Dairy Breeds and Selection

1. Dairy Breeds and Selection

2. Objectives: • Major Breeds of Dairy Cattle • Dairy Terms and Definitions • Parts of a Dairy Cow • Dairy Traits and Selection

3. Holstein • Black and White or Red and White color pattern • Large sized • Heavy milk producers • Not registered if all white or black

4. Jersey • Color varies (light gray to dark fawn being darker around head and hips) • Has a dished face • Produces more pounds of milk per body weight than any other dairy breed.

5. Gurnsey • Red (Fawn) and White in color • Medium sized • High milk production to feed intake ratio • Milk is high in betacarotene and has a rich yellow color

6. Brown Swiss • Solid brown, varying from very light to dark • Large sized • Light colored band around the muzzle • One of the oldest Dairy breeds

7. Ayrshire • Red and white in color (amount varies) • Medium sized • Purebred Ayrshires only produce red offspring • Average milk production

8. Milking Shorthorn • Red and white or any combination of red and white • Dual purpose breed – used for meat after used for milk • Calves are excellent vealers

9. Milking Devon • Red in color • Triple purpose (Draft, beef, milk) • Medium sized

10. Review Jersey

11. Review Milking Shorthorn

12. Review Brown Swiss

13. Review Guernsey

14. Review Milking Devon

15. Review Ayrshire

16. Review Holstein

17. Terms • bull - Mature male dairy animal • cow - Mature female dairy; shows evidence of having produced one or more calves • heifer - female dairy animal that has not borne a calf

18. Terms • calf - male of female dairy animal under one year of age • springer - cow showing signs of pregnancy • breed characteristics - physical traits that differentiate on breed from another

19. Dairy Breeds and SelectionTerms • dairy character - characteristics indicating the animal will be useful in the dairy industry (sharpness and flatness of bones, length of neck, openness and slant of ribs) • butterfat - percent of fat in the milk • milk production - amount in pounds of milk that a cow produces during a lactation period

20. Terms • lactation - span of time that a cow is giving milk • dairy herd improvement records (DHI) production records kept on producing dairy cattle • mammary system - parts of the cow directly responsible for producing and storing milk • pedigree - register of lines of ancestry

21. Dairy Breeds and SelectionTraits and Selection (Dairy Evaluation System) 1. Stature (height): measured from the top of withers to the ground -tall is good 2. Depth of body: from the top of the back to the bottom of the heart girth and belly area - Deeper is better

22. Dairy Breeds and SelectionTraits and Selection (Dairy Evaluation System) 3. Dairy character (independent of performance): Sharpness and flatness of bones, length of neck, openness and slant of ribs -we want them to look feminine and like a dairy cow (extremely sharp) 4. Foot Angle: determines whether the cow walks well or is on its tip-toes or too sloping and almost on its dewclaws -Intermediate Angle is the best

23. Dairy Breeds and SelectionTraits and Selection (Dairy Evaluation System) 5. Rear legs (side view): How straight or sloping the hock joint is - We want slight set in the hock 6. Rump Angle: levelness from hooks to pins -we want nearly angle

24. Dairy Breeds and SelectionTraits and Selection (Dairy Evaluation System) 7. Thurl (Rump) width: Measure the pelvic area form side to side -extremely wide is best 8. Fore udder attachment: Strength of udder attachment to the body wall -extremely tight attachment is what we want – no cartoon cows!

25. Dairy Breeds and SelectionTraits and Selection (Dairy Evaluation System) 9. Rear udder width: How wide the udder is at attachment site -wider the better 10. Rear udder height: How high the udder extends in relation to the vulva -Higher the better

26. Dairy Breeds and SelectionTraits and Selection (Dairy Evaluation System) 11. Teat placement (rear view) :Are the teats centrally placed in each quarter - Central is best 12. Cleft: How defined the udder crease is (measured when viewed from behind. -extremely cleft is best

27. Dairy Breeds and SelectionTraits and Selection (Dairy Evaluation System) 13. Udder depth (relative to point of hock) : We want the udder floor to set above the hock - udder floor at hock is best

28. Dairy Breeds and SelectionTraits and Selection Milk Production Facts Breed Percent Butterfat Pounds Butterfat Pounds Milk Prod Holstein 3.66 703 19,185 Ayrshire 3.95 569 14,398 Jersey 4.75 618 13,020 Brown Swiss 4.03 606 15,062 Guernsey 4.57 611 13,363 Think about this? 1. Which breed produced the most total pounds of milk? Why do think this is so? 2. Why would butterfat be important to milk? 3. What breed produced the lowest total pounds of butterfat? 4. What would you think the most popular breed of Dairy cattle would be judging from this data? Why? 5. What is the definition of milk production? Why would a cow be lactating?

29. Dairy Breeds and Selection“Use What you have learned” • Which animal would be considered desirable? • What terms would you use to describe the differences? • Which animal shows the best general appearance? • Are these cows or heifers? Why?

30. Dairy Breeds and Selection“Use What you have learned” • Which animal would be considered desirable? • What terms would you use to describe the differences? • Which shows more dairy character? What are the indicators? • What about the udder?