SELECTING AND JUDGING DAIRY CATTLE

Animal Science I Dairy Unit

Selecting Desirable Breeding and Production Animals

Based upon Physical appearance Health Milk production records Pedigree

Physical Appearance

Referred to as type Confirmation of the animal Closely related to production Cows with good type usually produce

more milk for longer periods of time

Health Records

Includes history of vaccinations and general herd health

Apparent health of the animal is also important

Milk Production Records

May or may not be available Records give some indication of the

possible production of the offspring of the cow

Production Records

Show the pounds of milk produced and the percent milk fat

To properly evaluate milk production records the following information is needed Number of times milked per day Age Feed Care Length of time the cow carried a calf during each lactation

Can only give an estimate of the ability of the cow to transfer high production ability to her daughters

Best indicator of a cow’s transmitting ability is in the records of her offspring.

Pedigree

Record of the animals ancestors Most valuable pedigrees for selection

give for each ancestor Name Registration number Type rating Production record Show-ring winnings

Study carefully they can sometimes be misleading

Judging Dairy Animals

See p. 721-725 Terms p.726-727

Steps in Judging

http://www.uvm.edu/~jagilmor/judging/judging.html

http://www.uvm.edu/~jagilmor/judging/viewcl2.html

Summary

Physical appearance, health, milk production records and pedigrees are important factors to consider when selecting dairy animals for breeding and production

Animals are judged by comparing the animal being judged with an ideal dairy type as described on the The Dairy Cow Unified Score Card

Desirable traits are related to the cows ability to produce milk for a long period of time

The mammary system is the most important part of the cow

Follow a routine when judging dairy cattle First impression are usually the most accurate Use dairy judging terms when giving oral reasons