dairy steers finished on winter rye and winter wheat pastures was evaluated and compared for meat quality, fatty acid and amino acid profiles, and consumer acceptability. Two adjacent 4-ha plots were established with winter rye or winter wheat cover crops in September 2015 at the University of Minnesota West Central Research and Outreach Center (Morris, MN). During spring of 2015, 30 steers were assigned to one of three replicate breed groups at birth. Breed groups were comprised of: Holstein (HOL; n = 10), crossbreds comprised of Montbéliarde, Viking Red, and HOL (MVH; n = 10), and crossbreds comprised of Normande, Jersey, and Viking Red (NJV; n = 10). Dairy steers were maintained in their respective replicate breed group from three days of age until harvest. After weaning, steers were fed an organic total mixed ration of organic corn silage, alfalfa silage, corn, soybean meal, and minerals until spring 2016. Breed groups were randomly assigned to winter rye or winter wheat and rotationally grazed from spring until early summer of 2016. For statistical analysis, independent variables were fixed effects of breed, forage, and the interaction of breed and forage, with replicated group as a random effect. Specific contrast statements were used to compare HOL versus crossbred steers. Fat from crossbreds had 13% greater omega-3 fatty acids than HOL steers. Furthermore, the omega-6/3 ratio was 14% lower in fat from crossbreds than HOL steers. For consumer acceptability, steaks from steers grazed on winter wheat had greater overall liking than steers grazed on winter rye. Steak from crossbreeds had greater overall liking than HOL steers. The results suggest improvement in fatty acids and sensory attributes of beef from crossbred dairy steers compared to HOL steers, as well as those finished on winter wheat compared to winter rye.

Short communication: Implementation of a breeding value for heat tolerance in Australian dairy cattle.

PubMed

Nguyen, Thuy T T; Bowman, Phil J; Haile-Mariam, Mekonnen; Nieuwhof, Gert J; Hayes, Benjamin J; Pryce, Jennie E

2017-09-01

Excessive ambient temperature and humidity can impair milk production and fertility of dairy cows. Selection for heat-tolerant animals is one possible option to mitigate the effects of heat stress. To enable selection for this trait, we describe the development of a heat tolerance breeding value for Australian dairy cattle. We estimated the direct genomic values of decline in milk, fat, and protein yield per unit increase of temperature-humidity index (THI) using 46,726 single nucleotide polymorphisms and a reference population of 2,236 sires and 11,853 cows for Holsteins and 506 sires and 4,268 cows for Jerseys. This new direct genomic value is the Australian genomic breeding value for heat tolerance (HT ABVg). The components of the HT ABVg are the decline in milk, fat, and protein per unit increase in THI when THI increases above the threshold of 60. These components are weighted by their respective economic values, assumed to be equivalent to the weights applied to milk, fat, and protein yield in the Australian selection indices. Within each breed, the HT ABVg is then standardized to have a mean of 100 and standard deviation (SD) of 5, which is consistent with the presentation of breeding values for many other traits in Australia. The HT ABVg ranged from -4 to +3 SD in Holsteins and -3 to +4 SD in Jerseys. The mean reliabilities of HT ABVg among validation sires, calculated from the prediction error variance and additive genetic variance, were 38% in both breeds. The range in ABVg and their reliability suggests that HT can be improved using genomic selection. There has been a deterioration in the genetic trend of HT, and to moderate the decline it is suggested that the HT ABVg should be included in a multitrait economic index with other traits that contribute to farm profit. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Extent of linkage disequilibrium, consistency of gametic phase, and imputation accuracy within and across Canadian dairy breeds.

PubMed

Larmer, S G; Sargolzaei, M; Schenkel, F S

2014-05-01

Genomic selection requires a large reference population to accurately estimate single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) effects. In some Canadian dairy breeds, the available reference populations are not large enough for accurate estimation of SNP effects for traits of interest. If marker phase is highly consistent across multiple breeds, it is theoretically possible to increase the accuracy of genomic prediction for one or all breeds by pooling several breeds into a common reference population. This study investigated the extent of linkage disequilibrium (LD) in 5 major dairy breeds using a 50,000 (50K) SNP panel and 3 of the same breeds using the 777,000 (777K) SNP panel. Correlation of pair-wise SNP phase was also investigated on both panels. The level of LD was measured using the squared correlation of alleles at 2 loci (r(2)), and the consistency of SNP gametic phases was correlated using the signed square root of these values. Because of the high cost of the 777K panel, the accuracy of imputation from lower density marker panels [6,000 (6K) or 50K] was examined both within breed and using a multi-breed reference population in Holstein, Ayrshire, and Guernsey. Imputation was carried out using FImpute V2.2 and Beagle 3.3.2 software. Imputation accuracies were then calculated as both the proportion of correct SNP filled in (concordance rate) and allelic R(2). Computation time was also explored to determine the efficiency of the different algorithms for imputation. Analysis showed that LD values >0.2 were found in all breeds at distances at or shorter than the average adjacent pair-wise distance between SNP on the 50K panel. Correlations of r-values, however, did not reach high levels (<0.9) at these distances. High correlation values of SNP phase between breeds were observed (>0.94) when the average pair-wise distances using the 777K SNP panel were examined. High concordance rate (0.968-0.995) and allelic R(2) (0.946-0.991) were found for all breeds when imputation was carried out with FImpute from 50K to 777K. Imputation accuracy for Guernsey and Ayrshire was slightly lower when using the imputation method in Beagle. Computing time was significantly greater when using Beagle software, with all comparable procedures being 9 to 13 times less efficient, in terms of time, compared with FImpute. These findings suggest that use of a multi-breed reference population might increase prediction accuracy using the 777K SNP panel and that 777K genotypes can be efficiently and effectively imputed using the lower density 50K SNP panel. Copyright © 2014 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Genomic selection & association mapping in rice: effect of trait genetic architecture, training population composition, marker number & statistical model on accuracy of rice genomic selection in elite, tropical rice breeding

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Genomic Selection (GS) is a new breeding method in which genome-wide markers are used to predict the breeding value of individuals in a breeding population. GS has been shown to improve breeding efficiency in dairy cattle and several crop plant species, and here we evaluate for the first time its ef...

Changes in animal performance and profitability of Holstein dairy operations after introduction of crossbreeding with Montbéliarde, Normande, and Scandinavian Red.

PubMed

Dezetter, C; Bareille, N; Billon, D; Côrtes, C; Lechartier, C; Seegers, H

2017-10-01

An individual-based mechanistic, stochastic, and dynamic simulation model was developed to assess economic effects resulting from changes in performance for milk yield and solid contents, reproduction, health, and replacement, induced by the introduction of crossbreeding in Holstein dairy operations. Three crossbreeding schemes, Holstein × Montbéliarde, Holstein × Montbéliarde × Normande, and Holstein × Montbéliarde × Scandinavian Red, were implemented in Holstein dairy operations and compared with Holstein pure breeding. Sires were selected based on their estimated breeding value for milk. Two initial operations were simulated according to the prevalence (average or high) of reproductive and health disorders in the lactating herd. Evolution of operations was simulated during 15 yr under 2 alternative managerial goals (constant number of cows or constant volume of milk sold). After 15 yr, breed percentages reached equilibrium for the 2-breed but not for the 3-breed schemes. After 5 yr of simulation, all 3 crossbreeding schemes reduced average milk yield per cow-year compared with the pure Holstein scheme. Changes in other animal performance (milk solid contents, reproduction, udder health, and longevity) were always in favor of crossbreeding schemes. Under an objective of constant number of cows, margin over variable costs in average discounted value over the 15 yr of simulation was slightly increased by crossbreeding schemes, with an average prevalence of disorders up to €32/cow-year. In operations with a high prevalence of disorders, crossbreeding schemes increased the margin over variable costs up to €91/cow-year. Under an objective of constant volume of milk sold, crossbreeding schemes improved margin over variable costs up to €10/1,000L (corresponding to around €96/cow-year) for average prevalence of disorders, and up to €13/1,000L (corresponding to around €117/cow-year) for high prevalence of disorders. Under an objective of constant number of cows, an unfavorable pricing context (milk price vs. concentrates price) increased slightly crossbreeding positive effects on margin over variable costs. Under an objective of constant volume of milk, only very limited changes in differences of margins were found between the breeding schemes. Our results, obtained conditionally to the parameterization values used here, suggest that dairy crossbreeding should be considered as a relevant option for Holstein dairy operations with a production level until 9,000 kg/cow-year in France, and possibly in other countries. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Short communication: casein haplotype variability in sicilian dairy goat breeds.

PubMed

Gigli, I; Maizon, D O; Riggio, V; Sardina, M T; Portolano, B

2008-09-01

In the Mediterranean region, goat milk production is an important economic activity. In the present study, 4 casein genes were genotyped in 5 Sicilian goat breeds to 1) identify casein haplotypes present in the Argentata dell'Etna, Girgentana, Messinese, Derivata di Siria, and Maltese goat breeds; and 2) describe the structure of the Sicilian goat breeds based on casein haplotypes and allele frequencies. In a sample of 540 dairy goats, 67 different haplotypes with frequency >or=0.01 and 27 with frequency >or=0.03 were observed. The most common CSN1S1-CSN2-CSN1S2-CSN3 haplotype for Derivata di Siria and Maltese was FCFB (0.17 and 0.22, respectively), whereas for Argentata dell'Etna, Girgentana and Messinese was ACAB (0.06, 0.23, and 0.10, respectively). According to the haplotype reconstruction, Argentata dell'Etna, Girgentana, and Messinese breeds presented the most favorable haplotype for cheese production, because the casein concentration in milk of these breeds might be greater than that in Derivata di Siria and Maltese breeds. Based on a cluster analysis, the breeds formed 2 main groups: Derivata di Siria, and Maltese in one group, and Argentata dell'Etna and Messinese in the other; the Girgentana breed was between these groups but closer to the latter.

26 CFR 1.1251-2 - Excess deductions account.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... business of farming which is held for draft, breeding, dairy, or sporting purposes regardless of the period... of breeding herd to which section 1251(c)(1) applies (computed before applying limitation) 14,000 (c... animal, such as for stud, breeding, and veterinary services, as well as all amounts paid or incurred with...

26 CFR 1.1251-2 - Excess deductions account.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... business of farming which is held for draft, breeding, dairy, or sporting purposes regardless of the period... of breeding herd to which section 1251(c)(1) applies (computed before applying limitation) 14,000 (c... animal, such as for stud, breeding, and veterinary services, as well as all amounts paid or incurred with...

A genetic investigation of isle of Jersey cattle, the foundation of the Jersey breed

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Jersey, one of the oldest dairy breeds, was founded nearly 200 years ago on the Channel Island of Jersey. As early as 1763, legislation banned cattle importation to the island, leading to the development of the Jersey breed. Records indicate considerable cattle exportation from Jersey Island from t...

26 CFR 1.1251-2 - Excess deductions account.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... business of farming which is held for draft, breeding, dairy, or sporting purposes regardless of the period... of breeding herd to which section 1251(c)(1) applies (computed before applying limitation) 14,000 (c... animal, such as for stud, breeding, and veterinary services, as well as all amounts paid or incurred with...

26 CFR 1.1251-2 - Excess deductions account.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... business of farming which is held for draft, breeding, dairy, or sporting purposes regardless of the period... of breeding herd to which section 1251(c)(1) applies (computed before applying limitation) 14,000 (c... animal, such as for stud, breeding, and veterinary services, as well as all amounts paid or incurred with...

26 CFR 1.1231-2 - Livestock held for draft, breeding, dairy, or sporting purposes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... made undesirable by reason of accident, disease, drought, unfitness of the animal for such purpose, or... dairy herd, because of, for example, drought. Example 3. A taxpayer in the business of raising hogs for...

26 CFR 1.1231-2 - Livestock held for draft, breeding, dairy, or sporting purposes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... made undesirable by reason of accident, disease, drought, unfitness of the animal for such purpose, or... dairy herd, because of, for example, drought. Example 3. A taxpayer in the business of raising hogs for...

26 CFR 1.1231-2 - Livestock held for draft, breeding, dairy, or sporting purposes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... made undesirable by reason of accident, disease, drought, unfitness of the animal for such purpose, or... dairy herd, because of, for example, drought. Example 3. A taxpayer in the business of raising hogs for...

Breeding for polled dairy cows versus dehorning: Preliminary cost assessments & discussion

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Dairy producers today face costs associated with dehorning heifers, including labor, equipment, and medications. Further, costs associated with decreased feed intake immediately following dehorning and possible complications requiring a veterinarian or antibiotics occur with some probability. The ob...

Dairy cattle genomics evaluation program update

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Implementation of genomic evaluation has caused profound changes in dairy cattle breeding. All young bulls bought by major artificial-insemination organizations now are selected based on these evaluation. Evaluation reliability can reach ~75% for yield traits, which is adequate for marketing semen o...

Genetic analysis of predicted fatty acid profiles of milk from Danish Holstein and Danish Jersey cattle populations.

PubMed

Hein, L; Sørensen, L P; Kargo, M; Buitenhuis, A J

2018-03-01

The objective of this study was to assess the genetic variability of the detailed fatty acid (FA) profiles of Danish Holstein (DH) and Danish Jersey (DJ) cattle populations. We estimated genetic parameters for 11 FA or groups of FA in milk samples from the Danish milk control system between May 2015 and October 2016. Concentrations of different FA and FA groups in milk samples were measured by mid-infrared spectroscopy. Data used for parameter estimation were from 132,732 first-parity DH cows and 21,966 first-parity DJ cows. We found the highest heritabilities for test day measurements in both populations for short-chain FA (DH = 0.16; DJ = 0.16) and C16:0 (DH = 0.14; DJ = 0.16). In DH, the highest heritabilities were also found for saturated FA and monounsaturated FA (both populations: 0.15). Genetic correlations between the fatty acid traits showed large differences between DH and DJ for especially short-chain FA with the other FA traits measured. Furthermore, genetic correlations of total fat with monounsaturated FA, polyunsaturated FA, short-chain FA, and C16:0 differed markedly between DH and DJ populations. In conclusion, we found genetic variation in the mid-infrared spectroscopy-predicted FA and FA groups of the DH and DJ cattle populations. This finding opens the possibility of using genetic selection to change the FA profiles of dairy cattle. The Authors. Published by FASS Inc. and Elsevier Inc. on behalf of the American Dairy Science Association®. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/).

26 CFR 1.175-5 - Percentage limitation and carryover.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... livestock held for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes). It includes such income from land used in farming... breeding cows replaced by younger cows 500 Total gross income from farming 10,500 A must exclude from...

26 CFR 1.175-5 - Percentage limitation and carryover.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... livestock held for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes). It includes such income from land used in farming... breeding cows replaced by younger cows 500 Total gross income from farming 10,500 A must exclude from...

26 CFR 1.175-5 - Percentage limitation and carryover.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... livestock held for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes). It includes such income from land used in farming... breeding cows replaced by younger cows 500 Total gross income from farming 10,500 A must exclude from...

26 CFR 1.175-5 - Percentage limitation and carryover.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... livestock held for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes). It includes such income from land used in farming... breeding cows replaced by younger cows 500 Total gross income from farming 10,500 A must exclude from...

26 CFR 1.175-5 - Percentage limitation and carryover.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... draft, breeding, or dairy purposes). It includes such income from land used in farming other than that... breeding cows replaced by younger cows 500 Total gross income from farming 10,500 A must exclude from...

An assessment of dairy herd bulls in southern Australia: 2. Analysis of bull- and herd-level risk factors and their associations with pre- and postmating breeding soundness results.

PubMed

Hancock, A S; Younis, P J; Beggs, D S; Mansell, P D; Stevenson, M A; Pyman, M F

2016-12-01

In pasture-based, seasonally calving dairy herds of southern Australia, the mating period usually consists of an initial artificial insemination period followed by a period of natural service using herd bulls. The primary objective of this study was to identify associations between individual bull- and herd-level management factors and bull fertility as measured by a pre- and postmating bull breeding soundness evaluation (BBSE). Multivariable mixed effects logistic regression models were used to identify factors associated with bulls being classified as high risk of reduced fertility at the premating and postmating BBSE. Bulls older than 4 yr of age at the premating BBSE were more likely to be classified high risk compared with bulls less than 4 yr of age. Bulls that were in herds in which concentrates were fed before mating were more likely to be classified as high risk at the postmating BBSE compared with bulls that were in herds where concentrates were not fed. Univariable analyses also identified areas in need of further research, including breed differences between dairy bulls, leg conformation and joint abnormalities, preventative hoof blocking for bulls, and mating ratios. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

New breeding objectives and selection indices for the Australian dairy industry.

PubMed

Byrne, T J; Santos, B F S; Amer, P R; Martin-Collado, D; Pryce, J E; Axford, M

2016-10-01

This study comprises an update of the economic values for dairy traits for the Australian industry and the formulation of updated selection indices. An economic model, which calculates partial economic values for each trait individually, was developed to determine the economic implications of selective dairy breeding, based on the effect of trait changes on the profit of commercial dairy farms in Australia. Selection indices were developed from economic values, which were transformed into base economic weights by including the discounted genetic expressions coefficients. Economic weights (in Australian dollars) were 1.79, 6.92, -0.10, -5.44, 8.84, 7.68, 1.07, 4.86, 1.91, 3.51, 4.90, 0.31, 2.03, 2.00, and 0.59, for milk fat (kg), milk protein (kg), milk volume (L), body weight (kg), survival (%), residual survival (%), somatic cell count (cells/mL), fertility (%), mammary system [Australian Breeding Value (ABV) unit], temperament (ABV unit), milking speed (ABV unit), udder depth (%), overall type (%), fore udder attachment (%), and pin set (%), respectively. The updated economic weights presented in this study constituted the basis of the definition for 3 new indices. These indices were developed from combination of bioeconomic principles, patterns of farmer preferences for trait improvements, and desired gains approaches. The 3 indices, Balanced Performance Index, Health Weighted Index, and Type Weighted Index, have been released to the industry. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Dairy Herd On-line Information System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Takahashi, Satoshi

As the business circumstances have become worse, computational breeding management based on the scientific matters has been needed for dairy farming in our country. In this connection it was urgent to construct the system which provided data effectively used in the fields for dairy farmers. The Federation has executed to provide dairy farming technical data promptly through its own on-line network being composed of middle sized general-purpose computer (main memory : 5MB, and fixed disk : 1100MB) and 22 terminals.

Simulation of introgression of the polled allele into the Holstein breed via conventional breeding versus gene editing

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The objective of this study was to simulate the introgression of the polled allele into a dairy cattle population and compare the impact of using the methods of conventional breeding versus gene editing to increase the frequency of the polled allele. The rate of minor allele frequency (MAF) change, ...

Effect of short- and long-term heat stress on the conception risk of dairy cows under natural service and artificial insemination breeding programs.

PubMed

Schüller, L-K; Burfeind, O; Heuwieser, W

2016-04-01

The objectives of this retrospective study were to examine the effect of heat stress on natural service and artificial insemination (AI) breeding methods. We investigated the influence of short- and long-term heat stress on the conception risk (CR) of dairy cows bred by natural service or by AI with frozen-thawed or fresh semen. In addition, the relationship between breeding method and parity was determined. Cows bred by AI with frozen-thawed semen exposed to long-term heat stress (mean temperature-humidity index ≥73 in the period 21d before breeding) were 63% less likely to get pregnant compared with cows not exposed to heat stress. Cows bred by AI with fresh semen were 80% less likely to get pregnant during periods of short-term heat stress than during periods without heat stress. Furthermore, multiparous cows bred by AI with frozen-thawed or fresh semen were 22 and 67% less likely to get pregnant, respectively, than primiparous cows. No influence of heat stress or parity was noted on the CR of cows bred by natural service. The present study indicates that the likelihood of dairy cows becoming pregnant is reduced by short- and long-term heat stress depending on the type of semen employed. In particular, CR of cows inseminated with fresh semen is negatively affected by short-term heat stress and CR of cows inseminated with frozen-thawed semen is negatively affected by long-term heat stress. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Applications of Genomics to Genetic Improvement of Dairy Cattle

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Implementation of genomic evaluation has caused profound changes in dairy cattle breeding. All young bulls bought by major artificial-insemination (AI) organizations now are selected based on such evaluations. Evaluation reliability can reach about 75% for yield traits, which is adequate for marketi...

Genetic progress in multistage dairy cattle breeding schemes using genetic markers.

PubMed

Schrooten, C; Bovenhuis, H; van Arendonk, J A M; Bijma, P

2005-04-01

The aim of this paper was to explore general characteristics of multistage breeding schemes and to evaluate multistage dairy cattle breeding schemes that use information on quantitative trait loci (QTL). Evaluation was either for additional genetic response or for reduction in number of progeny-tested bulls while maintaining the same response. The reduction in response in multistage breeding schemes relative to comparable single-stage breeding schemes (i.e., with the same overall selection intensity and the same amount of information in the final stage of selection) depended on the overall selection intensity, the selection intensity in the various stages of the breeding scheme, and the ratio of the accuracies of selection in the various stages of the breeding scheme. When overall selection intensity was constant, reduction in response increased with increasing selection intensity in the first stage. The decrease in response was highest in schemes with lower overall selection intensity. Reduction in response was limited in schemes with low to average emphasis on first-stage selection, especially if the accuracy of selection in the first stage was relatively high compared with the accuracy in the final stage. Closed nucleus breeding schemes in dairy cattle that use information on QTL were evaluated by deterministic simulation. In the base scheme, the selection index consisted of pedigree information and own performance (dams), or pedigree information and performance of 100 daughters (sires). In alternative breeding schemes, information on a QTL was accounted for by simulating an additional index trait. The fraction of the variance explained by the QTL determined the correlation between the additional index trait and the breeding goal trait. Response in progeny test schemes relative to a base breeding scheme without QTL information ranged from +4.5% (QTL explaining 5% of the additive genetic variance) to +21.2% (QTL explaining 50% of the additive genetic variance). A QTL explaining 5% of the additive genetic variance allowed a 35% reduction in the number of progeny tested bulls, while maintaining genetic response at the level of the base scheme. Genetic progress was up to 31.3% higher for schemes with increased embryo production and selection of embryos based on QTL information. The challenge for breeding organizations is to find the optimum breeding program with regard to additional genetic progress and additional (or reduced) cost.

Dairy sheep production research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA – a review

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Commercial milking of sheep is a new agricultural industry in the United States starting approximately 30 yr ago. The industry is still small, but it is growing. The majority of the sheep milk is used in the production of specialty cheeses. The United States is the major importer of sheep milk cheeses with 50 to 60% of annual world exports coming to the United States during the past 20 yr. Therefore, there is considerable growth potential for the industry in the United States. The only dairy sheep research flock in North America is located at the Spooner Agricultural Research Station of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The research program started in 1993 and has been multifaceted; dealing with several areas important to commercial dairy sheep farmers. The East Friesian and Lacaune dairy breeds were compared and introduced to the industry through the research program. Both dairy breeds produced significantly more milk than traditional meat-wool breeds found in the U.S., but the two breeds differed in their production traits. East Friesian-cross ewes produced more lambs and slightly more milk than Lacaune-cross ewes whereas Lacaune-cross ewes produced milk with a higher percentage of fat and protein than East Friesian-cross ewes. Lactation physiology studies have shown that ewes with active corpora lutea have increased milk yields, oxytocin release during milking is required to obtain normal fat percentages in the milk, large udder cisterns of dairy ewes can allow for increased milking intervals, and short daylengths during late pregnancy results in increased milk yield. In the nutrition area, legume-grass pastures and forages with a higher percentage of legume will result in increased milk production. Grazing ewes respond to additional supplementation with increased milk yield, but it is important to match the supplement to the quality of the grazing. Ewes on high quality legume-grass pastures that are high in rumen degradable protein respond with increased milk production to supplements high in energy and/or high in rumen undegraded protein. PMID:24739956

Dairy sheep production research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA - a review.

PubMed

Thomas, David L; Berger, Yves M; McKusick, Brett C; Mikolayunas, Claire M

2014-01-01

Commercial milking of sheep is a new agricultural industry in the United States starting approximately 30 yr ago. The industry is still small, but it is growing. The majority of the sheep milk is used in the production of specialty cheeses. The United States is the major importer of sheep milk cheeses with 50 to 60% of annual world exports coming to the United States during the past 20 yr. Therefore, there is considerable growth potential for the industry in the United States. The only dairy sheep research flock in North America is located at the Spooner Agricultural Research Station of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The research program started in 1993 and has been multifaceted; dealing with several areas important to commercial dairy sheep farmers. The East Friesian and Lacaune dairy breeds were compared and introduced to the industry through the research program. Both dairy breeds produced significantly more milk than traditional meat-wool breeds found in the U.S., but the two breeds differed in their production traits. East Friesian-cross ewes produced more lambs and slightly more milk than Lacaune-cross ewes whereas Lacaune-cross ewes produced milk with a higher percentage of fat and protein than East Friesian-cross ewes. Lactation physiology studies have shown that ewes with active corpora lutea have increased milk yields, oxytocin release during milking is required to obtain normal fat percentages in the milk, large udder cisterns of dairy ewes can allow for increased milking intervals, and short daylengths during late pregnancy results in increased milk yield. In the nutrition area, legume-grass pastures and forages with a higher percentage of legume will result in increased milk production. Grazing ewes respond to additional supplementation with increased milk yield, but it is important to match the supplement to the quality of the grazing. Ewes on high quality legume-grass pastures that are high in rumen degradable protein respond with increased milk production to supplements high in energy and/or high in rumen undegraded protein.

Importance of casein micelle size and milk composition for milk gelation.

PubMed

Glantz, M; Devold, T G; Vegarud, G E; Lindmark Månsson, H; Stålhammar, H; Paulsson, M

2010-04-01

The economic output of the dairy industry is to a great extent dependent on the processing of milk into other milk-based products such as cheese. The yield and quality of cheese are dependent on both the composition and technological properties of milk. The objective of this study was to evaluate the importance and effects of casein (CN) micelle size and milk composition on milk gelation characteristics in order to evaluate the possibilities for enhancing gelation properties through breeding. Milk was collected on 4 sampling occasions at the farm level in winter and summer from dairy cows with high genetic merit, classified as elite dairy cows, of the Swedish Red and Swedish Holstein breeds. Comparisons were made with milk from a Swedish Red herd, a Swedish Holstein herd, and a Swedish dairy processor. Properties of CN micelles, such as their native and rennet-induced CN micelle size and their zeta-potential, were analyzed by photon correlation spectroscopy, and rennet-induced gelation characteristics, including gel strength, gelation time, and frequency sweeps, were determined. Milk parameters of the protein, lipid, and carbohydrate profiles as well as minerals were used to obtain correlations with native CN micelle size and gelation characteristics. Milk pH and protein, CN, and lactose contents were found to affect milk gelation. Smaller native CN micelles were shown to form stronger gels when poorly coagulating milk was excluded from the correlation analysis. In addition, milk pH correlated positively, whereas Mg and K correlated negatively with native CN micellar size. The milk from the elite dairy cows was shown to have good gelation characteristics. Furthermore, genetic progress in relation to CN micelle size was found for these cows as a correlated response to selection for the Swedish breeding objective if optimizing for milk gelation characteristics. The results indicate that selection for smaller native CN micelles and lower milk pH through breeding would enhance gelation properties and may thus improve the initial step in the processing of cheese. Copyright (c) 2010 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Genomic investigation of Staphylococcus aureus isolates from bulk tank milk and dairy cows with clinical mastitis.

PubMed

Ronco, Troels; Klaas, Ilka C; Stegger, Marc; Svennesen, Line; Astrup, Lærke B; Farre, Michael; Pedersen, Karl

2018-02-01

Staphylococcus aureus is one of the most common pathogens that cause mastitis in dairy cows. Various subtypes, virulence genes and mobile genetic elements have been associated with isolates from bulk tank milk and clinical mastitis. So far, no Danish cattle associated S. aureus isolates have been whole-genome sequenced and further analyzed. Thus, the main objective was to investigate the population structure and genomic content of isolates from bulk tank milk and clinical mastitis, using whole-genome sequencing. This may reveal the origin of strains that cause clinical mastitis. S. aureus isolates from bulk tank milk (n = 94) and clinical mastitis (n = 63) were collected from 91 and 24 different farms, respectively and whole-genome sequenced. The genomic content was analyzed and a phylogenetic tree based on single nucleotide polymorphisms was constructed. In general, the isolates from both bulk tank milk and clinical mastitis were of similar genetic background. This suggests that dairy cows are natural carriers of the S. aureus subtypes that cause clinical mastitis if the right conditions are present and that a broad range of subtypes cause mastitis. A phylogenetic cluster that mostly consisted of ST151 isolates carried three mobile genetic elements that were primarily found in this group. The prevalence of resistance genes was generally low. However, the first ST398 methicillin resistant S. aureus isolate from a Danish dairy cow with clinical mastitis was detected. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Genomic adaptation of admixed dairy cattle in East Africa

PubMed Central

Kim, Eui-Soo; Rothschild, Max F.

2014-01-01

Dairy cattle in East Africa imported from the U.S. and Europe have been adapted to new environments. In small local farms, cattle have generally been maintained by crossbreeding that could increase survivability under a severe environment. Eventually, genomic ancestry of a specific breed will be nearly fixed in genomic regions of local breeds or crossbreds when it is advantageous for survival or production in harsh environments. To examine this situation, 25 Friesians and 162 local cattle produced by crossbreeding of dairy breeds in Kenya were sampled and genotyped using 50K SNPs. Using principal component analysis (PCA), the admixed local cattle were found to consist of several imported breeds, including Guernsey, Norwegian Red, and Holstein. To infer the influence of parental breeds on genomic regions, local ancestry mapping was performed based on the similarity of haplotypes. As a consequence, it appears that no genomic region has been under the complete influence of a specific parental breed. Nonetheless, the ancestry of Holstein-Friesians was substantial in most genomic regions (>80%). Furthermore, we examined the frequency of the most common haplotypes from parental breeds that have changed substantially in Kenyan crossbreds during admixture. The frequency of these haplotypes from parental breeds, which were likely to be selected in temperate regions, has deviated considerably from expected frequency in 11 genomic regions. Additionally, extended haplotype homozygosity (EHH) based methods were applied to identify the regions responding to recent selection in crossbreds, called candidate regions, resulting in seven regions that appeared to be affected by Holstein-Friesians. However, some signatures of selection were less dependent on Holsteins-Friesians, suggesting evidence of adaptation in East Africa. The analysis of local ancestry is a useful approach to understand the detailed genomic structure and may reveal regions of the genome required for specialized adaptation when combined with methods for searching for the recent changes of haplotype frequency in an admixed population. PMID:25566325

Danish dairy farmers' perception of biosecurity.

PubMed

Kristensen, Erling; Jakobsen, Esben B

2011-05-01

To implement biosecurity measures at farm-level is a motivational challenge to dairy farmers as emerging diseases and their consequences largely are unpredictable. One of the reasons for this challenge is that outcomes are more likely to benefit society than the individual farmer. From the individual farmer's point of view the impacts of zoonotic risk, international trade and welfare concerns appear less obvious than the direct costs at farm-level. Consequently, a social dilemma may arise where collective interests are at odds with private interests. To improve biosecurity at farm-level farmers must be motivated to change behavior in the 'right' direction which could provide selfish farmers with unintended possibilities to exploit the level of biosecurity provided by other dairy farmers' collective actions. Farmers' perception of risk of disease introduction into a dairy herd was explored by means of Q-methodology. Participating farmers owned very large dairy herds and were selected for this study because Danish legislation since 2008 has required that larger farms develop and implement a farm specific biosecurity plan. However, a year from introduction of this requirement, none of the participating farmers had developed a biosecurity plan. Farmers' perception of biosecurity could meaningfully be described by four families of perspectives, labeled: cooperatives; confused; defectors, and introvert. Interestingly, all families of perspectives agreed that sourcing of animals from established dealers represented the highest risk to biosecurity at farm-level. Farmers and policy-makers are faced with important questions about biosecurity at farm-level related to the sanctioning system within the contextual framework of social dilemmas. To solve these challenges we propose the development of a market-mediated system to (1) reduce the risk of free-riders, and (2) provide farmers with incentives to improve biosecurity at farm-level. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Differences in milk fat composition predicted by mid-infrared spectrometry among dairy cattle breeds in the Netherlands.

PubMed

Maurice-Van Eijndhoven, M H T; Bovenhuis, H; Soyeurt, H; Calus, M P L

2013-04-01

The aim of this study was to estimate breed differences in milk fatty acid (FA) profile among 5 dairy cattle breeds present in the Netherlands: Holstein-Friesian (HF), Meuse-Rhine-Yssel (MRY), Dutch Friesian (DF), Groningen White Headed (GWH), and Jersey (JER). For this purpose, total fat percentage and detailed FA contents in milk (14 individual FA and 14 groups of FA) predicted from mid-infrared spectra were used. Mid-infrared spectrometry profiles were collected during regular milk recording from a range of herds with different combinations of breeds, including both purebred and crossbred cows. The data set used for the analyses contained 41,404 records from a total of 24,445 cows. In total 7,626 cows were crossbreds belonging to the breeds HF, MRY, DF, GWH, and JER; 1,769 purebreds (≥87.5%) belonging to the breeds MRY, DF, GWH, and JER; and the other 15,050 cows were HF. Breed effects were estimated using a single-trait animal model. The content in milk of short-chain FA C4:0, C6:0, C8:0, C10:0, C12:0, C14:0, and C16:0 was higher for JER and the content in milk of C16:0 was lower for GWH compared with the other breeds; when adjusting for breed differences in fat percentage, however, not all breed differences were significant. Breed differences were also found for cis-9 C14:1, cis-9 C16:1, C18:0, and a number of C18 unsaturated FA. In general, differences in fat composition in milk between HF, MRY, and DF were not significant. Jerseys tended to produce more saturated FA, whereas GWH tended to produce relatively less saturated FA. After adjusting for differences in fat percentage, breed differences in detailed fat composition disappeared or became smaller for several short- and medium-chain FA, whereas for several long-chain unsaturated FA, more significant breed differences were found. This indicates that short- and medium-chain FA are for all breeds more related to total fat percentage than long-chain FA. In conclusion, between breed differences were found in detailed FA composition and content of individual FA. Especially, for FA produced through de novo synthesis (short-chain FA, C12:0, C14:0, and partly C16:0) differences were found for JER and GWH, compared with the breeds HF, MRY, and DF. Copyright © 2013 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Pre-breeding ovaro-uterine ultrasonography and its relationship with first service pregnancy rate in seasonal-calving dairy herds.

PubMed

Mee, J F; Buckley, F; Ryan, D; Dillon, P

2009-04-01

The objectives of the study were to characterize an ultrasound reproductive tract scoring (URTS) system to assess suitability for breeding in dairy cows, to describe the prevalence of these scores in commercial dairy herds and to examine their relationship with subsequent fertility. Ultrasound examinations (7797) were performed on 5751 Holstein-Friesian cows prior to breeding in 62 seasonally calving herds over 2 years. Data recorded from images of both ovaries and the uterus were combined into a six point scoring system and the prevalence of cows with cystic ovarian follicles and uterine abscesses and adhesions was recorded separately. The prevalence of ovulatory cows which had completed uterine involution (score 1), or had mild (2) or moderate endometritis (3) was 62.5%, 21.7% and 2.2%, respectively. The prevalence of anovulatory cows with moderate endometritis (4), ovulatory cows with pyometra (5) and anovulatory cows which had completed uterine involution (6) was 3.3%, 2.2% and 8.1%, respectively. The interval between calving and examination differed between cows with each of the scores 1, 2, 5 and 6 (61, 46, 53 and 50 days, respectively, p < 0.05) but not between cows with scores 3 and 4 (37 and 35 days, respectively). Ovulatory cows which had completed uterine involution (score 1) had a higher likelihood of pregnancy to first service than ovulatory or anovulatory cows which had not completed uterine involution (p

21 CFR 522.1450 - Moxidectin solution.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. A withdrawal period has not been established for... this chapter. (d) Conditions of use in beef and nonlactating dairy cattle—(1) Amount. 0.2 mg/kilogram... communis var. bovis); lice: Linognathus vituli and Solenopotes capillatus; for protection of cattle from...

Including gene networks to predict calving ease in Holstein, Brown Swiss and Jersey cattle

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Background Calving difficulty or dystocia has a great economic impact in the US dairy industry. Reported risk factors associated with calving difficulty are feto-pelvic disproportion, gestation length and conformation. Different dairy cattle breeds have different incidence of calving difficulty, wit...

21 CFR 522.1450 - Moxidectin solution.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. A withdrawal period has not been established for... this chapter. (d) Conditions of use in beef and nonlactating dairy cattle—(1) Amount. 0.2 mg/kilogram... communis var. bovis); lice: Linognathus vituli and Solenopotes capillatus; for protection of cattle from...

Genomic selection in dairy cattle: the USDA experience

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Genomic selection has revolutionized dairy cattle breeding. Since 2000, assays have been developed to genotype large numbers of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) at relatively low cost. The first commercial SNP genotyping chip was released with a set of 54,001 SNP in December 2007. Over 15,000 ...

9 CFR 50.1 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... new livestock. Livestock. Cattle, bison, captive cervids, swine, dairy goats, and other hoofed animals... maintained, and for which individual registration certificates are issued and recorded by a recognized breed association whose purpose is the improvement of the breed. State. Any State, territory, the District of...

Genome-wide association study for longevity with whole-genome sequencing in 3 cattle breeds.

PubMed

Zhang, Qianqian; Guldbrandtsen, Bernt; Thomasen, Jørn Rind; Lund, Mogens Sandø; Sahana, Goutam

2016-09-01

Longevity is an important economic trait in dairy production. Improvements in longevity could increase the average number of lactations per cow, thereby affecting the profitability of the dairy cattle industry. Improved longevity for cows reduces the replacement cost of stock and enables animals to achieve the highest production period. Moreover, longevity is an indirect indicator of animal welfare. Using whole-genome sequencing variants in 3 dairy cattle breeds, we carried out an association study and identified 7 genomic regions in Holstein and 5 regions in Red Dairy Cattle that were associated with longevity. Meta-analyses of 3 breeds revealed 2 significant genomic regions, located on chromosomes 6 (META-CHR6-88MB) and 18 (META-CHR18-58MB). META-CHR6-88MB overlaps with 2 known genes: neuropeptide G-protein coupled receptor (NPFFR2; 89,052,210-89,059,348 bp) and vitamin D-binding protein precursor (GC; 88,695,940-88,739,180 bp). The NPFFR2 gene was previously identified as a candidate gene for mastitis resistance. META-CHR18-58MB overlaps with zinc finger protein 717 (ZNF717; 58,130,465-58,141,877 bp) and zinc finger protein 613 (ZNF613; 58,115,782-58,117,110 bp), which have been associated with calving difficulties. Information on longevity-associated genomic regions could be used to find causal genes/variants influencing longevity and exploited to improve the reliability of genomic prediction. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Impact of heat stress on health and performance of dairy animals: A review

PubMed Central

Das, Ramendra; Sailo, Lalrengpuii; Verma, Nishant; Bharti, Pranay; Saikia, Jnyanashree; Imtiwati; Kumar, Rakesh

2016-01-01

Sustainability in livestock production system is largely affected by climate change. An imbalance between metabolic heat production inside the animal body and its dissipation to the surroundings results to heat stress (HS) under high air temperature and humid climates. The foremost reaction of animals under thermal weather is increases in respiration rate, rectal temperature and heart rate. It directly affect feed intake thereby, reduces growth rate, milk yield, reproductive performance, and even death in extreme cases. Dairy breeds are typically more sensitive to HS than meat breeds, and higher producing animals are, furthermore, susceptible since they generates more metabolic heat. HS suppresses the immune and endocrine system thereby enhances susceptibility of an animal to various diseases. Hence, sustainable dairy farming remains a vast challenge in these changing climatic conditions globally. PMID:27057109

Efficiency of multi-breed genomic selection for dairy cattle breeds with different sizes of reference population.

PubMed

Hozé, C; Fritz, S; Phocas, F; Boichard, D; Ducrocq, V; Croiseau, P

2014-01-01

Single-breed genomic selection (GS) based on medium single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) density (~50,000; 50K) is now routinely implemented in several large cattle breeds. However, building large enough reference populations remains a challenge for many medium or small breeds. The high-density BovineHD BeadChip (HD chip; Illumina Inc., San Diego, CA) containing 777,609 SNP developed in 2010 is characterized by short-distance linkage disequilibrium expected to be maintained across breeds. Therefore, combining reference populations can be envisioned. A population of 1,869 influential ancestors from 3 dairy breeds (Holstein, Montbéliarde, and Normande) was genotyped with the HD chip. Using this sample, 50K genotypes were imputed within breed to high-density genotypes, leading to a large HD reference population. This population was used to develop a multi-breed genomic evaluation. The goal of this paper was to investigate the gain of multi-breed genomic evaluation for a small breed. The advantage of using a large breed (Normande in the present study) to mimic a small breed is the large potential validation population to compare alternative genomic selection approaches more reliably. In the Normande breed, 3 training sets were defined with 1,597, 404, and 198 bulls, and a unique validation set included the 394 youngest bulls. For each training set, estimated breeding values (EBV) were computed using pedigree-based BLUP, single-breed BayesC, or multi-breed BayesC for which the reference population was formed by any of the Normande training data sets and 4,989 Holstein and 1,788 Montbéliarde bulls. Phenotypes were standardized by within-breed genetic standard deviation, the proportion of polygenic variance was set to 30%, and the estimated number of SNP with a nonzero effect was about 7,000. The 2 genomic selection (GS) approaches were performed using either the 50K or HD genotypes. The correlations between EBV and observed daughter yield deviations (DYD) were computed for 6 traits and using the different prediction approaches. Compared with pedigree-based BLUP, the average gain in accuracy with GS in small populations was 0.057 for the single-breed and 0.086 for multi-breed approach. This gain was up to 0.193 and 0.209, respectively, with the large reference population. Improvement of EBV prediction due to the multi-breed evaluation was higher for animals not closely related to the reference population. In the case of a breed with a small reference population size, the increase in correlation due to multi-breed GS was 0.141 for bulls without their sire in reference population compared with 0.016 for bulls with their sire in reference population. These results demonstrate that multi-breed GS can contribute to increase genomic evaluation accuracy in small breeds. Copyright © 2014 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Cow genotyping strategies for genomic selection in a small dairy cattle population.

PubMed

Jenko, J; Wiggans, G R; Cooper, T A; Eaglen, S A E; Luff, W G de L; Bichard, M; Pong-Wong, R; Woolliams, J A

2017-01-01

This study compares how different cow genotyping strategies increase the accuracy of genomic estimated breeding values (EBV) in dairy cattle breeds with low numbers. In these breeds, few sires have progeny records, and genotyping cows can improve the accuracy of genomic EBV. The Guernsey breed is a small dairy cattle breed with approximately 14,000 recorded individuals worldwide. Predictions of phenotypes of milk yield, fat yield, protein yield, and calving interval were made for Guernsey cows from England and Guernsey Island using genomic EBV, with training sets including 197 de-regressed proofs of genotyped bulls, with cows selected from among 1,440 genotyped cows using different genotyping strategies. Accuracies of predictions were tested using 10-fold cross-validation among the cows. Genomic EBV were predicted using 4 different methods: (1) pedigree BLUP, (2) genomic BLUP using only bulls, (3) univariate genomic BLUP using bulls and cows, and (4) bivariate genomic BLUP. Genotyping cows with phenotypes and using their data for the prediction of single nucleotide polymorphism effects increased the correlation between genomic EBV and phenotypes compared with using only bulls by 0.163±0.022 for milk yield, 0.111±0.021 for fat yield, and 0.113±0.018 for protein yield; a decrease of 0.014±0.010 for calving interval from a low base was the only exception. Genetic correlation between phenotypes from bulls and cows were approximately 0.6 for all yield traits and significantly different from 1. Only a very small change occurred in correlation between genomic EBV and phenotypes when using the bivariate model. It was always better to genotype all the cows, but when only half of the cows were genotyped, a divergent selection strategy was better compared with the random or directional selection approach. Divergent selection of 30% of the cows remained superior for the yield traits in 8 of 10 folds. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Establishment of the biochemical and endocrine blood profiles in the Majorera and Palmera dairy goat breeds: the effect of feed restriction.

PubMed

Lérias, Joana R; Peña, Raquel; Hernández-Castellano, Lorenzo E; Capote, Juan; Castro, Noemí; Argüello, Anastasio; Araújo, Susana S; Saco, Yolanda; Bassols, Anna; Almeida, André M

2015-11-01

Feed restriction, and seasonal weight loss (SWL), are major setbacks for animal production in the tropics and the Mediterranean. They may be solved through the use of autochthonous breeds particularly well adapted to SWL. It is therefore of major importance to determine markers of tolerance to feed restriction of putative use in animal selection. Two indigenous breeds from the Canary Islands, Palmera and Majorera, are commonly used by dairy goat farmers and, interestingly, have different phenotype characteristics albeit with a common ancestry. Indeed, Majorera is well adapted to feed restriction whereas the Palmera is susceptible to feed restriction. In addition, regardless of their importance in dairy production, there are only a limited number of reports relating to these breeds and, to the best of our knowledge, there is no description of their blood metabolite standard values under control conditions or as affected by feed restriction. In this study we analysed the blood metabolite profiles in Majorera and Palmera goats aiming to establish the differential responses to feed restriction between the two breeds and to characterise their metabolite standard values under control conditions. We observed significant differences in creatinine, urea, non-esterified fatty acids (NEFAs), cholesterol, IGF-1 and T3 due to underfeeding. Furthermore, a PCA analysis, revealed that animals submitted to undernutrition could be distinguished from the control groups, with the formation of three separate clusters (Palmera individuals after 22 d of subnutrition (PE22); Majorera individuals after 22 d of subnutrition (ME22) and animals assigned to control conditions (MC0, MC22, PC0 and PC22)), highlighting different responses of the two breeds to undernutrition.

Short communication: Genetic parameters for milk protein composition predicted using mid-infrared spectroscopy in the French Montbéliarde, Normande, and Holstein dairy cattle breeds.

PubMed

Sanchez, M P; Ferrand, M; Gelé, M; Pourchet, D; Miranda, G; Martin, P; Brochard, M; Boichard, D

2017-08-01

Genetic parameters for the major milk proteins were estimated in the 3 main French dairy cattle breeds (i.e. Montbéliarde, Normande, and Holstein) as part of the PhénoFinlait program. The 6 major milk protein contents as well as the total protein content (PC) were estimated from mid-infrared spectrometry on 133,592 test-day milk samples from 20,434 cows in first lactation. Lactation means, expressed as a percentage of milk (protein contents) or of protein (protein fractions), were analyzed with an animal mixed model including fixed environmental effects (herd, year × month of calving, and spectrometer) and a random genetic effect. Genetic parameter estimates were very consistent across breeds. Heritability estimates (h 2 ) were generally higher for protein fractions than for protein contents. They were moderate to high for α S1 -casein, α S2 -casein, β-casein, κ-casein, and α-lactalbumin (0.25 < h 2 < 0.72). In each breed, β-lactoglobulin was the most heritable trait (0.61 < h 2 < 0.86). Genetic correlations (r g ) varied depending on how the percentage was expressed. The PC was strongly positively correlated with protein contents but almost genetically independent from protein fractions. Protein fractions were generally in opposition, except between κ-casein and α-lactalbumin (0.39 < r g < 0.46) and κ-casein and α S2 -casein (0.36 < r g < 0.49). Between protein contents, r g estimates were positive, with highest values found between caseins (0.83 < r g < 0.98). In the 3 breeds, β-lactoglobulin was negatively correlated with caseins (-0.75 < r g < -0.08), in particular with κ-casein (-0.75 < r g < -0.55). These results, obtained from a large panel of cows of the 3 main French dairy cattle breeds, show that routinely collected mid-infrared spectra could be used to modify milk protein composition by selection. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Applications and cost benefits of sexed semen in pasture-based dairy production systems.

