Dairy Crossbreeding

by Dr. Ted Burnside & Dr. Gary Rogers, Technical Advisors, Geno Global

The December proof round at Geno once again proved that the larger daughter numbers in Norwegian Red sire proofs guarantee accurate rankings. This proof round had no surprises as far as the previous sire line-up is concerned. All of the top sires ranked the same, with the ”All-Rounder,” Raastad, 252NR10115, at the top, with the same Total Merit Index (TMI) of 26.

Raastad, 252NR10115, is positive in all departments for production: milk, fat, protein, and the percentages with an overall index for production of 110, putting him in the top 2% of the breed! His daughters are two standard deviations above the breed for udders at 122, and rate high across the board! For daughter fertility his index is 108, and to cap it off Raastad’s index for non-return rates on his daughters in milk is 113, which means he is easily in the top 2% for fertility. For mastitis, his index is 103, and for all other diseases he is in the top 1.5 % with an index of 118! Where can you find a sire that will produce milky, healthy, fertile daughters with splendid udders? Use Raastad, 252NR10115, with complete confidence on cows as he is above the Norwegian Red breed average of 2% difficult calvings and 2.6% stillbirths, and you can only succeed!

Following on in second place once again is Hjulstad, 252NR10245, the greatest udder sire ever proven in Norway, with the same 25 TMI as last round, transmitting four standard deviations above the breed for udders (139), and 1.5 standard deviations above for daughter fertility and mastitis resistance. This sire is best suited for herds in cheese production, as he improves percentage protein (108), however he will not improve milk, fat or protein yields , as he is slightly below the breed average (89, 89 and 94, respectively) in these traits. He can be used to the greatest advantage on highly productive cows and heifers needing improvement in udders, mastitis resistance and female fertility.

The most exciting news in this proof round is that a newly proven sire, Velsvik, 252NR10432, comes in third place in the rankings with a TMI of 24! Like Hjulstad just above him, this sire has a high rating for percent protein (114) but he is a terrific “fat lifter” with indices of 136 for percentage fat and 110 for fat yield. This, coupled with across the board improvement for fertility of his daughters (124) and extremely high mastitis and other diseases resistance (110 and 118, respectively ) and also very easy calving and low stillbirth ratings as a sire and a maternal sire, make Velsik a logical choice for crossing on milky Holsteins, or Brown Swiss, either heifers or cows. His daughters are pleasing for milking speed and temperament as well! He will displace Braut in many markets, although he does not equal Braut in production!

During the last proof round we saw Bosnes, 252NR10402, graduate with tremendous production credits, and an overall rating of 21. With the advantages of youth, he maintained that rating in this round and vaulted over Haga, 252NR10039, and Haugseth, 252NR10032, both of which slipped down to 20! Bosnes fills the production slot among the top rated Geno sires, with an overall milk index of 121, putting him right at the top 1% of all sires proven in the breed for the combination of milk, fat, and protein yield and percentages. He leaves them medium in size, with excellent fertility (105), better than breed average resistance to mastitis (101) and high resistance to other diseases (114). With an overall rating of 111 for udders, Bosnes may need a little protection in fore udder attachment, but udder floor distance is excellent (108) and this sire leaves quiet daughters.

Both Haga, 252NR10039, and Haugseth, 252NR10032, have maintained high TMI‘s of 20 in this latest round of proofs, and these sires have seen very heavy use world-wide. Haga, 252NR10039, is an udder (121) and fertility (121) specialist, with excellent production (107), while Haugseth, 252NR10032, is still an “All- Rounder” with positive indices for production (110), female fertility (102), mastitis (109), and udders (105) (and has sexed semen available).

Another newly proven sire, Halsne, 252NR10406, has excellent production indices for milk (115), fat (120), protein (119) and percentages (107 and 103 for fat and protein, respectively). This sire has 140 daughters in the production proof to date, so his proof may shift a little next round. He does have a positive proof for both mastitis resistance (101) and other diseases (114), and transmits tall daughters (stature of 113), is breed average for heart girth, and leaves daughters with plenty of distance between udder floor and ground (107) and desirable slope to the rump. Feet and legs and udders score above breed average, at 107 and 105, respectively. This sire is a son of the well known Swedish Red sire, Peterslund.

