Performance is a combination of genetics and environment. According to the Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding (CDCB), milk production is 20% correlated to genetics. Eighty percent of production performance is correlated to environmental influencers such as management of facilities, calf care, reproduction plan, nutrition, cow comfort and daily stressors.
Genetics is the behind-the-scenes controller determining why two cows existing within the same environment produce milk differently. Two cows standing side by side at the feedbunk will each have a different genetic potential for milk production. Genetics create variation in performance between herdmates.
While the environment can change, genetics are here to stay. Genetics are not only permanent, they are cumulative. Every future generation is going to be building from the genetic foundation you choose. Choose once and choose wisely.
The wrong genetics create a production cap. Don’t put a ceiling on your milk check due to your herd’s genetics being a poor fit for your milk market or not functioning well in your environment.
Traits lining up with your milk check
Genetic traits are most commonly published as a predicted transmitting ability (PTA). This number places a value on the amount of progress expected for the next generation relative to the breed average.
The PTAs typically prioritized for production are:
-
PTA Milk (PTAM): the predicted amount of milk pounds produced in a mature lactation above breed average. However, be aware when selecting for this trait that most consumers are eating their dairy products, not drinking them. Most milk markets prioritize solids over water weight.
- PTA Protein (PTAP) or PTA Fat (PTAF): the predicted amount of protein or fat pounds produced in a mature lactation above breed average.
How do you know what the breed average value is? Well, they make it easy. It is zero. Every few years there is a base change. This means the average is recalculated so that zero can continue to be the average. For example, a sire with +1000 PTAM is expected to have daughters produce 1,000 pounds more per mature lactation than a sire with 0 PTAM.
Don’t confuse production awards with profitability
While bragging rights on high-production cows are fun, the highest-producing cow is not always the most profitable cow. If a cow cranks out milk at her lactation peak but spends a portion of her lactation in the hospital pen producing non-saleable milk or doesn’t breed back causing high days in milk with slim income-over-feed-cost margins, she is likely not the biggest contributor to your bottomline.
The most profitable cows generally have strong production with minimal inputs. If you have a strategic breeding program, genetics can manipulate how efficiently a cow produces milk and, ultimately, help minimize extra expense-causing inputs.
Traits that impact how much of your milk check stays in your bank account include:
-
Fertility traits: To be in the milk selling business, you need to be in the reproduction business. Traits such as Daughter Pregnancy Rate (DPR), Heifer Conception Rate (HCR) and Cow Conception Rate (CCR) place a value on how easily a cow will get bred back.
-
Udder health and disease resistance traits: Wellness traits optimize the amount of saleable milk in addition to the reduced expense of labor and treatments.
-
Longevity traits: Cows usually spend at least the first lactation, and often a portion of the second lactation, paying for their rearing costs. The longer cows stay in a herd, the higher percentage of their productive life is spent in the cash flow positive phase earning money instead of paying back debt.
-
Body size traits: Size doesn’t matter for milk production ability, but it does change dry matter intake (DMI) requirements. Large-framed cows will eat more than moderate-framed cows because of larger body maintenance requirements. Genetic selection for smaller -framed cows increases feed efficiency.
- Functional type: Be mindful of how easily cows can move around to access the feedbunk, get in and out of beds and travel to the parlor.
Purchasing herd replacements
Live cattle purchases bring outside genetics into your herd. Although your short-term goal might be to fill gaps in your heifer program or meet expansion goals, these genetics are here to stay and will carry through to future generations. Do not allow genetics to propagate in your operation unless they accomplish two things: create cows that are trouble free in your operation’s environment and produce a milk composition valued in your milk market.
When purchasing cattle, ensure that whoever is making the selections – whether it is yourself, a cattle broker or herd manager – is able to identify cattle with specific characteristics:
- Genetically appropriate for your environment and milk market
- Proficient rearing and production environment to help genetics reach their full potential
- Phenotypically a strong fit for your operation’s environment
'No decision is, in itself, a decision.'
—William James, The father of American psychology
Deciding not to have an opinion on genetics brought into your herd is still having an opinion. If you uphold the belief that a 20% genetic influence on milk production doesn’t matter to you, it is likely that you have, at some point, said: “I manage for production.” In other words, you choose to manage for daily environmental factors and are not creating a herd optimized for production genetically.
Great management will yield top production results. But you can only outmanage bad genetics so far. Eventually, your production will plateau. Don’t pick a losing fight with biology. Invest once in the right genetics when making sire selections or investing in purchased herd replacements to get the most out of your milk check. Dairy producers are known for being tough, innovative and, often, stubborn. But I assure you, tenacity is not going to will away bad DNA.