PubMed

Butler, S T; Hutchinson, I A; Cromie, A R; Shalloo, L

2014-05-01

Sexed semen technology is now commercially available in many countries around the world, and is primarily used in dairy cattle breeding. Sperm are sorted by flow cytometry on the basis of a 4% difference in DNA content between sperm containing X and Y chromosomes. Despite reliably producing a 90% gender bias, the fertility of the sexed semen product is compromised compared with conventional semen. The negative implications of the reduced fertility of sexed semen are amplified in seasonal systems of dairy production, as the importance of fertility is greater in these systems compared with year-round calving systems. A review of the literature indicates that conception rates (CR) to 1st service with frozen-thawed sexed semen are ~75% to 80% of those achieved with conventional frozen-thawed semen. Preliminary results from a large-scale field trial carried out in Ireland in 2013 suggest that significant improvements in the performance of sexed semen have been made, with CR of 87% of those achieved with conventional semen. The improved fertility of a sexed semen product that delivers a 90% gender bias has considerable implications for the future of breeding management in pasture-based dairy production systems. Sexed semen may facilitate faster, more profitable dairy herd expansion by increasing the number of dairy heifer replacements born. Biosecurity can be improved by maintaining a closed herd during the period of herd expansion. In a non-expansion scenario, sexed semen may be used to increase the value of beef output from the dairy herd. The replacement heifer requirements for a herd could be met by using sexed semen in the 1st 3 weeks of the breeding season, with the remaining animals bred to beef sires, increasing the sale value over that of a dairy bull calf. Alternatively, very short gestation sires could be used to shorten the calving interval. Market prices have a considerable effect on the economics of sexed semen use, and widespread use of sexed semen should be restricted to well managed herds that already achieve acceptable herd fertility performance.

21 CFR 529.1940 - Progesterone intravaginal inserts.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... synchronization of estrus in suckled beef cows and replacement beef and dairy heifers; for advancement of first postpartum estrus in suckled beef cows; and for advancement of first pubertal estrus in replacement beef.... Do not use in beef or dairy heifers of insufficient size or age for breeding or in animals with...

21 CFR 529.1940 - Progesterone intravaginal inserts.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... synchronization of estrus in suckled beef cows and replacement beef and dairy heifers; for advancement of first postpartum estrus in suckled beef cows; and for advancement of first pubertal estrus in replacement beef.... Do not use in beef or dairy heifers of insufficient size or age for breeding or in animals with...

21 CFR 529.1940 - Progesterone intravaginal inserts.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... synchronization of estrus in suckled beef cows and replacement beef and dairy heifers; for advancement of first postpartum estrus in suckled beef cows; and for advancement of first pubertal estrus in replacement beef.... Do not use in beef or dairy heifers of insufficient size or age for breeding or in animals with...

Profitable Dairy Cow Traits for Hot Climatic Conditions

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Permanent differences in environment have led to the distinct cattle races. Bos indicus cattle evolved in the tropical areas of southern Asia, and are heat-tolerant. The major dairy breeds in the USA are Bos taurus cattle, which evolved in temperate environments, that are less heat tolerant but whic...

Identification of gene networks underlying dystocia in dairy cattle

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Dystocia is a trait with a high impact in the dairy industry. Among its risk factors are calf weight, gestation length, breed and conformation. Biological networks have been proposed to capture the genetic architecture of complex traits, where GWAS show limitations. The objective of this study was t...

An international overview of the recording and use of functional traits in dairy cattle breeding and management

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

An important component in the development of sustainable dairy production systems is the maintenance of cow health and functionality. Genetic selection has resulted in substantial increases in cow productivity over the past fifty years, but health and fertility are increasingly important determinant...

Expected net present value of pure and mixed sexed semen artificial insemination strategies in dairy heifers.

PubMed

Olynk, N J; Wolf, C A

2007-05-01

Sexed semen has been a long-anticipated tool for dairy farmers to obtain more heifer calves, but challenges exist for integrating sexed semen into commercial dairy farm reproduction programs. The decreased conception rates (CR) experienced with sexed semen make virgin heifers better suited for insemination with sexed semen than lactating dairy cows. This research sought to identify when various sexed semen breeding strategies provided higher expected net present value (NPV) than conventional artificial insemination (AI) breeding schemes, indicating which breeding scheme is advisable under various scenarios. Budgets were developed to calculate the expected NPV of various AI breeding strategies incorporating conventional (non-sexed) and sexed semen. In the base budgets, heifer and bull calf values were held constant at $500 and $110, respectively. The percentage of heifers expected to be born after breeding with conventional and sexed semen used was 49.2 and 90%, respectively. Breeding costs per AI were held constant at $15.00 per AI for conventional semen and $45.00 per AI for sexed semen of approximately the same genetic value. Conventional semen CR of 58 and 65% were used, and an AI submission rate was set at 100%. Breeding strategies with sexed semen were assessed for breakeven heifer calf values and sexed semen costs to obtain a NPV equal to that achieved with conventional semen. Breakeven heifer calf values for pure sexed semen strategies with a constant 58 and 65% base CR in which sexed semen achieved 53% of the base CR are $732.11 and $664.26, respectively. Breakeven sexed semen costs per AI of $17.16 and $22.39, compared with $45.00 per AI, were obtained to obtain a NPV equal to that obtained with pure conventional semen for base CR of 58 and 65%, respectively. The strategy employing purely sexed semen, with base CR of both 58 and 65%, yielded a lower NPV than purely conventional semen in all but the best-case scenario in which sexed semen provides 90% of the CR of conventional semen. Other potential advantages of sexed semen that were not quantified in the scenarios include biosecurity-related concerns, decreased dystocia due to increased numbers of heifer calves, and implications for internal herd growth.

The effects of treading by two breeds of dairy cow with different live weights on soil physical properties, poaching damage and herbage production on a poorly drained clay-loam soil.

PubMed

Tuohy, P; Fenton, O; Holden, N M; Humphreys, J

2015-11-01

There is little empirical evidence to indicate that dairy cow live weight affects the extent of soil damage at the hoof-soil interface during grazing on poorly drained permanent grassland. In the present study the impact of Holstein-Friesian (HF) dairy cows with a mean (±standard deviation) live weight of 570 (±61) kg were compared with Jersey × Holstein-Friesian (JX) with a mean live weight of 499 (±52) kg each at two stocking densities: mean 2·42 ± (0·062) and 2·66 (±0·079) cows/ha. Soil physical properties (bulk density, macroporosity, gravimetric water content, air-filled porosity, penetration resistance and shear strength), poaching damage (post-grazing soil surface deformation and hoof-print depth), herbage yield and milk production were measured throughout 2011 and 2012. Soil physical properties, post-grazing soil surface deformation and herbage production were not affected by dairy cow breed or by interactions between breed and stocking density. Hoof-print depth was higher in the HF treatments (39 v. 37 mm, s.e. 0·5 mm). Loading pressure imposed at the soil surface was the same for both breeds due to a direct correlation between live weight and hoof size. Poaching damage was greater at higher stocking density. Using the lighter JX cow offered little advantage in terms of lowering the negative impact of treading on soil physical properties or reducing poaching damage and no advantage in terms of herbage or milk production compared with the heavier HF cow.

Evaluation of breeding strategies for polledness in dairy cattle using a newly developed simulation framework for quantitative and Mendelian traits.

PubMed

Scheper, Carsten; Wensch-Dorendorf, Monika; Yin, Tong; Dressel, Holger; Swalve, Herrmann; König, Sven

2016-06-29

Intensified selection of polled individuals has recently gained importance in predominantly horned dairy cattle breeds as an alternative to routine dehorning. The status quo of the current polled breeding pool of genetically-closely related artificial insemination sires with lower breeding values for performance traits raises questions regarding the effects of intensified selection based on this founder pool. We developed a stochastic simulation framework that combines the stochastic simulation software QMSim and a self-designed R program named QUALsim that acts as an external extension. Two traits were simulated in a dairy cattle population for 25 generations: one quantitative (QMSim) and one qualitative trait with Mendelian inheritance (i.e. polledness, QUALsim). The assignment scheme for qualitative trait genotypes initiated realistic initial breeding situations regarding allele frequencies, true breeding values for the quantitative trait and genetic relatedness. Intensified selection for polled cattle was achieved using an approach that weights estimated breeding values in the animal best linear unbiased prediction model for the quantitative trait depending on genotypes or phenotypes for the polled trait with a user-defined weighting factor. Selection response for the polled trait was highest in the selection scheme based on genotypes. Selection based on phenotypes led to significantly lower allele frequencies for polled. The male selection path played a significantly greater role for a fast dissemination of polled alleles compared to female selection strategies. Fixation of the polled allele implies selection based on polled genotypes among males. In comparison to a base breeding scenario that does not take polledness into account, intensive selection for polled substantially reduced genetic gain for this quantitative trait after 25 generations. Reducing selection intensity for polled males while maintaining strong selection intensity among females, simultaneously decreased losses in genetic gain and achieved a final allele frequency of 0.93 for polled. A fast transition to a completely polled population through intensified selection for polled was in contradiction to the preservation of high genetic gain for the quantitative trait. Selection on male polled genotypes with moderate weighting, and selection on female polled phenotypes with high weighting, could be a suitable compromise regarding all important breeding aspects.

Genetic parameters of linear conformation type traits and their relationship with milk yield throughout lactation in mixed-breed dairy goats.

PubMed

McLaren, A; Mucha, S; Mrode, R; Coffey, M; Conington, J

2016-07-01

Conformation traits are of interest to many dairy goat breeders not only as descriptive traits in their own right, but also because of their influence on production, longevity, and profitability. If these traits are to be considered for inclusion in future dairy goat breeding programs, relationships between them and production traits such as milk yield must be considered. With the increased use of regression models to estimate genetic parameters, an opportunity now exists to investigate correlations between conformation traits and milk yield throughout lactation in more detail. The aims of this study were therefore to (1) estimate genetic parameters for conformation traits in a population of crossbred dairy goats, (2) estimate correlations between all conformation traits, and (3) assess the relationship between conformation traits and milk yield throughout lactation. No information on milk composition was available. Data were collected from goats based on 2 commercial goat farms during August and September in 2013 and 2014. Ten conformation traits, relating to udder, teat, leg, and feet characteristics, were scored on a linear scale (1-9). The overall data set comprised data available for 4,229 goats, all in their first lactation. The population of goats used in the study was created using random crossings between 3 breeds: British Alpine, Saanen, and Toggenburg. In each generation, the best performing animals were selected for breeding, leading to the formation of a synthetic breed. The pedigree file used in the analyses contained sire and dam information for a total of 30,139 individuals. The models fitted relevant fixed and random effects. Heritability estimates for the conformation traits were low to moderate, ranging from 0.02 to 0.38. A range of positive and negative phenotypic and genetic correlations between the traits were observed, with the highest correlations found between udder depth and udder attachment (0.78), teat angle and teat placement (0.70), and back legs and back feet (0.64). The genetic correlations estimated between conformation traits and milk yield across the first lactation demonstrated changes during this period. The majority of correlations estimated between milk yield and the udder and teat traits were negative. Therefore, future breeding programs would benefit from including these traits to ensure that selection for increased productivity is not accompanied by any unwanted change in functional fitness. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

An assessment of dairy herd bulls in southern Australia: 1. Management practices and bull breeding soundness evaluations.

PubMed

Hancock, A S; Younis, P J; Beggs, D S; Mansell, P D; Stevenson, M A; Pyman, M F

2016-12-01

In the pasture-based, seasonally calving dairy herds of southern Australia, the mating period usually consists of an initial artificial insemination period followed by a period of natural service using herd bulls. Bull breeding soundness evaluations (BBSE) were performed on 256 bulls from 32 dairy herds in southwest Victoria, using guidelines produced by the Australian Cattle Veterinarians, before and immediately after a single natural mating period. At the same time, herd managers were questioned regarding the management of the bulls. The objectives of this study were to describe the management practices of dairy herd bulls; to describe the causes of increased risk of reduced fertility in dairy herd bulls, as measured by a standard BBSE; and to describe the reasons for bull removal by herd managers during mating. At the premating BBSE, 19.5% of bulls were classified as high risk of reduced fertility, mostly due to physical abnormalities and reduced semen quality. At the postmating BBSE, 36.5% of bulls were classified as high risk of reduced fertility, mostly due to physical abnormalities, primarily lameness. Of the bulls used, 15.9% were removed from normal mating use by the herd manager, predominantly due to lameness and injuries. A premating BBSE is recommended in dairy herd bulls to identify bulls at risk of reduced fertility. Lameness is the most common problem in dairy herd bulls during the natural mating period, and risk factors associated with lameness in these bulls should be identified to better manage herd bulls. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Genomic diversity and population structure of three autochthonous Greek sheep breeds assessed with genome-wide DNA arrays.

PubMed

Michailidou, S; Tsangaris, G; Fthenakis, G C; Tzora, A; Skoufos, I; Karkabounas, S C; Banos, G; Argiriou, A; Arsenos, G

2018-06-01

In the present study, genome-wide genotyping was applied to characterize the genetic diversity and population structure of three autochthonous Greek breeds: Boutsko, Karagouniko and Chios. Dairy sheep are among the most significant livestock species in Greece numbering approximately 9 million animals which are characterized by large phenotypic variation and reared under various farming systems. A total of 96 animals were genotyped with the Illumina's OvineSNP50K microarray beadchip, to study the population structure of the breeds and develop a specialized panel of single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), which could distinguish one breed from the others. Quality control on the dataset resulted in 46,125 SNPs, which were used to evaluate the genetic structure of the breeds. Population structure was assessed through principal component analysis (PCA) and admixture analysis, whereas inbreeding was estimated based on runs of homozygosity (ROHs) coefficients, genomic relationship matrix inbreeding coefficients (F GRM ) and patterns of linkage disequilibrium (LD). Associations between SNPs and breeds were analyzed with different inheritance models, to identify SNPs that distinguish among the breeds. Results showed high levels of genetic heterogeneity in the three breeds. Genetic distances among breeds were modest, despite their different ancestries. Chios and Karagouniko breeds were more genetically related to each other compared to Boutsko. Analysis revealed 3802 candidate SNPs that can be used to identify two-breed crosses and purebred animals. The present study provides, for the first time, data on the genetic background of three Greek indigenous dairy sheep breeds as well as a specialized marker panel that can be applied for traceability purposes as well as targeted genetic improvement schemes and conservation programs.

Invited review: overview of new traits and phenotyping strategies in dairy cattle with a focus on functional traits

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

For several decades, breeding goals in dairy cattle focused on increased milk production. However, many functional traits have negative genetic correlations with milk yield and reductions in genetic merit for health and fitness have been observed. Herd management has been challenged to compensate fo...

Does ownership of improved dairy cow breeds improve child nutrition? A pathway analysis for Uganda.

PubMed

Kabunga, Nassul S; Ghosh, Shibani; Webb, Patrick

2017-01-01

The promotion of livestock production is widely believed to support enhanced diet quality and child nutrition, but the empirical evidence for this causal linkage remains narrow and ambiguous. This study examines whether adoption of improved dairy cow breeds is linked to farm-level outcomes that translate into household-level benefits including improved child nutrition outcomes in Uganda. Using nationwide data from Uganda's National Panel Survey, propensity score matching is used to create an unbiased counterfactual, based on observed characteristics, to assess the net impacts of improved dairy cow adoption. All estimates were tested for robustness and sensitivity to variations in observable and unobservable confounders. Results based on the matched samples showed that households adopting improved dairy cows significantly increased milk yield-by over 200% on average. This resulted in higher milk sales and milk intakes, demonstrating the potential of this agricultural technology to both integrate households into modern value chains and increase households' access to animal source foods. Use of improved dairy cows increased household food expenditures by about 16%. Although undernutrition was widely prevalent in the study sample and in matched households, the adoption of improved dairy cows was associated with lower child stunting in adopter household. In scale terms, results also showed that holding larger farms tends to support adoption, but that this also stimulates the household's ability to achieve gains from adoption, which can translate into enhanced nutrition.

7 CFR 1416.101 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... milk for human consumption that were at least 2 years old and used for breeding dairy cows on the... providing milk for human consumption that had delivered one or more offspring before the beginning date of... male bovine livestock, of a breed used for the purpose of providing milk for human consumption, that...

7 CFR 1416.101 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... milk for human consumption that were at least 2 years old and used for breeding dairy cows on the... providing milk for human consumption that had delivered one or more offspring before the beginning date of... male bovine livestock, of a breed used for the purpose of providing milk for human consumption, that...

7 CFR 1416.101 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... milk for human consumption that were at least 2 years old and used for breeding dairy cows on the... providing milk for human consumption that had delivered one or more offspring before the beginning date of... male bovine livestock, of a breed used for the purpose of providing milk for human consumption, that...

Divergence at the casein haplotypes in dairy and meat goat breeds.

PubMed

Küpper, Julia; Chessa, Stefania; Rignanese, Daniela; Caroli, Anna; Erhardt, Georg

2010-02-01

Casein genes have been proved to have an influence on milk properties, and are in addition appropriate for phylogeny studies. A large number of casein polymorphisms exist in goats, making their analysis quite complex. The four casein loci were analyzed by molecular techniques for genetic polymorphism detection in the two dairy goat breeds Bunte Deutsche Edelziege (BDE; n=96), Weisse Deutsche Edelziege (WDE; n=91), and the meat goat breed Buren (n=75). Of the 35 analyzed alleles, 18 were found in BDE, and 17 in Buren goats and WDE. In addition, a new allele was identified at the CSN1S1 locus in the BDE, showing a frequency of 0.05. This variant, named CSN1S1*A', is characterized by a t-->c transversion in intron 9. Linkage disequilibrium was found at the casein haplotype in all three breeds. A total of 30 haplotypes showed frequencies higher than 0.01. In the Buren breed only one haplotype showed a frequency higher than 0.1. The ancestral haplotype B-A-A-B (in the order: CSN1S1-CSN2-CSN1S2-CSN3) occurred in all three breeds, showing a very high frequency (>0.8) in the Buren.

Constraints on dairy cattle productivity at the smallholder level in the Philippines.

PubMed

Alejandrino, A L; Asaad, C O; Malabayabas, B; De Vera, A C; Herrera, M S; Deocaris, C C; Ignacio, L M; Palo, L P

1999-01-27

Survey data on dairy cattle production were gathered in two sites [Site I (three-year survey) and Site II (two-year survey)] in Southern Luzon, Philippines. Crossbred (Holstein-Friesian x Sahiwal) dairy cows (n = 122) managed by smallholder farmers belonging to five primary cooperatives under the federation of dairy farmers, were monitored monthly for milk production, feed intake and availability, and reproduction and health status. The purpose of the survey was to identify constraints to productivity. The reproductive status of the cows was monitored by measuring milk and plasma progesterone concentrations by radioimmunoassay and rectal palpation of the ovaries. Plasma concentrations of selected metabolites [beta-hydroxybutyrate (BHB), inorganic phosphorus, albumin, globulin, urea] were also measured at one month before calving and at one month and 2-3 months postpartum, to determine if these could serve as biochemical indicators of nutritional stress. A long calving interval (CI = > 400 days) was identified as the major constraint to productivity of dairy cattle on smallholder farms. The three main problems related to this reproductive constraint were: (1) poor breeding management, in particular lack of accurate estrus detection; (2) repeat breeding, i.e. three or more services were required before conception; and (3) poor ovarian function, shown by some cows with lose progesterone levels. An important cause of these problems was undernutrition, particularly at critical periods of the cow's reproductive life, reflected in the slow recovery from loss in body weight and condition score during the early postpartum period and the increased plasma BHB values at peripartum period in some cows, indicative of negative energy balance, and the flat lactation profile. These findings are useful and relevant as a database in the development of an appropriate management scheme aimed toward improving dairy cattle production and productivity at smallholder level. It highlights the importance of estrus detection, good breeding management and the use of a practical strategic nutritional supplementation, particularly during stressful periods in the cows's reproductive life.

Why do people buy dogs with potential welfare problems related to extreme conformation and inherited disease? A representative study of Danish owners of four small dog breeds

PubMed Central

Kondrup, S. V.; Bennett, P. C.; Forkman, B.; Meyer, I; Proschowsky, H. F.; Serpell, J. A.; Lund, T. B.

2017-01-01

A number of dog breeds suffer from welfare problems due to extreme phenotypes and high levels of inherited diseases but the popularity of such breeds is not declining. Using a survey of owners of two popular breeds with extreme physical features (French Bulldog and Chihuahua), one with a high load of inherited diseases not directly related to conformation (Cavalier King Charles Spaniel), and one representing the same size range but without extreme conformation and with the same level of disease as the overall dog population (Cairn Terrier), we investigated this seeming paradox. We examined planning and motivational factors behind acquisition of the dogs, and whether levels of experienced health and behavior problems were associated with the quality of the owner-dog relationship and the intention to re-procure a dog of the same breed. Owners of each of the four breeds (750/breed) were randomly drawn from a nationwide Danish dog registry and invited to participate. Of these, 911 responded, giving a final sample of 846. There were clear differences between owners of the four breeds with respect to degree of planning prior to purchase, with owners of Chihuahuas exhibiting less. Motivations behind choice of dog were also different. Health and other breed attributes were more important to owners of Cairn Terriers, whereas the dog’s personality was reported to be more important for owners of French Bulldogs and Cavalier King Charles Spaniels but less important for Chihuahua owners. Higher levels of health and behavior problems were positively associated with a closer owner-dog relationship for owners of Cavalier King Charles Spaniels and Chihuahuas but, for owners of French Bulldogs, high levels of problems were negatively associated with an intention to procure the same breed again. In light of these findings, it appears less paradoxical that people continue to buy dogs with welfare problems. PMID:28234931

Why do people buy dogs with potential welfare problems related to extreme conformation and inherited disease? A representative study of Danish owners of four small dog breeds.

PubMed

Sandøe, P; Kondrup, S V; Bennett, P C; Forkman, B; Meyer, I; Proschowsky, H F; Serpell, J A; Lund, T B

2017-01-01

A number of dog breeds suffer from welfare problems due to extreme phenotypes and high levels of inherited diseases but the popularity of such breeds is not declining. Using a survey of owners of two popular breeds with extreme physical features (French Bulldog and Chihuahua), one with a high load of inherited diseases not directly related to conformation (Cavalier King Charles Spaniel), and one representing the same size range but without extreme conformation and with the same level of disease as the overall dog population (Cairn Terrier), we investigated this seeming paradox. We examined planning and motivational factors behind acquisition of the dogs, and whether levels of experienced health and behavior problems were associated with the quality of the owner-dog relationship and the intention to re-procure a dog of the same breed. Owners of each of the four breeds (750/breed) were randomly drawn from a nationwide Danish dog registry and invited to participate. Of these, 911 responded, giving a final sample of 846. There were clear differences between owners of the four breeds with respect to degree of planning prior to purchase, with owners of Chihuahuas exhibiting less. Motivations behind choice of dog were also different. Health and other breed attributes were more important to owners of Cairn Terriers, whereas the dog's personality was reported to be more important for owners of French Bulldogs and Cavalier King Charles Spaniels but less important for Chihuahua owners. Higher levels of health and behavior problems were positively associated with a closer owner-dog relationship for owners of Cavalier King Charles Spaniels and Chihuahuas but, for owners of French Bulldogs, high levels of problems were negatively associated with an intention to procure the same breed again. In light of these findings, it appears less paradoxical that people continue to buy dogs with welfare problems.

Environmental and genetic factors affecting milk yield and quality in three Italian sheep breeds.

PubMed

Selvaggi, Maria; D'Alessandro, Angela Gabriella; Dario, Cataldo

2017-02-01

The aims of the study described in the Research Communication were to determine the level of influence of some environmental factors on milk yield and quality traits, including lactose, and lactation length in ewes belonging to three different Italian breeds and to estimate the heritability for the same traits. A total of 2138 lactation records obtained from 535 ewes belonging to three different Italian breeds (Comisana, Leccese, and Sarda) were used. Breed significantly affected all of the considered traits. Moreover, year of lambing affected milk yield and lactation length without influence on milk quality traits. Parity affected significantly only the milk yield, whereas type of birth showed its effect on milk yield, fat, protein, and lactose yield. On the whole, the presently reported heritability estimates are within the range of those already obtained in other dairy breeds by other authors, with values for lactation length being very low in all the investigated populations. Considering the heritability estimates for lactose content and yield, to the best of our knowledge, there is a lack of information on these parameters in ovine species and this is the first report on heritability of lactose content and yield in dairy sheep breeds. Our results suggest that genetic variability for milk traits other than lactation length is adequate for selection indicating a good response to selection in these breeds.

Economic values of production and functional traits, including residual feed intake, in Finnish milk production.

PubMed

Hietala, P; Wolfová, M; Wolf, J; Kantanen, J; Juga, J

2014-02-01

Improving the feed efficiency of dairy cattle has a substantial effect on the economic efficiency and on the reduction of harmful environmental effects of dairy production through lower feeding costs and emissions from dairy farming. To assess the economic importance of feed efficiency in the breeding goal for dairy cattle, the economic values for the current breeding goal traits and the additional feed efficiency traits for Finnish Ayrshire cattle under production circumstances in 2011 were determined. The derivation of economic values was based on a bioeconomic model in which the profit of the production system was calculated, using the generated steady state herd structure. Considering beef production from dairy farms, 2 marketing strategies for surplus calves were investigated: (A) surplus calves were sold at a young age and (B) surplus calves were fattened on dairy farms. Both marketing strategies were unprofitable when subsidies were not included in the revenues. When subsidies were taken into account, a positive profitability was observed in both marketing strategies. The marginal economic values for residual feed intake (RFI) of breeding heifers and cows were -25.5 and -55.8 €/kg of dry matter per day per cow and year, respectively. The marginal economic value for RFI of animals in fattening was -29.5 €/kg of dry matter per day per cow and year. To compare the economic importance among traits, the standardized economic weight of each trait was calculated as the product of the marginal economic value and the genetic standard deviation; the standardized economic weight expressed as a percentage of the sum of all standardized economic weights was called relative economic weight. When not accounting for subsidies, the highest relative economic weight was found for 305-d milk yield (34% in strategy A and 29% in strategy B), which was followed by protein percentage (13% in strategy A and 11% in strategy B). The third most important traits were calving interval (9%) and mature weight of cows (11%) in strategy A and B, respectively. The sums of the relative economic weights over categories for RFI were 6 and 7% in strategy A and B, respectively. Under production conditions in 2011, the relative economic weights for the studied feed efficiency traits were low. However, it is possible that the relative importance of feed efficiency traits in the breeding goal will increase in the future due to increasing requirements to mitigate the environmental impact of milk production. Copyright © 2014 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The effect of Lameness before and during the breeding season on fertility in 10 pasture-based Irish dairy herds.

PubMed

Somers, Joris R; Huxley, Jon; Lorenz, Ingrid; Doherty, Michael L; O'Grady, Luke

2015-01-01

The effects of lameness on fertility have been documented frequently but few data are available from seasonally breeding, pasture-based herds (such as those used in Ireland) where cows are housed during the winter months but managed at pasture for the remainder of the year. This study determined the prevalence of lameness in a group of 786 cows in 10 pasture-based Irish dairy herds before, during and after the breeding season and assessed the relationship between lameness and the reproductive performance in these herds through serial locomotion scoring during the grazing period. Lameness prevalences of 11.6 % before, 14.6 % during and 11.6 % after the breeding season were found and these compared favourably to results from housed cattle and are similar to other studies carried out in grazing herds. A Cox proportional hazards model with locomotion score as time varying covariate was used. After controlling for the effect of farm, month of calving, body condition score at calving, body condition score loss after calving and economic breeding index, cows identified as lame during the study were less likely to become pregnant. Cows lame before the earliest serve date but no longer lame during the breeding season, cows becoming lame after the earliest serve date and cows identified lame both before and after this date were respectively 12 %, 35 % and 38 % less likely to become pregnant compared to cows never observed lame during the study. However, these findings were only significant for cows becoming lame after the earliest serve date and cows lame both before and after the start of breeding. This study found that the reproductive efficiency was significantly (p < 0.05) lower in cows becoming lame during the breeding season and cows lame before and during the breeding season compared to non-lame cows. Cows no longer lame during the breeding season had a lower Submission Rate to first serve within 3 weeks of earliest serve date. However, the Pregnancy Rate was not significantly (p > 0.05) lower in these animals compared to cows never diagnosed as lame. In addition to lameness status, nutritional status and genetics were found to influence the reproductive performance in pasture-based Irish dairy herds.

Evolution of the genetic variability of eight French dairy cattle breeds assessed by pedigree analysis.

PubMed

Danchin-Burge, C; Leroy, G; Brochard, M; Moureaux, S; Verrier, E

2012-06-01

A pedigree analysis was performed on eight French dairy cattle breeds to assess their change in genetic variability since a first analysis completed in 1996. The Holstein, Normande and Montbéliarde breeds are selected internationally with over hundreds of thousands cows registered in the performance recording system. Three breeds are internationally selected but with limited numbers of cows in France (Brown Swiss, French Simmental and French Red Pied). The last two remaining breeds (Abondance and Tarentaise) are raised at regional level. The effective numbers of ancestors of cows born between 2004 and 2007 varied between 15 (Abondance and Tarentaise) and 51 (French Red Pied). The effective population sizes (classical approach) varied between 53 (Abondance) and 197 (French Red Pied). This article also compares the genetic variability of the ex situ (collections of the French National Cryobank) and in situ populations. The results were commented in regard to the recent history of gene flows in the different breeds as well as the existence of more or less stringent bottlenecks. Our results showed that whatever the size of the breeds, their genetic diversity impoverished quite rapidly since 1996 and they all could be considered as quite poor from a genetic diversity point of view. It shows the need for setting up cryobanks as gene reservoirs as well as sustainable breeding programmes that include loss of genetic diversity as an integrated control parameter. © 2011 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

Identification of selection signatures in cattle breeds selected for dairy production.

PubMed

Stella, Alessandra; Ajmone-Marsan, Paolo; Lazzari, Barbara; Boettcher, Paul

2010-08-01

The genomics revolution has spurred the undertaking of HapMap studies of numerous species, allowing for population genomics to increase the understanding of how selection has created genetic differences between subspecies populations. The objectives of this study were to (1) develop an approach to detect signatures of selection in subsets of phenotypically similar breeds of livestock by comparing single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) diversity between the subset and a larger population, (2) verify this method in breeds selected for simply inherited traits, and (3) apply this method to the dairy breeds in the International Bovine HapMap (IBHM) study. The data consisted of genotypes for 32,689 SNPs of 497 animals from 19 breeds. For a given subset of breeds, the test statistic was the parametric composite log likelihood (CLL) of the differences in allelic frequencies between the subset and the IBHM for a sliding window of SNPs. The null distribution was obtained by calculating CLL for 50,000 random subsets (per chromosome) of individuals. The validity of this approach was confirmed by obtaining extremely large CLLs at the sites of causative variation for polled (BTA1) and black-coat-color (BTA18) phenotypes. Across the 30 bovine chromosomes, 699 putative selection signatures were detected. The largest CLL was on BTA6 and corresponded to KIT, which is responsible for the piebald phenotype present in four of the five dairy breeds. Potassium channel-related genes were at the site of the largest CLL on three chromosomes (BTA14, -16, and -25) whereas integrins (BTA18 and -19) and serine/arginine rich splicing factors (BTA20 and -23) each had the largest CLL on two chromosomes. On the basis of the results of this study, the application of population genomics to farm animals seems quite promising. Comparisons between breed groups have the potential to identify genomic regions influencing complex traits with no need for complex equipment and the collection of extensive phenotypic records and can contribute to the identification of candidate genes and to the understanding of the biological mechanisms controlling complex traits.

40 CFR Table Jj-2 to Subpart Jj of... - Waste Characteristics Data

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... animal mass) Maximum methane generation potential, Bo (m3 CH4/kg VS added) Dairy Cows 604 See Table JJ-3 See Table JJ-3 0.24 Dairy Heifers 476 See Table JJ-3 See Table JJ-3 0.17 Dairy Calves 118 6.41 0.30 0... JJ-3 0.33 Market Swine 180 lbs 91 5.40 0.42 0.48 Breeding Swine 198 2.60 0.24 0.48 Feedlot Sheep 25 9...

40 CFR Table Jj-2 to Subpart Jj of... - Waste Characteristics Data

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... animal mass) Maximum methane generation potential, Bo (m3 CH4/kg VS added) Dairy Cows 604 See Table JJ-3 See Table JJ-3 0.24 Dairy Heifers 476 See Table JJ-3 See Table JJ-3 0.17 Dairy Calves 118 6.41 0.30 0... JJ-3 0.33 Market Swine 180 lbs 91 5.40 0.42 0.48 Breeding Swine 198 2.60 0.24 0.48 Feedlot Sheep 25 9...

40 CFR Table Jj-2 to Subpart Jj of... - Waste Characteristics Data

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... animal mass) Maximum methane generation potential, Bo (m3 CH4/kg VS added) Dairy Cows 604 See Table JJ-3 See Table JJ-3 0.24 Dairy Heifers 476 See Table JJ-3 See Table JJ-3 0.17 Dairy Calves 118 6.41 0.30 0... JJ-3 0.33 Market Swine 180 lbs 91 5.40 0.42 0.48 Breeding Swine 198 2.60 0.24 0.48 Feedlot Sheep 25 9...

An updated version of lifetime net merit incorporating additional fertility traits and new economic values

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Lifetime net merit (NM$) is an economic selection index intended for use by commercial dairy producers. The current version of NM$ was most recently updated in 2010, and includes information from 13 traits in Holsteins, 11 in Brown Swiss, and 9 in the other dairy breeds. A new version of the index, ...

Genomic evaluation, breed identification, and population structure of North American, English and Island Guernsey dairy cattle

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Genomic evaluations of dairy cattle in the United States have been available for Brown Swiss, Holsteins, and Jerseys since 2009 and for Ayrshires since 2013. As of February 2015, 2,281 Guernsey bulls and cows had genotypes from collaboration between the United States, Canada, England, and the island...

Dairy Cattle Breeding Effectiveness Analysis under the Conditions of Import Substitution

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tokarev, Yuri A.; Merkushova, Nina I.; Bakanach, Olga V.; Proskurina, Natalya V.; Sazhina, Natalia S.

2016-01-01

The relevance of the research problem is inspired by the strategic importance of dairy farming to the national economy, which is especially evident in the context of the EU economic sanctions against the Russian Federation and carrying out the import substitution policy. First and foremost, this policy applies to food commodities, including milk.…

Practical use of a uterine score system for predicting effects on interval from calving to first insemination and non-return rate 56 in Danish dairy herds.

PubMed

Elkjær, Karina; Labouriau, Rodrigo; Ancker, Marie-Louise; Gustafsson, Hans; Callesen, Henrik

2013-12-01

A detailed study of 398,237 lactations of Danish Holstein dairy cows was undertaken. The objective was to investigate the information gained by evaluating vaginal discharge in cows from 5 to 19 days post-partum (p.p.) using an ordinal scale from 0 to 9. The study focused on the interval from calving to first insemination (CFI) and the non-return rate 56 days after first insemination (NR56), adjusted for the confounders milk production and body condition score (BCS). For the analyses, BCS was evaluated on the same day that the uterine score was made. Milk production was defined as test-day milk yield in the first month p.p. The study showed that the evaluation of vaginal discharge according to this score system permitted ranking of cows according to CFI and NR56, i.e. an increasing uterine score was associated with a significantly longer time from calving to first insemination and significantly reduced the probability of success of the first insemination. Reproductive success was already affected if the uterine score had reached 4 (i.e. before the discharge smelled abnormally). The negative effect on CFI and NR56 increased as the uterine score increased, which suggested that the uterine scoring system was a useful guide to dairy producers. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Differences in response to heat stress due to production level and breed of dairy cows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gantner, Vesna; Bobic, Tina; Gantner, Ranko; Gregic, Maja; Kuterovac, Kresimir; Novakovic, Jurica; Potocnik, Klemen

2017-09-01

The climatic conditions in Croatia are deteriorating which significantly increases the frequency of heat stress. This creates a need for an adequate dairy farming strategy. The impact of heat stress can be reduced in many ways, but the best long-term solution includes the genetic evaluation and selection for heat stress resistance. In order to create the basis for genetic evaluation, this research determined the variation in daily milk yield (DMY) and somatic cell count (SCC) as well as the differences in resistance to heat stress due to production level (high, low) and breed (Holstein, Simmental) of dairy cattle breed in Croatia. For statistical analysis, 1,070,554 test-day records from 70,135 Holsteins reared on 5679 farms and 1,300,683 test-day records from 86,013 Simmentals reared on 8827 farms in Croatia provided by the Croatian Agricultural Agency were used. The results of this research indicate that the high-producing cows are much more susceptible to heat stress than low-producing especially Holsteins. Also, the results of this research indicate that Simmental breed, in terms of daily milk production and somatic cell count, could be more resistant to heat stress than Holstein. The following research should determine whether Simmentals are genetically more appropriate for the challenges that are in store for the future milk production in this region. Furthermore, could an adequate production level be achieved with Simmentals by maintaining the heat resistance?

Differences in response to heat stress due to production level and breed of dairy cows.

PubMed

Gantner, Vesna; Bobic, Tina; Gantner, Ranko; Gregic, Maja; Kuterovac, Kresimir; Novakovic, Jurica; Potocnik, Klemen

2017-09-01

The climatic conditions in Croatia are deteriorating which significantly increases the frequency of heat stress. This creates a need for an adequate dairy farming strategy. The impact of heat stress can be reduced in many ways, but the best long-term solution includes the genetic evaluation and selection for heat stress resistance. In order to create the basis for genetic evaluation, this research determined the variation in daily milk yield (DMY) and somatic cell count (SCC) as well as the differences in resistance to heat stress due to production level (high, low) and breed (Holstein, Simmental) of dairy cattle breed in Croatia. For statistical analysis, 1,070,554 test-day records from 70,135 Holsteins reared on 5679 farms and 1,300,683 test-day records from 86,013 Simmentals reared on 8827 farms in Croatia provided by the Croatian Agricultural Agency were used. The results of this research indicate that the high-producing cows are much more susceptible to heat stress than low-producing especially Holsteins. Also, the results of this research indicate that Simmental breed, in terms of daily milk production and somatic cell count, could be more resistant to heat stress than Holstein. The following research should determine whether Simmentals are genetically more appropriate for the challenges that are in store for the future milk production in this region. Furthermore, could an adequate production level be achieved with Simmentals by maintaining the heat resistance?

9 CFR 86.1 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... captive cervids. Dairy cattle. All cattle, regardless of age or sex or current use, that are of a breed(s... are brought to the premises. Commuter herd. A herd of cattle or bison moved interstate during the... the owner(s) of a herd of cattle or bison and the animal health officials for the States or Tribes of...

Biobanking genetic resources: Challenges and implementation at the USDA National Animal Germplasm Program

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

There is adequate infrastructure in the US to identify and acquire germplasm from the major beef and dairy cattle and swine breeds. However, when we venture outside these species the same tasks become more difficult because of a lack of breed associations, databases that include genotypic and pheno...

Comparison of Bayesian models to estimate direct genomic values in multi-breed commercial beef cattle

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Background Several studies have examined the accuracy of genomic selection both within and across purebred beef or dairy populations. However, the accuracy of direct genomic breeding values (DGVs) has been less well studied in crossbred or admixed cattle populations. We used a population of 3,240 cr...

Quantitative trait loci markers derived from whole genome sequence data increases the reliability of genomic prediction.

PubMed

Brøndum, R F; Su, G; Janss, L; Sahana, G; Guldbrandtsen, B; Boichard, D; Lund, M S

2015-06-01

This study investigated the effect on the reliability of genomic prediction when a small number of significant variants from single marker analysis based on whole genome sequence data were added to the regular 54k single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) array data. The extra markers were selected with the aim of augmenting the custom low-density Illumina BovineLD SNP chip (San Diego, CA) used in the Nordic countries. The single-marker analysis was done breed-wise on all 16 index traits included in the breeding goals for Nordic Holstein, Danish Jersey, and Nordic Red cattle plus the total merit index itself. Depending on the trait's economic weight, 15, 10, or 5 quantitative trait loci (QTL) were selected per trait per breed and 3 to 5 markers were selected to tag each QTL. After removing duplicate markers (same marker selected for more than one trait or breed) and filtering for high pairwise linkage disequilibrium and assaying performance on the array, a total of 1,623 QTL markers were selected for inclusion on the custom chip. Genomic prediction analyses were performed for Nordic and French Holstein and Nordic Red animals using either a genomic BLUP or a Bayesian variable selection model. When using the genomic BLUP model including the QTL markers in the analysis, reliability was increased by up to 4 percentage points for production traits in Nordic Holstein animals, up to 3 percentage points for Nordic Reds, and up to 5 percentage points for French Holstein. Smaller gains of up to 1 percentage point was observed for mastitis, but only a 0.5 percentage point increase was seen for fertility. When using a Bayesian model accuracies were generally higher with only 54k data compared with the genomic BLUP approach, but increases in reliability were relatively smaller when QTL markers were included. Results from this study indicate that the reliability of genomic prediction can be increased by including markers significant in genome-wide association studies on whole genome sequence data alongside the 54k SNP set. Copyright © 2015 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Substitutions of dairy product intake and risk of stroke: a Danish cohort study.

PubMed

Laursen, Anne Sofie Dam; Dahm, Christina Catherine; Johnsen, Søren Paaske; Tjønneland, Anne; Overvad, Kim; Jakobsen, Marianne Uhre

2018-02-01

Low fat dairy products are part of dietary guidelines to prevent stroke. However, epidemiological evidence is inconclusive with regard to the association between dairy products and stroke. We therefore investigated associations for substitutions between dairy product subgroups and risk of total stroke and stroke subtypes. We included 55,211 Danish men and women aged 50-64 years without previous stroke. Baseline diet was assessed by a food frequency questionnaire. Cases were identified through a national register and subsequently verified. The associations were analyzed using Cox proportional hazard regression. During a median follow-up of 13.4 years, we identified 2272 strokes, of which 1870 were ischemic (318 large artery atherosclerotic, 839 lacunar, 102 cardioembolic, 98 other determined types, 513 of unknown type), 389 were hemorrhages (273 intracerebral, 116 subarachnoid) and 13 of unknown etiology. Substitution of semi-skimmed fermented milk or cheese for whole-fat fermented milk was associated with a higher rate of ischemic stroke [semi-skimmed fermented milk: hazard ratio (HR) = 1.20 (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.99-1.45), cheese: HR = 1.14 (95% CI 0.98-1.31) per serving/day substituted] and substitutions of whole-fat fermented milk for low-fat milk, whole-fat milk or buttermilk were associated with a lower rate [low-fat milk: HR = 0.85 (95% CI 0.74-0.99), whole-fat milk: HR = 0.84 (95% CI 0.71-0.98) and buttermilk: HR = 0.83 (95% CI 0.70-0.99)]. We observed no associations for substitutions between dairy products and hemorrhagic stroke. Our results suggest that intake of whole-fat fermented milk as a substitution for semi-skimmed fermented milk, cheese, buttermilk or milk, regardless of fat content, is associated with a lower rate of ischemic stroke.

Associations between biosecurity practices and bovine digital dermatitis in Danish dairy herds.

PubMed

Oliveira, Victor H S; Sørensen, Jan T; Thomsen, Peter T

2017-10-01

The relationship between biosecurity and digital dermatitis (DD) was evaluated in 8,269 cows from a convenience sample of 39 freestall dairy herds. The hypothesis was that poor implementation of biosecurity was associated with higher within-herd prevalence of DD. All lactating cows were scored as negative or positive for DD at the hind legs during milking in the milking parlor. Information about biosecurity was obtained through questionnaires addressed to farmers, on-farm observations, and information from the Danish Cattle Database (www.seges.dk). These assessment tools covered potential infection sources of DD pathogens to susceptible cows (e.g., via animals, humans, manure, vehicles, equipment, and facilities). External and internal biosecurity measures were explanatory variables in 2 separate logistic regression models, whereas within-herd DD prevalence was the outcome. Overall DD prevalence among cows and herds were 24 and 97%, respectively; the within-herd DD prevalence ranged from 0 to 56%. Poor external biosecurity measures associated with higher prevalence of DD were recent animal purchase, access to pasture, lack of boots available for visitors, farm staff working at other dairy farms as well, hoof trimming without a professional attending, and animal transporters having access to cattle area. For internal biosecurity, higher DD prevalence were associated with infrequent hoof bathing, manure scraping less than 8 times a day, manure removal direction from cows to heifers, animal pens' exit without water hoses, manure-handling vehicle used in other activities, and water troughs contaminated with manure. These findings showed that improvements on biosecurity may be beneficial for controlling DD in dairy herds. The study is relevant for farmers facing problems with DD, as well as hoof trimmers, advisors, and veterinarians, who can use the results for optimized recommendations regarding biosecurity in relation to DD. Furthermore, our results might be considered by future studies investigating DD pathogen reservoirs and transmission routes. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Winter feeding systems and dairy cow breed have an impact on milk composition and flavour of two Protected Designation of Origin French cheeses.

PubMed

Hurtaud, C; Peyraud, J L; Michel, G; Berthelot, D; Delaby, L

2009-09-01

This study investigates the effects of two feeding systems and two dairy cow breeds on milk yield and composition, physical and sensorial properties of Camembert and Pont-l'Evêque cheeses. The experiment consisted of a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement of treatments. A low energy grass diet with only 15% of concentrate (LowGS) was compared with a high-energy maize silage diet with 30% concentrate (HighMS). Thirty-four Holstein (Ho) and 34 Normande (No) cows in early lactation were assigned to one of two feeding systems for a 6-week period. Cows on the LowGS feeding system had lower milk yield, fat and protein content. In both feeding systems, No cows had lower milk yields but higher milk protein contents than Ho cows. The LowGS feeding system altered milk fatty acid (FA) composition by reducing saturated FA. Breed had only a small impact on milk FA. Concerning milk coagulating properties, only the firmness was reduced by the LowGS feeding and the Ho breed. The effects of breed and feeding system on the protein content of cheeses were more marked in Camembert cheese than in Pont-l'Evêque cheese. However, the Camembert cheese from Ho-LowGS was, in fact, characterized especially by lower protein content. LowGS feeding system and No breed produced more yellow cheeses. Feeding systems had limited effects on the firmness of Camembert and Pont-l'Evêque cheeses measured by penetrometry. In sensory analysis, Ho breed and LowGS feeding produced a Camembert cheese with a more melting texture in the mouth due to the increase of spreadability index and of proteolysis. The type of cheese also had an influence: the effects were more important on Camembert cheese than on Pont-l'Evêque cheese. Only the Ho-LowGS treatment produced a very specific Camembert cheese different from the others. The feeding systems and breed of dairy cow have no determinant effect on PDO (protected designation of origin) Camembert and Pont-l'Evêque cheeses, especially regarding taste. In this kind of trial, despite the effects of feeding systems and breed on milk composition, the role of cheese ripening and microbiology appears to be of considerable importance.

Long-term selection strategies for complex traits using high-density genetic markers.

PubMed

Kemper, K E; Bowman, P J; Pryce, J E; Hayes, B J; Goddard, M E

2012-08-01

Selection of animals for breeding ranked on estimated breeding value maximizes genetic gain in the next generation but does not necessarily maximize long-term response. An alternative method, as practiced by plant breeders, is to build a desired genotype by selection on specific loci. Maximal long-term response in animal breeding requires selection on estimated breeding values with constraints on coancestry. In this paper, we compared long-term genetic response using either a genotype building or a genomic estimated breeding value (GEBV) strategy for the Australian Selection Index (ASI), a measure of profit. First, we used real marker effects from the Australian Dairy Herd Improvement Scheme to estimate breeding values for chromosome segments (approximately 25 cM long) for 2,650 Holstein bulls. Second, we selected 16 animals to be founders for a simulated breeding program where, between them, founders contain the best possible combination of 2 segments from 2 animals at each position in the genome. Third, we mated founder animals and their descendants over 30 generations with 2 breeding objectives: (1) to create a population with the "ideal genotype," where the best 2 segments from the founders segregate at each position, or (2) obtain the highest possible response in ASI with coancestry lower than that achieved under breeding objective 1. Results show that genotype building achieved the ideal genotype for breeding objective 1 and obtained a large gain in ASI over the current population (+A$864.99). However, selection on overall GEBV had greater short-term response and almost as much long-term gain (+A$820.42). When coancestry was lowered under breeding objective 2, selection on overall GEBV achieved a higher response in ASI than the genotype building strategy. Selection on overall GEBV seems more flexible in its selection decisions and was therefore better able to precisely control coancestry while maximizing ASI. We conclude that selection on overall GEBV while minimizing average coancestry is the more practical strategy for dairy cattle where selection is for highly polygenic traits, the reproductive rate is relatively low, and there is low tolerance of coancestry. The outcome may be different for traits controlled by few loci of relatively large effects or for different species. In contrast to other simulations, our results indicate that response to selection on overall GEBV may continue for several generations. This is because long-term genetic change in complex traits requires favorable changes to allele frequencies for many loci located throughout the genome. Copyright © 2012 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Cost of Milk and Marketing Margins in Dairy Farms of Turkey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Uzunoz, Meral; Altintas, Gulcin; Akcay, Yasar

The study is based on the cost of milk and marketing margins in dairy farms in Tokat-Turkey with the help of primary data collected randomly from 62 farmers. In the study it was determined that milk production in dairy farms was relatively profitable in domestic (1.34), cross-bred (1.29) and culture (1.58) dairy cattle. It was found that marketing margins of milk were 183.33% for domestic, cross-breed and culture dairy cattle. As a result, although there were some structural problems for dairy farms such as high input prices, lack of cooperation among producers and long marketing chains between producers and retailers, it can be still perceived that the dairy farming can be one of the most important income sources for the farmers of rural provinces of Tokat-Turkey. Furthermore it should be stated that current livestock policy need to be regulated.

