Select Sires always has had a deep-seeded commitment to your future. This philosophy has spread to and through the 4,000 PGA cooperators who have made Select's Program for Genetic Advancement the "heart and soul" of our sire-development program and the model for young-sire sampling worldwide.

When it comes to improving the genetic quality of your herd, these sire analysts are the best in A.I. From sampling young sires through the PGA to developing the Select Mating Service™ for your cows and heifers, these specialists have spent a combined 146 years as leaders in the field of genetic advancement.

"Select Sires has operated a successful young sire program since its inception as an organization in 1965," says Ron Long, vice president, dairy sire procurement. "It became more formalized and efficient in 1974 when it was named the PGA. Some of the dairy industry's most influential sires have emerged as graduates of the program. Names such as 7HO980 Walkway Chief MARK, 7HO1897 To-Mar BLACKSTAR-ET*TV, 7HO543 Carlin-M Ivanhoe BELL*CV, 7HO191 WAYNE Spring Fond Apollo TV MF, 7HO3948 MJR Blackstar EMORY*TV, 7JE159 Soldierboy Boomer SOONER of CJ, 7JE254 Mason Boomer Sooner BERETTA, 7GU179 Kellogg E Choice PENDER, 7BS629 EE Beautician KING and 7AY43 Covey Farms Vitality RELIABLE are household names when discussions center on impact sires in each breed. Modern-day sires of the same caliber are 7HO4637 Ladys Manor WINCHESTER-ET*TV, 7HO4937 Wa-Del BUBBA-ET*TV, 7HO5157 Regancrest Elton DURHAM-ET*CV, 7HO5275 Mara-Thon BW MARSHALL-ET*TV, 7HO5687 Sandy-Valley FORBIDDEN-ET*TV, 7HO5708 Fustead Emory BLITZ-ET*TV, 7HO5841 Sikkema-Star-W HI METRO-ET*CV and 7JE442 Rock Ella PARAMOUNT-ET. What do these greats all have in common? They all were sampled and developed through the PGA."

IT PAYS OFF

The availability of great, accurately proven sires takes active participation and commitment at all levels--from Select Sires to you, the dairy producer. Everyone benefits from the variety of young sires selected and the controlled random sampling of each sire.

The first step in sampling is to identify the best prospective bull mothers through intensive pedigree selection and screening of the U.S. Department of Agriculture cow indexes. Using Select's balanced genetic approach to sire development, cows selected then are mated to the best sires to achieve the highest parent averages for type and production performance. The resulting bull calves then enter the PGA system.

"The objective of any successful young-sire program is to identify the true genetic value of the bulls being sampled," says Chuck Sattler, vice president, dairy progeny testing and genetics research. To accomplish this, Select Sires stresses random distribution and random usage of PGA semen.

"Qualified PGA herds are divided by region of the country and level of production with semen from each PGA sire being distributed nationally to all regions and all herd levels. The system also is designed so young sires are used randomly within assigned herds. This results in an unbiased early evaluation."

COMMITTED TO YOUR FUTURE

The dynamics of the dairy industry are changing. Many herds, including PGA herds, are getting larger, causing some cooperators to reexamine their roles in young sire sampling. Fewer herd-owners are using official production testing, therefore eliminating themselves from PGA participation. Herds are going out of business daily. Some current PGA herds may no longer be around when their PGA young sire daughters freshen, thus their data will be "lost" in the sampling process. Fewer breeder groups are proving bulls so fewer outside sources of genetics are available when additional proven bulls are needed.

The strength of the PGA is the future results that Select Sires and our PGA cooperators will be able to generate to meet the proven genetic needs of this changing market. These genetics are being obtained with a renewed commitment by dairy producers to sample young sires. PGA enrollment continues to grow. This enables Select Sires to expand the semen distribution on each young sire to more herds, further enhancing our capabilities to increase the reliability of the sampling.

"You have a right to expect a high degree of accuracy in the genetic material you purchase," says Long. "More daughters in more herds, while not the only criteria impacting accuracy, provides even more confidence in our sire program."

If you would like more information on becoming a PGA cooperator, please fill out the program request form.

™Program for Genetic Advancement, Select Mating Service and SMS are trademarks of Select Sires Inc.