Improved genetic gain - phenotypes

Increased genetic gain through improved phenotypic data

Animal genetic gain is a significant component of the dairy industry productivity increases. Results from the Dexcel Holstein-Friesian Strain trial completed in 2004 indicated that about one-third of farm profit at that time was attributable to the gains in animal genetic merit made over the previous 25 years.

Historically, animal breeding has focused on production traits, but there is significant potential to make progress on animal health traits as well, once the industry has sufficient, high quality, phenotypic data to support both conventional and genomic or gene marker approaches to animal breeding. Improved animal genetics can be delivered to the dairy industry through exploiting current opportunities in fertility, facial eczema (FE) and lameness.

The objective is to build new phenotypes (fertility, lameness, and facial eczema) into the Core Database that will allow appropriate industry participants equal access to the data so that all dairy farmers can benefit.
This will deliver improved animal genetics to the dairy industry, resulting in decreased animal health costs and increased productivity in the national herd.

Expected outcomes of this project

Benefit

Fertility: Lower animal health costs and greater productivity of herds through better reproductive performance of the national herd. Improvement in the quality of cow reproductive data in the Core Database will allow better estimates of the genetic merit of bulls for daughter fertility.

Facial eczema: Greater facial eczema tolerance will be captured, which will lower animal health costs and increase productivity.

Lameness: Lower animal health costs and greater productivity of herds will be achieved through lower rates of lameness, if relationships between genetic linkages to the lameness phenotypes can be captured at a relevant level.