Dairy intensification in developing countries: effects of market quality on farm-level feeding and breeding practices.

PubMed

Duncan, A J; Teufel, N; Mekonnen, K; Singh, V K; Bitew, A; Gebremedhin, B

2013-12-01

Smallholder dairy production represents a promising income generating activity for poor farmers in the developing world. Because of the perishable nature of milk, marketing arrangements for collection, distribution and sale are important for enhanced livelihoods in the smallholder dairy sector. In this study we examined the relationship between market quality and basic feeding and breeding practices at farm level. We define market quality as the attractiveness and reliability of procurement channels and associated input supply arrangements. We took as our study countries, India with its well-developed smallholder dairy sector, and Ethiopia where the smallholder dairy industry has remained relatively undeveloped despite decades of development effort. We conducted village surveys among producer groups in 90 villages across three States in India and two Regions in Ethiopia. Producer groups were stratified according to three levels of market quality - high, medium and low. Data showed that diet composition was relatively similar in India and Ethiopia with crop residues forming the major share of the diet. Concentrate feeding tended to be more prominent in high market quality sites. Herd composition changed with market quality with more dairy (exotic) cross-bred animals in high market quality sites in both India and Ethiopia. Cross-bred animals were generally more prominent in India than Ethiopia. Herd performance within breed did not change a great deal along the market quality gradient. Parameters such as calving interval and milk yield were relatively insensitive to market quality. Insemination of cross-bred cows was predominantly by artificial insemination (AI) in India and accounted for around half of cross-bred cow inseminations in Ethiopia. Data on perceptions of change over the last decade indicated that per herd and per cow productivity are both increasing in high market quality sites with a more mixed picture in medium and low-quality sites. Similarly dairy-derived income is on the increase in high market quality sites. This is accompanied by a strong increase in stall feeding at the expense of grazing. The study indicates that the first constraint to intensification of dairy production in Ethiopia is the genetic quality of the herd. There is less scope for improved AI provision in India since the cross-bred herd is mainly serviced by AI already. However, as for Ethiopia, there is considerable scope for closing yield gaps in India through improved feed use and supply. Results strongly show that well-developed markets with good procurement arrangements are key for sustainable dairy intensification.

A cross-sectional study of reproductive performance of smallholder dairy cows in coastal Tanzania.

PubMed

Swai, E S; Bryant, M J; Karimuribo, E D; French, N P; Ogden, N H; Fitzpatrick, J L; Kambarage, D M

2005-08-01

A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted on 200 randomly selected smallholder farms from a mixed dairy farming system in Tanga, Tanzania, between January and April 1999. We estimated the frequency and determinants of long calving interval (LCI), retention of fetal membrane (RFM), dystocia, and abortion in smallholder crossbred cattle and explored birth trends. The mean calving interval was 500 days and birth rate was 65 per 100 cow-years. Dystocia was reported to affect 58% of calvings, and 17.2% of animals suffered RFM. Using mixed effect models, the variables associated with LCI, RFM and dystocia were breed, level of exotic blood and condition score. Zebu breeding was associated with LCI (odds ratio (OR) = 2.3, p = 0.041) and Friesian breeding with lower odds for RF (OR = 0.26, p = 0.020). Animals with higher levels of exotic blood had lower odds for evidence of dystocia (OR = 0.45, p = 0.021). Evidence of dystocia was significantly associated with poor condition score (p = -1.10, p = 0.001). Our observations suggest that LCIs are common in smallholder dairy farms in this region and a likely source of economic loss. Dystocia, RFM, poor condition score and mineral deficiency were common problems and were possibly linked to LCI.

Use of assisted reproduction for the improvement of milk production in dairy camels (Camelus dromedarius).

PubMed

Nagy, P; Skidmore, J A; Juhasz, J

2013-01-10

Despite their production potential and ability to survive on marginal resources in extreme conditions, dromedaries have not been exploited as an important food source. Camels have not been specifically selected for milk production, and genetic improvement has been negligible. High individual variation in milk production both within the population and within breeds provides a good base for selection and genetic progress. In this paper, we discuss the possibilities and constraints of selective breeding for milk production in camels, and include a summary of the use of embryo transfer at the world's first camel dairy farm. Embryo transfer is an integral part of the breeding strategy at the camel dairy farm because it increases selection intensity and decreases the generation interval. Using high milk-producing camels as donors and low producing camels as recipients, 146 embryos were recovered (6.1±1.0embryos/donor; range: 0-18). Embryos were transferred non-surgically into 111 recipients (83 single and 28 twin embryo transfers). Pregnancy rate at 21 days and 5 months was 55% (61/111) and 45% (50/111), respectively. Finally, a total of 46 recipients delivered a live calf. These results document the utility of embryo transfer using high milk producing dromedaries as donors. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

"Not to intrude": a Danish perspective on gender and class in nineteenth-century dairying.

PubMed

Fink, Deborah

2009-01-01

This study follows the thread of gender divisions in dairying in Denmark and the American Midwest in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Gender organization of dairying shifted at this time in diverse European and North American contexts. As agriculture mechanized and production scale increased, access to advanced education and international markets became critical. Women, who had been in the forefront of the development of dairying, ceded their leadership to men as these changes occurred. While some scholars see this shift as a strategic loss for women, this study finds that variables of class, marital status, rural demographics, and alternative occupations mediated the rural women's experience of change. Not all women experienced the change as a loss. The question of which women were invested in dairying is critical to understanding the course of change. Increasingly, middle-class farm women were turning away from the hard work of dairying and investing themselves in new ways in the upward mobility of their family farms. Rural life shaped distinct gender patterns in European and American history, and the rural experience shaped the larger trajectory of women's economic and political evolution, even though few rural women were involved in the organized women's movement.

Improving accuracy of genomic predictions within and between dairy cattle breeds with imputed high-density single nucleotide polymorphism panels.

PubMed

Erbe, M; Hayes, B J; Matukumalli, L K; Goswami, S; Bowman, P J; Reich, C M; Mason, B A; Goddard, M E

2012-07-01

Achieving accurate genomic estimated breeding values for dairy cattle requires a very large reference population of genotyped and phenotyped individuals. Assembling such reference populations has been achieved for breeds such as Holstein, but is challenging for breeds with fewer individuals. An alternative is to use a multi-breed reference population, such that smaller breeds gain some advantage in accuracy of genomic estimated breeding values (GEBV) from information from larger breeds. However, this requires that marker-quantitative trait loci associations persist across breeds. Here, we assessed the gain in accuracy of GEBV in Jersey cattle as a result of using a combined Holstein and Jersey reference population, with either 39,745 or 624,213 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers. The surrogate used for accuracy was the correlation of GEBV with daughter trait deviations in a validation population. Two methods were used to predict breeding values, either a genomic BLUP (GBLUP_mod), or a new method, BayesR, which used a mixture of normal distributions as the prior for SNP effects, including one distribution that set SNP effects to zero. The GBLUP_mod method scaled both the genomic relationship matrix and the additive relationship matrix to a base at the time the breeds diverged, and regressed the genomic relationship matrix to account for sampling errors in estimating relationship coefficients due to a finite number of markers, before combining the 2 matrices. Although these modifications did result in less biased breeding values for Jerseys compared with an unmodified genomic relationship matrix, BayesR gave the highest accuracies of GEBV for the 3 traits investigated (milk yield, fat yield, and protein yield), with an average increase in accuracy compared with GBLUP_mod across the 3 traits of 0.05 for both Jerseys and Holsteins. The advantage was limited for either Jerseys or Holsteins in using 624,213 SNP rather than 39,745 SNP (0.01 for Holsteins and 0.03 for Jerseys, averaged across traits). Even this limited and nonsignificant advantage was only observed when BayesR was used. An alternative panel, which extracted the SNP in the transcribed part of the bovine genome from the 624,213 SNP panel (to give 58,532 SNP), performed better, with an increase in accuracy of 0.03 for Jerseys across traits. This panel captures much of the increased genomic content of the 624,213 SNP panel, with the advantage of a greatly reduced number of SNP effects to estimate. Taken together, using this panel, a combined breed reference and using BayesR rather than GBLUP_mod increased the accuracy of GEBV in Jerseys from 0.43 to 0.52, averaged across the 3 traits. Copyright © 2012 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A 100-Year Review: Methods and impact of genetic selection in dairy cattle-From daughter-dam comparisons to deep learning algorithms.

PubMed

Weigel, K A; VanRaden, P M; Norman, H D; Grosu, H

2017-12-01

In the early 1900s, breed society herdbooks had been established and milk-recording programs were in their infancy. Farmers wanted to improve the productivity of their cattle, but the foundations of population genetics, quantitative genetics, and animal breeding had not been laid. Early animal breeders struggled to identify genetically superior families using performance records that were influenced by local environmental conditions and herd-specific management practices. Daughter-dam comparisons were used for more than 30 yr and, although genetic progress was minimal, the attention given to performance recording, genetic theory, and statistical methods paid off in future years. Contemporary (herdmate) comparison methods allowed more accurate accounting for environmental factors and genetic progress began to accelerate when these methods were coupled with artificial insemination and progeny testing. Advances in computing facilitated the implementation of mixed linear models that used pedigree and performance data optimally and enabled accurate selection decisions. Sequencing of the bovine genome led to a revolution in dairy cattle breeding, and the pace of scientific discovery and genetic progress accelerated rapidly. Pedigree-based models have given way to whole-genome prediction, and Bayesian regression models and machine learning algorithms have joined mixed linear models in the toolbox of modern animal breeders. Future developments will likely include elucidation of the mechanisms of genetic inheritance and epigenetic modification in key biological pathways, and genomic data will be used with data from on-farm sensors to facilitate precision management on modern dairy farms. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Crossbreeding: implications for dairy cow fertility and survival.

PubMed

Buckley, F; Lopez-Villalobos, N; Heins, B J

2014-05-01

In pasture-based seasonal calving systems, failure to become pregnant during the breeding season results in important economic losses as maximum profit is attained by minimising costs and increasing the proportion of grass in the diet of the lactating dairy cow. In the United States, dairy producers primarily strive to maximise production potential but are becoming increasingly aware of the economic consequences of sub-optimal cow fertility and survival. For this reason, interest in crossbreeding is emerging. The objective of this paper is to review the fertility and survival outcomes reported from recent research studies and data analyses in Ireland, New Zealand and the United States. Research conducted in Ireland during the early 2000s concluded that of three 'alternative' dairy breeds the Norwegian Red was most suited to seasonal grass-based production. A key finding was favourable fertility and survival. A follow-up study confirmed a fertility advantage with Norwegian Red×Holstein-Friesian compared with Holstein-Friesian: proportion pregnant to first service; +0.08 and in-calf after 6 weeks breeding; +0.11. Another study found higher fertility with Jersey crossbreds: pregnant to first service; +0.21, and in-calf after 6 weeks breeding; +0.19. Studies conducted in Northern Ireland also found superior fertility performance with Jersey crossbred cows offered low and moderate concentrate diets. In New Zealand, crossbred dairy cattle (primarily Jersey×Friesian) are achieving similar rates of genetic gain for farm profit as the purebred populations, but creating additional gain derived from economic heterosis. In the United States, analysis of commercial data from California showed higher first-service conception rates for Scandinavian Red×Holstein (+6 percentage units) and Montbeliarde×Holstein (+10 percentage units) compared with Holstein (23%). They also exhibited fewer days open and greater survival. At Penn State University, Brown Swiss×Holstein cows had 17 fewer days open than Holstein cows during first lactation, and numerically fewer in second (12 days) and third lactation (6 days). At the University of Minnesota, crossbred cows had 21 percentage units higher first-service conception rates, 41 fewer days open and 12 percentage units higher in-calf rates compared with pure Holstein cows. They also had greater survival to second (+13 percentage units), third (+24 percentage units), fourth (+25 percentage units) and fifth (+17 percentage units) lactation. The literature clearly illustrates favourable animal performance benefits from crossbreeding, using a range of modern breeds, and within the context of both grass-based and high-input confinement production environments. Economic analyses generally indicate profitable performance owing to lower replacement cost and higher herd productivity.

Dairy cow breed interacts with stocking rate in temperate pasture-based dairy production systems.

PubMed

Spaans, O K; Macdonald, K A; Lancaster, J A S; Bryant, A M; Roche, J R

2018-05-01

Economic optimum stocking rates for grazing dairy systems have been defined by accounting for the pasture production potential of the farm [t of dry matter (DM)/ha], the amount of feed imported from outside the farm (t of DM/ha), and the size of the cow (kg). These variables were combined into the comparative stocking rate [CSR; kg of body weight (BW)/t of feed DM available] measure. However, CSR assumes no effect of cow genetics beyond BW, and there is increasing evidence of within-breed differences in residual feed intake and between-breed differences in the gross efficiency with which cows use metabolizable energy for milk production. A multiyear production system experiment was established to determine whether Jersey (J) and Holstein-Friesian (HF) breeds performed similarly at the same CSR. Fifty-nine J cows and 51 HF cows were randomly allocated to 1 of 2 CSR in a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement; systems were designed to have a CSR of either 80 or 100 kg of BW/t of feed DM (J-CSR80, J-CSR100, HF-CSR80, and HF-CSR100 treatment groups). Data were analyzed for consistency of farmlet response over years using ANOVA procedures, with year and farmlet as fixed effects and the interaction of farmlet with year as a random effect. The collated biological data and financial data extracted from a national economic database were used to model the financial performance for the different breed and CSR treatments. On average, annual and individual season pasture DM production was greater for the J farmlets and was less in the CSR100 treatment; however, the effect of CSR was primarily driven by a large decline in pasture DM production in the HF-CSR100 treatment (breed × CSR interaction). This interaction in feed availability resulted in a breed × CSR interaction for the per-cow and per-hectare milk production variables, with HF cows producing more milk and milk components per cow in the CSR80 treatment but the same amount as the J cows in the CSR100 treatment. On a per-hectare basis, HF cows produced the same amount of 4% fat-corrected milk and lactose as J cows in the CSR80 treatment, but less fat; at CSR100, J cows produced more 4% fat-corrected milk, fat, and protein per hectare than HF cows. Our results support a greater gross efficiency for use of metabolizable energy by the J cow; 11% less total metabolizable energy was required to produce 1 kg of fat and protein at a system level. Economic modeling indicated that profitability of both breeds was less at CSR100, but the decline in profitability with increasing stocking rate was much greater in the HF breed. Holstein-Friesian cows were more profitable at CSR80 but were less profitable at CSR100. Copyright © 2018 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

26 CFR 1.183-1 - Activities not engaged in for profit.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

...-bred Charolais cattle for breeding purposes. The operation showed a loss during 1970. At the end of...: Example 1. A, an individual, maintains a herd of dairy cattle, which is an “activity not engaged in for... consists in major part of the breeding, training, showing, or racing of horses, or (ii) Any 2 of 5...

Accuracy of genotype imputation in Swiss cattle breeds

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The objective of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of imputation from Illumina Bovine3k Bead Chip (3k) and Illumina BovineLD (6k) to 54k chip information in Swiss dairy cattle breeds. Genotype data comprised of 54k SNP chip data of Original Braunvieh (OB), Brown Swiss (BS), Swiss Fleckvieh (SF...

26 CFR 1.183-1 - Activities not engaged in for profit.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

...-bred Charolais cattle for breeding purposes. The operation showed a loss during 1970. At the end of...: Example 1. A, an individual, maintains a herd of dairy cattle, which is an “activity not engaged in for... consists in major part of the breeding, training, showing, or racing of horses, or (ii) Any 2 of 5...

26 CFR 1.183-1 - Activities not engaged in for profit.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

...-bred Charolais cattle for breeding purposes. The operation showed a loss during 1970. At the end of...: Example 1. A, an individual, maintains a herd of dairy cattle, which is an “activity not engaged in for... consists in major part of the breeding, training, showing, or racing of horses, or (ii) Any 2 of 5...

26 CFR 1.183-1 - Activities not engaged in for profit.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

...-bred Charolais cattle for breeding purposes. The operation showed a loss during 1970. At the end of...: Example 1. A, an individual, maintains a herd of dairy cattle, which is an “activity not engaged in for... consists in major part of the breeding, training, showing, or racing of horses, or (ii) Any 2 of 5...

Single nucleotide variants and indels identified from whole-genome re-sequencing of Guzerat, Gyr, Girolando and Holstein cattle breeds

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Whole-genome re-sequencing, alignment and annotation analyses were undertaken for 12 sires representing four important cattle breeds in Brazil: Guzerat (multi-purpose), Gyr, Girolando and Holstein (dairy production). A total of approximately 4.3 billion reads from an Illumina HiSeq 2000 sequencer ge...

Estimating variance components and breeding values for number of oocytes and number of embryos in dairy cattle using a single-step genomic evaluation.

PubMed

Cornelissen, M A M C; Mullaart, E; Van der Linde, C; Mulder, H A

2017-06-01

Reproductive technologies such as multiple ovulation and embryo transfer (MOET) and ovum pick-up (OPU) accelerate genetic improvement in dairy breeding schemes. To enhance the efficiency of embryo production, breeding values for traits such as number of oocytes (NoO) and number of MOET embryos (NoM) can help in selection of donors with high MOET or OPU efficiency. The aim of this study was therefore to estimate variance components and (genomic) breeding values for NoO and NoM based on Dutch Holstein data. Furthermore, a 10-fold cross-validation was carried out to assess the accuracy of pedigree and genomic breeding values for NoO and NoM. For NoO, 40,734 OPU sessions between 1993 and 2015 were analyzed. These OPU sessions originated from 2,543 donors, from which 1,144 were genotyped. For NoM, 35,695 sessions between 1994 and 2015 were analyzed. These MOET sessions originated from 13,868 donors, from which 3,716 were genotyped. Analyses were done using only pedigree information and using a single-step genomic BLUP (ssGBLUP) approach combining genomic information and pedigree information. Heritabilities were very similar based on pedigree information or based on ssGBLUP [i.e., 0.32 (standard error = 0.03) for NoO and 0.21 (standard error = 0.01) for NoM with pedigree, 0.31 (standard error = 0.03) for NoO, and 0.22 (standard error = 0.01) for NoM with ssGBLUP]. For animals without their own information as mimicked in the cross-validation, the accuracy of pedigree-based breeding values was 0.46 for NoO and NoM. The accuracies of genomic breeding values from ssGBLUP were 0.54 for NoO and 0.52 for NoM. These results show that including genomic information increases the accuracies. These moderate accuracies in combination with a large genetic variance show good opportunities for selection of potential bull dams. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

NMR-metabolomics profiling of mammary gland secretory tissue and milk serum in two goat breeds with different levels of tolerance to seasonal weight loss.

PubMed

Palma, Mariana; Hernández-Castellano, Lorenzo E; Castro, Noemí; Arguëllo, Anastasio; Capote, Juan; Matzapetakis, Manolis; de Almeida, André Martinho

2016-06-21

Goats are of special importance in the Mediterranean and tropical regions for producing a variety of dairy products. The scarcity of pastures during the dry season leads to seasonal weight loss (SWL), which affects milk production. In this work, we studied the effect of feed-restriction on two dairy goat breeds, with different tolerance levels to SWL: the Majorera breed (tolerant) and the Palmera breed (susceptible). Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) was used to compare the metabolome of an aqueous fraction of the mammary gland and milk serum from both breeds. Goats in mid-lactation were divided by breed, and each in two feed-regime groups: the control group and the restricted-fed group (to achieve 15-20% reduction of body weight at the end of the experiment). Milk and mammary gland samples were collected at the end of the experimental period (23rd day). (1)H NMR spectra were collected from the aqueous extract of the mammary gland biopsies and the milk serum. Profiling analysis has led to the identification of 46 metabolites in the aqueous extract of the mammary gland. Lactose, glutamate, glycine and lactate were found to be the most abundant. Analysis of milk serum allowed the identification of 50 metabolites, the most abundant being lactose, citrate and creatine. Significant differences were observed, in mammary gland biopsies and milk serum, between control and restricted-fed groups in both breeds, albeit with no differences between the breeds. Variations seem to be related to metabolism adaptation to the low-energy diet and are indicative of breed-specific microflora. Milk serum showed more metabolites varying between control and restricted groups, than the mammary gland. The Majorera breed also showed more variations than the Palmera breed in milk samples, which could be an indication of a prompt adaptation to SWL by the Majorera breed.

Multiple criteria decision-making process to derive consensus desired genetic gains for a dairy cattle breeding objective for diverse production systems.

PubMed

Kariuki, C M; van Arendonk, J A M; Kahi, A K; Komen, H

2017-06-01

Dairy cattle industries contribute to food and nutrition security and are a source of income for numerous households in many developing countries. Selective breeding can enhance efficiency in these industries. Developing dairy industries are characterized by diverse production and marketing systems. In this paper, we use weighted goal aggregating procedure to derive consensus trait preferences for different producer categories and processors. We based the study on the dairy industry in Kenya. The analytic hierarchy process was used to derive individual preferences for milk yield (MY), calving interval (CIN), production lifetime (PLT), mature body weight (MBW), and fat yield (FY). Results show that classical classification of production systems into large-scale and smallholder systems does not capture all differences in trait preferences. These differences became apparent when classification was based on productivity at the individual animal level, with high and low intensity producers and processors as the most important groups. High intensity producers had highest preferences for PLT and MY, whereas low intensity producers had highest preference for CIN and PLT; processors preferred MY and FY the most. The highest disagreements between the groups were observed for FY, PLT, and MY. Individual and group preferences were aggregated into consensus preferences using weighted goal programming. Desired gains were obtained as a product of consensus preferences and percentage genetic gains (G%). These were 2.42, 0.22, 2.51, 0.15, and 0.87 for MY, CIN, PLT, MBW, and FY, respectively. Consensus preferences can be used to derive a single compromise breeding objective for situations where the same genetic resources are used in diverse production and marketing circumstances. The Authors. Published by the Federation of Animal Science Societies and Elsevier Inc. on behalf of the American Dairy Science Association®. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/).

Prevalence of subclinical mastitis in Finnish dairy cows: changes during recent decades and impact of cow and herd factors.

PubMed

Hiitiö, Heidi; Vakkamäki, Johanna; Simojoki, Heli; Autio, Tiina; Junnila, Jouni; Pelkonen, Sinikka; Pyörälä, Satu

2017-04-20

The dairy industry has undergone substantial structural changes as intensive farming has developed during recent decades. Mastitis continues to be the most common production disease of dairy cows. Nationwide surveys of mastitis prevalence are useful in monitoring udder health of dairy herds and to study the impact of structural changes on the dairy industry. This survey on bovine subclinical mastitis was the first based on cow composite milk somatic cell count (SCC) data from the Finnish national health monitoring and milk recording database. A cow with composite milk SCC ≥200,000 cells/ml in at least one of the four test milkings during the year was considered to have subclinical mastitis and a cow with composite milk SCC ≥200,000 cells/ml in three or in all four test milkings during the year to have chronic subclinical mastitis. The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence of subclinical mastitis and chronic subclinical mastitis in Finland in 1991, 2001 and 2010 and to investigate cow and herd factors associated with elevated SCC. Prevalence of subclinical mastitis in Finland decreased over recent decades from 22.3% (1991) and 20.1% (2001) to 19.0% (2010). Prevalence of chronic subclinical mastitis was 20.4% in 1991, 15.5% in 2001 and 16.1% in 2010. The most significant cow and herd factors associated with subclinical mastitis or high milk SCC were increasing parity, Holstein breed, free-stalls with an automatic milking system and organic production. Milk SCC were highest from July to September. Main factors associated with chronic mastitis were increasing parity and Holstein breed. Prevalence of subclinical mastitis in Finland decreased over recent decades, the greatest change taking place during the first decade of the study. Prevalence of chronic subclinical mastitis significantly decreased from 1991. The most significant factors associated with both types of mastitis were increasing parity and Holstein breed, and for subclinical mastitis also free-stalls with automatic milking. National surveys on mastitis prevalence should be carried out at regular intervals to monitor udder health of dairy cows and to study the impact of the ongoing structural changes in the dairy industry to enable interventions related to udder health to be made when needed.

Serosurveillance and factors associated with the presence of antibodies against bluetongue virus in dairy cattle in two eco-zones of Nepal.

PubMed

Gaire, T N; Karki, S; Dhakal, I P; Khanal, D R; Bowen, R A

2016-12-01

Cattle play an important role in the epidemiology of bluetongue (BT) by acting as reservoir hosts. However, the status of BT virus (BTV) in dairy cattle in Nepal is unknown. The objective of this study was to estimate the prevalence of BTV antibodies in dairy cattle in two eco-zones of Nepal, and to identify the factors associated with virus exposure. The authors conducted a cross-sectional serosurvey from March 2012 through February 2013 by sampling 131 dairy cattle from seven clusters (villages) in the Chitwan district in the Terai region (southern lowlands) and the Lamjung district in the Hills region (the middle part of Nepal). Of the 131 serum samples tested, 29.3% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 21.5-37.2) were positive for BTV antibodies. Herd-level seroprevalence was 45.7% (95% CI: 30.9-61.0). Bivariate analysis indicated a positive association between seroconversion to BTV and age, and an association with breed of cattle after controlling for clustering of animals within herds. Based on this model, cattle were more likely to become seropositive as they aged. Crossbred cattle were more likely to be seropositive than those of exotic breeds (odds ratio [OR] = 4.6; 95% CI: 1.5-14.1). The results indicate widespread exposure of dairy cattle to BTV in Nepal. The authors suggest that dairy cattle should be included in the surveillance plan for BTV infection in Nepal and that it is important to educate farmers about the possible impacts of this disease. © OIE (World Organisation for Animal Health), 2016.

Comparison of efficiency of energy use in Holstein and Jersey dairy cows offered diets containing reduce fat distillers grains (RFDDGS)

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Fifty-six energy balances were completed with eight Holstein (H) and eight Jersey (J) multiparous lactating cows to examine the effect of breed on the efficiency of milk production and energy use. Two dietary treatments were fed in a repeated switch back design to compare breeds. Dietary treatments ...

Application of genomic selection in farm animal breeding.

PubMed

Tan, Cheng; Bian, Cheng; Yang, Da; Li, Ning; Wu, Zhen-Fang; Hu, Xiao-Xiang

2017-11-20

Genomic selection (GS) has become a widely accepted method in animal breeding to genetically improve economic traits. With the declining costs of high-density SNP chips and next-generation sequencing, GS has been applied in dairy cattle, swine, poultry and other animals and gained varying degrees of success. Currently, major challenges in GS studies include further reducing the cost of genome-wide SNP genotyping and improving the predictive accuracy of genomic estimated breeding value (GEBV). In this review, we summarize various methods for genome-wide SNP genotyping and GEBV prediction, and give a brief introduction of GS in livestock and poultry breeding. This review will provide a reference for further implementation of GS in farm animal breeding.

Effects of breed and feeding system on milk production, body weight, body condition score, reproductive performance, and postpartum ovarian function.

PubMed

Walsh, S; Buckley, F; Pierce, K; Byrne, N; Patton, J; Dillon, P

2008-11-01

The objective of this study was to investigate the potential differences among Holstein-Friesian (HF), Montbéliarde (MB), Normande (NM), Norwegian Red (NRF), Montbéliarde x Holstein-Friesian (MBX), and Normande x Holstein-Friesian (NMX) across 2 seasonal grass-based systems of milk production. The effects of breed and feeding system on milk production, body weight, body condition score, fertility performance, hormone parameters, ovarian function, and survival were determined by using mixed model methodology, generalized linear models, and survival analysis. The 5-yr study comprised up to 749 lactations on 309 cows in one research herd. The HF produced the greatest yield of solids-corrected milk, the MB and NM produced the least yields, and NRF, MBX, and NMX were intermediate. The NRF had the lowest body weight throughout lactation, the NM had the highest, and the other breeds were intermediate. Body condition score was greatest for MB and NM, least for HF, and intermediate for NRF, MBX, and NMX. The HF had a lower submission rate and overall pregnancy rate compared with the NRF. The NRF survived the longest in the herd, the HF survived the shortest, and the NM, MB, MBX, and NMX were intermediate. Breed of dairy cow had no effect on selected milk progesterone parameters from 5 d postpartum until 26 d after first artificial insemination. Breed of dairy cow did not influence insulin and insulin-like growth factor-1 around parturition or at the start of the breeding season. Animals offered a high-concentrate diet had greater milk yield, but they did not have improved reproductive performance. Differences observed between the different breeds in this study are a likely consequence of the past selection criteria for the respective breeds.

Ability of dairy cows to be inseminated according to breed and genetic merit for production traits under contrasting pasture-based feeding systems.

PubMed

Bedere, N; Disenhaus, C; Ducrocq, V; Leurent-Colette, S; Delaby, L

2017-05-01

Strong genetic selection on production traits is considered to be responsible for the declined ability of dairy cows to ensure reproduction. The present study aimed to quantify the effect of genetic characteristics (breeds and genetic merit for production traits) and feeding systems (FS) on the ability of dairy cows to be inseminated. An experiment was conducted during 9 years on Normande and Holstein cows assigned to contrasted pasture-based FS. Diets were based on maize silage in winter and grazing plus concentrate in spring in the High FS; and on grass silage in winter and grazing with no concentrate during spring in the low FS. Within breed, cows were classified into two genetic groups with similar estimated breeding values (EBV) for milk solids: cows with high EBV for milk yield were included in a Milk-Group and those with high EBV for fat and protein contents were included in a Content-Group. Holstein produced more milk throughout lactation than Normande cows (+2294 kg in the High FS and +1280 kg in the Low FS, P<0.001) and lost more body condition to nadir (-1.00 point in the High FS and -0.80 kg in the Low FS, P<0.001). They also showed a poorer ability to be inseminated because of both a delayed commencement of luteal activity (CLA) and delayed first service (more days from start of the breeding season to first service, DAI1). Cows in the Milk-Group produced more milk than cows in the Content-Group, but milk solids production was similar. Cows in the Content-Group had earlier CLA than cows in the Milk-Group (P<0.01). Genetic group neither affected ovulation detection rate nor DAI1. Within breed and FS, cows with high genetic merit for milk yield had later CLA and DAI1. Cows in the High FS produced more milk and lost less condition to nadir than cows in the Low FS. FS did not affect dairy cows' ability to be inseminated. However, cows with higher milk protein content, and presumably better energy balance, had earlier CLA (P<0.01) and DAI1 (P<0.10). In addition, higher milk yield was associated with poorer ovulation detection rate and oestrus intensity (P<0.05). The study showed that at similar EBV level for milk solids, selection for increased milk fat and protein content resulted in improved cyclicity and similar oestrous expression and submission rates compared with selection for increased milk yield.

Carryover effect of postpartum inflammatory diseases on developmental biology and fertility in lactating dairy cows.

PubMed

Ribeiro, E S; Gomes, G; Greco, L F; Cerri, R L A; Vieira-Neto, A; Monteiro, P L J; Lima, F S; Bisinotto, R S; Thatcher, W W; Santos, J E P

2016-03-01

The objective of this series of studies was to investigate the effects of inflammatory diseases occurring before breeding on the developmental biology and reproductive responses in dairy cows. Data from 5 studies were used to investigate different questions associating health status before breeding and reproductive responses. Health information for all studies was composed of the incidence of retained fetal membranes, metritis, mastitis, lameness, and respiratory and digestive problems from parturition until the day of breeding. Retained placenta and metritis were grouped as uterine disease (UTD). Mastitis, lameness, digestive and respiratory problems were grouped as nonuterine diseases (NUTD). Study 1 evaluated the effect of disease before artificial insemination (AI), anovulation before synchronization of the estrous cycle, and low body condition score at AI on pregnancy per AI, as well as their potential interactions or additive effects. Study 2 investigated the effect of site of inflammation (UTD vs. NUTD) and time of occurrence relative to preantral or antral stages of ovulatory follicle development, and the effect of UTD and NUTD on fertility responses of cows bred by AI or by embryo transfer. Study 3 evaluated the effect of disease on fertilization and embryonic development to the morula stage. Study 4 evaluated the effect of disease on preimplantation conceptus development as well as secretion of IFN-τ and transcriptome. Study 5 investigated the effect of diseases before AI on the transcript expression of interferon-stimulated genes in peripheral blood leukocytes during peri-implantation stages of conceptus development after first AI postpartum. Altogether, these studies demonstrated that inflammatory disease before breeding reduced fertilization of oocytes and development to morula, and impaired early conceptus development to elongation stages and secretion of IFN-τ in the uterine lumen. Diseases caused inflammation-like changes in transcriptome of conceptus cells, increased risk of pregnancy loss, and reduced pregnancy or calving per breeding. Moreover, the effects on reproduction were independent of cyclic status before synchronization of the estrous cycle and body condition score at breeding, which all had additive negative effects on fertility of dairy cows. Occurrence of disease at preantral or at antral stages of ovulatory follicle development had similar detrimental effects on pregnancy results. The carryover effects of diseases on developmental biology might last longer than 4 mo. Reduced oocyte competence is a likely reason for carryover effects of diseases on developmental biology, but impaired uterine environment was also shown to be involved. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Strategies for implementing genomic selection for feed efficiency in dairy cattle breeding schemes.

PubMed

Wallén, S E; Lillehammer, M; Meuwissen, T H E

2017-08-01

Alternative genomic selection and traditional BLUP breeding schemes were compared for the genetic improvement of feed efficiency in simulated Norwegian Red dairy cattle populations. The change in genetic gain over time and achievable selection accuracy were studied for milk yield and residual feed intake, as a measure of feed efficiency. When including feed efficiency in genomic BLUP schemes, it was possible to achieve high selection accuracies for genomic selection, and all genomic BLUP schemes gave better genetic gain for feed efficiency than BLUP using a pedigree relationship matrix. However, introducing a second trait in the breeding goal caused a reduction in the genetic gain for milk yield. When using contracted test herds with genotyped and feed efficiency recorded cows as a reference population, adding an additional 4,000 new heifers per year to the reference population gave accuracies that were comparable to a male reference population that used progeny testing with 250 daughters per sire. When the test herd consisted of 500 or 1,000 cows, lower genetic gain was found than using progeny test records to update the reference population. It was concluded that to improve difficult to record traits, the use of contracted test herds that had additional recording (e.g., measurements required to calculate feed efficiency) is a viable option, possibly through international collaborations. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Integrating Sequence-based GWAS and RNA-Seq Provides Novel Insights into the Genetic Basis of Mastitis and Milk Production in Dairy Cattle

PubMed Central

Fang, Lingzhao; Sahana, Goutam; Su, Guosheng; Yu, Ying; Zhang, Shengli; Lund, Mogens Sandø; Sørensen, Peter

2017-01-01

Connecting genome-wide association study (GWAS) to biological mechanisms underlying complex traits is a major challenge. Mastitis resistance and milk production are complex traits of economic importance in the dairy sector and are associated with intra-mammary infection (IMI). Here, we integrated IMI-relevant RNA-Seq data from Holstein cattle and sequence-based GWAS data from three dairy cattle breeds (i.e., Holstein, Nordic red cattle, and Jersey) to explore the genetic basis of mastitis resistance and milk production using post-GWAS analyses and a genomic feature linear mixed model. At 24 h post-IMI, genes responsive to IMI in the mammary gland were preferentially enriched for genetic variants associated with mastitis resistance rather than milk production. Response genes in the liver were mainly enriched for variants associated with mastitis resistance at an early time point (3 h) post-IMI, whereas responsive genes at later stages were enriched for associated variants with milk production. The up- and down-regulated genes were enriched for associated variants with mastitis resistance and milk production, respectively. The patterns were consistent across breeds, indicating that different breeds shared similarities in the genetic basis of these traits. Our approaches provide a framework for integrating multiple layers of data to understand the genetic architecture underlying complex traits. PMID:28358110

Detection of haplotypes associated with prenatal death in dairy cattle and identification of deleterious mutations in GART, SHBG and SLC37A2.

PubMed

Fritz, Sébastien; Capitan, Aurelien; Djari, Anis; Rodriguez, Sabrina C; Barbat, Anne; Baur, Aurélia; Grohs, Cécile; Weiss, Bernard; Boussaha, Mekki; Esquerré, Diane; Klopp, Christophe; Rocha, Dominique; Boichard, Didier

2013-01-01

The regular decrease of female fertility over time is a major concern in modern dairy cattle industry. Only half of this decrease is explained by indirect response to selection on milk production, suggesting the existence of other factors such as embryonic lethal genetic defects. Genomic regions harboring recessive deleterious mutations were detected in three dairy cattle breeds by identifying frequent haplotypes (>1%) showing a deficit in homozygotes among Illumina Bovine 50k Beadchip haplotyping data from the French genomic selection database (47,878 Holstein, 16,833 Montbéliarde, and 11,466 Normande animals). Thirty-four candidate haplotypes (p<10(-4)) including previously reported regions associated with Brachyspina, CVM, HH1, and HH3 in Holstein breed were identified. Haplotype length varied from 1 to 4.8 Mb and frequencies from 1.7 up to 9%. A significant negative effect on calving rate, consistent in heifers and in lactating cows, was observed for 9 of these haplotypes in matings between carrier bulls and daughters of carrier sires, confirming their association with embryonic lethal mutations. Eight regions were further investigated using whole genome sequencing data from heterozygous bull carriers and control animals (45 animals in total). Six strong candidate causative mutations including polymorphisms previously reported in FANCI (Brachyspina), SLC35A3 (CVM), APAF1 (HH1) and three novel mutations with very damaging effect on the protein structure, according to SIFT and Polyphen-2, were detected in GART, SHBG and SLC37A2 genes. In conclusion, this study reveals a yet hidden consequence of the important inbreeding rate observed in intensively selected and specialized cattle breeds. Counter-selection of these mutations and management of matings will have positive consequences on female fertility in dairy cattle.

Veterinary dairy herd fertility service provision in seasonal and non-seasonal dairy industries - a comparison

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

The decline in dairy herd fertility internationally has highlighted the limited impact of traditional veterinary approaches to bovine fertility management. Three questionnaire surveys were conducted at buiatrics conferences attended by veterinary practitioners on veterinary dairy herd fertility services (HFS) in countries with a seasonal (Ireland, 47 respondents) and non-seasonal breeding model (The Netherlands, 44 respondents and Portugal, 31 respondents). Of the 122 respondents, 73 (60%) provided a HFS and 49 (40%) did not. The majority (76%) of all practitioners who responded stated that bovine fertility had declined in their practice clients' herds with inadequate cow management, inadequate nutrition and increased milk yield as the most important putative causes. The type of clients who adopted a herd fertility service were deemed more educated than average (70% of respondents), and/or had fertility problems (58%) and/or large herds (53%). The main components of this service were routine postpartum examinations (95% of respondents), fertility records analysis (75%) and ultrasound pregnancy examinations (69%). The number of planned visits per annum varied between an average of four in Ireland, where breeding is seasonal, and 23 in Portugal, where breeding is year-round. The benefits to both the practitioner and their clients from running a HFS were cited as better fertility, financial rewards and job satisfaction. For practitioners who did not run a HFS the main reasons given were no client demand (55%) and lack of fertility records (33%). Better economic evidence to convince clients of the cost-benefit of such a service was seen as a major constraint to adoption of this service by 67% of practitioners. PMID:21851745

Joint genomic evaluation of French dairy cattle breeds using multiple-trait models.

PubMed

Karoui, Sofiene; Carabaño, María Jesús; Díaz, Clara; Legarra, Andrés

2012-12-07

Using a multi-breed reference population might be a way of increasing the accuracy of genomic breeding values in small breeds. Models involving mixed-breed data do not take into account the fact that marker effects may differ among breeds. This study was aimed at investigating the impact on accuracy of increasing the number of genotyped candidates in the training set by using a multi-breed reference population, in contrast to single-breed genomic evaluations. Three traits (milk production, fat content and female fertility) were analyzed by genomic mixed linear models and Bayesian methodology. Three breeds of French dairy cattle were used: Holstein, Montbéliarde and Normande with 2976, 950 and 970 bulls in the training population, respectively and 964, 222 and 248 bulls in the validation population, respectively. All animals were genotyped with the Illumina Bovine SNP50 array. Accuracy of genomic breeding values was evaluated under three scenarios for the correlation of genomic breeding values between breeds (r(g)): uncorrelated (1), r(g) = 0; estimated r(g) (2); high, r(g) = 0.95 (3). Accuracy and bias of predictions obtained in the validation population with the multi-breed training set were assessed by the coefficient of determination (R(2)) and by the regression coefficient of daughter yield deviations of validation bulls on their predicted genomic breeding values, respectively. The genetic variation captured by the markers for each trait was similar to that estimated for routine pedigree-based genetic evaluation. Posterior means for rg ranged from -0.01 for fertility between Montbéliarde and Normande to 0.79 for milk yield between Montbéliarde and Holstein. Differences in R(2) between the three scenarios were notable only for fat content in the Montbéliarde breed: from 0.27 in scenario (1) to 0.33 in scenarios (2) and (3). Accuracies for fertility were lower than for other traits. Using a multi-breed reference population resulted in small or no increases in accuracy. Only the breed with a small data set and large genetic correlation with the breed with a large data set showed increased accuracy for the traits with moderate (milk) to high (fat content) heritability. No benefit was observed for fertility, a lowly heritable trait.

Estimation of test-day model (co)variance components across breeds using New Zealand dairy cattle data.

PubMed

Vanderick, S; Harris, B L; Pryce, J E; Gengler, N

2009-03-01

In New Zealand, a large proportion of cows are currently crossbreds, mostly Holstein-Friesians (HF) x Jersey (JE). The genetic evaluation system for milk yields is considering the same additive genetic effects for all breeds. The objective was to model different additive effects according to parental breeds to obtain first estimates of correlations among breed-specific effects and to study the usefulness of this type of random regression test-day model. Estimates of (co)variance components for purebred HF and JE cattle in purebred herds were computed by using a single-breed model. This analysis showed differences between the 2 breeds, with a greater variability in the HF breed. (Co)variance components for purebred HF and JE and crossbred HF x JE cattle were then estimated by using a complete multibreed model in which computations of complete across-breed (co)variances were simplified by correlating only eigenvectors for HF and JE random regressions of the same order as obtained from the single-breed analysis. Parameter estimates differed more strongly than expected between the single-breed and multibreed analyses, especially for JE. This could be due to differences between animals and management in purebred and non-purebred herds. In addition, the model used only partially accounted for heterosis. The multibreed analysis showed additive genetic differences between the HF and JE breeds, expressed as genetic correlations of additive effects in both breeds, especially in linear and quadratic Legendre polynomials (respectively, 0.807 and 0.604). The differences were small for overall milk production (0.926). Results showed that permanent environmental lactation curves were highly correlated across breeds; however, intraherd lactation curves were also affected by the breed-environment interaction. This result may indicate the existence of breed-specific competition effects that vary through the different lactation stages. In conclusion, a multibreed model similar to the one presented could optimally use the environmental and genetic parameters and provide breed-dependent additive breeding values. This model could also be a useful tool to evaluate crossbred dairy cattle populations like those in New Zealand. However, a routine evaluation would still require the development of an improved methodology. It would also be computationally very challenging because of the simultaneous presence of a large number of breeds.

Joint genomic evaluation of French dairy cattle breeds using multiple-trait models

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background Using a multi-breed reference population might be a way of increasing the accuracy of genomic breeding values in small breeds. Models involving mixed-breed data do not take into account the fact that marker effects may differ among breeds. This study was aimed at investigating the impact on accuracy of increasing the number of genotyped candidates in the training set by using a multi-breed reference population, in contrast to single-breed genomic evaluations. Methods Three traits (milk production, fat content and female fertility) were analyzed by genomic mixed linear models and Bayesian methodology. Three breeds of French dairy cattle were used: Holstein, Montbéliarde and Normande with 2976, 950 and 970 bulls in the training population, respectively and 964, 222 and 248 bulls in the validation population, respectively. All animals were genotyped with the Illumina Bovine SNP50 array. Accuracy of genomic breeding values was evaluated under three scenarios for the correlation of genomic breeding values between breeds (rg): uncorrelated (1), rg = 0; estimated rg (2); high, rg = 0.95 (3). Accuracy and bias of predictions obtained in the validation population with the multi-breed training set were assessed by the coefficient of determination (R2) and by the regression coefficient of daughter yield deviations of validation bulls on their predicted genomic breeding values, respectively. Results The genetic variation captured by the markers for each trait was similar to that estimated for routine pedigree-based genetic evaluation. Posterior means for rg ranged from −0.01 for fertility between Montbéliarde and Normande to 0.79 for milk yield between Montbéliarde and Holstein. Differences in R2 between the three scenarios were notable only for fat content in the Montbéliarde breed: from 0.27 in scenario (1) to 0.33 in scenarios (2) and (3). Accuracies for fertility were lower than for other traits. Conclusions Using a multi-breed reference population resulted in small or no increases in accuracy. Only the breed with a small data set and large genetic correlation with the breed with a large data set showed increased accuracy for the traits with moderate (milk) to high (fat content) heritability. No benefit was observed for fertility, a lowly heritable trait. PMID:23216664

Factors associated with profitability in pasture-based systems of milk production.

PubMed

Hanrahan, L; McHugh, N; Hennessy, T; Moran, B; Kearney, R; Wallace, M; Shalloo, L

2018-06-01

The global dairy industry needs to reappraise the systems of milk production that are operated at farm level with specific focus on enhancing technical efficiency and competitiveness of the sector. The objective of this study was to quantify the factors associated with costs of production, profitability, and pasture use, and the effects of pasture use on financial performance of dairy farms using an internationally recognized representative database over an 8-yr period (2008 to 2015) on pasture-based systems. To examine the associated effects of several farm system and management variables on specific performance measures, a series of multiple regression models were developed. Factors evaluated included pasture use [kg of dry matter/ha and stocking rate (livestock units/ha)], grazing season length, breeding season length, milk recording, herd size, dairy farm size (ha), farmer age, discussion group membership, proportion of purchased feed, protein %, fat %, kg of milk fat and protein per cow, kg of milk fat and protein per hectare, and capital investment in machinery, livestock, and buildings. Multiple regression analysis demonstrated costs of production per hectare differed by year, geographical location, soil type, level of pasture use, proportion of purchased feed, protein %, kg of fat and protein per cow, dairy farm size, breeding season length, and capital investment in machinery, livestock, and buildings per cow. The results of the analysis revealed that farm net profit per hectare was associated with pasture use per hectare, year, location, soil type, grazing season length, proportion of purchased feed, protein %, kg of fat and protein per cow, dairy farm size, and capital investment in machinery and buildings per cow. Pasture use per hectare was associated with year, location, soil type, stocking rate, dairy farm size, fat %, protein %, kg of fat and protein per cow, farmer age, capital investment in machinery and buildings per cow, breeding season length, and discussion group membership. On average, over the 8-yr period, each additional tonne of pasture dry matter used increased gross profit by €278 and net profit by €173 on dairy farms. Conversely, a 10% increase in the proportion of purchased feed in the diet resulted in a reduction in net profit per hectare by €97 and net profit by €207 per tonne of fat and protein. Results from this study, albeit in a quota limited environment, have demonstrated that the profitability of pasture-based dairy systems is significantly associated with the proportion of pasture used at the farm level, being cognizant of the levels of purchased feed. The Authors. Published by FASS Inc. and Elsevier Inc. on behalf of the American Dairy Science Association®. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/).

Capitalizing on fine milk composition for breeding and management of dairy cows.

PubMed

Gengler, N; Soyeurt, H; Dehareng, F; Bastin, C; Colinet, F; Hammami, H; Vanrobays, M-L; Lainé, A; Vanderick, S; Grelet, C; Vanlierde, A; Froidmont, E; Dardenne, P

2016-05-01

The challenge of managing and breeding dairy cows is permanently adapting to changing production circumstances under socio-economic constraints. If managing and breeding address different timeframes of action, both need relevant phenotypes that allow for precise monitoring of the status of the cows, and their health, behavior, and well-being as well as their environmental impact and the quality of their products (i.e., milk and subsequently dairy products). Milk composition has been identified as an important source of information because it could reflect, at least partially, all these elements. Major conventional milk components such as fat, protein, urea, and lactose contents are routinely predicted by mid-infrared (MIR) spectrometry and have been widely used for these purposes. But, milk composition is much more complex and other nonconventional milk components, potentially predicted by MIR, might be informative. Such new milk-based phenotypes should be considered given that they are cheap, rapidly obtained, usable on a large scale, robust, and reliable. In a first approach, new phenotypes can be predicted from MIR spectra using techniques based on classical prediction equations. This method was used successfully for many novel traits (e.g., fatty acids, lactoferrin, minerals, milk technological properties, citrate) that can be then useful for management and breeding purposes. An innovation was to consider the longitudinal nature of the relationship between the trait of interest and the MIR spectra (e.g., to predict methane from MIR). By avoiding intermediate steps, prediction errors can be minimized when traits of interest (e.g., methane, energy balance, ketosis) are predicted directly from MIR spectra. In a second approach, research is ongoing to detect and exploit patterns in an innovative manner, by comparing observed with expected MIR spectra directly (e.g., pregnancy). All of these traits can then be used to define best practices, adjust feeding and health management, improve animal welfare, improve milk quality, and mitigate environmental impact. Under the condition that MIR data are available on a large scale, phenotypes for these traits will allow genetic and genomic evaluations. Introduction of novel traits into the breeding objectives will need additional research to clarify socio-economic weights and genetic correlations with other traits of interest. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Variation in blood serum proteins and association with somatic cell count in dairy cattle from multi-breed herds.