A great team of sires with ratings at 17 await your consideration. They include Braut, 252NR10177, who transmits very easy calving (109), high production (111), high daughter fertility (105), improved feet and legs (115), and improved udders (106) and who is enormously popular world-wide. Braut has the added advantage of extremely high fertility as a service sire. Most Norwegian Red sires have a non-return rate at the least 5% higher than Holstein service sires, but Braut is the most fertile of the team!

A son of the great Ulsaker, Haga II, 252NR10278, settles in at 17 in his overall TMI. He transmits excellent production (106), high daughter fertility (111), and terrific udders (118) that are positive across the board, along with fast milking speed (118) and pleasing temperament (104). A paternal half- brother, Holund, 252NR10285, transmits a similar pattern, leaving moderately productive daughters (104), with splendid udders (131) and improvement in both fertility (105) and mastitis (104), with tall daughters (stature of111), large heart girth (109) and lovely shallow udders (110). This bull is the ideal mate for high milk cows requiring improvement in mastitis resistance and fertility!

A couple of heterozygous polled sires round out the Geno team. Arsvoll, 252NR10439, a newly proven red sire at TMI 17, heads the polled sire team, with high producing (110) exceptionally fertile (122) daughters. His daughters are breed average for resistance to mastitis, superior in resistance to other diseases (109), and have sound udders with strong mid ribs (117). Arsvoll is a good mate for taller heifers and cows, transmits easy calving (108), and is breed average (about 2%) for stillbirth rates as a service sire.

The second highest ranking polled sire, Aasheim, 252NR10183, has seen extensive service in the United States with a TMI of 16, and similar breeding patterns to his paternal half-brother, Braut. Aasheim will improve production across the board, with an overall index for production of 114, improves daughter fertility (115), and leaves desirable udders (108) and feet and legs (108). In summary, a great team of NRF sires are ready to create crossbred cows that produce and are fertile, healthy and profitable!

The Geno sire line-up has never had more genetically robust leaders than right now. Invest in crossing traditional European and North American dairy breeds to the Norwegian Reds, the only breed that transmits improvement in production, udder health, resistance to ketosis and other diseases, and female reproduction. Norwegian Red sires also minimize calf losses and start the heifer or cow off to a good lactation because of an easy calving.

There can be little doubt about the leading elite Norwegian Red sire living today! He is Raastad 252NR10115, a true “All Rounder”! Raastad managed to nudge out his closest rival, Hjulstad, in a proof round which saw the top ten sires essentially ranking as in March, 2009. Consistant sire rankings from run to run is bound to inspire dairy farmer confidence in a sire proving system and once again the Geno system demonstrates this important credential.

Raastad’s proof changes very little, at an overall Total Merit Index (TMI) of 27, shifting upwards one point to 111 for production, with high protein (110) and fat yield (114) and %’s (105 and 110), respectively, and slightly downwards for a remarkable fourth overall ranking for udders (124), with 109 on daughter fertility and 103 and 114, respectively, for resistance to mastitis and other diseases. His fertility as an elite sire in Norway has also contributed to his popularity. We recommend him for use on lactating cows as he is below the Norwegian Red breed average for calving ease and stillbirth frequency, even though he has seen extensive service on yearling heifers in Norway. A true production and udder leader, transmitting daughter fertility and health traits! Some of the most knowledgeable dairy operators in the world are using this sire very heavily. You cannot go wrong on Raastad!

