After a week visiting farms in the Netherlands, I can confidently say that Dutch AI bulls sire more femininity (related to natural fertility) and generally have a better spread to the hip and pelvic structure (allowing a longer functional life for udders housed underneath) than we see in many of the cows on USA dairy farms where breeding is only on Genomic rankings. The Dutch have plenty of replacements.
The physical trend among ranking Genomics here is a more “masculine” cow, thus heavier-boned, bigger in size and scale, less naturally fertile (Ov Synch dependent), often too straight in hind legs and progressively stiffer in joints (a consequence of “faster maturity” ) , “bully” in behavior, and more dependent on high levels of supplements to meet milk yield targets.
In spite of a decade of sexed semen availability, we now have the most costly and scarce replacement supply ever. How much is the narrowly focused gene pool to blame for this? Call us if this is starting to bother you… (989) 834- 2661. greg@michiganlivestock.com
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