PubMed

Bobbo, T; Fiore, E; Gianesella, M; Morgante, M; Gallo, L; Ruegg, P L; Bittante, G; Cecchinato, A

2017-12-01

Blood serum proteins are significant indicators of animal health. Nevertheless, several factors should be considered to appropriately interpret their concentrations in blood. Therefore, the objectives of this study were (1) to assess the effect of herd productivity, breed, age and stage of lactation on serum proteins and (2) to investigate association between serum proteins and somatic cell count (SCC) in dairy cattle. Milk and blood samples were collected from 1508 cows of six different breeds (Holstein Friesian, Brown Swiss, Jersey, Simmental, Rendena and Alpine Grey) that were housed in 41 multi-breed herds. Milk samples were analyzed for composition and SCC, while blood samples were analyzed for serum proteins (i.e. total protein, albumin, globulin and albumin-to-globulin ratio (A : G)). Herds were classified as low or high production, according to the cow's average daily milk energy yield adjusted for breed, days in milk (DIM) and parity. Data were analyzed using a linear mixed model that included the fixed effects of DIM, parity, SCS, breed, herd productivity and the random effect of the Herd-test date within productivity level. Cows in high producing herds (characterized also by greater use of concentrates in the diet) had greater serum albumin concentrations. Breed differences were reported for all traits, highlighting a possible genetic mechanism. The specialized breed Jersey and the two dual-purpose local breeds (Alpine Grey and Rendena) had the lowest globulin concentration and greatest A : G. Changes in serum proteins were observed through lactation. Total protein reached the highest concentration during the 4th month of lactation. Blood albumin increased with DIM following a quadratic pattern, while globulin decreased linearly. As a consequence, A : G increased linearly during lactation. Older cows had greater total protein and globulin concentrations, while albumin concentration seemed to be not particularly affected by age. A linear relationship between serum proteins and SCS was observed. High milk SCS was associated with greater total protein and globulin concentrations in blood. The rise in globulin concentration, together with a decrease in albumin concentrations, resulted in a decline in A : G as SCS of milk increased. In conclusion, such non-genetic factors must be considered to appropriately interpret serum proteins as potential animal welfare indicator and their evaluation represents an important first-step for future analysis based on the integration of metabolomics, genetic and genomic information for improving the robustness of dairy cows.

Relationships between mastitis and functional longevity in Danish Black and White dairy cattle estimated using survival analysis.

PubMed

Neerhof, H J; Madsen, P; Ducrocq, V P; Vollema, A R; Jensen, J; Korsgaard, I R

2000-05-01

The relationship between mastitis and functional longevity was assessed with survival analysis on data of Danish Black and White dairy cows. Different methods of including the effect of mastitis treatment on the culling decision by a farmer in the model were compared. The model in which mastitis treatment was assumed to have an effect on functional longevity until the end of the lactation had the highest likelihood, and the model in which mastitis treatment had an effect for only a short period had the lowest likelihood. A cow with mastitis had 1.69 times greater risk of being culled than did a healthy herdmate with all other effects being the same. A model without mastitis treatment was used to predict transmitting abilities of bulls for risk of being culled, based on longevity records of their daughters, and was expressed in terms of risk of being culled. The correlation between the risk of being culled and the national evaluations of the bulls for mastitis resistance was approximately -0.4, indicating that resistance against mastitis was genetically correlated with a lower risk of being culled and, thus, a longer functional length of productive life.

Production and calving traits of Montbéliarde × Holstein and Viking Red × Holstein cows compared with pure Holstein cows during first lactation in 8 commercial dairy herds.

PubMed

Hazel, A R; Heins, B J; Hansen, L B

2017-05-01

Montbéliarde (MO) × Holstein (HO) and Viking Red (VR) × HO crossbred cows were compared with pure HO cows in 8 large, high-performance dairy herds. All cows were either 2-breed crossbred or pure HO cows that calved for the first time from December 2010 to April 2014. Best Prediction was used to calculate 305-d milk, fat, and protein production, as well as somatic cell score, and 513 MO × HO, 540 VR × HO, and 978 HO cows were analyzed for production in first lactation. Calving difficulty was scored from 1 (no assistance) to 5 (extreme difficulty). The analysis of calving traits included 493 MO × HO, 504 VR × HO, and 971 HO cows at first calving. Age at first calving was similar for breed groups, and the herds calved both crossbred (23.8 mo) and HO (23.9 mo) cows at young ages. The MO × HO crossbred cows had +3% higher production of 305-d fat plus protein production (actual basis, not mature equivalent) than the HO cows, and the VR × HO were similar to the HO cows for fat plus protein production. Breed groups did not differ for SCS during first lactation. The VR-sired 3-breed crossbred calves (from MO × HO dams) were similar to pure HO calves for calving difficulty; however, MO-sired male calves born to VR × HO dams had a mean score that was +0.5 points higher for calving difficulty than pure HO male calves. The 3-breed crossbred calves from both MO × HO (4%) and VR × HO (5%) first-lactation dams had a much lower stillbirth rate compared with pure HO calves (9%) from first-lactation dams. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Use of sexed semen and its effect on conception rate, calf sex, dystocia, and stillbirth of Holsteins in the United States

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Sexed-semen use for breeding Holstein heifers and cows in Dairy Herd Improvement herds was documented by frequency and percentage for parity and service number as well as for herd region, size, and milk yield. Year of breeding accounted for the most variation in the amount of use of sexed semen for ...

Reproduction and lactational performance of cattle in a smallholder dairy system in Zimbabwe.

PubMed

Masama, E; Kusina, N T; Sibanda, S; Majoni, C

2003-04-01

A study was conducted in two adjacent locations. Nharira (communal) and Lancashire (small-scale commercial) farming areas in Zimbabwe to characterize the breeds and evaluate the reproductive and lactation performance of dairy cattle under smallholder management. The types of cows identified were Friesian, Jersey and Red Dane, and an indigenous Sanga breed called the Mashona and its crossbreds. Both sectors used more exotic and crossbred cows than indigenous cows. The mean monthly weights of the dairy cows were higher in Lancashire than in Nharira and the calving intervals were longer in Nharira than in Lancashire. The mean age at first calving was higher and the mean total lactation yields were greater in Nharira than in Lancashire, but the mean 305-day lactation yields were not significantly different. The mean lactation lengths were longer for the cows from Nharira. It was concluded that the reproductive and lactation performances were low. The calving intervals were extended, probably owing to suboptimal nutrition and heat stress, particularly during the dry season, and to poor management practices, such as delayed mating due to the poor availability of bulls.

38 CFR 21.4264 - Farm cooperative courses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... harvesting of crops including fruits, vegetables and pastures, or (ii) The feeding, breeding and managing of... or sale of agricultural products or combinations thereof, such as dairy processing plants, grain...

38 CFR 21.4264 - Farm cooperative courses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... harvesting of crops including fruits, vegetables and pastures, or (ii) The feeding, breeding and managing of... or sale of agricultural products or combinations thereof, such as dairy processing plants, grain...

38 CFR 21.4264 - Farm cooperative courses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... harvesting of crops including fruits, vegetables and pastures, or (ii) The feeding, breeding and managing of... or sale of agricultural products or combinations thereof, such as dairy processing plants, grain...

38 CFR 21.4264 - Farm cooperative courses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... harvesting of crops including fruits, vegetables and pastures, or (ii) The feeding, breeding and managing of... or sale of agricultural products or combinations thereof, such as dairy processing plants, grain...

Does genomic selection have a future in plant breeding?

PubMed

Jonas, Elisabeth; de Koning, Dirk-Jan

2013-09-01

Plant breeding largely depends on phenotypic selection in plots and only for some, often disease-resistance-related traits, uses genetic markers. The more recently developed concept of genomic selection, using a black box approach with no need of prior knowledge about the effect or function of individual markers, has also been proposed as a great opportunity for plant breeding. Several empirical and theoretical studies have focused on the possibility to implement this as a novel molecular method across various species. Although we do not question the potential of genomic selection in general, in this Opinion, we emphasize that genomic selection approaches from dairy cattle breeding cannot be easily applied to complex plant breeding. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

On the role of mid-infrared predicted phenotypes in fertility and health dairy breeding programs.

PubMed

Bastin, C; Théron, L; Lainé, A; Gengler, N

2016-05-01

Fertility and health traits are of prime importance in dairy breeding programs. However, these traits are generally complex, difficult to record, and lowly heritable (<0.10), thereby hampering genetic improvement in disease resistance and fertility. Hence, indicators are useful in the prediction of genetic merit for fertility and health traits as long as they are easier to measure than direct fitness traits, heritable, and genetically correlated. Considering that changes in (fine) milk composition over a lactation reflect the physiological status of the cow, mid-infrared (MIR) analysis of milk opens the door to a wide range of potential indicator traits of fertility and health. Previous studies investigated the phenotypic and genetic relationships between fertility and MIR-predicted phenotypes, most being related to negative postpartum energy balance and body fat mobilization (e.g., fat:protein ratio, urea, fatty acids profile). Results showed that a combination of various fatty acid traits (e.g., C18:1 cis-9 and C10:0) could be used to improve fertility. Furthermore, occurrence of (sub)clinical ketosis has been related to milk-based phenotypes such as fat:protein ratio, fatty acids, and ketone bodies. Hence, MIR-predicted acetone and β-hydroxybutyrate contents in milk could be useful for breeding cows less susceptible to ketosis. Although studies investigating the genetic association among mastitis and MIR-predicted phenotypes are scarce, a wide range of traits, potentially predicted by MIR spectrometry, are worthy of consideration. These include traits related to the disease response of the cow (e.g., lactoferrin), reduced secretory activity (e.g., casein), and the alteration of the blood-milk barrier (e.g., minerals). Moreover, direct MIR prediction of fertility and health traits should be further considered. To conclude, MIR-predicted phenotypes have a role to play in the improvement of dairy cow fertility and health. However, further studies are warranted to (1) grasp underlying associations among MIR-predicted indicator and fitness traits, (2) estimate the genetic parameters, and (3) include these traits in broader breeding strategies. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effect of altering the type of dietary carbohydrate early postpartum on reproductive performance and milk production in pasture-grazed dairy cows.

PubMed

McDougall, S; Leane, S; Butler, S T; Roche, J R; Burke, C R

2018-04-01

The objective of this study was to assess the effect of increasing dietary starch for approximately 30 d postpartum on reproduction outcomes in pasture-grazed, seasonal-calving dairy cows. Cows (n = 948) from 3 commercial herds were blocked by age (2, 3, and >3 yr), breed, and expected calving date and randomly assigned to 1 of 2 postpartum treatment groups: high starch (34.7 ± 1.9% nonstructural carbohydrate; mean ± SD) or low starch (22.5 ± 0.4% nonstructural carbohydrate). The high-starch group in all 3 farms received 4.0 to 4.5 kg/d of a 75:25 cracked corn:barley grain mixture in the dairy parlor, split evenly between the morning and afternoon milkings. The low-starch cows received 5.0 to 5.5 kg/d of a 50:50 mixture of palm kernel meal:soy hulls (herds 1 and 3) fed in the parlor; low-starch cows in the remaining herd (herd 2) did not receive a concentrate feed. Cows were cograzed on ryegrass-white clover dominant pastures and were offered corn silage (herds 1 and 3) and canola, corn distillers grain, and palm kernel meal (herd 1) throughout the study. At 1 mo before the start of the seasonal breeding period, the high-starch supplement was removed, and within each herd treatment groups were managed similarly through breeding. Presence of purulent vaginal discharge was assessed at 28 DIM, and tail paint was assessed weekly from 2 to 6 wk postpartum for signs of estrus. The interval to first observed estrus was unaffected by treatment (32.7 vs. 33.5 ± 2 d for high and low starch, respectively), but there were tendencies for a herd × treatment interaction for proportion of cows pregnant to first service and for pregnancy within 6 wk. This interaction was significant for the proportion of cows finally pregnant; a lower proportion of high-starch cows were pregnant to first service, pregnant by 6 wk, and pregnant by the end of the seasonal breeding period in herd 1, but diet did not affect these outcomes in the other herds. Our results do not support a positive effect on reproduction from increasing dietary starch in seasonally bred grazing dairy cows. However, the interactions indicate variability in the herd response to dietary starch early postpartum and imply that pregnancy rate could potentially be compromised through the provision of starch to grazing dairy cows in early lactation (i.e., prebreeding). The experiment was not designed to define the reasons for these interactions, but differences should be considered in future research on the subject. Copyright © 2018 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Dry matter intake and feed efficiency profiles of 3 genotypes of Holstein-Friesian within pasture-based systems of milk production.

PubMed

Coleman, J; Berry, D P; Pierce, K M; Brennan, A; Horan, B

2010-09-01

The primary objective of the study was to quantify the effect of genetic improvement using the Irish total merit index (Economic Breeding Index) on dry matter intake and feed efficiency across lactation and to quantify the variation in performance among alternative definitions of feed efficiency. Three genotypes of Holstein-Friesian dairy cattle were established from within the Moorepark dairy research herd: 1) low Economic Breeding Index North American Holstein-Friesian representative of the Irish national average dairy cow, 2) high genetic merit North American Holstein-Friesian, and 3) high genetic merit New Zealand Holstein-Friesian. Animals from within each genotype were randomly allocated to 1 of 2 possible intensive pasture-based feed systems: 1) the Moorepark pasture system (2.64 cows/ha and 500 kg of concentrate supplement per cow per lactation) and 2) a high output per hectare pasture system (2.85 cows/ha and 1,200 kg of concentrate supplement per cow per lactation). A total of 128 and 140 spring-calving dairy cows were used during the years 2007 and 2008, respectively. Each group had an individual farmlet of 17 paddocks, and all groups were managed similarly throughout the study. The effects of genotype, feed system, and the interaction between genotype and feed system on dry matter intake, milk production, body weight, body condition score, and different definitions of feed efficiency were studied using mixed models with factorial arrangements of genotypes and feed systems accounting for the repeated cow records across years. No significant genotype-by-feed-system interactions were observed for any of the variables measured. Results showed that aggressive selection using the Irish Economic Breeding Index had no effect on dry matter intake across lactation when managed on intensive pasture-based systems of milk production, although the ranking of genotypes for feed efficiency differed depending on the definition of feed efficiency used. Performance of animals grouped on alternative definitions of feed efficiency showed that conventional definitions such as feed conversion efficiency or residual feed intake may be inappropriate measures of efficiency for lactating dairy cows. An alternative definition, residual solids production, is proposed. This definition of feed efficiency identifies animals that produce greater volumes of milk solids at similar levels of feed intake without excessive body tissue mobilization and with improved fertility performance. The results also suggest that although there are differences in feed efficiency between strains of Holstein-Friesian, there is also variation within genotypes so that improvements in feed efficiency can be realized if the appropriate definition of feed efficiency is incorporated into breeding programs. Copyright (c) 2010 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Dual Origins of Dairy Cattle Farming – Evidence from a Comprehensive Survey of European Y-Chromosomal Variation

PubMed Central

Edwards, Ceiridwen J.; Ginja, Catarina; Kantanen, Juha; Pérez-Pardal, Lucía; Tresset, Anne; Stock, Frauke; Gama, Luis T.; Penedo, M. Cecilia T.; Bradley, Daniel G.; Lenstra, Johannes A.; Nijman, Isaäc J.

2011-01-01

Background Diversity patterns of livestock species are informative to the history of agriculture and indicate uniqueness of breeds as relevant for conservation. So far, most studies on cattle have focused on mitochondrial and autosomal DNA variation. Previous studies of Y-chromosomal variation, with limited breed panels, identified two Bos taurus (taurine) haplogroups (Y1 and Y2; both composed of several haplotypes) and one Bos indicus (indicine/zebu) haplogroup (Y3), as well as a strong phylogeographic structuring of paternal lineages. Methodology and Principal Findings Haplogroup data were collected for 2087 animals from 138 breeds. For 111 breeds, these were resolved further by genotyping microsatellites INRA189 (10 alleles) and BM861 (2 alleles). European cattle carry exclusively taurine haplotypes, with the zebu Y-chromosomes having appreciable frequencies in Southwest Asian populations. Y1 is predominant in northern and north-western Europe, but is also observed in several Iberian breeds, as well as in Southwest Asia. A single Y1 haplotype is predominant in north-central Europe and a single Y2 haplotype in central Europe. In contrast, we found both Y1 and Y2 haplotypes in Britain, the Nordic region and Russia, with the highest Y-chromosomal diversity seen in the Iberian Peninsula. Conclusions We propose that the homogeneous Y1 and Y2 regions reflect founder effects associated with the development and expansion of two groups of dairy cattle, the pied or red breeds from the North Sea and Baltic coasts and the spotted, yellow or brown breeds from Switzerland, respectively. The present Y1-Y2 contrast in central Europe coincides with historic, linguistic, religious and cultural boundaries. PMID:21253012

Prevalence and pathogens of subclinical mastitis in dairy goats in China.

PubMed

Zhao, Yanqing; Liu, Hui; Zhao, Xuanduo; Gao, Yang; Zhang, Miaotao; Chen, Dekun

2015-02-01

Subclinical mastitis, a costly disease for the dairy industry, is usually caused by intramammary bacterial infection. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of and pathogens involved in subclinical mastitis in dairy goats in China. A total of 683 dairy goats in the main breeding areas of China were selected, and milk samples were collected. Out of these, 313 (45.82 %) goats were detected distinct or strong positive for subclinical mastitis by using California mastitis test. Among these positive goats, 209 milk samples were used to identify the causing agents by a multiplex PCR assay, and results were listed as follows: coagulase-negative staphylococci (59.52 %), Staphylococcus aureus (15.24 %), Escherichia coli (11.43 %), and Streptococcus spp. (10.95 %). In conclusion, subclinical mastitis is a highly prevalent disease in dairy goats in China, and coagulase-negative staphylococci are the predominant pathogens.

Genomic Regions in Local Endangered Sheep Encode Potentially Favorable Genes.

PubMed

Moioli, Bianca; Steri, Roberto; Catillo, Gennaro

2018-01-02

The economic evaluation of farm animal genetic resources plays a key role in developing conservation programs. However, to date, the link between diversity as assessed by neutral genetic markers and the functional diversity is not yet understood. Two genome-wide comparisons, using over 44,000 Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms, identified the markers with the highest difference in allele frequency between the Alpago endangered breed and two clusters, composed of four specialized dairy sheep, and four meat breeds respectively. The genes in proximity of these markers were mapped to known pathways of the Gene Ontology to determine which ones were most represented. Our results indicated that the differences of the Alpago breed from the more productive sheep rely upon genes involved in cellular defense and repair mechanisms. A higher number of different markers and genes were detected in the comparison with the specialized dairy sheep. These genes play a role in complex biological processes: metabolic, homeostatic, neurological system, and macromolecular organization; such processes may possibly explain the evolution of gene function as a result of selection to improve milk yield.

Prediction of Breeding Values for Dairy Cattle Using Artificial Neural Networks and Neuro-Fuzzy Systems

PubMed Central

Shahinfar, Saleh; Mehrabani-Yeganeh, Hassan; Lucas, Caro; Kalhor, Ahmad; Kazemian, Majid; Weigel, Kent A.

2012-01-01

Developing machine learning and soft computing techniques has provided many opportunities for researchers to establish new analytical methods in different areas of science. The objective of this study is to investigate the potential of two types of intelligent learning methods, artificial neural networks and neuro-fuzzy systems, in order to estimate breeding values (EBV) of Iranian dairy cattle. Initially, the breeding values of lactating Holstein cows for milk and fat yield were estimated using conventional best linear unbiased prediction (BLUP) with an animal model. Once that was established, a multilayer perceptron was used to build ANN to predict breeding values from the performance data of selection candidates. Subsequently, fuzzy logic was used to form an NFS, a hybrid intelligent system that was implemented via a local linear model tree algorithm. For milk yield the correlations between EBV and EBV predicted by the ANN and NFS were 0.92 and 0.93, respectively. Corresponding correlations for fat yield were 0.93 and 0.93, respectively. Correlations between multitrait predictions of EBVs for milk and fat yield when predicted simultaneously by ANN were 0.93 and 0.93, respectively, whereas corresponding correlations with reference EBV for multitrait NFS were 0.94 and 0.95, respectively, for milk and fat production. PMID:22991575

Genomic inbreeding estimation in small populations: evaluation of runs of homozygosity in three local dairy cattle breeds.

PubMed

Mastrangelo, S; Tolone, M; Di Gerlando, R; Fontanesi, L; Sardina, M T; Portolano, B

2016-05-01

In the local breeds with small population size, one of the most important problems is the increase of inbreeding coefficient (F). High levels of inbreeding lead to reduced genetic diversity and inbreeding depression. The availability of high-density single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) arrays has facilitated the quantification of F by genomic markers in farm animals. Runs of homozygosity (ROH) are contiguous lengths of homozygous genotypes and represent an estimate of the degree of autozygosity at genome-wide level. The current study aims to quantify the genomic F derived from ROH (F ROH) in three local dairy cattle breeds. F ROH values were compared with F estimated from the genomic relationship matrix (F GRM), based on the difference between observed v. expected number of homozygous genotypes (F HOM) and the genomic homozygosity of individual i (F MOL i ). The molecular coancestry coefficient (f MOL ij ) between individuals i and j was also estimated. Individuals of Cinisara (71), Modicana (72) and Reggiana (168) were genotyped with the 50K v2 Illumina BeadChip. Genotypes from 96 animals of Italian Holstein cattle breed were also included in the analysis. We used a definition of ROH as tracts of homozygous genotypes that were >4 Mb. Among breeds, 3661 ROH were identified. Modicana showed the highest mean number of ROH per individual and the highest value of F ROH, whereas Reggiana showed the lowest ones. Differences among breeds existed for the ROH lengths. The individuals of Italian Holstein showed high number of short ROH segments, related to ancient consanguinity. Similar results showed the Reggiana with some extreme animals with segments covering 400 Mb and more of genome. Modicana and Cinisara showed similar results between them with the total length of ROH characterized by the presence of large segments. High correlation was found between F HOM and F ROH ranged from 0.83 in Reggiana to 0.95 in Cinisara and Modicana. The correlations among F ROH and other estimated F coefficients were generally lower ranged from 0.45 (F MOL i -F ROH) in Cinisara to 0.17 (F GRM-F ROH) in Modicana. On the basis of our results, recent inbreeding was observed in local breeds, considering that 16 Mb segments are expected to present inbreeding up to three generations ago. Our results showed the necessity of implementing conservation programs to control the rise of inbreeding and coancestry in the three Italian local dairy cattle breeds.

40 CFR 98.363 - Calculating GHG emissions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

...., dairy cows, breeding swine, layers) must be estimated by performing an animal inventory or review of... (meat animals such as beef and veal cattle, market swine, broilers, and turkeys) must be estimated each...

40 CFR 98.363 - Calculating GHG emissions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

...., dairy cows, breeding swine, layers) must be estimated by performing an animal inventory or review of... (meat animals such as beef and veal cattle, market swine, broilers, and turkeys) must be estimated each...

9 CFR 77.2 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... of each animal to be moved; the number, breed, sex, and approximate age of the animals covered by the... one State into or through any other State. Livestock. Cattle, bison, cervids, swine, dairy goats, and...

9 CFR 77.2 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... of each animal to be moved; the number, breed, sex, and approximate age of the animals covered by the... one State into or through any other State. Livestock. Cattle, bison, cervids, swine, dairy goats, and...

Financial analysis of various strategies for the control of Neospora caninum in dairy cattle in Switzerland.

PubMed

Häsler, Barbara; Regula, Gertraud; Stärk, Katharina D C; Sager, Heinz; Gottstein, Bruno; Reist, Martin

2006-12-18

The present study was conducted to estimate the direct losses due to Neospora caninum in Swiss dairy cattle and to assess the costs and benefits of different potential control strategies. A Monte Carlo simulation spreadsheet module was developed to estimate the direct costs caused by N. caninum, with and without control strategies, and to estimate the costs of these control strategies in a financial analysis. The control strategies considered were "testing and culling of seropositive female cattle", "discontinued breeding with offspring from seropositive cows", "chemotherapeutical treatment of female offspring" and "vaccination of all female cattle". Each parameter in the module that was considered to be uncertain, was described using probability distributions. The simulations were run with 20,000 iterations over a time period of 25 years. The median annual losses due to N. caninum in the Swiss dairy cow population were estimated to be euro 9.7 million euros. All control strategies that required yearly serological testing of all cattle in the population produced high costs and thus were not financially profitable. Among the other control strategies, two showed benefit-cost ratios (BCR) >1 and positive net present values (NPV): "Discontinued breeding with offspring from seropositive cows" (BCR=1.29, NPV=25 million euros ) and "chemotherapeutical treatment of all female offspring" (BCR=2.95, NPV=59 million euros). In economic terms, the best control strategy currently available would therefore be "discontinued breeding with offspring from seropositive cows".

Ovarian responses of dairy buffalo cows to timed artificial insemination protocol, using new or used progesterone devices, during the breeding season (autumn-winter).

PubMed

Monteiro, Bruno Moura; de Souza, Diego Cavalcante; Vasconcellos, Guilherme Souza Floriano Machado; Corrêa, Thalita Bueno; Vecchio, Domenico; de Sá Filho, Manoel Francisco; de Carvalho, Nelcio Antonio Tonizza; Baruselli, Pietro Sampaio

2016-01-01

This study evaluated the effect of new or used P4 devices on the ovarian responses of dairy buffalo that were administered an estradiol (E2) plus progesterone (P4)-based timed artificial insemination (TAI) protocol during the breeding season. On the first day of the TAI protocol, 142 cows were randomly assigned to receive one of the following: a new device (New; 1.0 g of P4; n = 48); a device that had previously been used for 9 days (Used1x, n = 47); or a device that had previously been used for 18 days (Used2x, n = 47). Ultrasound was used to evaluate the following: the presence of a corpus luteum (CL); the diameter of the dominant follicle (ØDF) during protocol; ovulatory response; and pregnancies per AI (P/AI). Despite similar responses among the treatments, there was a significant positive association of the ØDF during TAI protocol with ovulatory responses and number of pregnancies. In conclusion, satisfactory ovarian responses and a satisfactory pregnancy rate were achieved when grazing dairy buffalo were subjected to the TAI protocol in breeding season, independent of whether a new or used P4 device was used. Furthermore, the presence of the larger follicle was associated with a higher ovulation rate and higher P/AI following TAI. © 2015 Japanese Society of Animal Science.

Short communication: Genetic study of methane production predicted from milk fat composition in dairy cows.

PubMed

van Engelen, S; Bovenhuis, H; Dijkstra, J; van Arendonk, J A M; Visker, M H P W

2015-11-01

Dairy cows produce enteric methane, a greenhouse gas with 25 times the global warming potential of CO2. Breeding could make a permanent, cumulative, and long-term contribution to methane reduction. Due to a lack of accurate, repeatable, individual methane measurements needed for breeding, indicators of methane production based on milk fatty acids have been proposed. The aim of the present study was to quantify the genetic variation for predicted methane yields. The milk fat composition of 1,905 first-lactation Dutch Holstein-Friesian cows was used to investigate 3 different predicted methane yields (g/kg of DMI): Methane1, Methane2, and Methane3. Methane1 was based on the milk fat proportions of C17:0anteiso, C18:1 rans-10+11, C18:1 cis-11, and C18:1 cis-13 (R(2)=0.73). Methane2 was based on C4:0, C18:0, C18:1 trans-10+11, and C18:1 cis-11 (R(2)=0.70). Methane3 was based on C4:0, C6:0, and C18:1 trans-10+11 (R(2)=0.63). Predicted methane yields were demonstrated to be heritable traits, with heritabilities between 0.12 and 0.44. Breeding can, thus, be used to decrease methane production predicted based on milk fatty acids. Copyright © 2015 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Characterisation of adopters and non-adopters of dairy technologies in Ethiopia and Kenya.

PubMed

Kebebe, E G; Oosting, S J; Baltenweck, I; Duncan, A J

2017-04-01

While there is a general consensus that using dairy technologies, such as improved breeds of dairy cows, can substantially increase farm productivity and income, adoption of such technologies has been generally low in developing countries. The underlying reasons for non-adoption of beneficial technologies in the dairy sector are not fully understood. In this study, we characterised adopters and non-adopters of dairy technologies in Ethiopia and Kenya based on farmers' resources ownership in order to identify why many farmers in Ethiopia and Kenya have not adopted improved dairy technologies. As compared to non-adopters, farmers who adopt dairy technology own relatively more farm resources. The result signals that differences in resource endowments could lead to divergent technology adoption scenarios. Results show that a higher proportion of sample smallholders in Kenya have adopted dairy technologies than those in Ethiopia. Except for the use of veterinary services, fewer than 10% of sample farmers in Ethiopia have adopted dairy technologies-less than half the number of adopters in Kenya. The higher level of dairy technology adoption in Kenya can be ascribed partly to the long history of dairy development, including improvements in the value chain for the delivery of inputs, services and fluid milk marketing. Interventions that deal with the constraints related to access to farm resources and input and output markets could facilitate uptake of dairy technology in developing countries.

Increased genetic gains in sheep, beef and dairy breeding programs from using female reproductive technologies combined with optimal contribution selection and genomic breeding values.

PubMed

Granleese, Tom; Clark, Samuel A; Swan, Andrew A; van der Werf, Julius H J

2015-09-14

Female reproductive technologies such as multiple ovulation and embryo transfer (MOET) and juvenile in vitro embryo production and embryo transfer (JIVET) can boost rates of genetic gain but they can also increase rates of inbreeding. Inbreeding can be managed using the principles of optimal contribution selection (OCS), which maximizes genetic gain while placing a penalty on the rate of inbreeding. We evaluated the potential benefits and synergies that exist between genomic selection (GS) and reproductive technologies under OCS for sheep and cattle breeding programs. Various breeding program scenarios were simulated stochastically including: (1) a sheep breeding program for the selection of a single trait that could be measured either early or late in life; (2) a beef breeding program with an early or late trait; and (3) a dairy breeding program with a sex limited trait. OCS was applied using a range of penalties (severe to no penalty) on co-ancestry of selection candidates, with the possibility of using multiple ovulation and embryo transfer (MOET) and/or juvenile in vitro embryo production and embryo transfer (JIVET) for females. Each breeding program was simulated with and without genomic selection. All breeding programs could be penalized to result in an inbreeding rate of 1 % increase per generation. The addition of MOET to artificial insemination or natural breeding (AI/N), without the use of GS yielded an extra 25 to 60 % genetic gain. The further addition of JIVET did not yield an extra genetic gain. When GS was used, MOET and MOET + JIVET programs increased rates of genetic gain by 38 to 76 % and 51 to 81 % compared to AI/N, respectively. Large increases in genetic gain were found across species when female reproductive technologies combined with genomic selection were applied and inbreeding was managed, especially for breeding programs that focus on the selection of traits measured late in life or that are sex-limited. Optimal contribution selection was an effective tool to optimally allocate different combinations of reproductive technologies. Applying a range of penalties to co-ancestry of selection candidates allows a comprehensive exploration of the inbreeding vs. genetic gain space.

Dairy-cattle health in Gyeongnam, Korea.

PubMed

Jong, S K; Gong, S K; Chung, H K; Dae, S H

2001-12-03

An animal-health monitoring system in the Gyeongnam area was started in 1997 to develop statistically valid data for use in estimating disease frequencies in dairy cattle, and the associated costs. The objectives of this study were to: (1) describe what was done to implement and maintain the system in Gyeongnam; (2) present selected disease frequencies; (3) discuss the epidemiological consideration of what was done and implications for results obtained. Veterinary medical officers (VMOs), comprising professors and graduate students from Gyeongsang National University, faculty of Gyeongnam Livestock Promotion Institute and clinic veterinarians, served as data collectors. After training on current disease and management problems of dairy cattle, interview techniques, sampling methods and data-collection instruments, the VMOs participated in selection of the sample herds and data gathering. Forty (n=40) of 167 dairy herds were selected randomly using a computer-generated list of random numbers and the VMOs visited farms once in a month for 12 months to collect data about management, disease, inventory, production, preventive treatment, financial and other relevant data. Strict data-quality control devices were used. Specific feed-back was developed for the producers and data collectors. The six disorders found most frequently in cows (from the highest to the lowest) were breeding problems, clinical mastitis, birth problems, gastrointestinal problems, metabolic problems and lameness. In young stock, respiratory, multiple system, breeding and gastrointestinal problems were predominant, whereas in calves, gastrointestinal, respiratory and integumental problems predominated.

Overlap in genomic variation associated with milk fat composition in Holstein Friesian and Dutch native dual-purpose breeds.

PubMed

Maurice-Van Eijndhoven, M H T; Bovenhuis, H; Veerkamp, R F; Calus, M P L

2015-09-01

The aim of this study was to identify if genomic variations associated with fatty acid (FA) composition are similar between the Holstein-Friesian (HF) and native dual-purpose breeds used in the Dutch dairy industry. Phenotypic and genotypic information were available for the breeds Meuse-Rhine-Yssel (MRY), Dutch Friesian (DF), Groningen White Headed (GWH), and HF. First, the reliability of genomic breeding values of the native Dutch dual-purpose cattle breeds MRY, DF, and GWH was evaluated using single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) effects estimated in HF, including all SNP or subsets with stronger associations in HF. Second, the genomic variation of the regions associated with FA composition in HF (regions on Bos taurus autosome 5, 14, and 26), were studied in the different breeds. Finally, similarities in genotype and allele frequencies between MRY, DF, GWH, and HF breeds were assessed for specific regions associated with FA composition. On average across the traits, the highest reliabilities of genomic prediction were estimated for GWH (0.158) and DF (0.116) when the 8 to 22 SNP with the strongest association in HF were included. With the same set of SNP, GEBV for MRY were the least reliable (0.022). This indicates that on average only 2 (MRY) to 16% (GWH) of the genomic variation in HF is shared with the native Dutch dual-purpose breeds. The comparison of predicted variances of different regions associated with milk and milk fat composition showed that breeds clearly differed in genomic variation within these regions. Finally, the correlations of allele frequencies between breeds across the 8 to 22 SNP with the strongest association in HF were around 0.8 between the Dutch native dual-purpose breeds, whereas the correlations between the native breeds and HF were clearly lower and around 0.5. There was no consistent relationship between the reliabilities of genomic prediction for a specific breed and the correlation between the allele frequencies of this breed and HF. In conclusion, most of the genomic variation associated with FA composition in the Dutch dual-purpose breeds appears to be breed-specific. Furthermore, the minor allele frequencies of genes having an effect on the milk FA composition in HF were shown to be much smaller in the breeds MRY, DF, and GWH, especially for the MRY breed. Copyright © 2015 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Net mineral requirements of dairy goats during pregnancy.

PubMed

Härter, C J; Lima, L D; Castagnino, D S; Silva, H O; Figueiredo, F O M; St-Pierre, N R; Resende, K T; Teixeira, I A M A

2017-09-01

Mineral requirements of pregnant dairy goats are still not well defined; therefore, we investigated the net Ca, P, Mg, Na and K requirements for pregnancy and for maintenance during pregnancy in two separate experiments. Experiment 1 was performed to estimate the net Ca, P, Mg, Na and K requirements in goats carrying single or twin fetuses from 50 to 140 days of pregnancy (DOP). The net mineral requirements for pregnancy were determined by measuring mineral deposition in gravid uterus and mammary gland after comparative slaughter. In total, 57 dairy goats of two breeds (Oberhasli or Saanen), in their third or fourth parturition, were randomly assigned to groups based on litter size (single or twin) and day of slaughter (50, 80, 110 and 140 DOP) in a fully factorial design. Net mineral accretion for pregnancy did not differ by goat breed. The total daily Ca, P, Mg, Na and K requirements for pregnancy were greatest in goats carrying twins (P<0.05), and the requirements increased as pregnancy progressed. Experiment 2 was performed to estimate net Ca, P, Mg, Na and K requirements for dairy goat maintenance during pregnancy. In total, 58 dairy goats (Oberhasli and Saanen) carrying twin fetuses were assigned to groups based on slaughter day (80, 110 and 140 DOP) and feed restriction (ad libitum, 20% and 40% feed restriction) in a randomized block design. The net Ca, P and Mg requirements for maintenance did not vary by breed or over the course of pregnancy. The daily net requirements of Ca, P and Mg for maintenance were 60.4, 31.1 and 2.42 mg/kg live BW (LBW), respectively. The daily net Na requirement for maintenance was greater in Saanen goats (11.8 mg/kg LBW) than in Oberhasli goats (8.96 mg/kg LBW; P<0.05). Daily net K requirements increased as pregnancy progressed from 8.73 to 15.4 mg/kg LBW (P<0.01). The findings of this study will guide design of diets with adequate mineral content for pregnant goats throughout their pregnancy.

Calving traits, milk production, body condition, fertility, and survival of Holstein-Friesian and Norwegian Red dairy cattle on commercial dairy farms over 5 lactations.

PubMed

Ferris, C P; Patterson, D C; Gordon, F J; Watson, S; Kilpatrick, D J

2014-01-01

The objective of this study was to compare calving traits, BCS, milk production, fertility, and survival of Holstein-Friesian (HF) and Norwegian Red (NR) dairy cattle in moderate-concentrate input systems. The experiment was conducted on 19 commercial Northern Ireland dairy farms, and involved 221 HF cows and 221 NR cows. Cows completed 5 lactations during the experiment, unless they died or were culled or sold. Norwegian Red cows had a lower calving difficulty score than HF cows when calving for the first and second time, but not for the third and fourth time. At first calving, the incidence of stillbirths for NR cows was 4%, compared with 13% for HF cows, whereas no difference existed between breeds in the proportion of calves born alive when calving for the second time. When calving for the first time, NR cows had a poorer milking temperament than HF cows, whereas milking temperament was unaffected by breed following the second calving. Holstein-Friesian cows had a higher full-lactation milk yield than NR cows, whereas NR cows produced milk with a higher milk fat and protein content. Full-lactation fat + protein yield was unaffected by genotype. Norwegian Red cows had a lower somatic cell score than HF cows during all lactations. Although NR cattle had a higher BCS than the HF cows during lactations 1 and 2, no evidence existed that the 2 genotypes either lost or gained body condition at different rates. Conception rates to first artificial insemination were higher with the NR cows during lactations 1 to 4 (57.8 vs. 40.9%, respectively), with 28.5% of HF cows and 11.8% of NR cows culled as infertile before lactation 6. A greater percentage of NR cows calved for a sixth time compared with HF cows (27.2 vs. 16.3%, respectively). In general, NR cows outperformed HF cows in traits that have been historically included in the NR breeding program. Copyright © 2014 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Genome-wide association study for cheese yield and curd nutrient recovery in dairy cows.

PubMed

Dadousis, C; Biffani, S; Cipolat-Gotet, C; Nicolazzi, E L; Rosa, G J M; Gianola, D; Rossoni, A; Santus, E; Bittante, G; Cecchinato, A

2017-02-01

Cheese production and consumption are increasing in many countries worldwide. As a result, interest has increased in strategies for genetic selection of individuals for technological traits of milk related to cheese yield (CY) in dairy cattle breeding. However, little is known about the genetic background of a cow's ability to produce cheese. Recently, a relatively large panel (1,264 cows) of different measures of individual cow CY and milk nutrient and energy recoveries in the cheese (REC) became available. Genetic analyses showed considerable variation for CY and for aptitude to retain high proportions of fat, protein, and water in the coagulum. For the dairy industry, these characteristics are of major economic importance. Nevertheless, use of this knowledge in dairy breeding is hampered by high costs, intense labor requirement, and lack of appropriate technology. However, in the era of genomics, new possibilities are available for animal breeding and genetic improvement. For example, identification of genomic regions involved in cow CY might provide potential for marker-assisted selection. The objective of this study was to perform genome-wide association studies on different CY and REC measures. Milk and DNA samples from 1,152 Italian Brown Swiss cows were used. Three CY traits expressing the weight (wt) of fresh curd (%CY CURD ), curd solids (%CY SOLIDS ), and curd moisture (%CY WATER ) as a percentage of weight of milk processed, and 4 REC (REC FAT , REC PROTEIN , REC SOLIDS , and REC ENERGY , calculated as the % ratio between the nutrient in curd and the corresponding nutrient in processed milk) were analyzed. Animals were genotyped with the Illumina BovineSNP50 Bead Chip v.2. Single marker regressions were fitted using the GenABEL R package (genome-wide association using mixed model and regression-genomic control). In total, 103 significant associations (88 single nucleotide polymorphisms) were identified in 10 chromosomes (2, 6, 9, 11, 12, 14, 18, 19, 27, 28). For REC FAT and REC PROTEIN , high significance peaks were identified in Bos taurus autosome (BTA) 6 and BTA11, respectively. Marker ARS-BFGL-NGS-104610 (∼104.3 Mbp) was highly associated with REC PROTEIN and Hapmap52348-rs29024684 (∼87.4 Mbp), closely located to the casein genes on BTA6, with REC FAT . Genomic regions identified may enhance marker-assisted selection in bovine cheese breeding beyond the use of protein (casein) and fat contents, whereas new knowledge will help to unravel the genomic background of a cow's ability for cheese production. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Invited review: Current production trends, farm structures, and economics of the dairy sheep and goat sectors.

PubMed

Pulina, G; Milán, M J; Lavín, M P; Theodoridis, A; Morin, E; Capote, J; Thomas, D L; Francesconi, A H D; Caja, G

2018-05-30

Dairy small ruminants account for approximately 21% of all sheep and goats in the world, produce around 3.5% of the world's milk, and are mainly located in subtropical-temperate areas of Asia, Europe, and Africa. Dairy sheep are concentrated around the Mediterranean and Black Sea regions, where their dairy products are typical ingredients of the human diet. Dairy goats are concentrated in low-income, food-deficit countries of the Indian subcontinent, where their products are a key food source, but are also present in high-income, technologically developed countries. This review evaluates the status of the dairy sheep and goat sectors in the world, with special focus on the commercially and technically developed industries in France, Greece, Italy, and Spain (FGIS). Dairy small ruminants account for a minor part of the total agricultural output in France, Italy, and Spain (0.9 to 1.8%) and a larger part in Greece (8.8%). In FGIS, the dairy sheep industry is based on local breeds and crossbreeds raised under semi-intensive and intensive systems and is concentrated in a few regions in these countries. Average flock size varies from small to medium (140 to 333 ewes/farm), and milk yield from low to medium (85 to 216 L/ewe), showing substantial room for improvement. Most sheep milk is sold to industries and processed into traditional cheese types, many of which are Protected Denomination of Origin (PDO) cheeses for gourmet and export markets (e.g., Pecorino, Manchego, and Roquefort). By comparing break-even milk price among FGIS countries, we observed the following: (1) most Greek and French dairy sheep farms were unprofitable, with the exception of the intensive Chios farms of Greece; (2) milk price was aligned with cost of production in Italy; and (3) profitable farms coexisted with unprofitable farms in Spain. In FGIS, dairy goat production is based on local breeds raised under more extensive systems than sheep. Compared with sheep, average dairy goat herds are smaller (36 to 190 does/farm) but milk yield is greater (153 to 589 L/doe), showing room for improvement. Goat milk is mainly processed on-farm into dairy products for national markets, but some PDO goat milk cheeses (e.g., Murcia al Vino) are exported. Processed goat milk is sold for local human consumption or dehydrated for export. Mixed sheep-goat (e.g., Feta) and cow-sheep-goat milk cheeses are common in many countries. Strategies to improve the dairy sheep and goat sectors in these 4 countries are proposed and discussed. Copyright © 2018 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

21 CFR 520.1120b - Haloxon boluses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... anthelmintic used in cattle for the control of gastrointestinal roundworms of the genera Haemonchus, Ostertagia... week of slaughter. (6) Do not treat dairy animals of breeding age or older. [40 FR 13838, Mar. 27, 1975...

Genetics and genomics of reproductive performance in dairy and beef cattle.

PubMed

Berry, D P; Wall, E; Pryce, J E

2014-05-01

Excellent reproductive performance in both males and females is fundamental to profitable dairy and beef production systems. In this review we undertook a meta-analysis of genetic parameters for female reproductive performance across 55 dairy studies or populations and 12 beef studies or populations as well as across 28 different studies or populations for male reproductive performance. A plethora of reproductive phenotypes exist in dairy and beef cattle and a meta-analysis of the literature suggests that most of the female reproductive traits in dairy and beef cattle tend to be lowly heritable (0.02 to 0.04). Reproductive-related phenotypes in male animals (e.g. semen quality) tend to be more heritable than female reproductive phenotypes with mean heritability estimates of between 0.05 and 0.22 for semen-related traits with the exception of scrotal circumference (0.42) and field non-return rate (0.001). The low heritability of reproductive traits, in females in particular, does not however imply that genetic selection cannot alter phenotypic performance as evidenced by the decline until recently in dairy cow reproductive performance attributable in part to aggressive selection for increased milk production. Moreover, the antagonistic genetic correlations among reproductive traits and both milk (dairy cattle) and meat (beef cattle) yield is not unity thereby implying that simultaneous genetic selection for both increased (milk and meat) yield and reproductive performance is indeed possible. The required emphasis on reproductive traits within a breeding goal to halt deterioration will vary based on the underlying assumptions and is discussed using examples for Ireland, the United Kingdom and Australia as well as quantifying the impact on genetic gain for milk production. Advancements in genomic technologies can aid in increasing the accuracy of selection for especially reproductive traits and thus genetic gain. Elucidation of the underlying genomic mechanisms for reproduction could also aid in resolving genetic antagonisms. Past breeding programmes have contributed to the deterioration in reproductive performance of dairy and beef cattle. The tools now exist, however, to reverse the genetic trends in reproductive performance underlying the observed phenotypic trends.

Different Personal Skills and Competencies Which Local Agricultural Advisers Can Use to Co-Create Change in Management Procedures: A Case-Study of Danish Dairy Farmers and Advisers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Andersen, H. J.

2004-01-01

In this paper three different skills and competencies of the local agricultural adviser are described: "The specialist, the reflective specialist and the reflective listener". The skills and competencies are framed as potentials and theoretically rooted in the ideas of George Herbert Mead, Chris Argyris and Donald Schon. The empirical…

21 CFR 520.1120a - Haloxon drench.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

...) Conditions of use. It is used as a drench as follows: (1) Cattle—(i) Amount. 141.5 grams per packet. (ii... treat within 1 week of slaughter; do not treat dairy animals of breeding age; animals should be...

21 CFR 520.1242b - Levamisole hydrochloride tablet or oblet (bolus).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... oblet for cattle as follows: (i) Amount. 2.19 grams per oblet. (ii) Indications for use. Anthelmintic... within 48 hours of treatment; not for use in dairy animals of breeding age; consult veterinarian before...

21 CFR 520.1120a - Haloxon drench.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

...) Conditions of use. It is used as a drench as follows: (1) Cattle—(i) Amount. 141.5 grams per packet. (ii... treat within 1 week of slaughter; do not treat dairy animals of breeding age; animals should be...

21 CFR 520.1242b - Levamisole hydrochloride tablet or oblet (bolus).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... oblet for cattle as follows: (i) Amount. 2.19 grams per oblet. (ii) Indications for use. Anthelmintic... within 48 hours of treatment; not for use in dairy animals of breeding age; consult veterinarian before...

21 CFR 520.1120a - Haloxon drench.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

...) Conditions of use. It is used as a drench as follows: (1) Cattle—(i) Amount. 141.5 grams per packet. (ii... treat within 1 week of slaughter; do not treat dairy animals of breeding age; animals should be...

21 CFR 520.1242b - Levamisole hydrochloride tablet or oblet (bolus).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... oblet for cattle as follows: (i) Amount. 2.19 grams per oblet. (ii) Indications for use. Anthelmintic... within 48 hours of treatment; not for use in dairy animals of breeding age; consult veterinarian before...

