More than ‘meats’ the eye

If you want a red pickup, do you buy the first one you see?

Chances are you have a specific brand in mind. You want to sit in the seat, drive it down the road and study all of the specifications. You might drive through dealership lots for quite some time looking at each of the models on offer. When the purchase is finally made, you know you have bought the truck that will do everything you need it to do.

That same philosophy of time and research should be applied to your beef cattle breeding stock purchases. Expected progeny differences can overwhelm you and leave you feeling as though you missed a day or two of school. The terminology doesn’t help either.

“Genomics is just a fancy word for genetic evaluation,” said Kent Andersen, director of Genetics Technical Services, U.S. Cattle-Equine, Zoetis. Genomics incorporates all of an animal’s genetic information to paint the most accurate picture of what the future could look like for that animal and its future offspring.

Into the future

That picture is on the verge of getting even clearer. According to Matt Spangler, beef genetics specialist with University of Nebraska-Lincoln, breed associations are working toward reproductive longevity EPDs. Soon you may be able to determine how many years that heifer you just bought will breed back.

While breeding is important for cow-calf producers, other segments of the industry are more concerned with carcass traits. Spangler says an EPD that could determine the number of days it will take for an animal to reach a certain end weight is on the horizon, but more data is needed before that can become a reality.

“We need information on when animals entered the feedyard, when they’re harvested,” he said. “Those animals need to have some kind of known pedigree.”

Send it on down the line

Much the same as you inherited your eye color or body type from your predecessors, so do those of the bovine persuasion.

Heritability of a trait goes beyond the classics such as birth weight, weaning weight or ribeye area. Spangler says even constant fat thickness is genetically controlled.

“That data is more cost effective to collect than individual feed intake,” Spangler said. “The number of days it takes and animal to reach harvest is directly related to efficiency.”

If your program doesn’t involve retaining ownership, insuring those cattle will perform for whoever does feed them out is valuable.

The value doesn’t end there

The value of EPDs doesn’t end with carcass traits. Spangler thinks eventually producers will have an EPD for disease susceptibility. Imagine being able to determine if that calf born yesterday was more at risk for contracting bovine respiratory disease or pinkeye than another born the same day in a different pasture.

For now, producers need to set breeding goals for their herds. With values placed on carcass characteristics and, in the near future, days to slaughter and disease risk, Spangler says the best way for a commercial producer to select breeding stock best suited for their goals is to use an economic index.

According to Spangler, an economic index is a combination of multiple EPDs and can be used to select for multiple traits at the same time. Those traits are weighted based on their economic value.

Currently several breed associations offer economic indexes. Determining what breed of bull fits the goals set for the cowherd involves taking an honest look at the operation itself. Will heifers be kept as replacements or sold? What type of labor is available? Those answers will determine if a terminal or a maternal index should be used.

Much as you would select a red pickup because it has a suspension that can handle the round bales you haul or the stock trailer you pull, you need breeding stock that will give your calf crop the best start and finish.

Jennifer Theurer can be reached at 620-227-1858 or [email protected].