Record-Breaking Year
for the Select Mating Service
PLAIN CITY, Ohio, June 2, 2005 — Select Sires has made numerous
advancements in the Select Mating Service™ (SMS™) since its
inception in 1973 when 5,800 cows were evaluated. Now mating in excess
of 3.5 million cows annually, the SMS evaluators with the federation's
10 member cooperatives and Select Sires Canada mated 805,235 additional
cows in 2004. This set a new record for the number of first-time animals
entered into the SMS program in one year which is a 28% increase over
the previous year. Also, Select evaluators mated an impressive 345,423
heifers using SMSII Pedigree Mate™.
"Without a doubt, the key to the success of SMS is the relationships
that our evaluators have fostered with their customers. They offer
excellent service backed by years of experience in dairy-cattle
breeding," says Lon Peters, manager of the SMS program and vice
president-dairy product services, Select Sires. "I also can proudly say
that these professional evaluators have earned the respect of producers
due to good old-fashioned cow sense."
Peters adds, "In the early years, the primary job of SMS evaluators was
assisting herd owners with the development of breeding plans that
utilized the right genetic combination of performance and conformation
traits in order to breed more profit into their herds. With continuous
advancements in computer technology and genetic research, Select Sires
has been able to customize its mating program to meet the specific needs
of their customers, which can lessen workloads, manage inbreeding and
genetic recessives."
SMS Manages Inbreeding and Increases Genetic Return
Over the years, the genetic base of the Holstein cow population has
narrowed with more animals descending from the same high-performing cow
families. The mating of distantly-related animals improved productivity
and uniformity in the breed but over time it also has lead to a gradual
increase of inbreeding.
Research has shown that inbreeding, in turn, reduces production,
reproductive performance, and longevity. Conservative calculations
estimate losses of $22 to $24 lifetime net income per one percent
inbreeding. Proper management of inbreeding results in more genetic
return from every dollar spent for semen. In addition, the Holstein
Association USA has acknowledged the decline in cow fertility due to
inbreeding and has included the Daughter Pregnancy Rate (DPR) in its
TPI™ formula. By placing more emphasis on total performance, sires
like 7HO5157 Regancrest Elton DURHAM-ET*CV, that have good daughter
fertility (+1.2 DPR), have higher TPI values (+1594 TPI 99% Rel.-M).
Specialists have identified mating programs like SMS as effective ways
to control inbreeding. When animals are properly identified and
inbreeding is considered in the recommended matings, the average
inbreeding rates have been depressed by as much as 40 percent. Even when
pedigrees are not available, SMS can decrease the amount of inbreeding
by selecting from the many bloodlines in Select Sires' 90-bull lineup.
SMS Avoids Carrier-to-Carrier Matings
Using DNA technology, researchers can identify recessive genes that
jeopardize genetic progress, making it easier to manage conditions like
Complex Vertebral Malformation (CVM). About 10 percent of today's
Holstein cows are CVM carriers. Incorporating this genetic information
into SMS software identifies carriers so that when SMS mating
recommendations are generated carrier-to-carrier matings are avoided
and, in turn, these herds can profit from the positive attributes of
these bloodlines.
DURHAM*CV is just one example of the caliber of genetics that would be
lost to the breed if not for Select Sires' ability to manage genetic
recessives. His son, 7HO6762 Creek Durham Sorry-ET*CV, is the A.I.
industry's second-best DURHAM son for milk with a Predicted Transmitting
Ability (PTA) of +1,200M (89% Rel.). Touting a +1675 TPI (79% Rel.),
7HO6957 Jeffrey-Way TOURNAME-ET*CV is the highest TPI DURHAM son sampled
in the U.S. in the May 2005 sire summary. Another spring release,
7HO6953 Sure-View ALEX-ET*CV is a new Wa-Del CONVINCER son on Holstein's
Top 100 TPI list at +1614 (86% Rel.). 7HO6739 Paradise-R CVN SEAN-ET*CV
is another popular, Excellent (93) CONVINCER son in the top 30 at +1656
TPI (93% Rel.). With SMS a producer can use the above sires with
confidence and can trust that the corrective mating will avoid a
carrier-to-carrier cross.
To Enroll in Select's Mating Service
For more information about SMS, visit Select Sires on the web at
www.selectsires.com or contact the Select Sires representative nearest
you.
Based in Plain City, Ohio, Select Sires Inc., is North America's largest
A.I. organization and is comprised of 10 farmer-owned and -controlled
cooperatives. As the industry leader, it provides highly fertile semen
as well as excellence in service and programs to achieve its basic
objective of supplying dairy and beef producers with North America's
best genetics at a reasonable price.
™TPI is a trademark of Holstein Association USA
™Select Mating Service, SMS and SMSII Pedigree Mate are trademarks of
Select Sires Inc.
Source: 5/05 U.S. Department of Agriculture, IB-M/USA, Holstein
Association USA Inc.
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