26 CFR 1.167(a)-6 - Depreciation in special cases.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... other physical property but not including land. Livestock acquired for work, breeding, or dairy purposes... to soil or water conservation expenditures. [T.D. 6500, 25 FR 11402, Nov. 26, 1960; 25 FR 14021, Dec...

26 CFR 1.167(a)-6 - Depreciation in special cases.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... other physical property but not including land. Livestock acquired for work, breeding, or dairy purposes... to soil or water conservation expenditures. [T.D. 6500, 25 FR 11402, Nov. 26, 1960; 25 FR 14021, Dec...

26 CFR 1.167(a)-6 - Depreciation in special cases.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... other physical property but not including land. Livestock acquired for work, breeding, or dairy purposes... to soil or water conservation expenditures. [T.D. 6500, 25 FR 11402, Nov. 26, 1960; 25 FR 14021, Dec...

26 CFR 1.167(a)-6 - Depreciation in special cases.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... other physical property but not including land. Livestock acquired for work, breeding, or dairy purposes... to soil or water conservation expenditures. [T.D. 6500, 25 FR 11402, Nov. 26, 1960; 25 FR 14021, Dec...

ASAS Centennial Paper: Animal breeding research and the Journal of Animal Science: A century of co-evolution.

PubMed

Hohenboken, W D

2009-01-01

Animal breeding reports in the Journal of Animal Science (JAS) and in its predecessor, Proceedings of the American Society of Animal Production, were counted and categorized. In 22 volumes of the Proceedings of the American Society of Animal Production, 155 articles had animal breeding content, of which 54% were research reports, 17% extension communications, and 28% syntheses or reviews. Several of the latter featured advice from the livestock industry to the scientific community. Thirty-one percent of articles concerned swine, whereas beef cattle, dairy cattle, and sheep each accounted for an additional 20%. In the 67 yr of JAS publication, 3,045 research papers were identified with animal breeding content, nearly half of them published since 1990. Growth in publication output was modest during the 1950s, robust in the 1960s through 1980s, moderate in the 1990s, and static in the 2000s. Important topics included genetic resource evaluation (a subject in 55% of all manuscripts), genetic parameter estimation, selection programs, and nonrandom mating systems. Maternal effects and genotype x environment interactions were featured in 17 and 15% of all manuscripts, respectively, whereas 6% dealt with a simply inherited trait. Only 4% of manuscripts included economic analysis of a breeding program or intervention. Interest in molecular biology and biometry has surged in the 1990s and 2000s. Approximately 50% of all papers involved cattle, a fifth of which concerned dairy cattle or beef x dairy crossbreds. A quarter of papers concerned swine, 15% concerned sheep, and 3% considered laboratory rodents, with the proportional contribution of sheep research decreasing across time. Authors from the Midwestern and Southern sections of the American Society of Animal Science had greater proportional contributions than Western and Northeastern section authors, and contributions of university and state experiment station authors outnumbered those of USDA-ARS authors. The proportional contribution of international authors increased across time, reaching 45% for the 2000s, as that of university and experiment station authors decreased and that of USDA-ARS authors remained fairly constant. Subjective analysis suggested substantial levels of creativity, innovation, and cooperation in JAS animal breeding research, a strong international perspective, but also a marked degree of imitation and repetition in subject matter content.

Optimizing the design of small-sized nucleus breeding programs for dairy cattle with minimal performance recording.

PubMed

Kariuki, C M; Komen, H; Kahi, A K; van Arendonk, J A M

2014-12-01

Dairy cattle breeding programs in developing countries are constrained by minimal and erratic pedigree and performance recording on cows on commercial farms. Small-sized nucleus breeding programs offer a viable alternative. Deterministic simulations using selection index theory were performed to determine the optimum design for small-sized nucleus schemes for dairy cattle. The nucleus was made up of 197 bulls and 243 cows distributed in 8 non-overlapping age classes. Each year 10 sires and 100 dams were selected to produce the next generation of male and female selection candidates. Conception rates and sex ratio were fixed at 0.90 and 0.50, respectively, translating to 45 male and 45 female candidates joining the nucleus per year. Commercial recorded dams provided information for genetic evaluation of selection candidates (bulls) in the nucleus. Five strategies were defined: nucleus records only [within-nucleus dam performance (DP)], progeny records in addition to nucleus records [progeny testing (PT)], genomic information only [genomic selection (GS)], dam performance records in addition to genomic information (GS+DP), and progeny records in addition to genomic information (GS+PT). Alternative PT, GS, GS+DP, and GS+PT schemes differed in the number of progeny per sire and size of reference population. The maximum number of progeny records per sire was 30, and the maximum size of the reference population was 5,000. Results show that GS schemes had higher responses and lower accuracies compared with other strategies, with the higher response being due to shorter generation intervals. Compared with similar sized progeny-testing schemes, genomic-selection schemes would have lower accuracies but these are offset by higher responses per year, which might provide additional incentive for farmers to participate in recording. Copyright © 2014 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Detection of Haplotypes Associated with Prenatal Death in Dairy Cattle and Identification of Deleterious Mutations in GART, SHBG and SLC37A2

PubMed Central

Fritz, Sébastien; Capitan, Aurelien; Djari, Anis; Rodriguez, Sabrina C.; Barbat, Anne; Baur, Aurélia; Grohs, Cécile; Weiss, Bernard; Boussaha, Mekki; Esquerré, Diane; Klopp, Christophe; Rocha, Dominique; Boichard, Didier

2013-01-01

The regular decrease of female fertility over time is a major concern in modern dairy cattle industry. Only half of this decrease is explained by indirect response to selection on milk production, suggesting the existence of other factors such as embryonic lethal genetic defects. Genomic regions harboring recessive deleterious mutations were detected in three dairy cattle breeds by identifying frequent haplotypes (>1%) showing a deficit in homozygotes among Illumina Bovine 50k Beadchip haplotyping data from the French genomic selection database (47,878 Holstein, 16,833 Montbéliarde, and 11,466 Normande animals). Thirty-four candidate haplotypes (p<10−4) including previously reported regions associated with Brachyspina, CVM, HH1, and HH3 in Holstein breed were identified. Haplotype length varied from 1 to 4.8 Mb and frequencies from 1.7 up to 9%. A significant negative effect on calving rate, consistent in heifers and in lactating cows, was observed for 9 of these haplotypes in matings between carrier bulls and daughters of carrier sires, confirming their association with embryonic lethal mutations. Eight regions were further investigated using whole genome sequencing data from heterozygous bull carriers and control animals (45 animals in total). Six strong candidate causative mutations including polymorphisms previously reported in FANCI (Brachyspina), SLC35A3 (CVM), APAF1 (HH1) and three novel mutations with very damaging effect on the protein structure, according to SIFT and Polyphen-2, were detected in GART, SHBG and SLC37A2 genes. In conclusion, this study reveals a yet hidden consequence of the important inbreeding rate observed in intensively selected and specialized cattle breeds. Counter-selection of these mutations and management of matings will have positive consequences on female fertility in dairy cattle. PMID:23762392

Digital Dermatitis in Dairy Cows: A Review of Risk Factors and Potential Sources of Between-Animal Variation in Susceptibility

PubMed Central

Palmer, Maeve A.; O’Connell, Niamh E.

2015-01-01

Simple Summary Dairy cow lameness is a major problem for the industry, causing reduced animal welfare and economic loss. Digital dermatitis (DD) is a bacterial disease causing painful lesions, generally on the heels of the rear feet, and is an important cause of lameness. There appears to be individual variation between animals in susceptibility to this disease. Particular physical, physiological and behavioural factors might influence individual susceptibility, but further work is required to clarify the influence of these factors and to determine how this information could be used to develop breeding and management strategies to reduce DD prevalence. Abstract Digital dermatitis (DD) is a bacterial disease that primarily affects the skin on the heels of cattle. It is a major cause of lameness in dairy cows and a significant problem for the dairy industry in many countries, causing reduced animal welfare and economic loss. A wide range of infection levels has been found on infected farms, prompting investigations into both farm level and animal level risk factors for DD occurrence. There also appears to be individual variation between animals in susceptibility to the disease. The identification of factors affecting individual variation in susceptibility to DD might allow changes in breeding policies or herd management which could be used to reduce DD prevalence. Factors mentioned in the literature as possibly influencing individual variation in susceptibility to DD include physical factors such as hoof conformation and properties of the skin, physiological factors such as the efficacy of the immune response, and behavioural factors such as standing half in cubicles. Further work is required to determine the influence of these factors, identify the genetic basis of variation, clarify the level of heritability of DD susceptibility and to determine how this is correlated with production and health traits currently used in breeding programmes. PMID:26479371

Factors affecting commercial application of embryo technologies in dairy cattle in Europe--a modelling approach.

PubMed

van Arendonk, Johan A M; Bijma, Piter

2003-01-15

Reproductive techniques have a major impact on the structure of breeding programmes, the rate of genetic gain and dissemination of genetic gain in populations. This manuscript reviews the impact of reproductive technologies on the underlying components of genetic gain and inbreeding with special reference to the role of female reproductive technology. Evaluation of alternative breeding schemes should be based on genetic gain while constraining inbreeding. Optimum breeding schemes can be characterised by: decreased importance of sib information; increased accuracy at the expense of intensity; and a factorial mating strategy. If large-scale embryo cloning becomes feasible, this will have a small impact on the rate of genetic gain but will have a large impact on the structure of breeding programmes.

Genotyping of β-Lactoglobulin gene by PCR-RFLP in Sahiwal and Tharparkar cattle breeds

PubMed Central

Rachagani, Satyanarayana; Gupta, Ishwar Dayal; Gupta, Neelam; Gupta, SC

2006-01-01

Background Improvement of efficiency and economic returns is an important goal in dairy farming, as in any agricultural enterprise. The primary goal of dairy industry has been to identify an efficient and economical way of increasing milk production and its constituents without increasing the size of the dairy herd. Selection of animals with desirable genotypes and mating them to produce the next generation has been the basis of livestock improvement and this would continue to remain the same in the coming years. The use of polymorphic genes as detectable molecular markers is a promising alternative to the current methods of trait selection once these genes are proven to be associated with traits of interest in animals. The point mutations in exon IV of bovine β-Lactoglobulin gene determine two allelic variants A and B. These variants were distinguished by Polymerase Chain Reaction and Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) analysis in two indigenous Bos indicus breeds viz. Sahiwal and Tharparkar cattle. DNA samples (228 in Sahiwal and 86 in Tharparkar) were analyzed for allelic variants of β-Lactoglobulin gene. Polymorphism was detected by digestion of PCR amplified products with Hae III enzyme, and separation on 12% non-denaturing gels and resolved by silver staining. Results The allele B of β-Lactoglobulin occurred at a higher frequency than the allele A in both Sahiwal and Tharparkar breeds. The genotypic frequencies of AA, AB, and BB in Sahiwal and Tharparkar breeds were 0.031, 0.276, 0.693 and 0.023, 0.733, 0.244 respectively. Frequencies of A and B alleles were 0.17 and 0.83, and 0.39 and 0.61 in Sahiwal and Tharparkar breeds respectively. The Chi-square test results (at one degree of freedom at one per cent level) revealed that the Tharparkar population was not in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium as there was a continuous migration of animals in the herd studied, where as, the results are not significant for the Sahiwal population. Conclusion Genotype frequencies of AA were the lowest compared to that of BB genotype in Sahiwal cattle while AB genotypes were more frequent in Tharparkar cattle. The frequency of A allele was found to be lower than that of B allele in both the breeds studied. These results further confirm that Bos indicus cattle are predominantly of β-Lactoglobulin B type than Bos taurus breeds. PMID:16725039

Effect of breed, plane of nutrition and age on growth, scrotal development, metabolite concentrations and on systemic gonadotropin and testosterone concentrations following a GnRH challenge in young dairy bulls.

PubMed

Byrne, C J; Fair, S; English, A M; Urh, C; Sauerwein, H; Crowe, M A; Lonergan, P; Kenny, D A

2017-07-01

The onset of puberty in the bull is regulated by the timing of early GnRH pulsatility release from the hypothalamus, which has been demonstrated to be affected by plane of nutrition during calf-hood. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of plane of nutrition on growth rate, scrotal development, metabolite concentrations and exogenous gonadotrophin (GnRH) induced release of luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and testosterone (TT) in pre-pubertal bulls of two contrasting dairy breeds. Holstein-Friesian and Jersey bull calves were assigned to either a high or low plane of nutrition from 3 to 49 weeks of age. Intensive blood sampling was conducted at 16, 24 and 32 weeks of age, every 15 min from 30 min prior to intravenous administration of exogenous GnRH to 135 min after. Monthly blood samples were also collected and analyzed for insulin like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), insulin, leptin, adiponectin and metabolite concentration. Insulin and IGF-1 were higher in bulls on a high plane of nutrition (P < 0.001) but were not affected by breed (P > 0.05). Leptin was not affected by plane of nutrition or breed (P > 0.05). Adiponectin tended to be higher in bulls on a high plane of nutrition (P = 0.05), but was not affected by breed (P > 0.05). Bulls on a high plane of nutrition had a greater concentration of LH in response to GnRH (P < 0.05) but there was no effect of breed (P > 0.05). FSH concentration was not influenced by breed or plane of nutrition but FSH concentrations did decrease with age (P < 0.01), while, LH was not affected by age (P > 0.05). Jersey bulls, particularly those on a high plane of nutrition, had higher TT production in the pre-pubertal period (P < 0.001). Using 28 cm as a proxy for age at puberty, bulls on a high plane of nutrition were predicted to reach puberty earlier than bulls on a low plane. In conclusion, the data clearly demonstrate that a high plane of nutrition positively affects several key nutritional and reproductive hormones which are critical to the endocrinological functionality of the hypothalamic-pituitary-testicular axis in dairy-bred bull calves. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Immune response in bovine neosporosis: Protection or contribution to the pathogenesis of abortion.

PubMed

Almería, Sonia; Serrano-Pérez, Beatriz; López-Gatius, Fernando

2017-08-01

Neospora caninum is a protozoan parasite with a preference for cattle and dogs as hosts. When N. caninum infection occurs in cattle it induces abortion, bovine neosporosis being a main cause of abortion worldwide. In dairy cattle, the economic burden of neosporosis-associated abortion is so great that it might results in closure of a farm. However, not all infected cows abort and it is not yet understood why this occurs. At present there is no effective treatment or vaccine. This review provides insights on how immune response against the parasite determines protection or contribution to abortion. Aspects on markers of risk of abortion are also discussed. Humoral immune responses are not protective against N. caninum but seropositivity and antibody level can be good markers for a diagnosis of bovine neosporosis and its associated abortion risk. In addition, humoral mechanisms against N. caninum infection and abortion differ in pure-breed and cross-breed pregnant dairy and beef cattle. Concentrations of Pregnancy Associated glycoprotein -2 (PAG-2) can also be used to predict abortion. A partially protective immune response encompasses increased IFN-γ expression, which has to be counterbalanced by other cytokines such as IL-12 and IL-10, especially towards the end of pregnancy. Although IFN-γ is required to limit parasite proliferation a critical threshold of the IFN-γ response is also required to limit adverse effects on pregnancy. In clinical terms, it may be stated that IFN-γ production and cross-breed pregnancy can protect Neospora-infected dairy cows against abortion. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Identification of copy number variation in French dairy and beef breeds using next-generation sequencing.

PubMed

Letaief, Rabia; Rebours, Emmanuelle; Grohs, Cécile; Meersseman, Cédric; Fritz, Sébastien; Trouilh, Lidwine; Esquerré, Diane; Barbieri, Johanna; Klopp, Christophe; Philippe, Romain; Blanquet, Véronique; Boichard, Didier; Rocha, Dominique; Boussaha, Mekki

2017-10-24

Copy number variations (CNV) are known to play a major role in genetic variability and disease pathogenesis in several species including cattle. In this study, we report the identification and characterization of CNV in eight French beef and dairy breeds using whole-genome sequence data from 200 animals. Bioinformatics analyses to search for CNV were carried out using four different but complementary tools and we validated a subset of the CNV by both in silico and experimental approaches. We report the identification and localization of 4178 putative deletion-only, duplication-only and CNV regions, which cover 6% of the bovine autosomal genome; they were validated by two in silico approaches and/or experimentally validated using array-based comparative genomic hybridization and single nucleotide polymorphism genotyping arrays. The size of these variants ranged from 334 bp to 7.7 Mb, with an average size of ~ 54 kb. Of these 4178 variants, 3940 were deletions, 67 were duplications and 171 corresponded to both deletions and duplications, which were defined as potential CNV regions. Gene content analysis revealed that, among these variants, 1100 deletions and duplications encompassed 1803 known genes, which affect a wide spectrum of molecular functions, and 1095 overlapped with known QTL regions. Our study is a large-scale survey of CNV in eight French dairy and beef breeds. These CNV will be useful to study the link between genetic variability and economically important traits, and to improve our knowledge on the genomic architecture of cattle.

Management practices associated with conception rate and service rate of lactating Holstein cows in large, commercial dairy herds.

PubMed

Schefers, J M; Weigel, K A; Rawson, C L; Zwald, N R; Cook, N B

2010-04-01

Data from lactating Holstein cows in herds that participate in a commercial progeny testing program were analyzed to explain management factors associated with herd-average conception and service rates on large commercial dairies. On-farm herd management software was used as the source of data related to production, reproduction, culling, and milk quality for 108 herds. Also, a survey regarding management, facilities, nutrition, and labor was completed on 86 farms. A total of 41 explanatory variables related to management factors and conditions that could affect conception and service rate were considered in this study. Models explaining conception and service rates were developed using a machine learning algorithm for constructing model trees. The most important explanatory variables associated with conception rate were the percentage of repeated inseminations between 4 and 17 d post-artificial insemination, stocking density in the breeding pen, length of the voluntary waiting period, days at pregnancy examination, and somatic cell score. The most important explanatory variables associated with service rate were the number of lactating cows per breeding technician, use of a resynchronization program, utilization of soakers in the holding area during the summer, and bunk space per cow in the breeding pen. The aforementioned models explained 35% and 40% of the observed variation in conception rate and service rate, respectively, and underline the association of herd-level management factors not strictly related to reproduction with herd reproductive performance. Copyright (c) 2010 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Case-control approach application for finding a relationship between candidate genes and clinical mastitis in Holstein dairy cattle.

PubMed

Bagheri, Masoumeh; Moradi-Sharhrbabak, M; Miraie-Ashtiani, R; Safdari-Shahroudi, M; Abdollahi-Arpanahi, R

2016-02-01

Mastitis is a major source of economic loss in dairy herds. The objective of this research was to evaluate the association between genotypes within SLC11A1 and CXCR1 candidate genes and clinical mastitis in Holstein dairy cattle using the selective genotyping method. The data set contained clinical mastitis records of 3,823 Holstein cows from two Holstein dairy herds located in two different regions in Iran. Data included the number of cases of clinical mastitis per lactation. Selective genotyping was based on extreme values for clinical mastitis residuals (CMR) from mixed model analyses. Two extreme groups consisting of 135 cows were formed (as cases and controls), and genotyped for the two candidate genes, namely, SLC11A1 and CXCR1, using polymerase chain reaction-single strand conformation polymorphism (PCR-SSCP) and polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP), respectively. Associations between single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotypes with CMR and breeding values for milk and protein yield were carried out by applying logistic regression analyses, i.e. estimating the probability of the heterogeneous genotype in the dependency of values for CMR and breeding values (BVs). The sequencing results revealed a novel mutation in 1139 bp of exon 11 of the SLC11A1 gene and this SNP had a significant association with CMR (P < 0.05). PCR-RFLP analysis leads to three banding patterns for CXCR1c.735C>G and these genotypes had significant relationships with CMR. Overall, the results showed that SLC11A1 and CXCR1 are valuable candidate genes for the improvement of mastitis resistance as well as production traits in dairy cattle populations.

ECONOMIC SIGNIFICANCE OF TROPICAL THEILERIOSIS ON A HOLSTEIN FRIESIAN DAIRY FARM IN PAKISTAN.

PubMed

Rashid, Muhammad; Haroon, Akbar; Rashid, Muhmmad Imran; Khalid, Saeed; Liaquat, Ahmad; Saghir, Abdullah; Wasim, Shehzad; Saher, Islam; Shahid, Farooqi

2018-03-09

The dairy industry in Pakistan is booming and investors are anxious to fund dairy farms that are using high milk producing (exotic) cattle breeds such as Holsteins that are not native to the country. Unfortunately, the benefits of increased milk production do not provide resistance to pathogens present in regions where the exotic breeds are introduced. Therefore, the current study was conducted to evaluate the economic impact of Theileria annulata on a commercial Holstein dairy farm in the District of Ranjanpur, in the Province of Punjab, Pakistan. The economic impact of T. annulata infection was calculated for cattle with subclinical and clinical theileriosis. Losses were estimated based on milk production, morbidity, mortality and tick control costs (organophosphate sprays). Animals were classified into groups after screening for mastitis, teat abnormality, abnormal parturition, intestinal parasites and hemoparasites (T. annulata, Babesia spp., and Anaplasma spp.). Microscopy was done for hemoparasites and intestinal parasites. PCR was used to confirm microscopic identification of T. annulata. Animals were classified into 3 groups, comprising group A (normal), group B (subclinical theileriosis) and group C (acute theileriosis). Hemoparasites were observed microscopically in 28.7% of cows. Theileria annulata was found in 8% and the herd incidence (new cases) of T. annulata was 2.8%. Milk production, animal rectal temperature and body condition scores of group A with B and C were significantly different (P<0.05). But the enlargement of sub-scapular lymph node and interval of body condition score of the 3 groups were not significant (P>0.05). The total expenditure incurred due to theileriosis was US $74.98 per animal and 13.83% of total farm costs. Hence theileriosis caused significant economic loss of US $18743.76 (0.02 million) on this Holstein Friesian dairy.

Natural variability in bovine milk oligosaccharides from Danish Jersey and Holstein-Friesian breeds

PubMed Central

Sundekilde, Ulrik K; Barile, Daniela; Meyrand, Mickael; Poulsen, Nina A; Larsen, Lotte B; Lebrilla, Carlito B.; Bruce, German J.; Bertram, Hanne C

2012-01-01

Free oligosaccharides are key components of human milk and play multiple roles in the health of the neonate, by stimulating growth of selected beneficial bacteria in the gut, participating in development of the brain and exerting anti-pathogenic activity. However, the concentration of oligosaccharides is low in mature bovine milk, normally used for infant formula, compared with both human colostrum and mature human milk. Characterization of bovine milk oligosaccharides in different breeds is crucial for the identification of viable sources for oligosaccharide purification. An improved source of oligosaccharides can lead to infant formula with improved oligosaccharide functionality. In the present study we have analyzed milk oligosaccharides by high-performance liquid chromatography chip quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry and performed a detailed data analysis using both univariate and multivariate methods. Both statistical tools revealed several differences in oligosaccharide profiles between milk samples from the two Danish breeds; Jersey and Holstein-Friesians. Jersey milk contained higher relative amounts of both sialylated and the more complex neutral fucosylated oligosaccharides, while the Holstein-Friesian milk had higher abundance of smaller and simpler neutral oligosaccharides. The statistical analyses revealed that Jersey milk contain significantly higher levels of fucosylated oligosaccharides than Holstein-Friesian milk. Jersey milk also possesses oligosaccharides with a higher degree of complexity and functional residues (fucose and sialic acid) suggesting it may therefore offer advantages in term of a wider array of bioactivities. PMID:22632419

Sensory and consumer evaluation of pork loins from crossbreeds between Danish Landrace, Yorkshire, Duroc, Iberian and Mangalitza.

PubMed

Straadt, Ida K; Aaslyng, Margit D; Bertram, Hanne Christine

2013-09-01

Iberian (I) and Mangalitza (M) boars were crossed with Duroc (D) and Landrace/Yorkshire (LY) sows and compared with the traditional crossbreed DLY. The sensory attributes were analysed, and consumers evaluated the fried loins. Gas chromatography (GC) aroma analysis was performed on the fried meat, and fatty acid composition was determined on the loin and the subcutaneous fat, respectively. No marked differences were found in odour, appearance or flavour/taste between the alternative crossbreeds and DLY; however, the alternative crossbreeds had improved textural properties. Consumer evaluation revealed that the alternative crossbreeds obtained positive associations compared with DLY, and MD was ranked best or second best by almost 60% of the consumers. No pronounced differences were found in the aroma compounds between the different crossbreeds. Correlations were found between the fatty acid composition and sensory attributes. In conclusion, by crossing the alternative breeds Iberian and Mangalitza with traditional Danish pig breeds it is possible to produce pork with attractive sensory attributes. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Greenhouse gas emissions of realistic dietary choices in Denmark: the carbon footprint and nutritional value of dairy products

PubMed Central

Werner, Louise Bruun; Flysjö, Anna; Tholstrup, Tine

2014-01-01

Background Dairy products are important in a healthy diet due to their high nutritional value; they are, however, associated with relatively large greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE) per kg product. When discussing the need to reduce the GHGE caused by the food system, it is crucial to consider the nutritional value of alternative food choices. Objective The objective of this study was to elucidate the role of dairy products in overall nutrition and to clarify the effects of dietary choices on GHGE, and to combine nutritional value and GHGE data. Methods We created eight dietary scenarios with different quantity of dairy products using data from the Danish National Dietary Survey (1995–2006). Nutrient composition and GHGE data for 71 highly consumed foods were used to estimate GHGE and nutritional status for each dietary scenario. An index was used to estimate nutrient density in relation to nutritional recommendation and climate impact for solid food items; high index values were those with the highest nutrient density scores in relation to the GHGE. Results The high-dairy scenario resulted in 27% higher protein, 13% higher vitamin D; 55% higher calcium; 48% higher riboflavin; and 18% higher selenium than the non-dairy scenario. There was a significant correlation between changes in calcium and changes in vitamin D, selenium, and riboflavin content (P=0.0001) throughout all of the diets. The estimated GHGE for the dietary scenario with average-dairy consumption was 4,631 g CO2e/day. Conclusions When optimizing a diet with regard to sustainability, it is crucial to account for the nutritional value and not solely focus on impact per kg product. Excluding dairy products from the diet does not necessarily mitigate climate change but in contrast may have nutritional consequences. PMID:24959114

Greenhouse gas emissions of realistic dietary choices in Denmark: the carbon footprint and nutritional value of dairy products.

PubMed

Werner, Louise Bruun; Flysjö, Anna; Tholstrup, Tine

2014-01-01

Dairy products are important in a healthy diet due to their high nutritional value; they are, however, associated with relatively large greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE) per kg product. When discussing the need to reduce the GHGE caused by the food system, it is crucial to consider the nutritional value of alternative food choices. The objective of this study was to elucidate the role of dairy products in overall nutrition and to clarify the effects of dietary choices on GHGE, and to combine nutritional value and GHGE data. We created eight dietary scenarios with different quantity of dairy products using data from the Danish National Dietary Survey (1995-2006). Nutrient composition and GHGE data for 71 highly consumed foods were used to estimate GHGE and nutritional status for each dietary scenario. An index was used to estimate nutrient density in relation to nutritional recommendation and climate impact for solid food items; high index values were those with the highest nutrient density scores in relation to the GHGE. The high-dairy scenario resulted in 27% higher protein, 13% higher vitamin D; 55% higher calcium; 48% higher riboflavin; and 18% higher selenium than the non-dairy scenario. There was a significant correlation between changes in calcium and changes in vitamin D, selenium, and riboflavin content (P=0.0001) throughout all of the diets. The estimated GHGE for the dietary scenario with average-dairy consumption was 4,631 g CO2e/day. When optimizing a diet with regard to sustainability, it is crucial to account for the nutritional value and not solely focus on impact per kg product. Excluding dairy products from the diet does not necessarily mitigate climate change but in contrast may have nutritional consequences.

Carcass characteristics and meat quality of Hereford sired steers born to beef-cross-dairy and Angus breeding cows.

PubMed

Coleman, Lucy W; Hickson, Rebecca E; Schreurs, Nicola M; Martin, Natalia P; Kenyon, Paul R; Lopez-Villalobos, Nicolas; Morris, Stephen T

2016-11-01

Steers from Angus, Angus×Holstein Friesian, Angus×Holstein Friesian-Jersey and Angus×Jersey cows and a Hereford sire were measured for their carcass and meat quality characteristics. Steers from the Angus×Holstein Friesian cows had a greater final body weight and carcass weight (P<0.05). Steers from Angus×Jersey cows had the lowest carcass weight and dressing-out percentage (P<0.05). There was a greater fat depth over the rump at 12 and 18months of age for the steers from Angus cows (P<0.05) but, not at 24months of age. The steers had similar meat quality characteristics across the breed groups. Steers from Angus×Holstein Friesian and Angus×Jersey cows had a higher ratio of n6 to n3 fatty acids. Using beef-cross-dairy cows to produce steers for meat production does not impact on meat quality. Using Jersey in the breed cross reduced the carcass tissues in the live weight and the potential meat yield. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Milk production and fertility performance of Holstein, Friesian, and Jersey purebred cows and their respective crosses in seasonal-calving commercial farms.

PubMed

Coffey, E L; Horan, B; Evans, R D; Berry, D P

2016-07-01

There is renewed interest in dairy cow crossbreeding in Ireland as a means to further augment productivity and profitability. The objective of the present study was to compare milk production and fertility performance for Holstein, Friesian, and Jersey purebred cows, and their respective crosses in 40 Irish spring-calving commercial dairy herds from the years 2008 to 2012. Data on 24,279 lactations from 11,808 cows were available. The relationship between breed proportion, as well as heterosis and recombination coefficients with performance, was quantified within a mixed model framework that also contained the fixed effects of parity; cow and contemporary group of herd-year-season of calving were both included as random effects in the mixed model. Breed proportion was associated with all milk production parameters investigated. Milk yield was greatest for Holstein (5,217kg), intermediate for Friesian (4,591kg), and least for Jersey (4,230kg), whereas milk constituents (i.e., fat and protein concentration) were greatest for Jersey (9.38%), intermediate for Friesian (7.91%), and least for Holstein (7.75%). Yield of milk solids in crossbred cows exceeded their respective parental average performance; greatest milk solids yield (i.e., fat kg + protein kg) was observed in the Holstein × Jersey first-cross, yielding 25kg more than the mid-parent mean. There was no consistent breed effect on the reproductive traits investigated. Relative to the mid-parent mean, Holstein × Jersey cows calved younger as heifers and had a shorter calving interval. Friesian × Jersey first-cross cows also had a shorter calving interval relative to their mid-parent mean. Results were consistent with findings from smaller-scale controlled experiments. Breed complementarity and heterosis attainable from crossbreeding resulted in superior animal performance and, consequently, greater expected profitability in crossbred cows compared with their respective purebreds. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Implications of intensification of pastoral animal production on animal welfare.

PubMed

Stafford, Kj; Gregory, Ng

2008-12-01

The intensification of pastoral animal production results from several major developments including increased forage production and utilisation, diet supplementation, breeding animals to increase milk, meat or wool production, and changes in management. The impact of increased intensification on welfare will differ across species and systems. More intensive-grazing systems and the feeding of novel forages will underpin all moves to intensification. More intensive grazing generally reduces opportunities for shade and shelter. Improved nutrition will generally benefit welfare but competition for available feed may cause increased social pressure. Increased flock and herd size will be associated with a reduction in the human:animal ratio and less time to observe individual animals. Remote monitoring of activity and health might counter this impact. Intensification of dairy production will result in larger herds, more year-round milking, robotic milking, use of housing and yards year round, and total mixed-ration feeding. Larger herds mean longer distances to walk to and from the dairy shed, and more lameness and less time to spend on self-maintenance activities such as grooming. Holding and feeding dairy cows on yards will cause an increase in lameness and mastitis and perhaps an increase in agonistic behaviour but will reduce time spent walking. Intensification of sheep production will involve increased flock size, increased fecundity, breeding from hoggets, and breeding ewes all year round. Housing during lambing might be considered appropriate, as would feeding to lift milk yields. Increased fecundity with an increase in triplets will increase lamb mortality rates, but housing ewes, when managed well, will result in reduced lamb mortality. Intensification of lamb finishing will be by improved nutrition. Intensification of beef production will include more breeding of heifers at 15 months, and more problems with dystocia. Intensification of pastoral production will have positive and negative effects on animal welfare. The balance will be determined by the quality of management and stockmanship, and the pressure on businesses to be profitable.

Improvement of Prediction Ability for Genomic Selection of Dairy Cattle by Including Dominance Effects

PubMed Central

Sun, Chuanyu; VanRaden, Paul M.; Cole, John B.; O'Connell, Jeffrey R.

2014-01-01

Dominance may be an important source of non-additive genetic variance for many traits of dairy cattle. However, nearly all prediction models for dairy cattle have included only additive effects because of the limited number of cows with both genotypes and phenotypes. The role of dominance in the Holstein and Jersey breeds was investigated for eight traits: milk, fat, and protein yields; productive life; daughter pregnancy rate; somatic cell score; fat percent and protein percent. Additive and dominance variance components were estimated and then used to estimate additive and dominance effects of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). The predictive abilities of three models with both additive and dominance effects and a model with additive effects only were assessed using ten-fold cross-validation. One procedure estimated dominance values, and another estimated dominance deviations; calculation of the dominance relationship matrix was different for the two methods. The third approach enlarged the dataset by including cows with genotype probabilities derived using genotyped ancestors. For yield traits, dominance variance accounted for 5 and 7% of total variance for Holsteins and Jerseys, respectively; using dominance deviations resulted in smaller dominance and larger additive variance estimates. For non-yield traits, dominance variances were very small for both breeds. For yield traits, including additive and dominance effects fit the data better than including only additive effects; average correlations between estimated genetic effects and phenotypes showed that prediction accuracy increased when both effects rather than just additive effects were included. No corresponding gains in prediction ability were found for non-yield traits. Including cows with derived genotype probabilities from genotyped ancestors did not improve prediction accuracy. The largest additive effects were located on chromosome 14 near DGAT1 for yield traits for both breeds; those SNPs also showed the largest dominance effects for fat yield (both breeds) as well as for Holstein milk yield. PMID:25084281

Toxoplasma gondii seroprevalence in dairy and beef cattle: Large-scale epidemiological study in Estonia.

PubMed

Jokelainen, Pikka; Tagel, Maarja; Mõtus, Kerli; Viltrop, Arvo; Lassen, Brian

2017-03-15

Toxoplasma gondii is a zoonotic protozoan parasite that thrives in Estonia. In this nationwide cross-sectional study, we tested sera from 3991 cattle, collected from 228 farms in 2012-2013, for anti-T. gondii immunoglobulin G antibodies using a commercial direct agglutination test. Titer of 100 was set as cut-off: samples that tested positive at the dilution 1:100 were defined as positive. The apparent animal-level seroprevalence was 18.62%. At least one seropositive animal was found on 68.86% of the farms, and seropositive cattle were detected in all counties. The seroprevalence appeared to increase with age until five years (60-71 months) of age, but had no obvious pattern in the older animals. Animals of the local Estonian Red breed had higher odds to test seropositive than did animals of the Estonian Holstein breed. Whether the farm focused on dairy or beef cattle was not associated with an animal testing T. gondii seropositive nor with finding at least one T. gondii seropositive animal on the farm. The odds of finding at least one T. gondii seropositive animal on the farm were higher if the herd size was above median (105 in dairy and mixed dairy farms; 35 in beef and mixed beef farms). The results indicate that T. gondii is endemic within the agricultural setting in Estonia and present on the majority of cattle farms. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Dairy goat production systems: status quo, perspectives and challenges.

PubMed

Escareño, Luis; Salinas-Gonzalez, Homero; Wurzinger, Maria; Iñiguez, Luiz; Sölkner, Johann; Meza-Herrera, Cesar

2013-01-01

Goat production concentrated in developing countries (tropics, dry areas), contributes largely to the livelihoods of low and medium income farmers. Farming systems in these areas have evolved to cope with the formidable constraints imposed by harsh natural and economic conditions by adapting integrated crop/livestock production strategies. In Asia, Africa and Latin America, due to its almost exclusive extensive nature, goat production relies mainly on grazing on communal lands that hardly provide the minimum nutrient requirements due to overstocking and degradation. While some of these production systems are becoming semi-intensive, appropriate breeding strategies should be designed to promote conservation and improvement of their unique attributes, such as adaptability, water use efficiency and suitability under harsh climatic conditions. In Europe, dairy goat production is more common around the Mediterranean basin, where it is important from an economic, environmental and sociological perspective to the Mediterranean countries: Spain, France, Italy and Greece. Europe owns only 5.1 % of the world's dairy goat herds, but produces 15.6 % of the world's goat milk; this is the only continent where goat milk has such an economic importance and organization. In developing countries the dairy goat sector requires a systemic approach, whereby nutrition, animal health, breeding, know-how, inputs and technologies must be assembled. This would allow the optimization of natural and local resources and would promote the transition from a risk reduction strategy towards an increased productivity strategy. Such an increase would privilege production efficiency based on clean, green and ethical practices for responsible innovation.

Livestock improvement: art, science, or industry?

PubMed

Harris, D L

1998-09-01

The shift in perspectives about livestock improvement over a 70-yr period is reviewed. The view changes from livestock improvement as an art, through its becoming a science, to its application as a technology in industry. The use of scientific tools in corporate settings for poultry, dairy, and swine breeding usually involves a strong focus on the economics of production, and this focus determines that selection indexes should be used. Such focus has seemed to not have been present in breeding for the extensively managed species and livestock classes but seems needed in order to provide a basis for organization and direction of positive contributions of the breeding segment to the production segment.

Prediction of genomic breeding values for dairy traits in Italian Brown and Simmental bulls using a principal component approach.

PubMed

Pintus, M A; Gaspa, G; Nicolazzi, E L; Vicario, D; Rossoni, A; Ajmone-Marsan, P; Nardone, A; Dimauro, C; Macciotta, N P P

2012-06-01

The large number of markers available compared with phenotypes represents one of the main issues in genomic selection. In this work, principal component analysis was used to reduce the number of predictors for calculating genomic breeding values (GEBV). Bulls of 2 cattle breeds farmed in Italy (634 Brown and 469 Simmental) were genotyped with the 54K Illumina beadchip (Illumina Inc., San Diego, CA). After data editing, 37,254 and 40,179 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) were retained for Brown and Simmental, respectively. Principal component analysis carried out on the SNP genotype matrix extracted 2,257 and 3,596 new variables in the 2 breeds, respectively. Bulls were sorted by birth year to create reference and prediction populations. The effect of principal components on deregressed proofs in reference animals was estimated with a BLUP model. Results were compared with those obtained by using SNP genotypes as predictors with either the BLUP or Bayes_A method. Traits considered were milk, fat, and protein yields, fat and protein percentages, and somatic cell score. The GEBV were obtained for prediction population by blending direct genomic prediction and pedigree indexes. No substantial differences were observed in squared correlations between GEBV and EBV in prediction animals between the 3 methods in the 2 breeds. The principal component analysis method allowed for a reduction of about 90% in the number of independent variables when predicting direct genomic values, with a substantial decrease in calculation time and without loss of accuracy. Copyright © 2012 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Relative validity of a web-based food frequency questionnaire for Danish adolescents.

PubMed

Bjerregaard, Anne A; Halldorsson, Thorhallur I; Kampmann, Freja B; Olsen, Sjurdur F; Tetens, Inge

2018-01-12

With increased focus on dietary intake among youth and risk of diseases later in life, it is of importance, prior to assessing diet-disease relationships, to examine the validity of the dietary assessment tool. This study's objective was to evaluate the relative validity of a self-administered web-based FFQ among Danish children aged 12 to 15 years. From a nested sub-cohort within the Danish National Birth Cohort, 124 adolescents participated. Four weeks after completion of the FFQ, adolescents were invited to complete three telephone-based 24HRs; administered 4 weeks apart. Mean or median intakes of nutrients and food groups estimated from the FFQ were compared with the mean of 3x24HRs. To assess the level of ranking we calculated the proportion of correctly classified into the same quartile, and the proportion of misclassified (into the opposite quartile). Spearman's correlation coefficients and de-attenuated coefficients were calculated to assess agreement between the FFQ and 24HRs. The mean percentage of all food groups, for adolescents classified into the same and opposite quartile was 35 and 7.5%, respectively. Mean Spearman's correlation was 0.28 for food groups and 0.35 for nutrients, respectively. Adjustment for energy and within-person variation in the 24HRs had little effect on the magnitude of the correlations for food groups and nutrients. We found overestimation by the FFQ compared with the 24HRs for fish, fruits, vegetables, oils and dressing and underestimation by the FFQ for meat/poultry and sweets. Median intake of beverages, dairy, bread, cereals, the mean total energy and carbohydrate intake did not differ significantly between the two methods. The relative validity of the FFQ compared with the 3x24HRs showed that the ranking ability differed across food groups and nutrients with best ranking for estimated intake of dairy, fruits, and oils and dressing. Larger variation was observed for fish, sweets and vegetables. For nutrients, the ranking ability was acceptable for fatty acids and iron. When evaluating estimates from the FFQ among Danish adolescents these findings should be considered.

Genetic parameters of cheese yield and curd nutrient recovery or whey loss traits predicted using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy of samples collected during milk recording on Holstein, Brown Swiss, and Simmental dairy cows.

PubMed

Cecchinato, A; Albera, A; Cipolat-Gotet, C; Ferragina, A; Bittante, G

2015-07-01

Cheese yield is the most important technological parameter in the dairy industry in many countries. The aim of this study was to infer (co)variance components for cheese yields (CY) and nutrient recoveries in curd (REC) predicted using Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy of samples collected during milk recording on Holstein, Brown Swiss, and Simmental dairy cows. A total of 311,354 FTIR spectra representing the test-day records of 29,208 dairy cows (Holstein, Brown Swiss, and Simmental) from 654 herds, collected over a 3-yr period, were available for the study. The traits of interest for each cow consisted of 3 cheese yield traits (%CY: fresh curd, curd total solids, and curd water as a percent of the weight of the processed milk), 4 curd nutrient recovery traits (REC: fat, protein, total solids, and the energy of the curd as a percent of the same nutrient in the processed milk), and 3 daily cheese production traits (daily fresh curd, total solids, and the water of the curd per cow). Calibration equations (freely available upon request to the corresponding author) were used to predict individual test-day observations for these traits. The (co)variance components were estimated for the CY, REC, milk production, and milk composition traits via a set of 4-trait analyses within each breed. All analyses were performed using REML and linear animal models. The heritabilities of the %CY were always higher for Holstein and Brown Swiss cows (0.22 to 0.33) compared with Simmental cows (0.14 to 0.18). In general, the fresh cheese yield (%CYCURD) showed genetic variation and heritability estimates that were slightly higher than those of its components, %CYSOLIDS and %CYWATER. The parameter RECPROTEIN was the most heritable trait in all the 3 breeds, with values ranging from 0.32 to 0.41. Our estimation of the genetic relationships of the CY and REC with milk production and composition revealed that the current selection strategies used in dairy cattle are expected to exert only limited effects on the REC traits. Instead, breeders may be able to exploit genetic variations in the %CY, particularly RECFAT and RECPROTEIN. This last component is not explained by the milk protein content, suggesting that its direct selection could be beneficial for cheese production aptitude. Collectively, our findings indicate that breeding strategies aimed at enhancing CY and REC could be easily and rapidly implemented for dairy cattle populations in which FTIR spectra are routinely acquired from individual milk samples. Copyright © 2015 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Economic and genetic performance of various combinations of in vitro-produced embryo transfers and artificial insemination in a dairy herd.

PubMed

Kaniyamattam, Karun; Block, Jeremy; Hansen, Peter J; De Vries, Albert

2018-02-01

The objective of this study was to find the optimal proportions of pregnancies from an in vitro-produced embryo transfer (IVP-ET) system and artificial insemination (AI) so that profitability is maximized over a range of prices for embryos and surplus dairy heifer calves. An existing stochastic, dynamic dairy model with genetic merits of 12 traits was adapted for scenarios where 0 to 100% of the eligible females in the herd were impregnated, in increments of 10%, using IVP-ET (ET0 to ET100, 11 scenarios). Oocytes were collected from the top donors selected for the trait lifetime net merit (NM$) and fertilized with sexed semen to produce IVP embryos. Due to their greater conception rates, first ranked were eligible heifer recipients based on lowest number of unsuccessful inseminations or embryo transfers, and then on age. Next, eligible cow recipients were ranked based on the greatest average estimated breeding values (EBV) of the traits cow conception rate and daughter pregnancy rate. Animals that were not recipients of IVP embryos received conventional semen through AI, except that the top 50% of heifers ranked for EBV of NM$ were inseminated with sexed semen for the first 2 AI. The economically optimal proportions of IVP-ET were determined using sensitivity analysis performed for 24 price sets involving 6 different selling prices of surplus dairy heifer calves at approximately 105 d of age and 4 different prices of IVP embryos. The model was run for 15 yr after the start of the IVP-ET program for each scenario. The mean ± standard error of true breeding values of NM$ of all cows in the herd in yr 15 was greater by $603 ± 2 per cow per year for ET100 when compared with ET0. The optimal proportion of IVP-ET ranged from ET100 (for surplus dairy heifer calves sold for ≥$300 along with an additional premium based on their EBV of NM$ and a ≤$100 embryo price) to as low as ET0 (surplus dairy heifer calves sold at $300 with a $200 embryo price). For the default assumptions, the profit/cow in yr 15 was greater by $337, $215, $116, and $69 compared with ET0 when embryo prices were $50, $100, $150, and $200. The optimal use of IVP-ET was 100, 100, 62, and 36% of all breedings for these embryo prices, respectively. At the input price of $165 for an IVP embryo, the difference in the net present value of yr 15 profit between ET40 (optimal scenario) and ET0 was $33 per cow. In conclusion, some use of IVP-ET was profitable for a wide range of IVP-ET prices and values of surplus dairy heifer calves. Copyright © 2018 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Assessing the impact of natural service bulls and genotype by environment interactions on genetic gain and inbreeding in organic dairy cattle genomic breeding programs.

PubMed

Yin, T; Wensch-Dorendorf, M; Simianer, H; Swalve, H H; König, S

2014-06-01

The objective of the present study was to compare genetic gain and inbreeding coefficients of dairy cattle in organic breeding program designs by applying stochastic simulations. Evaluated breeding strategies were: (i) selecting bulls from conventional breeding programs, and taking into account genotype by environment (G×E) interactions, (ii) selecting genotyped bulls within the organic environment for artificial insemination (AI) programs and (iii) selecting genotyped natural service bulls within organic herds. The simulated conventional population comprised 148 800 cows from 2976 herds with an average herd size of 50 cows per herd, and 1200 cows were assigned to 60 organic herds. In a young bull program, selection criteria of young bulls in both production systems (conventional and organic) were either 'conventional' estimated breeding values (EBV) or genomic estimated breeding values (GEBV) for two traits with low (h 2=0.05) and moderate heritability (h 2=0.30). GEBV were calculated for different accuracies (r mg), and G×E interactions were considered by modifying originally simulated true breeding values in the range from r g=0.5 to 1.0. For both traits (h 2=0.05 and 0.30) and r mg⩾0.8, genomic selection of bulls directly in the organic population and using selected bulls via AI revealed higher genetic gain than selecting young bulls in the larger conventional population based on EBV; also without the existence of G×E interactions. Only for pronounced G×E interactions (r g=0.5), and for highly accurate GEBV for natural service bulls (r mg>0.9), results suggests the use of genotyped organic natural service bulls instead of implementing an AI program. Inbreeding coefficients of selected bulls and their offspring were generally lower when basing selection decisions for young bulls on GEBV compared with selection strategies based on pedigree indices.

Hot topic: Definition and implementation of a breeding value for feed efficiency in dairy cows.

PubMed

Pryce, J E; Gonzalez-Recio, O; Nieuwhof, G; Wales, W J; Coffey, M P; Hayes, B J; Goddard, M E

2015-10-01

A new breeding value that combines the amount of feed saved through improved metabolic efficiency with predicted maintenance requirements is described. The breeding value includes a genomic component for residual feed intake (RFI) combined with maintenance requirements calculated from either a genomic or pedigree estimated breeding value (EBV) for body weight (BW) predicted using conformation traits. Residual feed intake is only available for genotyped Holsteins; however, BW is available for all breeds. The RFI component of the "feed saved" EBV has 2 parts: Australian calf RFI and Australian lactating cow RFI. Genomic breeding values for RFI were estimated from a reference population of 2,036 individuals in a multi-trait analysis including Australian calf RFI (n=843), Australian lactating cow RFI (n=234), and UK and Dutch lactating cow RFI (n=958). In all cases, the RFI phenotypes were deviations from a mean of 0, calculated by correcting dry matter intake for BW, growth, and milk yield (in the case of lactating cows). Single nucleotide polymorphism effects were calculated from the output of genomic BLUP and used to predict breeding values of 4,106 Holstein sires that were genotyped but did not have RFI phenotypes themselves. These bulls already had BW breeding values calculated from type traits, from which maintenance requirements in kilograms of feed per year were inferred. Finally, RFI and the feed required for maintenance (through BW) were used to calculate a feed saved breeding value and expressed as the predicted amount of feed saved per year. Animals that were 1 standard deviation above the mean were predicted to eat 66 kg dry matter less per year at the same level of milk production. In a data set of genotyped Holstein sires, the mean reliability of the feed saved breeding value was 0.37. For Holsteins that are not genotyped and for breeds other than Holsteins, feed saved is calculated using BW only. From April 2015, feed saved has been included as part of the Australian national selection index, the Balanced Performance Index (BPI). Selection on the BPI is expected to lead to modest gains in feed efficiency. Copyright © 2015 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Genomic evaluation of regional dairy cattle breeds in single-breed and multibreed contexts.

