“DAIRY WELLNESS PROFIT INDEX” (DWP$) -The latest composite

You may be aware that Pfizer Company’s ZOETIS division is deeply into Genomics and has been researching “wellness” traits with the assistance of associate dairy herds (all the way from Michigan to Florida) that have generated reams of data on cows that have all been DNA-mapped.

Dr Dan Weigel (working from Zoetis Labs in Kalamazoo, MI) heads up this effort, which has special significance for us (Dan is the breeder of 99HO7070 Jehosophat at International Protein Sires).    He made a presentation to explain DWP$ and its supporting Genomic traits at the recent IPS Distributor conference in Wisconsin.    Their Genomic service is named Clarifide Plus.

Zoetis offers the following evaluations:  Mastitis (32% culling risk), Lameness (16% culling risk), Metritis (17% culling risk), Retained Placenta (31% culling risk), Displaced Abomasum (27% culling risk), Ketosis (32% culling risk).    Their research indicates costs of $117 to $494 per incidence for treatment of these various dairy herd afflictions.    Thus Zoetis assigns dollar values to the genomic possession of markers for resistance to these various issues.    This adds up eventually to the DWP$ once added to or subtracted from CDCB’s “Net Merit” genetic index values.

For the individual genomic traits, breed average is expressed as 100.   A sire with superior DNA markers will have a trait score above 100; a sire lacking those markers will have a trait score below 100.   Across the Holstein population, these scores range from a low of 69 to a high of 116 (the individual traits have individual ranges).    The Reliability % of these traits is currently from 49% to 51%.

Examples of enhanced sire data incorporating “Wellness Traits” (International Protein Sires)

Progeny evaluated sires:

566H 1199 Cambridge  Mast 108   Lame 104   Met 103   RP 104   Ket  106   DA 102   DWP$ 532

compare this to his calculated Net Merit of $299, and we find him to be an exceptional bull!           

099H 7070 Jehosophat Mast   95   Lame 101   Met 107   RP 101   Ket  108   DA  105   DWP$ 493

compare this to his calculated net Merit of $399, provides added value in five of six wellness traits.

006H 1157 Made Right Mast 106   Lame  99   Met 101   RP    96   Ket   99   DA  103   DWP$ 490

low SCS of 2.86, high PL of +4.6, now with LIV +1.7, low stillbirth 6.7%, clearly a “health” bull

566H 0588 Gilby           Mast   97   Lame 100   Met 110   RP  104  Ket  110   DA   99   DWP$ 486

exceeds his calculated Net Merit of $381, and in the top percentiles for Metritis and Ketosis resistance

566H 1247 Galt             Mast 101   Lame 101   Met 101   RP   95   Ket  105  DA  103   DWP$ 458

compare this to his calculated Net Merit of $341, and we find him to be a significantly better bull.

566H 1180 Rollag         Mast 102   Lame   95   Met 103   RP 107   Ket  105   DA 101   DWP$ 429

compare this to his calculated Net Merit of $330, and we find him to be a significantly better bull.

Genomic estimated sires:

566H 1265 Jenner         Mast 101   Lame 112   Met 111   RP 104   Ket 111   DA 106   DWP$ 1075

in the top five of all sires tested for “wellness traits”—compare to Net Merit of $778, a true outlier!

566H 1261 Jo Dandy     Mast   98   Lame 101   Met 103   RP 108   Ket  96   DA 106   DWP$ 1020

might he be the highest DWP$ choice for those also seeking the consumer-health A2A2 Beta casein?

566H 1267 Fix It            Mast 111   Lame  90   Met 104   RP   95   Ket   98   DA 107   DWP$ 1015

starting from an elite $801 NM, still a good boost to a sire whose +2.42 G Type draws attention.   

566H 1260 Storm Proof Mast 105   Lame 100   Met 100  RP 106   Ket 100   DA 106   DWP$  993

a significant bump from Net Merit $790, and pretty good for an elite +2680 GTPI cow family sire  

Genomic estimated sires:    (continued)

566H 1262 Diverse        Mast 105   Lame 105   Met 102   RP   99   Ket   95   DA 102   DWP$  970

who says four generations of “EX” dams with outstanding mature records cannot transmit something?

566H 1237 Milton         Mast 106   Lame 100   Met 104   RP 102   Ket 104   DA 103   DWP$  948

Michigan-bred from Powell’s best cow family, compare to Net Merit of $751-- realize hidden value.

566H 1263 Malcolm      Mast 100   Lame 101   Met 103   RP 100   Ket 106   DA 103   DWP$  927

all this health with exceptional +.17% +86 fat and +.08% +55 protein and low 2.79 SCS ($779 NM)

566H 1244 Ethics          Mast 103   Lame 100   Met 101   RP   96   Ket 106   DA 104   DWP$  915

compare to estimated Net Merit of $785, shows he has extra value in metabolic and udder health

566H 1251 Net Worth   Mast 101   Lame 101   Met 105   RP   93   Ket 111   DA 105   DWP$  888

gets five out of six right from a Michigan-bred cow line that shows consistency every generation

Some observations on interpretation

You will note that the range of IPS’ best Genomic sires is twice the $ value of IPS’ better progeny evaluated sires.    This is simply because DWP$ is a recalculation of Net Merit enhanced by Zoetis’ added insights into the genotype for those health characteristics that are major cost issues for dairy.

Higher-ranking Genomic sires are assumed to be a “generation ahead” of the better progeny data evaluated sires.     Thus it is best to remember that Genomic traits top out at 75% Reliability while the verification of milking and classified progeny is still needed to reach the most reliable 95%-99% level.

How does “Clarified Plus” compare to the patented AI stud health indicators?   

Being the first to go public with any new technology is usually to offer an incomplete solution to the perceived problem.  “Immunity Plus” for example neither grades bulls on the relative levels of their

gene possession nor covers as much trait territory as does the Zoetis “Clarifide Plus” technology.

I expect you will observe that the major AI systems will all gravitate toward Clarifide Plus rather than attempt to develop their own, more limited versions.    Pfizer’s great resources dwarf those available to any individual AI system, and anything related to interpretation of the Genotype demands resources in computing power usually only available to government or university research collaborations.   Mostly, Zoetis’ novel approach to ranking the economic values imputed to avoiding these various cow problems helps us sort among bulls where it soon becomes apparent that there is no “perfect” bull—you have to make some decisions that prioritize the traits most important to your herd at this generation of cows.

The biggest disadvantage to any single-stud proprietary system is that  it compares against that stud’s average, NOT the attained breed average.    We have already seen the disparity from sampling to 99% distribution on type proofs, for example—bulls who begin at +2.00 and end up –1.50 once they face the rest of their contemporaries, not just the “in house” populations held captive by full-service contracts.  

The Zoetis data comes from herds that offer a full cross-section of the competing genetic AI programs and involves millions of fully documented health episodes, and is an ongoing research today.

At no extra cost

At this point it appears we will eventually have Clarifide Plus “wellness” data on Genomic tested sires from all our major sire sources.    Currently, this technology is limited to Holsteins.   (Zoetis does make this technology available on farm for testing your cows and heifers, should you wish to pre-select which heifers you raise for replacements (allowing early sale of those surplus to your needs).)