It’s true. People are looking for reliability. With the ever-changing price of milk, producers need to get as much of a guarantee as they can with every purchase they make.
So it was with great excitement that Zoetis released information earlier this month on the evolution of CLARIFIDE Plus, an enhanced series of genomic tests for Holsteins with increased reliability.
Why develop further genomic testing?
Two new indexes, Wellness Trait Index (WT$) and Dairy Wellness Profit Index (DWP$) identify sires with the greatest chance to make a positive impact on wellness by reducing the genetic risk of common dairy cow diseases. Zoetis has recorded information from over 10 million lactations to develop these genetic predictions on traits that are:
-lowly heritable
-not routinely recorded
-a result of complex events
What traits are being measured?
WT$ focuses on six wellness traits (mastitis, lameness, metritis, retained placenta, displaced abomasum and ketosis) and includes an economic value for Polled test results.
DWP$ is a multi-trait selection index which includes production, fertility, type, longevity and the WT$ traits, as well as Polled test results.
This provides dairy producers two new ways to incorporate selection emphasis on wellness traits into their breeding program. Selection for DWP$ can result in a difference of lifetime profit of more than $1,200 between the top 10th percentile of ranked animals and the bottom 10th percentile in females.
What does this mean for me as a producer?
“The new tools developed by Zoetis with CLARIFIDE Plus provide us with more detailed information about health and wellness,” says Chuck Sattler, Select Sires vice president of genetic programs. “This will allow us to more directly select for healthy dairy cows and will help producers improve the wellness and profitability of their herd.”
The top WT$ sires at Select Sires will be designated WellnessPRO™ to identify the sires with the greatest chance to make a positive impact on wellness by reducing the genetic risk of common dairy cow diseases.
A full list of Holstein proven and young sire lineup sires with values for WT$ and DWP$ will be available after the April sire summary. For information on WT$ and DWP$ visit: http://www.selectsires.com/designations/wellnesspro.html, and look for a listing of WT$ and DWP$ bulls in the All West proof and price list available following proofs.
In the meantime, you can check out a host of informational videos that Zoetis has put together explaining the benefits of these new indexes. Simply visit www.youtube.com and type the words “Clarifide Plus” in the search box.
.
.
.
.
.
.