PubMed

Jónás, D; Ducrocq, V; Fritz, S; Baur, A; Sanchez, M-P; Croiseau, P

2017-02-01

An important prerequisite for high prediction accuracy in genomic prediction is the availability of a large training population, which allows accurate marker effect estimation. This requirement is not fulfilled in case of regional breeds with a limited number of breeding animals. We assessed the efficiency of the current French routine genomic evaluation procedure in four regional breeds (Abondance, Tarentaise, French Simmental and Vosgienne) as well as the potential benefits when the training populations consisting of males and females of these breeds are merged to form a multibreed training population. Genomic evaluation was 5-11% more accurate than a pedigree-based BLUP in three of the four breeds, while the numerically smallest breed showed a < 1% increase in accuracy. Multibreed genomic evaluation was beneficial for two breeds (Abondance and French Simmental) with maximum gains of 5 and 8% in correlation coefficients between yield deviations and genomic estimated breeding values, when compared to the single-breed genomic evaluation results. Inflation of genomic evaluation of young candidates was also reduced. Our results indicate that genomic selection can be effective in regional breeds as well. Here, we provide empirical evidence proving that genetic distance between breeds is only one of the factors affecting the efficiency of multibreed genomic evaluation. © 2016 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

Residual Mosquito Barrier Treatments on U.S. Military Camouflage Netting in a Southern California Desert Environment

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-08-01

8 indicates the presence of natural breeding habitat tor wild Cv. tur.sali.s throughout the 28-day population sam- pling period in the desert study...the tnosquito surveillance period (Fig. 2), along with consistently high trap counts at the offsite trap, indicate that natural breeding sites for Cx...Tierarztl 2006: 119:421^. IB. Bauer B, Gitau D, Oloo FP, Karanja SM: Evaluation of a preliminary title to protect zero-grazed dairy cattle with

Effect of calving interval and parity on milk yield per feeding day in Danish commercial dairy herds.

PubMed

Lehmann, J O; Fadel, J G; Mogensen, L; Kristensen, T; Gaillard, C; Kebreab, E

2016-01-01

The idea of managing cows for extended lactations rather than lactations of the traditional length of 1 yr primarily arose from observations of increasing problems with infertility and cows being dried off with high milk yields. However, it is vital for the success of extended lactation practices that cows are able to maintain milk yield per feeding day when the length of the calving interval (CInt) is increased. Milk yield per feeding day is defined as the cumulated lactation milk yield divided by the sum of days between 2 consecutive calvings. The main objective of this study was to investigate the milk production of cows managed for lactations of different lengths, and the primary aim was to investigate the relationship between CInt, parity, and milk yield. Five measurements of milk yield were used: energy-corrected milk (ECM) yield per feeding day, ECM yield per lactating day, cumulative ECM yield during the first 305 d of lactation, as well as ECM yield per day during early and late lactation. The analyses were based on a total of 1,379 completed lactations from cows calving between January 2007 and May 2013 in 4 Danish commercial dairy herds managed for extended lactation for several years. Herd-average CInt length ranged from 414 to 521 d. The herds had Holstein, Jersey, or crosses between Holstein, Jersey, and Red Danish cows with average milk yields ranging from 7,644 to 11,286 kg of ECM per cow per year. A significant effect of the CInt was noted on all 5 measurements of milk yield, and this effect interacted with parity for ECM per feeding day, ECM per lactating day and ECM per day during late lactation. The results showed that cows were at least able to produce equivalent ECM per feeding day with increasing CInt, and that first- and second-parity cows maintained ECM per lactating day. Cows with a CInt between 17 and 19 mo produced 476 kg of ECM more during the first 305 d compared with cows with a CInt of less than 13 mo. Furthermore, early-lactation ECM yield was greater for all cows and late-lactation ECM yield was less for second-parity and older cows when undergoing an extended compared with a shorter lactation. Increasing CInt increased the dry period length with 3 to 5d. In conclusion, the group of cows with longer CInt were able to produce at least equivalent amounts of ECM per feeding day when the CInt was up to 17 to 19 mo on these 4 commercial dairy farms. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Prevalence of ketosis in dairy cows in milk shed areas of Odisha state, India.

PubMed

Biswal, Sangram; Nayak, Dhruba Charan; Sardar, Kautuk Kumar

2016-11-01

The present study was conducted to ascertain the prevalence of ketosis in dairy cows in dairy herds, milksheds, and mixed population of milk cows selected randomly in milkshed areas of Odisha state, India. The investigation was conducted in 280 private dairy herds with variable herd size of 10-15 cows comprising crossbred Jersey cows (CBJ), crossbred Holstein Friesian (CHF) cows, and indigenous local breeds. The analysis of urine (Rothera's test), milk (Ross test), and blood samples of 2760 test cows were conducted through qualitative assessment by Rothera's test and Ross test, respectively, for the presence of ketone bodies to screen the ketotic animals. Cut-points have been decided based on β-hydroxybutyric acid level (≥1.2-1.4 mmol/L) in milk. We noted positive cases of ketosis with a prevalence rate of 36.7% (1014/2760) entailing 27.2% in clinical ketosis and 9.6% in subclinical ketosis. The breed wise incident rate was recorded to be the highest (38.0%) in CBJs. The age-wise prevalence rate was found to be the highest (40.8%) in the age group of 5.5-6.5 years. The season wise prevalence rate in 5 th calver was recorded to be the highest (38.6%) in summer season as compared to other seasons. The prevalence of ketosis was observed to be the highest at 56.7% on the first stage of lactation at the 1 st month after 2 weeks. The incidence rates for clinical and subclinical ketosis were found to be 25.2%; 12.2%, 26.6%; 11.2% and 30.3%; 2.9% in CBJ, CHF and indigenous cows, respectively. The breed wise overall prevalence rate was recorded to be 38.0% in CBJ, 37.8% in CHF, and 33.2% in indigenous cows. Ketosis and subclinical ketosis is highly prevalent metabolic disorder and has severe effect on the production status of affected animal and needs to be prevented, rather than treated, by maintaining cows in good and healthy conditions. We have attempted to give great attention for diagnosis, management, and control of this disease during risk stage to prevent economic loss sustained by the dairy farmers of Eastern India.

Bayesian estimation of sensitivity and specificity of a milk pregnancy-associated glycoprotein-based ELISA and of transrectal ultrasonographic exam for diagnosis of pregnancy at 28-45 days following breeding in dairy cows.

PubMed

Dufour, Simon; Durocher, Jean; Dubuc, Jocelyn; Dendukuri, Nandini; Hassan, Shereen; Buczinski, Sébastien

2017-05-01

Using a milk sample for pregnancy diagnosis in dairy cattle is extremely convenient due to the low technical inputs required for collection of biological materials. Determining accuracy of a novel pregnancy diagnostic test that relies on a milk sample is, however, difficult since no gold standard test is available for comparison. The objective of the current study was to estimate diagnostic accuracy of the milk PAG-based ELISA and of transrectal ultrasonographic (TUS) exam for determining pregnancy status of individual dairy cows using a methodology suited for test validation in the absence of gold standard. Secondary objectives were to evaluate whether test accuracy varies with cow's characteristics and to identify the optimal ELISA optical density threshold for PAG test interpretation. Cows (n=519) from 18 commercial dairies tested with both TUS and PAG between 28 and 45days following breeding were included in the study. Other covariates (number of days since breeding, parity, and daily milk production) hypothesized to affect TUS or PAG test accuracy were measured. A Bayesian hierarchical latent class model (LCM) methodology assuming conditional independence between tests was used to obtain estimates of tests' sensitivities (Se) and specificities (Sp), to evaluate impact of covariates on these, and to compute misclassification costs across a range of ELISA thresholds. Very little disagreement was observed between tests with only 23 cows yielding discordant results. Using the LCM model with non-informative priors for tests accuracy parameters, median (95% credibility intervals [CI]) TUS Se and Sp estimates of 0.96 (0.91, 1.00) and 0.99 (0.97, 1.0) were obtained. For the PAG test, median (95% CI) Se of 0.99 (0.98, 1.00) and Sp of 0.95 (0.89, 1.0) were observed. The impact of adjusting for conditional dependence between tests was negligible. Test accuracy of the PAG test varied slightly by parity number. When assuming false negative to false positive costs ratio≥3:1, the optimal ELISA optical density threshold allowing minimization of misclassification costs was 0.25. In conclusion, both TUS and PAG showed excellent accuracy for pregnancy diagnosis in dairy cows. When using the PAG test, a threshold of 0.25 could be used for test interpretation. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Prevalence of ketosis in dairy cows in milk shed areas of Odisha state, India

PubMed Central

Biswal, Sangram; Nayak, Dhruba Charan; Sardar, Kautuk Kumar

2016-01-01

Aim: The present study was conducted to ascertain the prevalence of ketosis in dairy cows in dairy herds, milksheds, and mixed population of milk cows selected randomly in milkshed areas of Odisha state, India. Materials and Methods: The investigation was conducted in 280 private dairy herds with variable herd size of 10-15 cows comprising crossbred Jersey cows (CBJ), crossbred Holstein Friesian (CHF) cows, and indigenous local breeds. The analysis of urine (Rothera’s test), milk (Ross test), and blood samples of 2760 test cows were conducted through qualitative assessment by Rothera’s test and Ross test, respectively, for the presence of ketone bodies to screen the ketotic animals. Cut-points have been decided based on β-hydroxybutyric acid level (≥1.2-1.4 mmol/L) in milk. Results: We noted positive cases of ketosis with a prevalence rate of 36.7% (1014/2760) entailing 27.2% in clinical ketosis and 9.6% in subclinical ketosis. The breed wise incident rate was recorded to be the highest (38.0%) in CBJs. The age-wise prevalence rate was found to be the highest (40.8%) in the age group of 5.5-6.5 years. The season wise prevalence rate in 5th calver was recorded to be the highest (38.6%) in summer season as compared to other seasons. The prevalence of ketosis was observed to be the highest at 56.7% on the first stage of lactation at the 1st month after 2 weeks. The incidence rates for clinical and subclinical ketosis were found to be 25.2%; 12.2%, 26.6%; 11.2% and 30.3%; 2.9% in CBJ, CHF and indigenous cows, respectively. The breed wise overall prevalence rate was recorded to be 38.0% in CBJ, 37.8% in CHF, and 33.2% in indigenous cows. Conclusion: Ketosis and subclinical ketosis is highly prevalent metabolic disorder and has severe effect on the production status of affected animal and needs to be prevented, rather than treated, by maintaining cows in good and healthy conditions. We have attempted to give great attention for diagnosis, management, and control of this disease during risk stage to prevent economic loss sustained by the dairy farmers of Eastern India. PMID:27956776

Direct and maternal genetic relationships between calving ease, gestation length, milk production, fertility, type, and lifespan of Holstein-Friesian primiparous cows.

PubMed

Eaglen, S A E; Coffey, M P; Woolliams, J A; Wall, E

2013-06-01

As the emphasis in cattle breeding is shifting from traits that increase income toward traits that reduce costs, national breeding indices are expanding to include functional traits such as calving ease (CE). However, one issue is the lack of knowledge of genetic relationships between CE and other dairy traits. The same can be said about gestation length (GL), a potential novel selection trait with considerable heritabilities and possible genetic relationships with the calving process. This study aimed to estimate the genetic relationships between CE, GL, and other dairy traits of interest using a national data set of 31,053 primiparous cow performance records, as well as to separate direct and maternal genetic effects. Chosen dairy traits included fertility (calving interval, days to first service, nonreturn rate after 56 d, number of inseminations per conception), milk production (milk yield at d 110 in milk, accumulated 305-d milk yield, accumulated 305-d fat yield, accumulated 305-d protein yield), type (udder depth, chest width, rump width, rump angle, mammary composition, stature, body depth), and lifespan traits (functional days of productive life). To allow the separation of direct and maternal genetic effects, a random sire of the calf effect was included in the multi-trait linear trivariate sire models fitted using ASReml. Significant results showed that easily born individuals were genetically prone to high milk yield and reduced fertility in first lactation. Difficult calving primiparous cows were likely associated with being high-producing, wide and deep animals, with a reduced ability to subsequently conceive. Individuals that were born relatively early were associated with good genetic merit for milk production. Finally, individuals carrying their offspring longer were genetically associated with being wide and large animals that were themselves born relatively early. The study shows that it is feasible and valuable to separate direct and maternal effects when estimating genetic correlations between calving and other dairy traits. Furthermore, gestation length is best used as an indicator trait for lowly heritable calving traits, rather than as a novel selection trait. As estimated direct and maternal genetic correlations differ, we can conclude that genetic relationships between CE, GL, and traits of interest are present, but caution is required if these traits are implemented in national breeding indices. Copyright © 2013 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Ability of dairy cows to ensure pregnancy according to breed and genetic merit for production traits under contrasted pasture-based systems.

PubMed

Bedere, N; Disenhaus, C; Ducrocq, V; Leurent-Colette, S; Delaby, L

2017-04-01

The present study aimed to assess and measure the effects of breed, genetic merit for production traits, and feeding systems (FS) on the ability of dairy cows to ensure pregnancy through its components (fertilization, embryonic losses, recalving). An experiment was conducted over 9 yr on Normande and Holstein cows assigned to contrasted FS. Diets were based on maize silage in winter and grazing plus concentrate in spring in the high FS group, and on grass silage in winter and grazing with no concentrate during spring in the low FS group. Within breeds, cows were classified into 2 groups with similar estimated breeding values (EBV) for milk solids: cows with high EBV for milk yield were included in a milk group and those with high EBV for fat and protein contents were included in a content group. Holstein cows produced more milk throughout lactation than Normande cows (the differential was greater in the high FS group, +2,294 kg, compared with +1,280 kg in the low FS group) and lost more body condition to nadir (the differential was greater in the high FS group, -1.00 point, compared with -0.80 point in the low FS group). Within breeds, milk solids production was similar between genetic groups. Cows in the high FS group produced more milk (+2,495 kg for Holstein and +1,481 kg for Normande cows) and had a higher body condition score at nadir (+0.40 point for Holstein and +0.60 point for Normande) than cows in the low FS group. Holstein cows had a lower recalving rate than Normande cows (-19 percentage units). We found no effect of genetic group and FS on fertility of Normande cows. However, according to FS, Holstein cows in the content group exhibited different fertility failure patterns. In the low FS group, Holstein cows in the content group had more nonfertilizations or early embryo mortality (+26 percentage units at first and second services) than Holstein cows in the milk group. In the high FS group, Holstein cows in the content group had a higher proportion of late embryo mortality than in the milk group (+10 percentage units at first and second services). We observed no effect of FS on recalving rate; however, indicators of energy balance (protein content or body condition score) were positively associated with successful conception and pregnancy. This suggested a link between genetic merit for fat and protein content and lower ability of dairy cows to ensure pregnancy because of more nonfertilizations and early or late embryo mortality. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Stakeholder involvement in establishing a milk quality sub-index in dairy cow breeding goals: a Delphi approach.

PubMed

Henchion, M; McCarthy, M; Resconi, V C; Berry, D P; McParland, S

2016-05-01

The relative weighting on traits within breeding goals are generally determined by bio-economic models or profit functions. While such methods have generally delivered profitability gains to producers, and are being expanded to consider non-market values, current approaches generally do not consider the numerous and diverse stakeholders that affect, or are affected, by such tools. Based on principles of respondent anonymity, iteration, controlled feedback and statistical aggregation of feedback, a Delphi study was undertaken to gauge stakeholder opinion of the importance of detailed milk quality traits within an overall dairy breeding goal for profit, with the aim of assessing its suitability as a complementary, participatory approach to defining breeding goals. The questionnaires used over two survey rounds asked stakeholders: (a) their opinion on incorporating an explicit sub-index for milk quality into a national breeding goal; (b) the importance they would assign to a pre-determined list of milk quality traits and (c) the (relative) weighting they would give such a milk quality sub-index. Results from the survey highlighted a good degree of consensus among stakeholders on the issues raised. Similarly, revelation of the underlying assumptions and knowledge used by stakeholders to make their judgements illustrated their ability to consider a range of perspectives when evaluating traits, and to reconsider their answers based on the responses and rationales given by others, which demonstrated social learning. Finally, while the relative importance assigned by stakeholders in the Delphi survey (4% to 10%) and the results of calculations based on selection index theory of the relative emphasis that should be placed on milk quality to halt any deterioration (16%) are broadly in line, the difference indicates the benefit of considering more than one approach to determining breeding goals. This study thus illustrates the role of the Delphi technique, as a complementary approach to traditional approaches, to defining breeding goals. This has implications for how breeding goals will be defined and in determining who should be involved in the decision-making process.

Invited review: Breeding and ethical perspectives on genetically modified and genome edited cattle.

PubMed

Eriksson, S; Jonas, E; Rydhmer, L; Röcklinsberg, H

2018-01-01

The hot topic of genetic modification and genome editing is sometimes presented as a rapid solution to various problems in the field of animal breeding and genetics. These technologies hold potential for future use in agriculture but we need to be aware of difficulties in large-scale application and integration in breeding schemes. In this review, we discuss applications of both classical genetic modifications (GM) using vectors and genome editing in dairy cattle breeding. We use an interdisciplinary approach considering both ethical and animal breeding perspectives. Decisions on how to make use of these techniques need to be made based not only on what is possible, but on what is reasonable to do. Principles of animal integrity, naturalness, risk perception, and animal welfare issues are examples of ethically relevant factors to consider. These factors also influence public perception and decisions about regulations by authorities. We need to acknowledge that we lack complete understanding of the genetic background of complex traits. It may be difficult, therefore, to predict the full effect of certain modifications in large-scale breeding programs. We present 2 potential applications: genome editing to dispense with dehorning, and insertion of human genes in bovine genomes to improve udder health as an example of classical GM. Both of these cases could be seen as beneficial for animal welfare but they differ in other aspects. In the former case, a genetic variant already present within the species is introduced, whereas in the latter case, transgenic animals are generated-this difference may influence how society regards the applications. We underline that the use of GM, as well as genome editing, of farm animals such as cattle is not independent of the context, and should be considered as part of an entire process, including, for example, the assisted reproduction technology that needs to be used. We propose that breeding organizations and breeding companies should take an active role in ethical discussions about the use of these techniques and thereby signal to society that these questions are being responsibly addressed. Copyright © 2018 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Seasonal changes in serum oxidative stress biomarkers in dairy and beef cows in a daytime grazing system.

PubMed

Mirzad, Ahmad Nawid; Tada, Takashi; Ano, Hitoshi; Kobayashi, Ikuo; Yamauchi, Takenori; Katamoto, Hiromu

2018-01-01

This study aims to evaluate the oxidative stress during hot summer season using serum oxidative stress biomarkers and elucidate the effects of serum antioxidant vitamin levels in dairy and beef cows in a daytime grazing system. Blood samples were collected once a month from eight Holstein Friesian (HF) and 10 Japanese Black (JB) cows from November 2013 to October 2014. Serum values of derivatives of reactive oxygen metabolites (d-ROMs) tended to be higher in March in both breeds and those in HF cows were kept at higher (P<0.001) levels than those in JB cows during the study period. Serum levels of biological antioxidant potential (BAP) in both breeds were maintained at almost the same values during study period. The OSI [(d-ROMs/BAP) × 100] values in both breeds showed similar seasonal changes, i. e. increase from December to March and decrease from March to August or September. In addition, the OSI values in HF cows were kept at higher (P<0.01) levels than those in JB cows during the study period. Serum concentrations of α-tocopherol, β-carotene, blood urea nitrogen and total cholesterol showed similar seasonal changes in both breeds, low in the winter and high from spring to summer, which may be attributed to the pasture grass intake. Opposite changes in OSI values and serum concentrations of α-tocopherol and β-carotene indicated that antioxidant vitamin levels could affect oxidative stress status.

Seasonal changes in serum oxidative stress biomarkers in dairy and beef cows in a daytime grazing system

PubMed Central

MIRZAD, Ahmad Nawid; TADA, Takashi; ANO, Hitoshi; KOBAYASHI, Ikuo; YAMAUCHI, Takenori; KATAMOTO, Hiromu

2017-01-01

This study aims to evaluate the oxidative stress during hot summer season using serum oxidative stress biomarkers and elucidate the effects of serum antioxidant vitamin levels in dairy and beef cows in a daytime grazing system. Blood samples were collected once a month from eight Holstein Friesian (HF) and 10 Japanese Black (JB) cows from November 2013 to October 2014. Serum values of derivatives of reactive oxygen metabolites (d-ROMs) tended to be higher in March in both breeds and those in HF cows were kept at higher (P<0.001) levels than those in JB cows during the study period. Serum levels of biological antioxidant potential (BAP) in both breeds were maintained at almost the same values during study period. The OSI [(d-ROMs/BAP) × 100] values in both breeds showed similar seasonal changes, i. e. increase from December to March and decrease from March to August or September. In addition, the OSI values in HF cows were kept at higher (P<0.01) levels than those in JB cows during the study period. Serum concentrations of α-tocopherol, β-carotene, blood urea nitrogen and total cholesterol showed similar seasonal changes in both breeds, low in the winter and high from spring to summer, which may be attributed to the pasture grass intake. Opposite changes in OSI values and serum concentrations of α-tocopherol and β-carotene indicated that antioxidant vitamin levels could affect oxidative stress status. PMID:29142148

Genome-wide genotyping uncovers genetic profiles and history of the Russian cattle breeds.

PubMed

Yurchenko, Andrey; Yudin, Nikolay; Aitnazarov, Ruslan; Plyusnina, Alexandra; Brukhin, Vladimir; Soloshenko, Vladimir; Lhasaranov, Bulat; Popov, Ruslan; Paronyan, Ivan A; Plemyashov, Kirill V; Larkin, Denis M

2018-01-01

One of the most economically important areas within the Russian agricultural sector is dairy and beef cattle farming contributing about $11 billion to the Russian economy annually. Trade connections, selection and breeding have resulted in the establishment of a number of breeds that are presumably adapted to local climatic conditions. Little however is known about the ancestry and history of Russian native cattle. To address this question, we genotyped 274 individuals from 18 breeds bred in Russia and compared them to 135 additional breeds from around the world that had been genotyped previously. Our results suggest a shared ancestry between most of the Russian cattle and European taurine breeds, apart from a few breeds that shared ancestry with the Asian taurines. The Yakut cattle, belonging to the latter group, was found to be the most diverged breed in the whole combined dataset according to structure results. Haplotype sharing further suggests that the Russian cattle can be divided into four major clusters reflecting ancestral relations with other breeds. Herein, we therefore shed light on to the history of Russian cattle and identified closely related breeds to those from Russia. Our results will facilitate future research on detecting signatures of selection in cattle genomes and eventually inform future genetics-assisted livestock breeding programs in Russia and in other countries.

A 100-Year Review: Identification and genetic selection of economically important traits in dairy cattle.

PubMed

Miglior, Filippo; Fleming, Allison; Malchiodi, Francesca; Brito, Luiz F; Martin, Pauline; Baes, Christine F

2017-12-01

Over the past 100 yr, the range of traits considered for genetic selection in dairy cattle populations has progressed to meet the demands of both industry and society. At the turn of the 20th century, dairy farmers were interested in increasing milk production; however, a systematic strategy for selection was not available. Organized milk performance recording took shape, followed quickly by conformation scoring. Methodological advances in both genetic theory and statistics around the middle of the century, together with technological innovations in computing, paved the way for powerful multitrait analyses. As more sophisticated analytical techniques for traits were developed and incorporated into selection programs, production began to increase rapidly, and the wheels of genetic progress began to turn. By the end of the century, the focus of selection had moved away from being purely production oriented toward a more balanced breeding goal. This shift occurred partly due to increasing health and fertility issues and partly due to societal pressure and welfare concerns. Traits encompassing longevity, fertility, calving, health, and workability have now been integrated into selection indices. Current research focuses on fitness, health, welfare, milk quality, and environmental sustainability, underlying the concentrated emphasis on a more comprehensive breeding goal. In the future, on-farm sensors, data loggers, precision measurement techniques, and other technological aids will provide even more data for use in selection, and the difficulty will lie not in measuring phenotypes but rather in choosing which traits to select for. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Neospora caninum is the leading cause of bovine fetal loss in British Columbia, Canada.

PubMed

Wilson, Devon J; Orsel, Karin; Waddington, Josh; Rajeev, Malavika; Sweeny, Amy R; Joseph, Tomy; Grigg, Michael E; Raverty, Stephen A

2016-03-15

The protozoan pathogen Neospora caninum is recognized as a leading cause of infectious abortions in cattle worldwide. To evaluate the impact of neosporosis on dairy and beef herd production, a retrospective, longitudinal study was performed to identify the impact of neosporosis alongside other causes of fetal abortion in British Columbia, Canada. Retrospective analysis of pathology records of bovine fetal submissions submitted to the Animal Health Centre, Abbotsford, British Columbia, a provincial veterinary diagnostic laboratory, from January 2007 to July 2013 identified 182 abortion cases (passive surveillance). From July 2013 to May 2014, an active surveillance program identified a further 54 abortion cases from dairy farmers in the Upper Fraser Valley, British Columbia. Of the total 236 fetal submissions analyzed, N. caninum was diagnosed in 18.2% of cases, making it the most commonly identified infectious agent associated with fetal loss. During active surveillance, N. caninum was associated with 41% of fetuses submitted compared to 13.3% during passive surveillance (p<0.001). Breed of dam was significantly associated with N. caninum diagnosis, with a higher prevalence in dairy versus beef breeds, and fetuses of 3-6 months gestational age had the highest prevalence of N. caninum. There was no significant association with dam parity. N. caninum was diagnosed in every year except 2009 and cases were geographically widespread throughout the province. Furthermore, the active surveillance program demonstrates that N. caninum is highly prevalent in the Upper Fraser Valley and is a major causal agent of production losses in this dairy intensive region. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Candidate gene association analyses for ketosis resistance in Holsteins.

PubMed

Kroezen, V; Schenkel, F S; Miglior, F; Baes, C F; Squires, E J

2018-06-01

High-yielding dairy cattle are susceptible to ketosis, a metabolic disease that negatively affects the health, fertility, and milk production of the cow. Interest in breeding for more robust dairy cattle with improved resistance to disease is global; however, genetic evaluations for ketosis would benefit from the additional information provided by genetic markers. Candidate genes that are proposed to have a biological role in the pathogenesis of ketosis were investigated in silico and a custom panel of 998 putative single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers was developed. The objective of this study was to test the associations of these new markers with deregressed estimated breeding values (EBV) for ketosis. A sample of 653 Canadian Holstein cows that had been previously genotyped with a medium-density SNP chip were regenotyped with the custom panel. The EBV for ketosis in first and later lactations were obtained for each animal and deregressed for use as pseudo-phenotypes for association analyses. Results of the mixed inheritance model for single SNP association analyses suggested 15 markers in 6 unique candidate genes were associated with the studied trait. Genes encoding proteins involved in metabolic processes, including the synthesis and degradation of fatty acids and ketone bodies, gluconeogenesis, lipid mobilization, and the citric acid cycle, were identified to contain SNP associated with ketosis resistance. This work confirmed the presence of previously described quantitative trait loci for dairy cattle, suggested novel markers for ketosis-resistance, and provided insight into the underlying biology of this disease. Copyright © 2018 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Neospora caninum is the leading cause of bovine fetal loss in British Columbia, Canada

PubMed Central

Wilson, Devon J; Orsel, Karin; Waddington, Josh; Rajeev, Malavika; Sweeny, Amy R.; Joseph, Tomy; Grigg, Michael E; Raverty, Stephen A.

2016-01-01

The protozoan pathogen Neospora caninum is recognized as a leading cause of infectious abortions in cattle worldwide. To evaluate the impact of neosporosis on dairy and beef herd production, a retrospective, longitudinal study was performed to identify the impact of neosporosis alongside other causes of fetal abortion in British Columbia, Canada. Retrospective analysis of pathology records of bovine fetal submissions submitted to the Animal Health Centre, Abbotsford, British Columbia, a provincial veterinary diagnostic laboratory, from January 2007– July 2013 identified 182 abortion cases (passive surveillance). From July 2013–May 2014, an active surveillance program identified a further 54 abortion cases from dairy farmers in the Upper Fraser Valley, British Columbia. Of the total 236 fetal submissions analyzed, N. caninum was diagnosed in 18.2% of cases, making it the most commonly identified infectious agent associated with fetal loss. During active surveillance, N. caninum was associated with 41% of fetuses submitted compared to 13.3% during passive surveillance (P<0.001). Breed of dam was significantly associated with N. caninum diagnosis, with a higher prevalence in dairy versus beef breeds, and fetuses of 3–6 months gestational age had the highest prevalence of N. caninum. There was no significant association with dam parity. Neospora caninum was diagnosed in every year except 2009 and cases were geographically widespread throughout the province. Furthermore, the active surveillance program demonstrates that N. caninum is highly prevalent in the Upper Fraser Valley and is a major causal agent of production losses in this dairy intensive region. PMID:26872927

Development of an index to rank dairy females on expected lifetime profit.

PubMed

Kelleher, M M; Amer, P R; Shalloo, L; Evans, R D; Byrne, T J; Buckley, F; Berry, D P

2015-06-01

The objective of this study was to develop an index to rank dairy females on expected profit for the remainder of their lifetime, taking cognizance of both additive and nonadditive genetic merit, permanent environmental effects, and current states of the animal including the most recent calving date and cow parity. The cow own worth (COW) index is intended to be used for culling the expected least profitable females in a herd, as well as inform purchase and pricing decisions for trading of females. The framework of the COW index consisted of the profit accruing from (1) the current lactation, (2) future lactations, and (3) net replacement cost differential. The COW index was generated from estimated performance values (sum of additive genetic merit, nonadditive genetic merit, and permanent environmental effects) of traits, their respective net margin values, and transition probability matrices for month of calving, survival, and somatic cell count; the transition matrices were to account for predicted change in a cow's state in the future. Transition matrices were generated from 3,156,109 lactation records from the Irish national database between the years 2010 and 2013. Phenotypic performance records for 162,981 cows in the year 2012 were used to validate the COW index. Genetic and permanent environmental effects (where applicable) were available for these cows from the 2011 national genetic evaluations and used to calculate the COW index and their national breeding index values (includes only additive genetic effects). Cows were stratified per quartile within herd, based on their COW index value and national breeding index value. The correlation between individual animal COW index value and national breeding index value was 0.65. Month of calving of the cow in her current lactation explained 18% of the variation in the COW index, with the parity of the cow explaining an additional 3 percentage units of the variance in the COW index. Females ranking higher on the COW index yielded more milk and milk solids and calved earlier in the calving season than their lower ranking contemporaries. The difference in phenotypic performance between the best and worst quartiles was larger for cows ranked on COW index than cows ranked on the national breeding index. The COW index is useful to rank females before culling or purchasing decisions on expected profit and is complementary to the national breeding index, which identifies the most suitable females for breeding replacements. Copyright © 2015 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Genotype imputation in a tropical crossbred dairy cattle population

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The application of new tools, such as genomic selection and genotype imputation, still presents challenges in crossbred populations because relationships of causal variants with markers may vary across breeds. In order to make genomic selection more cost effective, cheap low density chips are often ...

A method for the dynamic management of genetic variability in dairy cattle

PubMed Central

Colleau, Jean-Jacques; Moureaux, Sophie; Briend, Michèle; Bechu, Jérôme

2004-01-01

According to the general approach developed in this paper, dynamic management of genetic variability in selected populations of dairy cattle is carried out for three simultaneous purposes: procreation of young bulls to be further progeny-tested, use of service bulls already selected and approval of recently progeny-tested bulls for use. At each step, the objective is to minimize the average pairwise relationship coefficient in the future population born from programmed matings and the existing population. As a common constraint, the average estimated breeding value of the new population, for a selection goal including many important traits, is set to a desired value. For the procreation of young bulls, breeding costs are additionally constrained. Optimization is fully analytical and directly considers matings. Corresponding algorithms are presented in detail. The efficiency of these procedures was tested on the current Norman population. Comparisons between optimized and real matings, clearly showed that optimization would have saved substantial genetic variability without reducing short-term genetic gains. PMID:15231230

The possibilities of using individual birth weights as weaning criteria in dairy goat farming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gökdal, Özdal; Özuǧur, Ali Kemali; Eren, Vadullah; Atay, Okan

2017-04-01

The aim of the study was to evaluate the possibilities of using individual birth weight of kids as weaning criteria in Saanen and Alpine goats under intensive conditions. A total of 24 does and their 40 kids were divided to weaning groups when the kids reached three (X3) or four times (X4) of their individual birth weights. The experiment design was a 2×2 factorial design with two weaning stages (X3 vs X4) and two breeds (S: Saanen and A: Alpine). The averages of weaning age of the SX3, AX3, SX4 and AX4 kids were determined as 42.75, 42.21, 53.15 and 65.81 days, respectively. The weaning groups and the interaction between weaning and breed had significant effects (P<0.001 and P<0.05, respectively) on weaning age of the kids. The average daily weight gain before weaning was different in weaning groups (P<0.001). On the contrary, the growth performances of the kids until breeding age were not different between groups. The milk yield characteristics of dams in groups were not different. The results indicated that birth weights of the kids can be used successfully for weaning criteria in dairy goats under intensive conditions.

Short communication: characterization of soluble thiols in bovine milk.

PubMed

Niero, G; De Marchi, M; Masi, A; Penasa, M; Cassandro, M

2015-09-01

Antioxidants are molecules essential for the maintenance of cell homeostasis and their intake through the diet has positive effects on human health. Among antioxidants, low-molecular-weight (LMW) thiols represent an important class of compounds. The aim of this study was to identify LMW thiols in bovine milk. A total of 96 individual milk samples from Brown Swiss, Holstein-Friesian, Alpine Grey, and Simmental cattle breeds were collected in 8 herds. The LMW thiols were extracted from the soluble fraction of milk and, following a derivatization protocol, they were separated by reverse phase HPLC and detected fluorimetrically. Six thiol species were detected and 2, glutathione (GSH) and cysteine-glycine (Cys-Gly), were identified and quantified. Regardless of the breed, the average concentration of Cys-Gly in milk was greater than that of GSH. Overall, milk from dual-purpose breeds (Simmental and Alpine Grey) was richer in LMW thiols than milk from dairy cows (Holstein-Friesian and Brown Swiss). Glutathione and Cys-Gly, closely linked metabolically, were strongly correlated. Pearson correlations of Cys-Gly with protein and casein contents were moderately low, and no relationship was found between GSH and milk chemical composition. Future research should focus on the identification of all detected LMW thiol species. Copyright © 2015 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Methods to determine the relative value of genetic traits in dairy cows to reduce greenhouse gas emissions along the chain.

PubMed

van Middelaar, C E; Berentsen, P B M; Dijkstra, J; van Arendonk, J A M; de Boer, I J M

2014-01-01

Current decisions on breeding in dairy farming are mainly based on economic values of heritable traits, as earning an income is a primary objective of farmers. Recent literature, however, shows that breeding also has potential to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The objective of this paper was to compare 2 methods to determine GHG values of genetic traits. Method 1 calculates GHG values using the current strategy (i.e., maximizing labor income), whereas method 2 is based on minimizing GHG per kilogram of milk and shows what can be achieved if the breeding results are fully directed at minimizing GHG emissions. A whole-farm optimization model was used to determine results before and after 1 genetic standard deviation improvement (i.e., unit change) of milk yield and longevity. The objective function of the model differed between method 1 and 2. Method 1 maximizes labor income; method 2 minimizes GHG emissions per kilogram of milk while maintaining labor income and total milk production at least at the level before the change in trait. Results show that the full potential of the traits to reduce GHG emissions given the boundaries that were set for income and milk production (453 and 441kg of CO2 equivalents/unit change per cow per year for milk yield and longevity, respectively) is about twice as high as the reduction based on maximizing labor income (247 and 210kg of CO2 equivalents/unit change per cow per year for milk yield and longevity, respectively). The GHG value of milk yield is higher than that of longevity, especially when the focus is on maximizing labor income. Based on a sensitivity analysis, it was shown that including emissions from land use change and using different methods for handling the interaction between milk and meat production can change results, generally in favor of milk yield. Results can be used by breeding organizations that want to include GHG values in their breeding goal. To verify GHG values, the effect of prices and emissions factors should be considered, as well as the potential effect of variation between farm types. Copyright © 2014 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Population structure and genomic inbreeding in nine Swiss dairy cattle populations.

PubMed

Signer-Hasler, Heidi; Burren, Alexander; Neuditschko, Markus; Frischknecht, Mirjam; Garrick, Dorian; Stricker, Christian; Gredler, Birgit; Bapst, Beat; Flury, Christine

2017-11-07

Domestication, breed formation and intensive selection have resulted in divergent cattle breeds that likely exhibit their own genomic signatures. In this study, we used genotypes from 27,612 autosomal single nucleotide polymorphisms to characterize population structure based on 9214 sires representing nine Swiss dairy cattle populations: Brown Swiss (BS), Braunvieh (BV), Original Braunvieh (OB), Holstein (HO), Red Holstein (RH), Swiss Fleckvieh (SF), Simmental (SI), Eringer (ER) and Evolèner (EV). Genomic inbreeding (F ROH ) and signatures of selection were determined by calculating runs of homozygosity (ROH). The results build the basis for a better understanding of the genetic development of Swiss dairy cattle populations and highlight differences between the original populations (i.e. OB, SI, ER and EV) and those that have become more popular in Switzerland as currently reflected by their larger populations (i.e. BS, BV, HO, RH and SF). The levels of genetic diversity were highest and lowest in the SF and BS breeds, respectively. Based on F ST values, we conclude that, among all pairwise comparisons, BS and HO (0.156) differ more than the other pairs of populations. The original Swiss cattle populations OB, SI, ER, and EV are clearly genetically separated from the Swiss cattle populations that are now more common and represented by larger numbers of cows. Mean levels of F ROH ranged from 0.027 (ER) to 0.091 (BS). Three of the original Swiss cattle populations, ER (F ROH : 0.027), OB (F ROH : 0.029), and SI (F ROH : 0.039), showed low levels of genomic inbreeding, whereas it was much higher in EV (F ROH : 0.074). Private signatures of selection for the original Swiss cattle populations are reported for BTA4, 5, 11 and 26. The low levels of genomic inbreeding observed in the original Swiss cattle populations ER, OB and SI compared to the other breeds are explained by a lesser use of artificial insemination and greater use of natural service. Natural service results in more sires having progeny at each generation and thus this breeding practice is likely the major reason for the remarkable levels of genetic diversity retained within these populations. The fact that the EV population is regionally restricted and its small census size of herd-book cows explain its high level of genomic inbreeding.

Identifying efficient dairy heifer producers using production costs and data envelopment analysis.

PubMed

Heinrichs, A J; Jones, C M; Gray, S M; Heinrichs, P A; Cornelisse, S A; Goodling, R C

2013-01-01

During November and December 2011, data were collected from 44 dairy operations in 13 Pennsylvania counties. Researchers visited each farm to collect information regarding management practices and feeding, and costs for labor, health, bedding, and reproduction for replacement heifers from birth until first calving. Costs per heifer were broken up into 4 time periods: birth until weaning, weaning until 6 mo of age, 6 mo of age until breeding age, and heifers from breeding to calving. Milk production records for each herd were obtained from Dairy Herd Improvement. The average number of milking cows on farms in this study was 197.8 ± 280.1, with a range from 38 to 1,708. Total cost averaged $1,808.23 ± $338.62 from birth until freshening. Raising calves from birth to weaning cost $217.49 ± 86.21; raising heifers from weaning age through 6 mo of age cost $247.38 ± 78.89; raising heifers from 6 mo of age until breeding cost $607.02 ± 192.28; and total cost for bred heifers was $736.33 ± 162.86. Feed costs were the largest component of the cost to raise heifers from birth to calving, accounting for nearly 73% of the total. Data envelopment analysis determined that 9 of the 44 farms had no inefficiencies in inputs or outputs. These farms best combined feed and labor investments, spending, on average, $1,137.40 and $140.62/heifer for feed and labor. These heifers calved at 23.7 mo of age and produced 88.42% of the milk produced by older cows. In contrast, the 35 inefficient farms spent $227 more on feed and $78 more on labor per heifer for animals that calved 1.6 mo later and produced only 82% of the milk made by their mature herdmates. Efficiency was attained by herds with the lowest input costs, but herds with higher input costs were also able to be efficient if age at calving was low and milk production was high for heifers compared with the rest of the herd. Copyright © 2013 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effect of a single growth hormone (rbST) treatment at breeding on conception rates and pregnancy retention in dairy and beef cattle.

PubMed

Starbuck, Melanie J; Inskeep, E Keith; Dailey, Robert A

2006-07-01

Initiation of long-term treatment with rbST (Posilac, Monsanto, St. Louis, MO) coincident with first insemination increased pregnancy rates in dairy cattle, but neither the efficacy of using only the initial injection, nor its effects on retention of pregnancy are known. Lactating dairy cows, dairy heifers, and lactating beef cows were assigned at random to treatment (rbST) or control. Dairy cows, dairy heifers, and beef cows received 500 mg rbST (n = 48, 35, 137 inseminations, respectively) at artificial insemination or were left untreated (n = 62, 33, 130 inseminations, respectively). Pregnancy was diagnosed by ultrasonography at 28-36 days. Treatment with rbST at insemination improved conception rates in dairy cows (60.4% versus 40.3%; P < 0.05), but not in dairy heifers or beef cows. Conception rates did not differ in dairy cows at < or =100 days in milk (DIM), but were improved in cows treated with rbST after 100 DIM (64.3% versus 25.8%; P < 0.05). Retention of pregnancy to approximately 60 days and sizes of CL, diameter of follicles > or =5 mm, and crown-rump lengths of embryos were not affected by treatment. The second objective was to examine the effects of rbST at insemination on birth weight and post-natal calf growth in beef cows. However, birth and weaning weights of beef calves were not affected by treatment. In conclusion, a single treatment with rbST at insemination increased conception rates in dairy cows, specifically in those >100 DIM.

21 CFR 524.1193 - Ivermectin topical solution.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. A withdrawal period has not been established for this.... (d) Special considerations. See § 500.25 of this chapter. (e) Conditions of use in cattle—(1) Amount... larvae) Dictyocaulus viviparus; cattle grubs (parasitic stages) Hypoderma bovis, H. lineatum; mites...

9 CFR 73.12 - Ivermectin. 1

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... withdrawal time in milk has not been established, do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. Federal... INTERSTATE TRANSPORTATION OF ANIMALS (INCLUDING POULTRY) AND ANIMAL PRODUCTS SCABIES IN CATTLE § 73.12 Ivermectin. 1 1 Tissue residues remain following treatment with ivermectin. Cattle treated with ivermectin...

9 CFR 73.12 - Ivermectin. 1

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... withdrawal time in milk has not been established, do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. Federal... INTERSTATE TRANSPORTATION OF ANIMALS (INCLUDING POULTRY) AND ANIMAL PRODUCTS SCABIES IN CATTLE § 73.12 Ivermectin. 1 1 Tissue residues remain following treatment with ivermectin. Cattle treated with ivermectin...

9 CFR 73.12 - Ivermectin. 1

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... withdrawal time in milk has not been established, do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. Federal... INTERSTATE TRANSPORTATION OF ANIMALS (INCLUDING POULTRY) AND ANIMAL PRODUCTS SCABIES IN CATTLE § 73.12 Ivermectin. 1 1 Tissue residues remain following treatment with ivermectin. Cattle treated with ivermectin...

21 CFR 524.1193 - Ivermectin topical solution.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. A withdrawal period has not been established for this.... (d) Special considerations. See § 500.25 of this chapter. (e) Conditions of use in cattle—(1) Amount... larvae) Dictyocaulus viviparus; cattle grubs (parasitic stages) Hypoderma bovis, H. lineatum; mites...

21 CFR 524.1193 - Ivermectin topical solution.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. A withdrawal period has not been established for this.... (d) Special considerations. See § 500.25 of this chapter. (e) Conditions of use in cattle—(1) Amount... larvae) Dictyocaulus viviparus; cattle grubs (parasitic stages) Hypoderma bovis, H. lineatum; mites...

9 CFR 73.12 - Ivermectin. 1

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... withdrawal time in milk has not been established, do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. Federal... INTERSTATE TRANSPORTATION OF ANIMALS (INCLUDING POULTRY) AND ANIMAL PRODUCTS SCABIES IN CATTLE § 73.12 Ivermectin. 1 1 Tissue residues remain following treatment with ivermectin. Cattle treated with ivermectin...

9 CFR 73.12 - Ivermectin. 1

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... withdrawal time in milk has not been established, do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. Federal... INTERSTATE TRANSPORTATION OF ANIMALS (INCLUDING POULTRY) AND ANIMAL PRODUCTS SCABIES IN CATTLE § 73.12 Ivermectin. 1 1 Tissue residues remain following treatment with ivermectin. Cattle treated with ivermectin...

21 CFR 524.1193 - Ivermectin topical solution.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. A withdrawal period has not been established for this.... (d) Special considerations. See § 500.25 of this chapter. (e) Conditions of use in cattle—(1) Amount... larvae) Dictyocaulus viviparus; cattle grubs (parasitic stages) Hypoderma bovis, H. lineatum; mites...

Management of mendelian traits in breeding programs by gene editing

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

High-density single nucleotide polymorphism genotypes have recently been used to identify a number of novel recessive mutations that adversely affect fertility in dairy cattle, as well as to track conditions such as polled. Recent findings suggest that the use of sequential mate allocation strategie...

Improving production efficiency through genetic selection

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The goal of dairy cattle breeding is to increase productivity and efficiency by means of genetic selection. This is possible because related animals share some of their DNA in common, and we can use statistical models to predict the genetic merit animals based on the performance of their relatives. ...

Genetic analysis of longevity in Dutch dairy cattle using random regression.

PubMed

van Pelt, M L; Meuwissen, T H E; de Jong, G; Veerkamp, R F

2015-06-01

Longevity, productive life, or lifespan of dairy cattle is an important trait for dairy farmers, and it is defined as the time from first calving to the last test date for milk production. Methods for genetic evaluations need to account for censored data; that is, records from cows that are still alive. The aim of this study was to investigate whether these methods also need to take account of survival being genetically a different trait across the entire lifespan of a cow. The data set comprised 112,000 cows with a total of 3,964,449 observations for survival per month from first calving until 72 mo in productive life. A random regression model with second-order Legendre polynomials was fitted for the additive genetic effect. Alternative parameterizations were (1) different trait definitions for the length of time interval for survival after first calving (1, 3, 6, and 12 mo); (2) linear or threshold model; and (3) differing the order of the Legendre polynomial. The partial derivatives of a profit function were used to transform variance components on the survival scale to those for lifespan. Survival rates were higher in early life than later in life (99 vs. 95%). When survival was defined over 12-mo intervals survival curves were smooth compared with curves when 1-, 3-, or 6-mo intervals were used. Heritabilities in each interval were very low and ranged from 0.002 to 0.031, but the heritability for lifespan over the entire period of 72 mo after first calving ranged from 0.115 to 0.149. Genetic correlations between time intervals ranged from 0.25 to 1.00. Genetic parameters and breeding values for the genetic effect were more sensitive to the trait definition than to whether a linear or threshold model was used or to the order of Legendre polynomial used. Cumulative survival up to the first 6 mo predicted lifespan with an accuracy of only 0.79 to 0.85; that is, reliability of breeding value with many daughters in the first 6 mo can be, at most, 0.62 to 0.72, and changes of breeding values are still expected when daughters are getting older. Therefore, an improved model for genetic evaluation should treat survival as different traits during the lifespan by splitting lifespan in time intervals of 6 mo or less to avoid overestimated reliabilities and changes in breeding values when daughters are getting older. Copyright © 2015 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Heifer fertility and carry over consequences for life time production in dairy and beef cattle.

