These three health ABVs compliment on-farm management practices and can boost productivity
Calving Ease, Gestation Length and Mastitis Resistance are three health related Australian Breeding Values (ABVs) released by DataGene resulting from DairyBio research.
A total of eight new or updated health and type traits have been released as part of the April 2020 ABV update.
ABVs are an estimate of the genetic merit of dairy cows and bulls. They measure the traits (characteristics) that are likely to be passed on to their offspring and allow farmers to compare the genetic merit of cows and bulls between Australian herds.
These three health ABVs compliment on-farm management practices and can boost productivity. The five other ABVs released are type traits which affect the cow’s functional performance in the herd.
New or updated Australian Breeding Values released in April 2020
- Calving Ease (updated)
- Gestation Length (new)
- Mastitis Resistance (new)
- Overall Type (updated)
- Dairy Strength (new)
- Feet and Legs (new)
- Rump (new)
- Mammary System (updated)
DataGene is an initiative of Dairy Australia and the herd improvement industry. The new ABVs are the result of DairyBio research, drawing upon records supplied by Ginfo herds. For more information on the April 2020 ABV update visit: https://datagene.com.au/node/1415.