Bumped to # 2 ranking by a single TMI point at 26, stands Hjulstad 252NR10245 the leading udder sire in the Geno lineup with an overall udder conformation rating of 141, the highest rating yet achieved by an Elite Norwegian Red sire. Hjulstad ranks fourth among active sires for mastitis resistance at 116, and is also in the top ½ % of all NR sires for female fertility at 116. He is an easy calver, consequently he is a great choice for yearling heifer breedings. He is slightly below the Norwegian Red breed average for milk, fat, and protein yield (93) but a significant improver for protein % (110) so he is a logical choice for high production dairy breeds for crossing purposes, and should result in crosses with exceptional udders, reproduction and health, thus complementing the Holstein perfectly.

Two sires, Haugseth 252NR10032 and Haga, 252NR10039 are tied for third rank with TMI‘s of 25! Each of these offers a unique genetic package. Haugseth, a perennial “All Rounder” improves all key economic traits significantly and is relatively easy calving, so he currently is in production of sexed semen and is a solid choice for yearling breedings. His fertility is way above the breed average for NR sires on matings as a mature sire in Norway, since he returned to service three years ago, so we expect his sexed semen to be highly fertile too! He leaves daughters with pleasing production (111), exceptional fertility (111) and resistance to mastitis and other diseases (110 and 108), respectively, and soundly attached udders (106). Use sexed semen from this fine sire on your yearlings!
Haga 252NR10039 also ranks third highest at a TMI of 25 and is a perennial favourite in Norway and around the world, excelling in his own fertility and leaving daughters with the highest fertility (127) of any active sire, as well as beautiful, snugly attached udders (122) with quality to burn. Haga has excellent calving performance, so he may be used on heifers. He is just below the Norwegian sire average for mastitis resistance (96), but will improve this trait in other breeds and his daughters are highly resistant to other diseases (110). He is a solid improver for all production traits including %’s with an overall production index of 107.

A new arrival in the top ranking five sires is Holund, 25210285 a ¾ brother to Hjulstad, with a TMI of 21. He contrasts nicely with his brother, with an overall production index of 107, improving all traits but fat %. Holund is an “All Rounder” with 104 on daughter fertility, 106 on mastitis resistance and sterling 132 on udder conformation! These Ulsaker sons will see extensive service in crossing programs around the world, and Holund looks like a solid choice, being an easy calver (108) with low stillbirths (109) and very desirable fertility as a service sire. I like this sire’s proof!

There are three elite sires at 20, and two of the three are very desirably proven. Braut 252NR10177, very popular globally, is an easy calver (111) with low stillbirths (111) more than suitable for yearling matings. Braut transmits high production (111) for yield and %’s (105), excellent daughter fertility (106) and very desirable udders (108), particularly high in the rear attachment (125). Fore udders are a trifle bulgy on occasion (98), so protect him in matings for this trait. This sire is very popular in the USA and Canada.

Haga II 252NR10278, another Ulsaker son is also an “All Rounder “ with a very well balanced proof for production(107) daughter fertility (111) calving ease (101) with low stillbirths (110), as well as excellent udders (118) and mastitis resistance (101). He might be called the “Robot” sire, as his daughters are exceptional in teat placement, as Haga II leaves front teats close together and rear teats wide apart. This makes him the logical mate for Holsteins that have rear teats touching or crossing, as this kind is a problem in robot milking systems. Be sure to note Haga II‘s Reg. # 252NR10278, when using him, as he has the same name as Haga 252NR10039 above, since they were bred by the same breeder! In Norway the breeder’s name often is assigned to the bulls he breeds!

Sand 252NR10232, maintains a very high TMI at 19, excelling in all departments with the exception of daughter fertility (93) where he is just below the NR sire average. All sires, of course, average 100 for all traits except for Total Merit Index (TMI), where the average is 0.0!
Aasheim, 252NR10183, at TMI 16 is a very popular easy calving polled sire with top production across the board (114), excellent udders (110) and daughter fertility (115), and he has sexed semen becoming available right away!

In summary, Ulsaker, 252NR05277 is going down in history as a very desirable bull sire, with several notable sons already at the top of the proof listings, including the 2nd, 5th and 6th ranking sires in the active sire lineup. Any of these three sons, Hjulstad, Holund, and Haga II will transmit improvement in a balanced package!