PubMed

Wathes, D C; Pollott, G E; Johnson, K F; Richardson, H; Cooke, J S

2014-05-01

The rearing period has a key influence on the later performance of cattle, affecting future fertility and longevity. Producers usually aim to breed replacement heifers by 15 months to calve at 24 months. An age at first calving (AFC) close to 2 years (23 to 25 months) is optimum for economic performance as it minimises the non-productive period and maintains a seasonal calving pattern. This is rarely achieved in either dairy or beef herds, with average AFC for dairy herds usually between 26 and 30 months. Maintaining a low AFC requires good heifer management with adequate growth to ensure an appropriate BW and frame size at calving. Puberty should occur at least 6 weeks before the target breeding age to enable animals to undergo oestrous cycles before mating. Cattle reach puberty at a fairly consistent, but breed-dependent, proportion of mature BW. Heifer fertility is a critical component of AFC. In US Holsteins the conception rate peaked at 57% at 15 to 16 months, declining in older heifers. Wide variations in growth rates on the same farm often lead to some animals having delayed first breeding and/or conception. Oestrous synchronisation regimes and sexed semen can both be used but unless heifers have been previously well-managed the success rates may be unacceptably low. Altering the nutritional input above or below those needed for maintenance at any stage from birth to first calving clearly alters the average daily gain (ADG) in weight. In general an ADG of around 0.75 kg/day seems optimal for dairy heifers, with lower rates delaying puberty and AFC. There is some scope to vary ADG at different ages providing animals reach an adequate size by calving. Major periods of nutritional deficiency and/or severe calfhood disease will, however, compromise development with long-term adverse consequences. Infectious disease can also cause pregnancy loss/abortion. First lactation milk yield may be slightly lower in younger calving cows but lifetime production is higher as such animals usually have good fertility and survive longer. There is now extensive evidence that as long as the AFC is >23 months then future performance is not adversely influenced. On the other hand, delayed first calving >30 months is associated with poor survival. Underfeeding of young heifers reduces their milk production potential and is a greater problem than overfeeding. Farmers are more likely to meet the optimum AFC target of 23 to 25 months if they monitor growth rates and adjust feed accordingly.

Conservation priorities for the different lines of Dutch Red and White Friesian cattle change when relationships with other breeds are taken into account.

PubMed

Hulsegge, B; Calus, M P L; Oldenbroek, J K; Windig, J J

2017-02-01

From a genetic point of view, the selection of breeds and animals within breeds for conservation in a national gene pool can be based on a maximum diversity strategy. This implies that priority is given to conservation of breeds and animals that diverge most and overlap of conserved diversity is minimized. This study investigated the genetic diversity in the Dutch Red and White Friesian (DFR) cattle breed and its contribution to the total genetic diversity in the pool of the Dutch dairy breeds. All Dutch cattle breeds are clearly distinct, except for Dutch Friesian breed (DF) and DFR and have their own specific genetic identity. DFR has a small but unique contribution to the total genetic diversity of Dutch cattle breeds and is closely related to the Dutch Friesian breed. Seven different lines are distinguished within the DFR breed and all contribute to the diversity of the DFR breed. Two lines show the largest contributions to the genetic diversity in DFR. One of these lines comprises unique diversity both within the breed and across all cattle breeds. The other line comprises unique diversity for the DFR but overlaps with the Holstein Friesian breed. There seems to be no necessity to conserve the other five lines separately, because their level of differentiation is very low. This study illustrates that, when taking conservation decisions for a breed, it is worthwhile to take into account the population structure of the breed itself and the relationships with other breeds. © 2016 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

Future consequences and challenges for dairy cow production systems arising from climate change in Central Europe - a review.

PubMed

Gauly, M; Bollwein, H; Breves, G; Brügemann, K; Dänicke, S; Daş, G; Demeler, J; Hansen, H; Isselstein, J; König, S; Lohölter, M; Martinsohn, M; Meyer, U; Potthoff, M; Sanker, C; Schröder, B; Wrage, N; Meibaum, B; von Samson-Himmelstjerna, G; Stinshoff, H; Wrenzycki, C

2013-05-01

It is well documented that global warming is unequivocal. Dairy production systems are considered as important sources of greenhouse gas emissions; however, little is known about the sensitivity and vulnerability of these production systems themselves to climate warming. This review brings different aspects of dairy cow production in Central Europe into focus, with a holistic approach to emphasize potential future consequences and challenges arising from climate change. With the current understanding of the effects of climate change, it is expected that yield of forage per hectare will be influenced positively, whereas quality will mainly depend on water availability and soil characteristics. Thus, the botanical composition of future grassland should include species that are able to withstand the changing conditions (e.g. lucerne and bird's foot trefoil). Changes in nutrient concentration of forage plants, elevated heat loads and altered feeding patterns of animals may influence rumen physiology. Several promising nutritional strategies are available to lower potential negative impacts of climate change on dairy cow nutrition and performance. Adjustment of feeding and drinking regimes, diet composition and additive supplementation can contribute to the maintenance of adequate dairy cow nutrition and performance. Provision of adequate shade and cooling will reduce the direct effects of heat stress. As estimated genetic parameters are promising, heat stress tolerance as a functional trait may be included into breeding programmes. Indirect effects of global warming on the health and welfare of animals seem to be more complicated and thus are less predictable. As the epidemiology of certain gastrointestinal nematodes and liver fluke is favourably influenced by increased temperature and humidity, relations between climate change and disease dynamics should be followed closely. Under current conditions, climate change associated economic impacts are estimated to be neutral if some form of adaptation is integrated. Therefore, it is essential to establish and adopt mitigation strategies covering available tools from management, nutrition, health and plant and animal breeding to cope with the future consequences of climate change on dairy farming.

Validity of physiological biomarkers for maternal behavior in cows--a comparison of beef and dairy cattle.

PubMed

Geburt, Katrin; Friedrich, Morten; Piechotta, Marion; Gauly, Matthias; König von Borstel, Uta

2015-02-01

The objectives of the present study were to evaluate the suitability of potential biomarkers for maternal ability in cattle, and in addition to test the hypothesis that dairy cows have a less pronounced motherliness than beef cows. Therefore, maternal behavior of 20 Simmental beef-type (S) and 20 German Black Pied (dairy-type) Cattle (BP) was assessed on the 2nd and again on the 3rd day of the calf's life. Measurements included the frequency of interactions between cow and calf, the cow's willingness to defend her calf, the overall maternal behavior, saliva cortisol, saliva oxytocin, heart rate, and thermal images of the eye (ET). Mixed model analysis revealed that BP had significantly (P<0.05) higher oxytocin (88.6±9.2 vs. 62.8±9.2 pg/ml saliva) and cortisol (1.3±0.1 vs. 1.0±0.1 ng/ml saliva) levels, but lower heart rates (80.0±2.0 vs. 95.8±2.0bpm) than S cows. Simmental (beef) cows showed more defensive behavior (3.5±0.2 vs. 2.7±0.2 scores), but fewer total interactions between cow and calf (8.1±1.4 vs. 13.8±1.4), compared to BP (dairy). However, with the exception of heart rate and overall maternal behavior, breed differences tended to diminish from the 2nd to the 3rd day of the calf's life. Repeatabilities ranged from 9±23% (ET) to 77±7% (maternal behavior measured on a visual analogue scale), and correlations between physiological parameters and behavior differed between breeds and were generally at a low level. In conclusion, beef cows do not seem to be per se more maternal compared to dairy cows, and the assessed parameters are of limited use as biomarkers for maternal behavior. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Inorganic zinc supplementation modulates heat shock and immune response in heat stressed peripheral blood mononuclear cells of periparturient dairy cows.

PubMed

Sheikh, Aasif Ahmad; Aggarwal, Anjali; B, Indu; Aarif, Ovais

2017-06-01

Thermal stress in India is one of the major constraints affecting dairy cattle productivity. Every attempt should be made to ameliorate the heat and calving related stress in high producing dairy cows for higher economic returns. In the current study, inorganic zinc was tried to alleviate the adverse effects of thermal stress in periparturient cows. Twelve cows, six each of Sahiwal and Karan Fries (KF) in their second parity with confirmed pregnancy were chosen for the experiment. The blood samples were collected periparturiently on three occasions viz. -21, 0 and +21 days relative to calving. The in vitro study was conducted after isolating peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from whole blood. The cultured PBMC were subjected to three different levels of exposures viz. 37°C as control, 42°C to induce thermal stress and 42°C + zinc to ameliorate the adverse effects of high temperature. Heat shock lead to a significant (P<0.05) rise in the level of heat shock proteins (HSP). HSP was more on the day of calving as well. KF showed more HSP concentration than Sahiwal breed indicating the heat bearing capacity of later. Zinc treatment to thermally stressed PBMC caused a fall in the HSP concentration in both the breeds during periparturient period. Moreover, heat stress increased significantly (P<0.05) the Interleukin 6 (IL-6) concentration which declined upon zinc supplementation to PBMC. IL-6 levels decreased periparturiently. Heat and calving related stress caused a fall in the IL-12 levels which increased significantly (P<0.05) with zinc supplementation. These findings suggest that zinc supplementation attenuates the HSP response and augments immunity in PBMC of periparturient dairy cows. The study could help to alleviate the heat stress and potentiate immunity by providing mineral supplements in periparturient dairy cattle habituating tropics. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Invited review: Large-scale indirect measurements for enteric methane emissions in dairy cattle: A review of proxies and their potential for use in management and breeding decisions.

PubMed

Negussie, E; de Haas, Y; Dehareng, F; Dewhurst, R J; Dijkstra, J; Gengler, N; Morgavi, D P; Soyeurt, H; van Gastelen, S; Yan, T; Biscarini, F

2017-04-01

Efforts to reduce the carbon footprint of milk production through selection and management of low-emitting cows require accurate and large-scale measurements of methane (CH 4 ) emissions from individual cows. Several techniques have been developed to measure CH 4 in a research setting but most are not suitable for large-scale recording on farm. Several groups have explored proxies (i.e., indicators or indirect traits) for CH 4 ; ideally these should be accurate, inexpensive, and amenable to being recorded individually on a large scale. This review (1) systematically describes the biological basis of current potential CH 4 proxies for dairy cattle; (2) assesses the accuracy and predictive power of single proxies and determines the added value of combining proxies; (3) provides a critical evaluation of the relative merit of the main proxies in terms of their simplicity, cost, accuracy, invasiveness, and throughput; and (4) discusses their suitability as selection traits. The proxies range from simple and low-cost measurements such as body weight and high-throughput milk mid-infrared spectroscopy (MIR) to more challenging measures such as rumen morphology, rumen metabolites, or microbiome profiling. Proxies based on rumen samples are generally poor to moderately accurate predictors of CH 4 , and are costly and difficult to measure routinely on-farm. Proxies related to body weight or milk yield and composition, on the other hand, are relatively simple, inexpensive, and high throughput, and are easier to implement in practice. In particular, milk MIR, along with covariates such as lactation stage, are a promising option for prediction of CH 4 emission in dairy cows. No single proxy was found to accurately predict CH 4 , and combinations of 2 or more proxies are likely to be a better solution. Combining proxies can increase the accuracy of predictions by 15 to 35%, mainly because different proxies describe independent sources of variation in CH 4 and one proxy can correct for shortcomings in the other(s). The most important applications of CH 4 proxies are in dairy cattle management and breeding for lower environmental impact. When breeding for traits of lower environmental impact, single or multiple proxies can be used as indirect criteria for the breeding objective, but care should be taken to avoid unfavorable correlated responses. Finally, although combinations of proxies appear to provide the most accurate estimates of CH 4 , the greatest limitation today is the lack of robustness in their general applicability. Future efforts should therefore be directed toward developing combinations of proxies that are robust and applicable across diverse production systems and environments. The Authors. Published by the Federation of Animal Science Societies and Elsevier Inc. on behalf of the American Dairy Science Association®. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/).

Multiple trait genetic evaluation of clinical mastitis in three dairy cattle breeds.

PubMed

Govignon-Gion, A; Dassonneville, R; Baloche, G; Ducrocq, V

2016-04-01

In 2010, a routine genetic evaluation on occurrence of clinical mastitis in three main dairy cattle breeds-- Montbéliarde (MO), Normande (NO) and Holstein (HO)--was implemented in France. Records were clinical mastitis events reported by farmers to milk recording technicians and the analyzed trait was the binary variable describing the occurrence of a mastitis case within the first 150 days of the first three lactations. Genetic parameters of clinical mastitis were estimated for the three breeds. Low heritability estimates were found: between 2% and 4% depending on the breed. Despite its low heritability, the trait exhibits genetic variation so efficient genetic improvement is possible. Genetic correlations with other traits were estimated, showing large correlations (often>0.50, in absolute value) between clinical mastitis and somatic cell score (SCS), longevity and some udder traits. Correlation with milk yield was moderate and unfavorable (ρ=0.26 to 0.30). High milking speed was genetically associated with less mastitis in MO (ρ=-0.14) but with more mastitis in HO (ρ=0.18). A two-step approach was implemented for routine evaluation: first, a univariate evaluation based on a linear animal model with permanent environment effect led to pre-adjusted records (defined as records corrected for all non-genetic effects) and associated weights. These data were then combined with similar pre-adjusted records for others traits in a multiple trait BLUP animal model. The combined breeding values for clinical mastitis obtained are the official (published) ones. Mastitis estimated breeding values (EBV) were then combined with SCSs EBV into an udder health index, which receives a weight of 14.5% to 18.5% in the French total merit index (ISU) of the three breeds. Interbull genetic correlations for mastitis occurrence were very high (ρ=0.94) with Nordic countries, where much stricter recording systems exist reflecting a satisfactory quality of phenotypes as reported by the farmers. They were lower (around 0.80) with countries supplying SCS as a proxy for the international evaluation on clinical mastitis.

A comparison between Holstein-Friesian and Jersey dairy cows and their F(1) hybrid on milk fatty acid composition under grazing conditions.

PubMed

Palladino, R A; Buckley, F; Prendiville, R; Murphy, J J; Callan, J; Kenny, D A

2010-05-01

The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of 2 breeds, Holstein and Jersey, and their F(1) hybrid (Jersey x Holstein) on milk fatty acid (FA) concentrations under grazing conditions, especially conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) and n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids because of their importance to human health. Eighty-one cows (27 per breed grouping) were allocated a predominantly perennial ryegrass pasture. Samples were collected over 2 periods (June and July). Breed affected dry matter intake and milk production and composition. Holstein cows had the highest dry matter intake (18.4+/-0.40kg of DM/d) and milk production (21.1+/-0.53kg of DM/d). Holstein and Jersey x Holstein cows had similar 4% fat corrected milk, fat yield, and protein yield; with the exception of fat yield, these were all higher than for Jersey cows. Milk fat concentration was highest for Jersey cows and lowest for Holstein cows, with the hybrid cows intermediate. Total FA and linolenic acid intake (1.09+/-0.023 and 0.58+/-0.012 kg/d, respectively) were highest for Holstein cows. In terms of milk FA, Holstein cows had higher contents of C14:1, cis-9 C18:1 and linoleic acid. In turn, Jersey and Jersey x Holstein cows had higher content of C16:0. Milk concentrations of neither the cis-9,trans-11 isomer of CLA nor its precursor, vaccenic acid, were affected by breed. Nevertheless, large variation between individual animals within breed grouping was observed for CLA and estimated Delta(9)-desaturase activity. There was some evidence for a negative heterotic effect on milk concentration of CLA, with the F(1) hybrid cows having lower concentrations compared with the mid parent average. Plasma FA profile did not accurately reflect differences in milk FA composition. In conclusion, there was little evidence for either breed or beneficial heterotic effects on milk FA content with human health-promoting potential, though significant within-breed, interanimal variation was observed. Copyright 2010 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Genomic analysis of lactation persistency in four breeds of dairy cattle

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The objectives of this study were to determine gains in reliability from the addition of genomic information to genetic evaluations for best predictions of lactation persistency in US Ayrshire (AY), Brown Swiss (BS), Holstein (HO), and Jersey (JE) cattle, and to identify genomic regions with large e...

Practical implications for genetic modeling in the genomics era for the dairy industry

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Genetic models convert data into estimated breeding values and other information useful to breeders. The goal is to provide accurate and timely predictions of the future performance for each animal (or embryo). Modeling involves defining traits, editing raw data, removing environmental effects, incl...

21 CFR 520.1192 - Ivermectin paste.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... has not been established, do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. [49 FR 22275, May 29...) Cattle—(i) Amount. 23 milligrams per 250 pounds of body weight. (ii) Indications for use. It is used in cattle for the treatment and control of gastrointestinal roundworms (adults and fourth-stage larvae...

21 CFR 522.1193 - Ivermectin and clorsulon.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... female dairy cattle of breeding age. Do not use in other animal species because severe adverse reactions... chapter. (e) Conditions of use in cattle—(1) Amount. Administer 1 mL (10 mg ivermectin and 100 mg...) Limitations. For subcutaneous use only. Not for intravenous or intramuscular use. Do not treat cattle within...

21 CFR 522.1192 - Ivermectin.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... after treatment. (iii) Limitations. Do not treat cattle within 35 days of slaughter. Because a withdrawal time in milk has not been established, do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. A... order of a licensed veterinarian. (2) Cattle—(i) Amount. 200 µg/kg of body weight by subcutaneous...

21 CFR 520.1242f - Levamisole hydrochloride gel.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

....350 of this chapter. (d) Conditions of use—(1) Cattle—(i) Amount. Eight milligrams of levamisole... 4 weeks after the first treatment; do not administer to cattle within 6 days of slaughter for food; do not administer to dairy animals of breeding age; consult veterinarian before using in severely...

21 CFR 520.1242f - Levamisole hydrochloride gel.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

....350 of this chapter. (d) Conditions of use—(1) Cattle—(i) Amount. Eight milligrams of levamisole... 4 weeks after the first treatment; do not administer to cattle within 6 days of slaughter for food; do not administer to dairy animals of breeding age; consult veterinarian before using in severely...

21 CFR 520.1197 - Ivermectin sustained-release bolus.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... withdrawal time has not been established, do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. Do not slaughter cattle within 180 days of treatment. Consult your veterinarian for assistance in the diagnosis, treatment..., and ticks Amblyomma americanum. (3) Limitations. The bolus was specifically designed for use in cattle...

21 CFR 520.1630 - Oxfendazole suspension.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. [55 FR 46943, Nov. 8, 1990, as amended at 56 FR 8710, Mar... not use in horses intended for human consumption. (2) Cattle. Use the products described in paragraphs.... surnabada—adult, L4), and tapeworms (Moniezia benedeni—adult). (iii) Limitations. Cattle must not be...

21 CFR 520.1192 - Ivermectin paste.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... has not been established, do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. [49 FR 22275, May 29...) Cattle—(i) Amount. 23 milligrams per 250 pounds of body weight. (ii) Indications for use. It is used in cattle for the treatment and control of gastrointestinal roundworms (adults and fourth-stage larvae...

21 CFR 520.1192 - Ivermectin paste.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... has not been established, do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. [49 FR 22275, May 29...) Cattle—(i) Amount. 23 milligrams per 250 pounds of body weight. (ii) Indications for use. It is used in cattle for the treatment and control of gastrointestinal roundworms (adults and fourth-stage larvae...

21 CFR 520.1630 - Oxfendazole suspension.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. [55 FR 46943, Nov. 8, 1990, as amended at 56 FR 8710, Mar... not use in horses intended for human consumption. (2) Cattle. Use the products described in paragraphs.... surnabada—adult, L4), and tapeworms (Moniezia benedeni—adult). (iii) Limitations. Cattle must not be...

21 CFR 520.1630 - Oxfendazole suspension.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. [55 FR 46943, Nov. 8, 1990, as amended at 56 FR 8710, Mar... not use in horses intended for human consumption. (2) Cattle. Use the products described in paragraphs.... surnabada—adult, L4), and tapeworms (Moniezia benedeni—adult). (iii) Limitations. Cattle must not be...

21 CFR 520.1630 - Oxfendazole suspension.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. [55 FR 46943, Nov. 8, 1990, as amended at 56 FR 8710, Mar... not use in horses intended for human consumption. (2) Cattle. Use the products described in paragraphs.... surnabada—adult, L4), and tapeworms (Moniezia benedeni—adult). (iii) Limitations. Cattle must not be...

21 CFR 524.1240 - Levamisole.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... chapter. (c) Related tolerances. See § 556.350 of this chapter. (d) Conditions of use. Cattle—(1) Amount... treatment. Cattle must not be slaughtered within 9 days following last treatment. Do not administer to dairy animals of breeding age. Do not treat animals before dipping or prior to exposure to heavy rain. Consult...

21 CFR 522.1193 - Ivermectin and clorsulon.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... female dairy cattle of breeding age. Do not use in other animal species because severe adverse reactions... chapter. (e) Conditions of use in cattle—(1) Amount. Administer 1 mL (10 mg ivermectin and 100 mg...) Limitations. For subcutaneous use only. Not for intravenous or intramuscular use. Do not treat cattle within...

21 CFR 520.1242f - Levamisole hydrochloride gel.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

....350 of this chapter. (d) Conditions of use—(1) Cattle—(i) Amount. Eight milligrams of levamisole... 4 weeks after the first treatment; do not administer to cattle within 6 days of slaughter for food; do not administer to dairy animals of breeding age; consult veterinarian before using in severely...

21 CFR 520.1242f - Levamisole hydrochloride gel.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

....350 of this chapter. (d) Conditions of use—(1) Cattle—(i) Amount. Eight milligrams of levamisole... 4 weeks after the first treatment; do not administer to cattle within 6 days of slaughter for food; do not administer to dairy animals of breeding age; consult veterinarian before using in severely...

21 CFR 520.1192 - Ivermectin paste.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... has not been established, do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. [49 FR 22275, May 29...) Cattle—(i) Amount. 23 milligrams per 250 pounds of body weight. (ii) Indications for use. It is used in cattle for the treatment and control of gastrointestinal roundworms (adults and fourth-stage larvae...

21 CFR 520.1630 - Oxfendazole suspension.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. [55 FR 46943, Nov. 8, 1990, as amended at 56 FR 8710, Mar... not use in horses intended for human consumption. (2) Cattle. Use the products described in paragraphs.... surnabada—adult, L4), and tapeworms (Moniezia benedeni—adult). (iii) Limitations. Cattle must not be...

21 CFR 522.1192 - Ivermectin.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... cattle within 35 days of slaughter. Because a withdrawal time in milk has not been established, do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. A withdrawal period has not been established for this.... Federal law restricts this drug to use by or on the order of a licensed veterinarian. (2) Cattle—(i...

21 CFR 524.1240 - Levamisole.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... chapter. (c) Related tolerances. See § 556.350 of this chapter. (d) Conditions of use. Cattle—(1) Amount... treatment. Cattle must not be slaughtered within 9 days following last treatment. Do not administer to dairy animals of breeding age. Do not treat animals before dipping or prior to exposure to heavy rain. Consult...

21 CFR 520.1197 - Ivermectin sustained-release bolus.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... withdrawal time has not been established, do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. Do not slaughter cattle within 180 days of treatment. Consult your veterinarian for assistance in the diagnosis, treatment..., and ticks Amblyomma americanum. (3) Limitations. The bolus was specifically designed for use in cattle...

21 CFR 524.1240 - Levamisole.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... chapter. (c) Related tolerances. See § 556.350 of this chapter. (d) Conditions of use. Cattle—(1) Amount... treatment. Cattle must not be slaughtered within 9 days following last treatment. Do not administer to dairy animals of breeding age. Do not treat animals before dipping or prior to exposure to heavy rain. Consult...

21 CFR 524.1240 - Levamisole.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... chapter. (c) Related tolerances. See § 556.350 of this chapter. (d) Conditions of use. Cattle—(1) Amount... treatment. Cattle must not be slaughtered within 9 days following last treatment. Do not administer to dairy animals of breeding age. Do not treat animals before dipping or prior to exposure to heavy rain. Consult...

21 CFR 520.1197 - Ivermectin sustained-release bolus.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... withdrawal time has not been established, do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. Do not slaughter cattle within 180 days of treatment. Consult your veterinarian for assistance in the diagnosis, treatment..., and ticks Amblyomma americanum. (3) Limitations. The bolus was specifically designed for use in cattle...

21 CFR 524.1240 - Levamisole.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... chapter. (c) Related tolerances. See § 556.350 of this chapter. (d) Conditions of use. Cattle—(1) Amount... treatment. Cattle must not be slaughtered within 9 days following last treatment. Do not administer to dairy animals of breeding age. Do not treat animals before dipping or prior to exposure to heavy rain. Consult...

21 CFR 520.1242f - Levamisole hydrochloride gel.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

....350 of this chapter. (d) Conditions of use—(1) Cattle—(i) Amount. Eight milligrams of levamisole... 4 weeks after the first treatment; do not administer to cattle within 6 days of slaughter for food; do not administer to dairy animals of breeding age; consult veterinarian before using in severely...

21 CFR 520.1197 - Ivermectin sustained-release bolus.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... withdrawal time has not been established, do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. Do not slaughter cattle within 180 days of treatment. Consult your veterinarian for assistance in the diagnosis, treatment..., and ticks Amblyomma americanum. (3) Limitations. The bolus was specifically designed for use in cattle...

21 CFR 522.1193 - Ivermectin and clorsulon.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... female dairy cattle of breeding age. Do not use in other animal species because severe adverse reactions... chapter. (e) Conditions of use in cattle—(1) Amount. Administer 1 mL (10 mg ivermectin and 100 mg...) Limitations. For subcutaneous use only. Not for intravenous or intramuscular use. Do not treat cattle within...

Thinking About Nuclear Power in Post-Saddam Iraq

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-04-01

of the Plant Breeding Department of Iraq’s Ministry of Science and Technology, who has laid out in detail the potential uses of nuclear technology...materials, emptied the contents into the river, and then used the barrels for their own storage purposes or to deliver milk from dairies . They speak of

26 CFR 1.162-12 - Expenses of farmers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... cost of seeds and young plants which are purchased for further development and cultivation prior to... sentence does not apply to the cost of seeds and young plants connected with the planting of timber (see... expended in purchasing work, breeding, dairy, or sporting animals are regarded as investments of capital...

26 CFR 1.162-12 - Expenses of farmers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... cost of seeds and young plants which are purchased for further development and cultivation prior to... sentence does not apply to the cost of seeds and young plants connected with the planting of timber (see... expended in purchasing work, breeding, dairy, or sporting animals are regarded as investments of capital...

26 CFR 1.162-12 - Expenses of farmers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... cost of seeds and young plants which are purchased for further development and cultivation prior to... sentence does not apply to the cost of seeds and young plants connected with the planting of timber (see... expended in purchasing work, breeding, dairy, or sporting animals are regarded as investments of capital...

26 CFR 1.162-12 - Expenses of farmers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... cost of seeds and young plants which are purchased for further development and cultivation prior to... sentence does not apply to the cost of seeds and young plants connected with the planting of timber (see... expended in purchasing work, breeding, dairy, or sporting animals are regarded as investments of capital...

26 CFR 1.162-12 - Expenses of farmers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... cost of seeds and young plants which are purchased for further development and cultivation prior to... sentence does not apply to the cost of seeds and young plants connected with the planting of timber (see... expended in purchasing work, breeding, dairy, or sporting animals are regarded as investments of capital...

Genetic evaluation of gestation length as a trait of the service sire

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Predicted transmitting abilities (PTA) for gestation length (GL) were developed for all dairy breeds and crossbreds. Initial GL edits gave 20.5 million records of 10.8 million cows and included GL after either heifer or cow inseminations. Preliminary analysis revealed a very negative genetic trend i...

Genome-wide identification of runs of homozygosity islands and associated genes in local dairy cattle breeds.

PubMed

Mastrangelo, S; Sardina, M T; Tolone, M; Di Gerlando, R; Sutera, A M; Fontanesi, L; Portolano, B

2018-03-26

Runs of homozygosity (ROH) are widely used as predictors of whole-genome inbreeding levels in cattle. They identify regions that have an unfavorable effect on a phenotype when homozygous, but also identify the genes associated with traits of economic interest present in these regions. Here, the distribution of ROH islands and enriched genes within these regions in four dairy cattle breeds were investigated. Cinisara (71), Modicana (72), Reggiana (168) and Italian Holstein (96) individuals were genotyped using the 50K v2 Illumina BeadChip. The genomic regions most commonly associated with ROHs were identified by selecting the top 1% of the single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) most commonly observed in the ROH of each breed. In total, 11 genomic regions were identified in Cinisara and Italian Holstein, and eight in Modicana and Reggiana, indicating an increased ROH frequency level. Generally, ROH islands differed between breeds. The most homozygous region (>45% of individuals with ROH) was found in Modicana on chromosome 6 within a quantitative trail locus affecting milk fat and protein concentrations. We identified between 126 and 347 genes within ROH islands, which are involved in multiple signaling and signal transduction pathways in a wide variety of biological processes. The gene ontology enrichment provided information on possible molecular functions, biological processes and cellular components under selection related to milk production, reproduction, immune response and resistance/susceptibility to infection and diseases. Thus, scanning the genome for ROH could be an alternative strategy to detect genomic regions and genes related to important economic traits.

Suboptimal Herd Performance Amplifies the Spread of Infectious Disease in the Cattle Industry

PubMed Central

Gates, M. Carolyn; Woolhouse, Mark E. J.

2014-01-01

Farms that purchase replacement breeding cattle are at increased risk of introducing many economically important diseases. The objectives of this analysis were to determine whether the total number of replacement breeding cattle purchased by individual farms could be reduced by improving herd performance and to quantify the effects of such reductions on the industry-level transmission dynamics of infectious cattle diseases. Detailed information on the performance and contact patterns of British cattle herds was extracted from the national cattle movement database as a case example. Approximately 69% of beef herds and 59% of dairy herds with an average of at least 20 recorded calvings per year purchased at least one replacement breeding animal. Results from zero-inflated negative binomial regression models revealed that herds with high average ages at first calving, prolonged calving intervals, abnormally high or low culling rates, and high calf mortality rates were generally more likely to be open herds and to purchase greater numbers of replacement breeding cattle. If all herds achieved the same level of performance as the top 20% of herds, the total number of replacement beef and dairy cattle purchased could be reduced by an estimated 34% and 51%, respectively. Although these purchases accounted for only 13% of between-herd contacts in the industry trade network, they were found to have a disproportionately strong influence on disease transmission dynamics. These findings suggest that targeting extension services at herds with suboptimal performance may be an effective strategy for controlling endemic cattle diseases while simultaneously improving industry productivity. PMID:24671129

Productive performance of the dairy cattle Girolando breed mediated by the fat-related genes DGAT1 and LEP and their polymorphisms.

PubMed

Cardoso, S R; Queiroz, L B; Goulart, V Alonso; Mourão, G B; Benedetti, E; Goulart, L R

2011-12-01

Candidate genes have been associated with milk production in bovines, such as the diacylglycerol O-acyltransferase 1 (DGAT1) and leptin (LEP); however, they have not been simultaneously investigated nor have been evaluated in the Brazilian Girolando breed (Gir×Holstein, backcrossed to Holstein). Our aim was to determine the influence of fat-related genes, DGAT1 and LEP, and their polymorphisms on performance traits of milk production in the Girolando breed. Results indicated that the K allele of the DGAT1 gene showed a significant association with total and average daily milk production with additive effect. The LEP gene showed that the A allele and its homozygote are highly prevalent and almost fixed in this population and may have been favorably selected during backcrossing for the origin of this breed. The important impact of the K allele of the DGAT1 gene on milk production corroborates the initiative of performing marker-assisted selections with this gene in breeding programs of the Girolando breed. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Coxiella burnetii seroprevalence and risk factors on commercial sheep farms in The Netherlands.

PubMed

Schimmer, B; de Lange, M M A; Hautvast, J L A; Vellema, P; van Duynhoven, Y T H P

2014-07-05

Coxiella burnetii seroprevalence was assessed on Dutch dairy and non-dairy sheep farms using ELISA. Risk factors for seropositivity on non-dairy sheep farms were identified at farm and sheep level by univariate and multivariate multilevel analyses. Based on 953 dairy and 5671 non-dairy serum samples, sheep seroprevalences were 18.7 per cent and 2.0 per cent, respectively, and 78.6 per cent and 30.5 per cent at farm level. Significant risk factors for non-dairy sheep farms were farm location in the south of the country, sheep kept on marginal grounds, one or several supply addresses for ewes during 2007-2009 and wearing farm boots and/or outfit by professional visitors. On sheep level, risk factors included among others farm location in the south of the country, lamb breeding as main farm purpose, goat density within 10 km farm radius, use of windbreak curtain or windshields, and presence of ≥6 stillborn lambs in 2009. Farm location in the south of the country and goat density suggests that infected goats have played a role in the transmission to non-dairy sheep. Other risk factors suggest introduction of the bacterium through sheep supply and professional visitors. Biosecurity measures should be strengthened, including avoiding infection during handling of stillborn lambs and birth products in the lambing period. British Veterinary Association.

Register-based predictors of violations of animal welfare legislation in dairy herds.

PubMed

Otten, N D; Nielsen, L R; Thomsen, P T; Houe, H

2014-12-01

The assessment of animal welfare can include resource-based or animal-based measures. Official animal welfare inspections in Denmark primarily control compliance with animal welfare legislation based on resource measures (e.g. housing system) and usually do not regard animal response parameters (e.g. clinical and behavioural observations). Herds selected for welfare inspections are sampled by a risk-based strategy based on existing register data. The aim of the present study was to evaluate register data variables as predictors of dairy herds with violations of the animal welfare legislation (VoAWL) defined as occurrence of at least one of the two most frequently violated measures found at recent inspections in Denmark, namely (a) presence of injured animals not separated from the rest of the group and/or (b) animals in a condition warranting euthanasia still being present in the herd. A total of 25 variables were extracted from the Danish Cattle Database and assessed as predictors using a multivariable logistic analysis of a data set including 73 Danish dairy herds, which all had more than 100 cows and cubicle loose-housing systems. Univariable screening was used to identify variables associated with VoAWL at a P-value<0.2 for the inclusion in a multivariable logistic regression analysis. Backward selection procedures identified the following variables for the final model predictive of VoAWL: increasing standard deviation of milk yield for first lactation cows, high bulk tank somatic cell count (⩾250 000 cells/ml) and suspiciously low number of recorded veterinary treatments (⩽25 treatments/100 cow years). The identified predictors may be explained by underlying management factors leading to impaired animal welfare in the herd, such as poor hygiene, feeding and management of dry or calving cows and sick animals. However, further investigations are required for causal inferences to be established.

The economics of optimal health and productivity in the commercial dairy.

PubMed

Galligan, D T

1999-08-01

Dairy production practices are changing; in order to remain viable, producers must optimise the health and productivity of dairy herds in economic terms. Health care is important in economic terms because disease can substantially reduce the productivity of individual animals. Preventive disease control programmes can thus result in economic gains for the dairy producer. The author describes new approaches to preventing postpartum diseases and dealing with fertility problems which can result from these diseases. Other aspects of dairy production are also changing, employing new technologies where these are judged to be profitable. Innovations include: the use of bovine somatotropin; systematic breeding/culling programmes; new mathematical modelling techniques to determine optimum feed composition and to define optimal growth levels for accelerated heifer-rearing programmes; the use of computers to collect, store and analyse data on animal production and health; and semen selection programmes. Increasing awareness of bio-security is also vital, not least because of the large investment present in dairy herds. Whatever practices are employed, they must offer economic returns to producers that compete with alternative uses of capital. Optimal levels of disease control must be determined for a particular production situation, taking into account not only the economic health of the producer, but also the well-being of the animals.

Claw health and prevalence of lameness in cows from compost bedded and cubicle freestall dairy barns in Austria.

PubMed

Burgstaller, J; Raith, J; Kuchling, S; Mandl, V; Hund, A; Kofler, J

2016-10-01

Claw health and lameness data from five dairies with compost bedded barns (n = 201 data sets) were evaluated and compared with data from five dairy herds housed in freestall cubicle barns (n = 297 data sets). They were matched for having the same cow numbers, flooring type and similar milk yield. The prevalence of lameness, claw lesions and their severity grades were analysed. Two claw health indicators, the cow claw score (CCS) and the farm claw score (FCS), were calculated using a computerised claw trimming database programme; there was no significant difference in overall lameness prevalence in cows from five compost bedded barns (18.7%) compared to cows from five freestall cubicle herds (14.9%). A cumulative link mixed model (CLMM) did not show significant differences in locomotion between different types of bedding material, flooring system, breed, visit number, observer and time since last trimming, but locomotion was significantly influenced by CCS. Another CLMM tested the impact of parameters mentioned on CCS and showed significant influence of flooring type, visit number and cattle breed. Statistically significant differences in the prevalence of claw disorders between compost bedded and freestall cubicle barns were found for white line disease (WLD; 20.4% and 46.6%, respectively), heel horn erosion (HHE; 26.9% and 59.9%, respectively), concave dorsal wall as a result of chronic laminitis (6.5% and 15.9%, respectively) and for interdigital hyperplasia (0.2% and 3.1%, respectively). The results of this study indicate that compost dairy barns are a good alternative to common cubicle housing systems in terms of lameness, claw health and animal welfare. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The potential of open learning in animal breeding.

PubMed

Lohuis, M M; Lohuis, C T; Petrongolo, R A

1999-07-01

Animal breeding education is presently facing many challenges. These include rapid changes in breeding knowledge and technology, resource and funding restrictions, and altering demographics of the learner and the animal breeding industry. These challenges can be met via an open learning educational format. This nontraditional approach is based on the needs of individual learners, not the interests of the teacher or the institution. An important feature of open learning is its appropriateness for the professional development audience. Delivery methods include interactive distance courses on the Web, computer-assisted learning, and team-based study. The Canadian dairy breeding industry has expressed the need for ongoing professional development to understand and adopt new animal breeding technologies. The University of Guelph responded by delivering a series of animal breeding short courses (Executive Certificate Program in Animal Breeding) to industry decision makers in 1997. A version modified specifically for farmers and breeding industry personnel was offered in 1998. Through the collaboration of experts from various agricultural institutions and the use of a learner-centered format, this professional development initiative was a pedagogical and financial success. This paper describes how the open learning approach differs from traditional university teaching. Using the University of Guelph example in animal breeding professional development, the framework for a successful open learning program will be examined. The best practices for effective adult education will also be identified and discussed within this case study.

Association between gestational age and bovine fetal characteristics measured by transcutaneous ultrasound over the right flank of the dairy cow.

PubMed

Hunnam, J C; Parkinson, T J; Lopez-Villalobos, N; McDougall, S

2009-09-01

To determine bovine fetal characteristics significantly associated with increasing gestational age as measured via transcutaneous ultrasonography over the right flank. The length of gestation at date of pregnancy diagnosis via transcutaneous and transrectal ultrasonography was determined for 224 dairy cattle by estimation from subsequent calving dates. A separate dataset was created for each measurable fetal characteristic (i.e. thoracic diameter, abdominal diameter, umbilical diameter, placentome length and placentome height) and risk factors significantly associated with gestational age at pregnancy diagnosis within each dataset, including the fetal characteristic, were identified. Abdominal diameter was the most frequently observed fetal characteristic and thoracic diameter was the least. Gestational age at pregnancy diagnosis (d) was significantly associated with fetal thoracic diameter (P < 0.01), abdominal diameter (P < 0.01) and umbilical diameter (P = 0.02) when measured via transcutaneous ultrasound. Within each model, sire breed, dam breed, dam age and/or calf sex were also significantly associated with gestational age. Gestational age at pregnancy diagnosis was not significantly associated with either placentome height or length (P > 0.05). Fetal thoracic diameter, abdominal diameter and umbilical diameter were found to be significantly associated with gestational age between approximate days 73 to 190 of gestation. Transcutaneous ultrasonography may prove a useful method of estimating gestational age in the absence of accurate breeding records.

The effect of breed, time spent with dam and late pregnancy induction of parturition on behavioural development in dairy calves.

PubMed

Lauber, M C; Hemsworth, P H; Barnett, J L

2009-11-01

Three experiments examined the impact of breed, time spent with dam (TWD), gender, and late pregnancy induction of parturition and caesarean on the behavioural and heart rate responses of dairy calves at 2 and 6 weeks of age to Open field, Novel object and Startle tests and a Learning task. In Experiment 1 with male Jersey, Friesian and Friesian x Angus calves, there were some significant breed effects on responses to the Open field and the Novel object tests; Jersey calves appeared more curious and less fearful than Friesian x Angus calves. In Experiment 2, in which male and female Friesian calves were removed from their dams either between 0 and 12h or 12 and 24h after birth, there were no significant effects of gender or TWD. In Experiment 3, which studied the effect of induction of parturition using a long-acting glucocorticoid combined with short-acting progesterone 10 days prior to due calving date, there were no significant effects of late pregnancy induction of parturition. Across all three experiments, age at testing was the main factor influencing the responses of the calves. However, a number of interactions suggest that gender, time spent with dam and late pregnancy induction of parturition modified some of the responses to the tests as the calves developed.

Whole-genome scan to detect quantitative trait loci associated with milk protein composition in 3 French dairy cattle breeds.

PubMed

Sanchez, M P; Govignon-Gion, A; Ferrand, M; Gelé, M; Pourchet, D; Amigues, Y; Fritz, S; Boussaha, M; Capitan, A; Rocha, D; Miranda, G; Martin, P; Brochard, M; Boichard, D

2016-10-01

In the context of the PhénoFinLait project, a genome-wide analysis was performed to detect quantitative trait loci (QTL) that affect milk protein composition estimated using mid-infrared spectrometry in the Montbéliarde (MO), Normande (NO), and Holstein (HO) French dairy cattle breeds. The 6 main milk proteins (α-lactalbumin, β-lactoglobulin, and αS1-, αS2-, β-, and κ-caseins) expressed as grams per 100g of milk (% of milk) or as grams per 100g of protein (% of protein) were estimated in 848,068 test-day milk samples from 156,660 cows. Genotyping was performed for 2,773 MO, 2,673 NO, and 2,208 HO cows using the Illumina BovineSNP50 BeadChip (Illumina Inc., San Diego, CA). Individual test-day records were adjusted for environmental effects and then averaged per cow to define the phenotypes analyzed. Quantitative trait loci detection was performed within each breed using a linkage disequilibrium and linkage analysis approach. A total of 39 genomic regions distributed on 20 of the 29 Bos taurus autosomes (BTA) were significantly associated with milk protein composition at a genome-wide level of significance in at least 1 of the 3 breeds. The 9 most significant QTL were located on BTA2 (133 Mbp), BTA6 (38, 47, and 87 Mbp), BTA11 (103 Mbp), BTA14 (1.8 Mbp), BTA20 (32 and 58 Mbp), and BTA29 (8 Mbp). The BTA6 (87 Mbp), BTA11, and BTA20 (58 Mbp) QTL were found in all 3 breeds, and they had highly significant effects on κ-casein, β-lactoglobulin, and α-lactalbumin, expressed as a percentage of protein, respectively. Each of these QTL explained between 13% (BTA14) and 51% (BTA11) of the genetic variance of the trait. Many other QTL regions were also identified in at least one breed. They were located on 14 additional chromosomes (1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 15, 17, 19, 21, 22, 24, 25, 26, and 27), and they explained 2 to 8% of the genetic variance of 1 or more protein composition traits. Concordance analyses, performed between QTL status and sequence-derived polymorphisms from 13 bulls, revealed previously known causal polymorphisms in LGB (BTA11) and GHR (BTA20 at 32 Mbp) and excluded some other previously described mutations. These results constitute a first step in identifying causal mutations and using routinely collected mid-infrared predictions in future genomic selection programs to improve bovine milk protein composition. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Genome-Wide Association Analysis to Identify Loci for Milk Yield in Gyr Breed

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

A genome scan was conducted to identify QTL affecting milk yield in a Brazilian Gyr population of progeny test bulls (N=319). Data used in this study was derived from traditional genetic evaluation records computed by the Embrapa Dairy Cattleand released in May/2009 (http://www.cnpgl.embrapa.br/nova...

Methods for discovering and validating relationships among genotyped animals

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Genomic selection based on single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) has led to the collection of genotypes for over 2.2 million animals by the Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding in the United States. To assure that a genotype is assigned to the correct animal and that the animal’s pedigree is correct, t...

26 CFR 1.1402(a)-14 - Options available to farmers in computing net earnings from self-employment for taxable years...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... held for breeding or dairy purposes, and $600 from the sale of a tractor. The income from the sale of... the sale of feeder cattle, which C bought for $500. The income from the sale of the feeder cattle is...

21 CFR 520.1629 - Oxfendazole paste.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

...—adult). (iii) Limitations. For use in cattle only. Treatment may be repeated in 4 to 6 weeks. Cattle must not be slaughtered until 11 days after treatment. Do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding... kilogram of body weight (2.05 milligrams per pound). (ii) Indications for use. The drug is used in cattle...

21 CFR 522.1192 - Ivermectin.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... dairy cattle of breeding age. A withdrawal period has not been established for this product in pre... restricts this drug to use by or on the order of a licensed veterinarian. (2) Cattle—(i) Amount. 200 µg/kg.... placei and C. oncophora for 14 days after treatment. (iii) Limitations. Do not treat cattle within 35...

21 CFR 520.1629 - Oxfendazole paste.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

...—adult). (iii) Limitations. For use in cattle only. Treatment may be repeated in 4 to 6 weeks. Cattle must not be slaughtered until 11 days after treatment. Do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding... kilogram of body weight (2.05 milligrams per pound). (ii) Indications for use. The drug is used in cattle...

21 CFR 522.1193 - Ivermectin and clorsulon.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... intramuscular use. Do not treat cattle within 49 days of slaughter. Because a withdrawal time in milk has not been established, do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. Do not use in other animal species... this chapter. (d) Special considerations. See § 500.25 of this chapter. (e) Conditions of use in cattle...

26 CFR 1.1402(a)-14 - Options available to farmers in computing net earnings from self-employment for taxable years...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... held for breeding or dairy purposes, and $600 from the sale of a tractor. The income from the sale of... the sale of feeder cattle, which C bought for $500. The income from the sale of the feeder cattle is...

21 CFR 520.1242g - Levamisole resinate and famphur paste.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... cattle within 19 days of slaughter. Do not administer to dairy animals of breeding age. Do not use in..., insecticides, or chemicals on cattle simultaneously or within a few days before or after treatment with this... chapter for famphur. (f) Conditions of use in cattle—(1) Amount. 8 milligrams of levamisole hydrochloride...

Dissection of genomic correlation matrices using multivariate factor analysis in dairy and dual-purpose cattle breeds

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

SNP effects estimated in genomic selection programs allow for the prediction of direct genomic values (DGV) both at genome-wide and chromosomal level. As a consequence, genome-wide (G_GW) or chromosomal (G_CHR) correlation matrices between genomic predictions for different traits can be calculated. ...

21 CFR 520.1242g - Levamisole resinate and famphur paste.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... cattle within 19 days of slaughter. Do not administer to dairy animals of breeding age. Do not use in..., insecticides, or chemicals on cattle simultaneously or within a few days before or after treatment with this... chapter for famphur. (f) Conditions of use in cattle—(1) Amount. 8 milligrams of levamisole hydrochloride...

21 CFR 520.1242g - Levamisole resinate and famphur paste.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... cattle within 19 days of slaughter. Do not administer to dairy animals of breeding age. Do not use in..., insecticides, or chemicals on cattle simultaneously or within a few days before or after treatment with this... chapter for famphur. (f) Conditions of use in cattle—(1) Amount. 8 milligrams of levamisole hydrochloride...

26 CFR 1.1402(a)-14 - Options available to farmers in computing net earnings from self-employment for taxable years...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... held for breeding or dairy purposes, and $600 from the sale of a tractor. The income from the sale of... the sale of feeder cattle, which C bought for $500. The income from the sale of the feeder cattle is...

21 CFR 522.1244 - Levamisole phosphate injection.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... administer to cattle within 7 days of slaughter. Do not administer to dairy animals of breeding age. [43 FR...) Indications for use. (i) The 13.65 percent injection is used as an anthelmintic in cattle for treatment of the...) The 18.2 percent injection is used as an anthelmintic in cattle for treatment of the following...

21 CFR 520.1242g - Levamisole resinate and famphur paste.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... cattle within 19 days of slaughter. Do not administer to dairy animals of breeding age. Do not use in..., insecticides, or chemicals on cattle simultaneously or within a few days before or after treatment with this... chapter for famphur. (f) Conditions of use in cattle—(1) Amount. 8 milligrams of levamisole hydrochloride...

21 CFR 522.1192 - Ivermectin.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... dairy cattle of breeding age. A withdrawal period has not been established for this product in pre... restricts this drug to use by or on the order of a licensed veterinarian. (2) Cattle—(i) Amount. 200 µg/kg.... placei and C. oncophora for 14 days after treatment. (iii) Limitations. Do not treat cattle within 35...

21 CFR 524.1193 - Ivermectin topical solution.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. A withdrawal period has not been established for this... of this chapter. (e) Conditions of use in cattle—(1) Amount. One mL per 22 pounds (0.5 milligram per kilogram) of body weight applied topically to the back of the animal. (2) Indications for use in cattle...

21 CFR 522.1193 - Ivermectin and clorsulon.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... intramuscular use. Do not treat cattle within 49 days of slaughter. Because a withdrawal time in milk has not been established, do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age. Do not use in other animal species... this chapter. (d) Special considerations. See § 500.25 of this chapter. (e) Conditions of use in cattle...

21 CFR 522.1192 - Ivermectin.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... dairy cattle of breeding age. A withdrawal period has not been established for this product in pre... restricts this drug to use by or on the order of a licensed veterinarian. (2) Cattle—(i) Amount. 200 µg/kg.... placei and C. oncophora for 14 days after treatment. (iii) Limitations. Do not treat cattle within 35...

21 CFR 520.1629 - Oxfendazole paste.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

...—adult). (iii) Limitations. For use in cattle only. Treatment may be repeated in 4 to 6 weeks. Cattle must not be slaughtered until 11 days after treatment. Do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding... kilogram of body weight (2.05 milligrams per pound). (ii) Indications for use. The drug is used in cattle...

21 CFR 522.1244 - Levamisole phosphate injection.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... administer to cattle within 7 days of slaughter. Do not administer to dairy animals of breeding age. [43 FR...) Indications for use. (i) The 13.65 percent injection is used as an anthelmintic in cattle for treatment of the...) The 18.2 percent injection is used as an anthelmintic in cattle for treatment of the following...

21 CFR 522.1244 - Levamisole phosphate injection.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... administer to cattle within 7 days of slaughter. Do not administer to dairy animals of breeding age. [43 FR...) Indications for use. (i) The 13.65 percent injection is used as an anthelmintic in cattle for treatment of the...) The 18.2 percent injection is used as an anthelmintic in cattle for treatment of the following...

26 CFR 1.1402(a)-14 - Options available to farmers in computing net earnings from self-employment for taxable years...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... held for breeding or dairy purposes, and $600 from the sale of a tractor. The income from the sale of... the sale of feeder cattle, which C bought for $500. The income from the sale of the feeder cattle is...

21 CFR 520.1629 - Oxfendazole paste.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

...—adult). (iii) Limitations. For use in cattle only. Treatment may be repeated in 4 to 6 weeks. Cattle must not be slaughtered until 11 days after treatment. Do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding... kilogram of body weight (2.05 milligrams per pound). (ii) Indications for use. The drug is used in cattle...

21 CFR 520.1629 - Oxfendazole paste.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

...—adult). (iii) Limitations. For use in cattle only. Treatment may be repeated in 4 to 6 weeks. Cattle must not be slaughtered until 11 days after treatment. Do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding... kilogram of body weight (2.05 milligrams per pound). (ii) Indications for use. The drug is used in cattle...

21 CFR 520.905a - Fenbendazole suspension.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... including dairy cows of breeding age—(i) Amount. Administer orally 5 mg/kg of body weight (2.3 mg/lb... licensed veterinarian. (4) Goats—(i) Amount. Administer orally 5 mg/kg of body weight (2.3 mg/lb). (ii... Teladorsagia circumcincta. (iii) Limitations. Retreatment may be needed after 4 to 6 weeks. Goats must not be...

V.A. I Animal Science Technical Information.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Texas A and M Univ., College Station. Vocational Instructional Services.

This packet contains two units of informational materials and transparency masters, with accompanying scripts, for teachers to use in an animal science course in vocational agriculture. Unit A on breeds and selection of livestock and poultry includes 13 topics covering beef cattle, dairy cattle, swine, horses, goats, sheep, and poultry. Unit B on…

9 CFR 91.6 - Goats.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... prescribed in Veterinary Services Memorandum 552.15. (2) Brucellosis. Dairy and breeding goats shall be... 9 Animals and Animal Products 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Goats. 91.6 Section 91.6 Animals and... EXPORTATION Diagnostic Tests, Treatments § 91.6 Goats. (a) In order to be eligible for export, goats shall be...

21 CFR 520.45a - Albendazole suspension.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... of last treatment. Do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age: Do not administer to female... first 30 days of pregnancy or for 30 days after removal of rams. (3) Goats. Administer 11.36 percent... nonlactating goats. (iii) Limitations. Do not slaughter within 7 days of last treatment. Do not administer to...

9 CFR 91.6 - Goats.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... prescribed in Veterinary Services Memorandum 552.15. (2) Brucellosis. Dairy and breeding goats shall be... 9 Animals and Animal Products 1 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Goats. 91.6 Section 91.6 Animals and... EXPORTATION Diagnostic Tests, Treatments § 91.6 Goats. (a) In order to be eligible for export, goats shall be...

21 CFR 520.45a - Albendazole suspension.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... of last treatment. Do not use in female dairy cattle of breeding age: Do not administer to female... first 30 days of pregnancy or for 30 days after removal of rams. (3) Goats. Administer 11.36 percent... nonlactating goats. (iii) Limitations. Do not slaughter within 7 days of last treatment. Do not administer to...

Comparison of holstein and jersey milk production with a new stochastic animal reproduction model

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Holsteins and Jerseys are the most popular breeds in the US dairy industry. We built a stochastic, Monte Carlo life events simulation model in Python to test if Jersey cattle’s higher conception rate offsets their lower milk production. The model simulates individual cows and their life events such ...

Design of a bovine low-density SNP array optimized for imputation

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The Illumina BovineLD BeadChip was designed to support imputation to higher density genotypes in dairy and beef breeds by including single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that had a high minor allele frequency as well as uniform spacing across the genome except at the ends of the chromosome where de...

Genetic parameters between feed-intake-related traits and conformation in 2 separate dairy populations—the Netherlands and United States

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

To include feed-intake-related traits in the breeding goal, accurate estimates of genetic parameters of feed intake, and its correlations with other related traits (i.e., production, conformation) are required to compare different options. However, the correlations between feed intake and conformati...

Bull fertility evaluations for Angus service sires bred to Holstein cows

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Sire conception rate (SCR), a phenotypic evaluation of service-sire fertility implemented in August 2008, is based on data from the most recent 4 years, conventional-semen breedings up to 7 services, and cow parities 1 through 5. Many US dairy cows are now being bred to Angus sires because beef pric...

A survey on breeding strategies and selection objectives for increased feed efficiency and decreased methane emission

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The combined effects of world population growth, rising incomes and dietary changes have resulted in an increasing international demand for dairy and meat products. However, livestock can have negative impacts on the environment and the greater awareness of climate change has placed pressure on the ...

Milk production is unaffected by replacing barley or sodium hydroxide wheat with maize cob silage in rations for dairy cows.

PubMed

Hymøller, L; Hellwing, A L F; Lund, P; Weisbjerg, M R

2014-05-01

Starch is an important energy-providing nutrient for dairy cows that is most commonly provided from cereal grains. However, ruminal fermentation of large amounts of easily degradable starch leads to excessive production and accumulation of volatile fatty acids (VFA). VFA not only play a vital role in the energy metabolism of dairy cows but are also the main cause of ruminal acidosis and depressed feed intake. The aim of the present study was to compare maize cob silage (MCS) as an energy supplement in rations for dairy cows with highly rumen-digestible rolled barley and with sodium hydroxide wheat (SHW), which has a higher proportion of by-pass starch than barley. Two studies were carried out: (1) a production study on 45 Danish Holstein cows and (2) an intensive study to determine digestibilities, rumen fermentation patterns and methane emission using three rumen-cannulated Danish Holstein cows. Both studies were organised as a 3×3 Latin square with three experimental periods and three different mixed rations. The rations consisted of grass-clover silage and maize silage (~60% of dry matter (DM)), rapeseed cake, soybean meal, sugar beet pulp and one of three different cereals as a major energy supplement: MCS, SHW or rolled barley (~25% of DM). When MCS replaced barley or SHW as an energy supplement in the mixed rations, it resulted in a lower dry matter intake; however, the apparent total tract digestibilities of DM, organic matter, NDF, starch and protein were not different between treatments. The energy-corrected milk yield was unaffected by treatment. The fat content of the milk on the MCS ration was not different from the SHW ration, whereas it was higher on the barley ration. The protein content of the milk decreased when MCS was used in the ration compared with barley and SHW. From ruminal VFA patterns and pH measures, it appeared that MCS possessed roughage qualities with respect to rumen environment, while at the same time being sufficiently energy rich to replace barley and SHW as a major energy supplement for milk production. The environmental impact, expressed as methane emissions, was not different when comparing MCS, SHW and barley.

Reproductive technologies combine well with genomic selection in dairy breeding programs.

PubMed

Thomasen, J R; Willam, A; Egger-Danner, C; Sørensen, A C

2016-02-01

The objective of the present study was to examine whether genomic selection of females interacts with the use of reproductive technologies (RT) to increase annual monetary genetic gain (AMGG). This was tested using a factorial design with 3 factors: genomic selection of females (0 or 2,000 genotyped heifers per year), RT (0 or 50 donors selected at 14 mo of age for producing 10 offspring), and 2 reliabilities of genomic prediction. In addition, different strategies for use of RT and how strategies interact with the reliability of genomic prediction were investigated using stochastic simulation by varying (1) number of donors (25, 50, 100, 200), (2) number of calves born per donor (10 or 20), (3) age of donor (2 or 14 mo), and (4) number of sires (25, 50, 100, 200). In total, 72 different breeding schemes were investigated. The profitability of the different breeding strategies was evaluated by deterministic simulation by varying the costs of a born calf with reproductive technologies at levels of €500, €1,000, and €1,500. The results confirm our hypothesis that combining genomic selection of females with use of RT increases AMGG more than in a reference scheme without genomic selection in females. When the reliability of genomic prediction is high, the effect on rate of inbreeding (ΔF) is small. The study also demonstrates favorable interaction effects between the components of the breeder's equation (selection intensity, selection accuracy, generation interval) for the bull dam donor path, leading to higher AMGG. Increasing the donor program and number of born calves to achieve higher AMGG is associated with the undesirable effect of increased ΔF. This can be alleviated, however, by increasing the numbers of sires without compromising AMGG remarkably. For the major part of the investigated donor schemes, the investment in RT is profitable in dairy cattle populations, even at high levels of costs for RT. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Linking disease epidemiology and livestock productivity: The case of bovine respiratory disease in France

PubMed Central

James, Andrew; Valarcher, Jean-François; Hagglünd, Sara; Raboisson, Didier; Rushton, Jonathan

2017-01-01

Concerns are growing over the impact of livestock farming on environment and public health. The livestock industry is faced with the double constraint of limiting its use of natural resources and antimicrobials while ensuring its economic sustainability. In this context, reliable methods are needed to evaluate the effect of the prevention of endemic animal diseases on the productivity of livestock production systems. In this study, an epidemiological and productivity model was used to link changes in Bovine Respiratory Disease (BRD) incidence with the productivity of the beef and dairy cattle sectors in France. Cattle production parameters significantly affected by BRD were selected through literature review. Previous field study results and national cattle performance estimates were used to infer growth performances, mortality rates and carcass quality in the cattle affected and not affected by BRD. A steady-state deterministic herd production model was used to predict the productivity of the dairy and beef sector and their defined compartments (breeding-fattening, feedlot young bulls, and feedlot veal) in case of BRD incidence reduction by 20%, 50% or 100%. Results suggested that BRD should be controlled at a priority in beef breeding farms as eradication of BRD in beef calves would increase the whole beef sector’s productivity by 4.7–5.5% while eradication in other production stages would result in lower productivity gain in their respective sectors. However, the analysis performed at compartment level showed that, in both the beef and dairy sector, young bull and veal feedlot enterprises derive more economic benefits from BRD eradication for their own compartment (increase in productivity of 8.7–12.8% for beef young bulls) than the breeding farms (increase in productivity of 5.1–6% for beef calves), which may limit the investments in BRD control. PMID:29206855

Changes in milk urea around insemination are negatively associated with conception success in dairy cows.

PubMed

Albaaj, A; Foucras, G; Raboisson, D

2017-04-01

Dietary protein levels are a risk factor for poor reproductive performance. Conception is particularly impaired in cases of high blood or milk urea. The objective of this study was to investigate the association between conception and low milk urea or changes in milk urea around artificial insemination (AI). Data were obtained from the French Milk Control Program for a 4-yr period (2009-2012). Milk urea values between 250 and 450 mg/kg (4.3 and 7.7 mM) were considered intermediate (I), and values ≤150 mg/kg (2.6 mM) were considered low (L). Milk urea values before and after each AI were allocated into 4 classes representing the dynamics of milk urea (before-after; I-I, I-L, L-I, and L-L). Subclinical ketosis was defined using milk fat and protein contents before AI as proxies. A logistic regression with a Poisson correction and herd as a random variable was then performed on data from Holstein or all breeds of cows. The success of conception was decreased [relative risk (95% confidence interval) = 0.96 (0.94-0.99)] in low-urea cows compared with intermediate-urea cows after AI; no significant association was found for urea levels before AI. When combining data on urea before and after AI, I-L urea cows exhibited a 5 to 9% decrease in conception compared with I-I urea cows, and L-I urea cows showed no difference in conception success compared with I-I urea cows. A decreased conception success for L-L urea cows compared with I-I urea cows was observed for the analysis with cows of all breeds. This work revealed that a decrease in urea from intermediate (before AI) to low (after AI) is a risk factor for conception failure. Surveys of variation in milk urea in dairy cows close to breeding are highly recommended. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Mapping quantitative trait loci controlling milk production in dairy cattle by exploiting progeny testing

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Georges, M.; Nielsen, D.; Mackinnon, M.

1995-02-01

We have exploited {open_quotes}progeny testing{close_quotes} to map quantitative trait loci (QTL) underlying the genetic variation of milk production in a selected dairy cattle population. A total of 1,518 sires, with progeny tests based on the milking performances of >150,000 daughters jointly, was genotyped for 159 autosomal microsatellites bracketing 1645 centimorgan or approximately two thirds of the bovine genome. Using a maximum likelihood multilocus linkage analysis accounting for variance heterogeneity of the phenotypes, we identified five chromosomes giving very strong evidence (LOD score {ge} 3) for the presence of a QTL controlling milk production: chromosomes 1, 6, 9, 10 and 20.more » These findings demonstrate that loci with considerable effects on milk production are still segregating in highly selected populations and pave the way toward marker-assisted selection in dairy cattle breeding. 44 refs., 4 figs., 3 tabs.« less

Genomic Selection in Dairy Cattle: The USDA Experience.

PubMed

Wiggans, George R; Cole, John B; Hubbard, Suzanne M; Sonstegard, Tad S

2017-02-08

Genomic selection has revolutionized dairy cattle breeding. Since 2000, assays have been developed to genotype large numbers of single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) at relatively low cost. The first commercial SNP genotyping chip was released with a set of 54,001 SNPs in December 2007. Over 15,000 genotypes were used to determine which SNPs should be used in genomic evaluation of US dairy cattle. Official USDA genomic evaluations were first released in January 2009 for Holsteins and Jerseys, in August 2009 for Brown Swiss, in April 2013 for Ayrshires, and in April 2016 for Guernseys. Producers have accepted genomic evaluations as accurate indications of a bull's eventual daughter-based evaluation. The integration of DNA marker technology and genomics into the traditional evaluation system has doubled the rate of genetic progress for traits of economic importance, decreased generation interval, increased selection accuracy, reduced previous costs of progeny testing, and allowed identification of recessive lethals.

Willingness to pay for cattle and buffalo insurance: an analysis of dairy farmers in central India.

PubMed

Khan, Mohd Ameer; Chander, Mahesh; Bardhan, Dwaipayan

2013-02-01

In India, insurance market especially in agricultural sector is usually underdeveloped. The idea of livestock insurance emerged in India before three decades, yet, it has not operated in a significant way till date. It is well noted that livestock insurance scheme is the relevant strategy in managing different risks related to livestock farming but very little attention has been paid to address the livestock insurance needs of the dairy farmers. This study, therefore, addresses the basic question that how many people and to what extent they are willing to pay for livestock insurance and determine the main factors which influence insurance participation of dairy farmers. The data was collected from Gorakhpur district of Uttar Pradesh in India with a sample survey of 120 cattle and buffalo farmers. For eliciting willingness to pay, a contingent valuation scenario was presented to dairy animal owners in the group of five to six. A logit discrete binary regression model was used to know the factors influencing adoption of livestock insurance. The results suggest that most of the farmers were willing to participate in cattle and buffalo insurance. The amount of premium varies across different breeds of dairy animals. The low level of education of many dairy farmers have negatively influenced the decision to purchase livestock insurance. Farmers having more experience in rearing dairy animals are more likely to be willing to pay for cattle and buffalo insurance.

The influence of genetic selection and feed system on the reproductive performance of spring-calving dairy cows within future pasture-based production systems.

PubMed

Coleman, J; Pierce, K M; Berry, D P; Brennan, A; Horan, B

2009-10-01

Three genetic groups of Holstein-Friesian dairy cows were established from within the Moorepark (Teagasc, Ireland) dairy research herd: LowNA, indicative of the Irish national average-genetic-merit North American Holstein-Friesian; HighNA, high-genetic-merit North American Holstein-Friesian; HighNZ, high-genetic-merit New Zealand Holstein-Friesian. Genetic merit in this study was based on the Irish total merit index, the Economic Breeding Index. Animals from within each genetic group were randomly allocated to 1 of 2 possible post-European Union-milk-quota pasture-based feeding systems (FS): 1) The Moorepark (MP) pasture system (2.64 cows/ha and 500 kg of concentrate supplement per cow per lactation) and 2) a high output per hectare (HC) pasture system (2.85 cows/ha and 1,200 kg of concentrate supplement per cow per lactation). A total of 126, 128, and 140 spring-calving dairy cows were used during the years 2006, 2007, and 2008, respectively. Each group had an individual farmlet of 17 paddocks, and all groups were managed similarly throughout the study. The effects of genetic group, FS, and the interaction between genetic group and FS on reproductive performance, body weight, body condition score, and blood metabolite concentrations were studied using mixed models with factorial arrangements of genetic groups and FS. Odds ratios were used in the analysis of binary fertility traits, and survival analysis was used in the analysis of survival after first calving. When treatment means were compared, the HighNA and HighNZ genotypes (with greater genetic merit for fertility performance) had greater first-service pregnancy rates and had a greater proportion of cows pregnant after 42 d of the breeding season than the LowNA group. Both HighNA and HighNZ genotypes were submitted for artificial insemination earlier in the breeding season and had greater survival than the LowNA genotype. There was no significant FS or genotype by FS interactions for any of the reproductive, blood metabolite, body weight, or body condition score measures. The results demonstrate that increased genetic merit for fertility traits resulted in improved reproductive performance and that the poor reproductive capacity of inferior-genetic-merit animals for fertility was not improved through concentrate supplementation at pasture.

Results of an online questionnaire to survey calf management practices on dairy cattle breeding farms in Austria and to estimate differences in disease incidences depending on farm structure and management practices.

PubMed

Klein-Jöbstl, Daniela; Arnholdt, Tim; Sturmlechner, Franz; Iwersen, Michael; Drillich, Marc

2015-08-19

Calf disease may result in great economic losses. To implement prevention strategies it is important to gain information on management and to point out risk factors. The objective of this internet based survey was to describe calf management practices on registered dairy breeding farms in Austria and to estimate differences in calf disease incidences depending on farm structure and management practices. A total of 1287 questionnaires were finally analysed (response rate 12.2 %). Herd characteristics and regional distribution of farms indicated that this survey gives a good overview on calf management practices on registered dairy farms in Austria. The median number of cows per farm was 20 (interquartile range 13-30). Significant differences regarding farm characteristics and calf management between small and large farms (≤20 vs >20 cows) were present. Only 2.8 % of farmers tested first colostrum quality by use of a hydrometer. Storing frozen colostrum was more prevalent on large farms (80.8 vs 64.2 %). On 85.1 % of the farms, whole milk, including waste milk, was fed to the calves. Milk replacer and waste milk were more often used on large farms. In accordance with similar studies from other countries, calf diarrhoea was indicated as the most prevalent disease. Multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed that herd size was associated with calf diarrhoea and calf respiratory tract disease, with higher risk of disease on large farms. Furthermore, feeding waste milk to the calves was associated with increasing calf diarrhoea incidence on farm. In the final model with calf respiratory tract disease as outcome, respondents from organic farms reported less often a respiratory tract disease incidence of over 10 % compared with conventional farms [odds ratio (OR) 0.40, 95 % confidence interval (CI) 0.21-0.75] and farmers that housed calves individually or in groups after birth significantly reported more often to have an incidence of respiratory tract disease >10 % compared with farms where all calves were housed individually (OR 2.28, 95 % CI 1.16-4.48). The results obtained in this study provide an overview on calf management on dairy breeding farms in Austria and may help to further point out areas to be improved on farm.

Factors associated with colostral specific gravity in dairy cows.

PubMed

Morin, D E; Constable, P D; Maunsell, F P; McCoy, G C

2001-04-01

The objectives of this study were to identify factors associated with colostral specific gravity in dairy cows, as measured by a commercially available hydrometer (Colostrometer). Colostral specific gravity was measured in 1085 first-milking colostrum samples from 608 dairy cows of four breeds on a single farm during a 5-yr period. Effects of breed, lactation number, and month and year of calving on colostral specific gravity were determined, as were correlations between colostral specific gravity, nonlactating period length, and 305-d yields of milk, protein, and fat. For 75 multiparous Holstein cows, relationships between colostral specific gravity, colostral IgG1, protein, and fat concentrations, and season of calving were determined. Colostral specific gravity values were lower for Brown Swiss and Ayrshire cows than for Jersey and Holstein cows, and lower for cows entering first or second lactation than third or later lactations. Month of calving markedly affected colostral specific gravity values, with highest values occurring in autumn and lowest values in summer. In multiparous Holstein cows, colostral specific gravity was more strongly correlated with colostral protein concentration (r = 0.76) than IgG1 concentration (r = 0.53), and colostral protein concentration varied seasonally (higher in autumn than summer). Our results demonstrate that colostral specific gravity more closely reflects colostral protein concentration than IgG1 concentration and is markedly influenced by month of calving. These results highlight potential limitations of using colostral specific gravity as an indicator of IgG1 concentration.

Technical note: An approach to derive breeding goals from the preferences of decision makers.

PubMed

Alfonso, L

2016-11-01

This paper deals with the use of the Choquet integral to identify breeding objectives and construct an aggregate genotype. The Choquet integral can be interpreted as an extension of the aggregate genotype based on profit equations, substituting the vector of economic weights by a monotone function, called capacity, which allows the aggregation of traits based, for instance, on the preferences of decision makers. It allows the aggregation of traits with or without economic value, taking into account not only the importance of the breeding value of each trait but also the interaction among them. Two examples have been worked out for pig and dairy cattle breeding scenarios to illustrate its application. It is shown that the expression of stakeholders' or decision makers' preferences, as a single ranking of animals or groups of animals, could be sufficient to extract information to derive breeding objectives. It is also shown that coalitions among traits can be identified to evaluate whether a linear additive function, equivalent of the Hazel aggregate genotype where economic values are replaced by Shapley values, could be adequate to define the net merit of breeding animals.

Practices for the disbudding and dehorning of dairy calves by veterinarians and dairy producers in Ontario, Canada.

PubMed

Winder, Charlotte B; LeBlanc, Stephen J; Haley, Derek B; Lissemore, Kerry D; Godkin, M Ann; Duffield, Todd F

2016-12-01

Disbudding and dehorning dairy calves is very common, despite the introduction of polled genetics to most dairy breeds. Appropriate pain-control practices for these procedures affect both calf welfare and public perception of the dairy industry. Previously published work has shown that North American dairy producers have not widely adopted use of these medications for disbudding or dehorning. However, since the last published work examining these practices in Canada, changes regarding awareness, availability, and future requirements for pain control have occurred in the industry. With this in mind, online and telephone surveys of both veterinarians (n=238) and dairy producers (n=603) in Ontario, Canada, were conducted in the fall of 2014 with a goal of describing current disbudding and dehorning practices and examining factors associated with the adoption of pain control use. Approximately three-quarters of dairy producers reported performing disbudding or dehorning themselves, whereas the remainder used a veterinarian or technician. Almost all (97%) of the veterinarians surveyed reported using local anesthetic, 62% used sedation, and 48% used a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug. Producer use of local anesthetic was 62%, 38% used sedation and 24% used a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug. Seventy-eight percent of veterinarian disbudding or dehorning was done before 8wk of age, whereas 64% of dairy producers performed this procedure before 8wk of age. Seventy-two percent of veterinarians and 63% of producers reported changing their disbudding or dehorning practices over the past 10 yr; of producers that changed their practices, 73% cited their herd veterinarian as influential. The use of pain control described in these surveys is higher than previously reported in Ontario. Identification of factors associated with best practices, or the lack of adoption of these practices, may help veterinarians target appropriate educational opportunities for their dairy clients. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effects of concentrate crude protein content on nutrient digestibility, energy utilization, and methane emissions in lactating dairy cows fed fresh-cut perennial grass.

PubMed

Hynes, D N; Stergiadis, S; Gordon, A; Yan, T

2016-11-01

Although many studies have investigated mitigation strategies for methane (CH 4 ) output from dairy cows fed a wide variety of diets, research on the effects of concentrate crude protein (CP) content on CH 4 emissions from dairy cows offered fresh grass is limited. The present study was designed to evaluate the effects of cow genotype and concentrate CP level on nutrient digestibility, energy utilization, and CH 4 emissions in dairy cows offered fresh-grass diets. Twelve multiparous lactating dairy cows (6 Holstein and 6 Holstein × Swedish Red) were blocked into 3 groups for each breed and assigned to a low-, medium-, or high-CP concentrate diet [14.1, 16.1, and 18.1% CP on a dry matter (DM) basis, respectively], in a 3-period changeover study (25d per period). Total diets contained (DM basis) 32.8% concentrates and 67.2% perennial ryegrass, which was harvested daily. All measurements were undertaken during the final 6d of each period: digestibility measurements for 6d and calorimetric measurements in respiration chambers for 3d. Feed intake and milk production data were reported in a previous paper. We observed no significant interaction between concentrate CP level and cow genotype on any parameter. Concentrate CP level had no significant effect on any energy utilization parameter, except for urinary energy output, which was positively related to concentrate CP level. Similarly, concentrate CP content had no effect on CH 4 emission (g/d), CH 4 per kg feed intake, or nutrient digestibility. Cross breeding of Holstein cows significantly reduced gross energy, digestible energy, and metabolizable energy intake, heat production, and milk energy output. However, cow genotype had no significant effect on energy utilization efficiency or CH 4 parameters. Furthermore, the present study yielded a value for gross energy lost as CH 4 (5.6%) on fresh grass-based diets that was lower than the widely accepted value of 6.5%. The present findings indicate that reducing concentrate CP content from 18.1 to 14.1% may not be a successful way of alleviating CH 4 emissions from lactating dairy cows offered good-quality fresh grass, but grazing cows could be offered a low-CP concentrate without compromising energy utilization efficiency. Further research is needed to investigate whether larger differences in dietary CP content may yield positive results. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

26 CFR 1.61-4 - Gross income of farmers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... from the sale of livestock and produce which he raised, (2) The profits from the sale of any livestock... received which must be considered as income, and (5) Gross income from all other sources. The profit from... purchased animals held for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes, the profits shall be the amount of any excess...

26 CFR 1.61-4 - Gross income of farmers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... from the sale of livestock and produce which he raised, (2) The profits from the sale of any livestock... received which must be considered as income, and (5) Gross income from all other sources. The profit from... purchased animals held for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes, the profits shall be the amount of any excess...

26 CFR 1.61-4 - Gross income of farmers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... from the sale of livestock and produce which he raised, (2) The profits from the sale of any livestock... received which must be considered as income, and (5) Gross income from all other sources. The profit from... purchased animals held for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes, the profits shall be the amount of any excess...

26 CFR 1.61-4 - Gross income of farmers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... from the sale of livestock and produce which he raised, (2) The profits from the sale of any livestock... received which must be considered as income, and (5) Gross income from all other sources. The profit from... purchased animals held for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes, the profits shall be the amount of any excess...

26 CFR 1.61-4 - Gross income of farmers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... from the sale of livestock and produce which he raised, (2) The profits from the sale of any livestock... received which must be considered as income, and (5) Gross income from all other sources. The profit from... purchased animals held for draft, breeding, or dairy purposes, the profits shall be the amount of any excess...

21 CFR 528.1070 - Bc6 recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid construct.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 155-92 site in a specific hemizygous diploid line of dairy breeds of domestic goats (Capra aegagrus... of humans) in the mammary gland of goats derived from lineage progenitor 155-92. (b) Sponsor. See No. 042976 in § 510.600 of this chapter. (c) Limitations. Food or feed from GTC-155-92 goats is not permitted...

21 CFR 520.905a - Fenbendazole suspension.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... including dairy cows of breeding age—(i) Amount. Administer orally 5 mg/kg of body weight (2.3 mg/lb). (ii... or on the order of a licensed veterinarian. (4) Goats—(i) Amount. Administer orally 5 mg/kg of body... weeks. Goats must not be slaughtered for food within 6 days following last treatment. Do not use in...

21 CFR 528.1070 - Bc6 recombinant deoxyribonucleic acid construct.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 155-92 site in a specific hemizygous diploid line of dairy breeds of domestic goats (Capra aegagrus... of humans) in the mammary gland of goats derived from lineage progenitor 155-92. (b) Sponsor. See No. 042976 in § 510.600 of this chapter. (c) Limitations. Food or feed from GTC-155-92 goats is not permitted...

Environmental heat stress modulates thyroid status and its response to repeated endotoxin challenge in steers

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

While the Holstein breed has been recognized as particularly sensitive to heat stress (HS), few data address the compounded dairy industry issue of responses to disease vectors in the face of HS. Thyroid hormones are important in the adaptation to HS, allowing the adjustment of metabolic rates in f...

Genomic prediction of continuous and binary fertility traits of females in a composite beef cattle breed

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Reproduction efficiency is a major factor in the profitability of the beef cattle industry. Genomic selection (GS) is a promising tool that may improve the predictive accuracy and genetic gain of fertility traits. There is a wide range of traits used to measure fertility in dairy and beef cattle inc...

Effect of delayed breeding during the summer on profitability of dairy cows.

PubMed

Gobikrushanth, M; De Vries, A; Santos, J E P; Risco, C A; Galvão, K N

2014-07-01

The objective of this retrospective observational cohort study, combined with simulation, was to evaluate the effect of extending the voluntary waiting period (VWP) during the summer on profitability on a Florida dairy farm. Data from Holstein cows (n=1,416) that calved between June and September of 2007 and 2008 were used. Cows that calved between June 1 and July 21 (regular group; REG; n=719) were artificially inseminated (AI) for the first time upon estrus detection (ED) after the second PGF₂α of the Presynch protocol administered between 57 and 63 d in milk (DIM), or underwent timed AI using the Ovsynch protocol (TAI) if not detected in estrus. Cows that calved between July 22 and September 18 (extended group; EXT; n=697) underwent AI for the first time after the first or second PGF₂α starting November 14 or November 21 or underwent TAI if not detected in estrus. For second and subsequent AI, all cows underwent AI upon ED or enrolled on TAI after nonpregnancy diagnosis. Following these schemes, average VWP in the REG group and EXT group were 60 and 83 d, respectively. Overall profitability for both experimental and subsequent parities were calculated by subtracting the costs existing of feeding costs ($0.30/kg lactating cow diet; $0.25/kg dry cow diet), breeding costs ($2.65/dose PGF₂α; $2.40/dose GnRH; $0.25/injection administration; $10/semen straw; $5/AI; $3/pregnancy diagnosis), and other costs ($3/d) from the daily revenues with milk sales ($0.44/kg of milk), cow sales ($1.76/kg of live weight), and calf sales ($140/calf). A herd budget simulation was used to predict future cash flow after culling or end of subsequent parity until 6 yr after the start of the study to account for all cash flow consequences of extended VWP. Cows in the EXT group had greater first-service pregnancy per AI (PAI1) but still had greater days open and calving interval. Delaying breeding did not affect total cash flow because the EXT group had greater combined profitability for the experimental parity and subsequent parity but lesser future cash flow. Delayed breeding during the summer increased PAI1 but did not improve overall reproductive efficiency and did not affect overall profitability. Copyright © 2014 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Description and typology of intensive Chios dairy sheep farms in Greece.

PubMed

Gelasakis, A I; Valergakis, G E; Arsenos, G; Banos, G

2012-06-01

The aim was to assess the intensified dairy sheep farming systems of the Chios breed in Greece, establishing a typology that may properly describe and characterize them. The study included the total of the 66 farms of the Chios sheep breeders' cooperative Macedonia. Data were collected using a structured direct questionnaire for in-depth interviews, including questions properly selected to obtain a general description of farm characteristics and overall management practices. A multivariate statistical analysis was used on the data to obtain the most appropriate typology. Initially, principal component analysis was used to produce uncorrelated variables (principal components), which would be used for the consecutive cluster analysis. The number of clusters was decided using hierarchical cluster analysis, whereas, the farms were allocated in 4 clusters using k-means cluster analysis. The identified clusters were described and afterward compared using one-way ANOVA or a chi-squared test. The main differences were evident on land availability and use, facility and equipment availability and type, expansion rates, and application of preventive flock health programs. In general, cluster 1 included newly established, intensive, well-equipped, specialized farms and cluster 2 included well-established farms with balanced sheep and feed/crop production. In cluster 3 were assigned small flock farms focusing more on arable crops than on sheep farming with a tendency to evolve toward cluster 2, whereas cluster 4 included farms representing a rather conservative form of Chios sheep breeding with low/intermediate inputs and choosing not to focus on feed/crop production. In the studied set of farms, 4 different farmer attitudes were evident: 1) farming disrupts sheep breeding; feed should be purchased and economies of scale will decrease costs (mainly cluster 1), 2) only exercise/pasture land is necessary; at least part of the feed (pasture) must be home-grown to decrease costs (clusters 1 and 4), 3) providing pasture to sheep is essential; on-farm feed production decreases costs (mainly cluster 3), and 4) large-scale farming (feed production and cash crops) does not disrupt sheep breeding; all feed must be produced on-farm to decrease costs (mainly cluster 3). Conducting a profitability analysis among different clusters, exploring and discovering the most beneficial levels of intensified management and capital investment should now be considered. Copyright © 2012 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Distinct composition of bovine milk from Jersey and Holstein-Friesian cows with good, poor, or noncoagulation properties as reflected in protein genetic variants and isoforms.

PubMed

Jensen, H B; Poulsen, N A; Andersen, K K; Hammershøj, M; Poulsen, H D; Larsen, L B

2012-12-01

The objective of this study was to examine variation in overall milk, protein, and mineral composition of bovine milk in relation to rennet-induced coagulation, with the aim of elucidating the underlying causes of milk with impaired coagulation abilities. On the basis of an initial screening of 892 milk samples from 42 herds with Danish Jersey and Holstein-Friesian cows, a subset of 102 samples was selected to represent milk with good, poor, or noncoagulating properties (i.e., samples that within each breed represented the most extremes in regard to coagulation properties). Milk with good coagulation characteristics was defined as milk forming a strong coagulum based on oscillatory rheology, as indicated by high values for maximum coagulum strength (G'(max)) and curd firming rate (CFR) and a short rennet coagulation time. Poorly coagulating milk formed a weak coagulum, with a low G'(max) and CFR and a long rennet coagulation time. Noncoagulating milk was defined as milk that failed to form a coagulum, having G'(max) and CFR values of zero at measurements taken within 1h after addition of rennet. For both breeds, a lower content of total protein, total casein (CN) and κ-CN, and lower levels of minerals (Ca, P, Mg) were identified in poorly coagulating and noncoagulating milk in comparison with milk with good coagulation properties. Liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry revealed the presence of a great variety of genetic variants of the major milk proteins, namely, α(S1)-CN (variants B and C), α(S2)-CN (A), β-CN (A(1), A(2), B, I, and F), κ-CN (A, B, and E), α-lactalbumin (B), and β-lactoglobulin (A, B, and C). In poorly coagulating and noncoagulating milk samples of both breeds, the predominant composite genotype of α(S1)-, β-, and κ-CN was BB-A(2)A(2)-AA, which confirmed a genetic contribution to impaired milk coagulation. Interestingly, subtle variations in posttranslational modification of CN were observed between the coagulation classes in both breeds. Poorly coagulating and noncoagulating milk contained a lower fraction of the least phosphorylated α(S1)-CN form, α(S1)-CN 8P, relative to total α(S1)-CN, along with a lower fraction of glycosylated κ-CN relative to total κ-CN. Thus, apparent variation was observed in the milk and protein composition, in the genetic makeup of the major milk proteins, and in the posttranslational modification level of CN between milk samples with either good or impaired coagulation ability, whereas the composition of poorly coagulating and noncoagulating milk was similar. Copyright © 2012 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Short communication: Cytokine profiles from blood mononuclear cells of dairy cows classified with divergent immune response phenotypes.

PubMed

Martin, C E; Paibomesai, M A; Emam, S M; Gallienne, J; Hine, B C; Thompson-Crispi, K A; Mallard, B A

2016-03-01

Genetic selection for enhanced immune response has been shown to decrease disease occurrence in dairy cattle. Cows can be classified as high (H), average, or low responders based on antibody-mediated immune response (AMIR), predominated by type-2 cytokine production, and cell-mediated immune response (CMIR) through estimated breeding values for these traits. The purpose of this study was to identify in vitro tests that correlate with in vivo immune response phenotyping in dairy cattle. Blood mononuclear cells (BMC) isolated from cows classified as H-AMIR and H-CMIR through estimated breeding values for immune response traits were stimulated with concanavalin A (ConA; Sigma Aldrich, St. Louis, MO) and gene expression, cytokine production, and cell proliferation was determined at multiple time points. A repeated measures model, which included the effects of immune response group, parity, and stage of lactation, was used to compare differences between immune response phenotype groups. The H-AMIR cows produced more IL-4 protein than H-CMIR cows at 48 h; however, no difference in gene expression of type-2 transcription factor GATA3 or IL4 was noted. The BMC from H-CMIR cows had increased production of IFN-γ protein at 48, 72, and 96 h compared with H-AMIR animals. Further, H-CMIR cows had increased expression of the IFNG gene at 16, 24, and 48 h post-treatment with ConA, although expression of the type-1 transcription factor gene TBX21 did not differ between immune response groups. Although proliferation of BMC increased from 24 to 72 h after ConA stimulation, no differences were found between the immune response groups. Overall, stimulation of H-AMIR and H-CMIR bovine BMC with ConA resulted in distinct cytokine production profiles according to genetically defined groups. These distinct cytokine profiles could be used to define disease resistance phenotypes in dairy cows according to stimulation in vitro; however, other immune response phenotypes should be assessed. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Risk factors for lameness in freestall-housed dairy cows across two breeds, farming systems, and countries.

PubMed

Dippel, S; Dolezal, M; Brenninkmeyer, C; Brinkmann, J; March, S; Knierim, U; Winckler, C

2009-11-01

Lameness poses a considerable problem in modern dairy farming. Several new developments (e.g., herd health plans) strive to help farmers improve the health and welfare of their herd. It was thus our aim to identify lameness risk factors common across regions, breeds, and farming systems for freestall-housed dairy cows. We analyzed data from 103 nonorganic and organic dairy farms in Germany and Austria that kept 24 to 145 Holstein Friesian or Fleckvieh cows in the milking herd (mean = 48). Data on housing, management, behavior, and lameness scores for a total of 3,514 cows were collected through direct observations and an interview. Mean lameness prevalence was 34% (range = 0-81%). Data were analyzed applying logistic regression with generalized estimating equations in a split-sample design. The final model contained 1 animal-based parameter and 3 risk factors related to lying as well as 1 nutritional animal-based parameter, while correcting for the significant confounders parity and data subset. Risk for lameness increased with decreasing lying comfort, that is, more frequent abnormal lying behavior, mats or mattresses used as a stall base compared with deep-bedded stall bases, the presence of head lunge impediments, or neck rail-curb diagonals that were too short. Cows in the lowest body condition quartile (1.25-2.50 for Holstein Friesian and 2.50-3.50 for Fleckvieh) had the highest risk of being lame. In cross-validation the model correctly classified 71 and 70% of observations in the model-building and validation samples, respectively. Only 2 out of 15 significant odds ratios (including contrasts) changed direction. They pertained to the 2 variables with the highest P-values in the model. In conclusion, lying comfort and nutrition are key risk areas for lameness in freestall-housed dairy cows. Abnormal lying behavior in particular proved to be a good predictor of lameness risk and should thus be included in on-farm protocols. The study is part of the European Commission's Welfare Quality project.

Effects of an injectable trace mineral supplement on first-service conception rate of dairy cows.

PubMed

Vanegas, J A; Reynolds, J; Atwill, E R

2004-11-01

A total of 825 dairy cows from a commercial dairy farm in central California were used to evaluate effects of one or 2 doses of an injectable trace mineral supplement containing 20 mg/mL of zinc, 20 mg/mL of manganese, 5 mg/mL of selenium, and 10 mg/mL of copper on first-service conception rate. Cows were randomly allocated into treatment or control group to either a single dose (experiment 1) or a double dose (experiment 2) of injected supplement. Allocation was based on days in lactation for experiment 1 and the length of gestation periods for experiment 2. In experiment 1, cows 38 to 45 d in lactation (n = 190) received a single dose of 5 mL of injected supplement. Similar cows were used as controls (n = 227). In experiment 2, cows and pregnant heifers received an initial injection of 5 mL of the mineral supplement from 2 to 3 wk precalving (n = 186). An equal dose was repeated 38 to 45 d in lactation. A similar group of cows and pregnant heifers served as controls for experiment 2 (n = 222). Health and reproductive events postcalving were recorded. In experiment 1, the odds of first-service conception were not significantly different for cows receiving a one-dose regimen of minerals compared with untreated control cows; conception rates were 26.8 and 27.5% for experiment 1 treatment and control groups, respectively. In experiment 1, the odds of first-service conception were significantly lower (odds ratio = 0.66) for cows and heifers given the 2-dose regimen of minerals compared with untreated controls; overall conception rates were 21.5 and 31.5% for experiment 2 treatment and control groups, respectively. In this intensively managed dairy herd, a single dose of injected trace minerals before breeding had no beneficial effects on first-service conception rate. However, dairy cows receiving a dose of trace minerals before calving and another dose before breeding had lower conception at first service.

The value of embryo transfer to cattle breeding in Britain.

PubMed

Wilmut, I; Hume, A

1978-08-05

An analysis is made of the maximum expenditure which could be justified in embryo transfer in cattle is used to: increase the rate of genetic improvement of dairy or beef cattle; increase the frequency of twin-pregnancies; and expedite a change of breed. Estimates of maximum justifiable expenditure have been compared with an estimate of the cost of non-surgical transfer. Embryo transfer should be used in elite beef herds to increase selection intensity, particularly if bulls from such herds can be used for artificial insemination. Other commercial applications will not be economically justifiable until the cost of transfer has fallen by 50 to 80 per cent.

Metabolomic biomarkers identify differences in milk produced by Holstein cows and other minor dairy animals.

PubMed

Yang, Yongxin; Zheng, Nan; Zhao, Xiaowei; Zhang, Yangdong; Han, Rongwei; Yang, Jinhui; Zhao, Shengguo; Li, Songli; Guo, Tongjun; Zang, Changjiang; Wang, Jiaqi

2016-03-16

Several milk metabolites are associated with breeds or species of dairy animals. A better understanding of milk metabolites from different dairy animals would advance their use in evaluating milk traits and detecting milk adulteration. The objective of this study was to characterize the milk metabolite profiles of Chinese Holstein, Jersey, yak, buffalo, goat, camel, and horse and identify any differences using non-targeted metabolomic approaches. Milk samples were tested using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS). Data were analyzed using a multivariate analysis of variance and differences in milk metabolites between Holstein and the other dairy animals were assessed using orthogonal partial least-squares discriminant analysis. Differential metabolites were identified and some metabolites, such as choline and succinic acid, were used to distinguish Holstein milk from that of the other studied animals. Metabolic pathway analysis of different metabolites revealed that glycerophospholipid metabolism as well as valine, leucine, and isoleucine biosynthesis were shared in the other ruminant animals (Jersey, buffalo, yak, and goat), and biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acids was shared in the non-ruminant animals (camel and horse). These results can be useful for gaining a better understanding of the differences in milk synthesis between Holstein and the other dairy animals. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Linear and nonlinear genetic relationships between type traits and productive life in US dairy goats.

PubMed

Castañeda-Bustos, V J; Montaldo, H H; Valencia-Posadas, M; Shepard, L; Pérez-Elizalde, S; Hernández-Mendo, O; Torres-Hernández, G

2017-02-01

Linear or nonlinear genetic relationships between productive life and functional productive life at 72 mo, with final score (SCO), stature, strength, dairyness (DAI), teat diameter, rear legs (side view), rump angle, rump width (RUW), fore udder attachment (FUA), rear udder height, rear udder arch, udder depth (UDD), suspensory ligament (SUS), and teat placement, as well as heritabilities and correlations were estimated from multibreed US dairy goat records. Productive life was defined as the total days in production until 72 mo of age (PL72) for goats having the opportunity to express the trait. Functional productive life (FPL72) was analyzed by incorporating first lactation milk yield, fat yield, protein yield, and SCO in the statistical model. Heritabilities and correlations were estimated using linear mixed models with pedigree additive genetic relationships and ASReml software. Nonlinearity of genetic relationships was assessed based on second-degree polynomial (quadratic) regression models, with the breeding values of PL72 or FPL72 as responses and the breeding values for each type trait (linear and quadratic) as predictor variables. Heritability estimates were 0.19, 0.14, 0.18, 0.20, 0.14, 0.07, 0.28, 0.20, 0.15, 0.13, 0.25, 0.18, 0.20, 0.21, 0.21, and 0.32 for PL72, FPL72, SCO, stature, strength, DAI, teat diameter, rear legs, rump angle, RUW, FUA, rear udder height, rear udder arch, UDD, SUS, and teat placement, respectively. The type traits SCO, RUW, and FUA were the most correlated with PL72 and FPL72, so these may be used as selection criteria to increase longevity in dairy goats. An increase in the coefficient of determination >1% for the second degree, compared with that for the linear model for either PL72 or FPL72, was taken as evidence of a nonlinear genetic relationship. Using this criterion, PL72 showed maximum values at intermediate scores in DAI, UDD, and RUW, and maximum values at extreme scores in FUA and SUS, whereas FPL72 showed maximum values at intermediate scores in DAI and UDD, and maximum values at extreme scores in FUA, RUW, and SUS. Selecting for increased SCO, RUW, and FUA will lead to an increase of FPL72 in goats. Consideration of nonlinear relationships between DAI, FUA, RUW, SUS, and UDD may help in the design of more efficient breeding programs for dairy goats using conformation traits. The Authors. Published by the Federation of Animal Science Societies and Elsevier Inc. on behalf of the American Dairy Science Association®. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/).

Use of locally weighted scatterplot smoothing (LOWESS) regression to study selection signatures in Piedmontese and Italian Brown cattle breeds.

PubMed

Pintus, Elia; Sorbolini, Silvia; Albera, Andrea; Gaspa, Giustino; Dimauro, Corrado; Steri, Roberto; Marras, Gabriele; Macciotta, Nicolò P P

2014-02-01

Selection is the major force affecting local levels of genetic variation in species. The availability of dense marker maps offers new opportunities for a detailed understanding of genetic diversity distribution across the animal genome. Over the last 50 years, cattle breeds have been subjected to intense artificial selection. Consequently, regions controlling traits of economic importance are expected to exhibit selection signatures. The fixation index (Fst ) is an estimate of population differentiation, based on genetic polymorphism data, and it is calculated using the relationship between inbreeding and heterozygosity. In the present study, locally weighted scatterplot smoothing (LOWESS) regression and a control chart approach were used to investigate selection signatures in two cattle breeds with different production aptitudes (dairy and beef). Fst was calculated for 42 514 SNP marker loci distributed across the genome in 749 Italian Brown and 364 Piedmontese bulls. The statistical significance of Fst values was assessed using a control chart. The LOWESS technique was efficient in removing noise from the raw data and was able to highlight selection signatures in chromosomes known to harbour genes affecting dairy and beef traits. Examples include the peaks detected for BTA2 in the region where the myostatin gene is located and for BTA6 in the region harbouring the ABCG2 locus. Moreover, several loci not previously reported in cattle studies were detected. © 2013 The Authors, Animal Genetics © 2013 Stichting International Foundation for Animal Genetics.