With fertility rates on the rise and data guiding every decision, beef-on-dairy matings – especially with composite sires – are helping dairies optimize both efficiency and profitability.

As cattle producers explore avenues for boosting productivity, the spotlight often shines on genetics. For crossbred beef-on-dairy calves, maximizing genetic potential goes beyond selecting the right genes – it is also about creating the right environment to allow those genes to fully express.

Which traits make an efficient dairy cow? To answer that question, it is useful to carefully think about what a very efficient dairy cow looks like. One definition of an efficient dairy cow is cow that maximizes milk production while maintaining good health and fertility, thereby optimizing profitability for the producer.  

“Today we have a third of the number of cows we had in 1960, and we’re producing more milk,” said Christine Baes of the University of Guelph during her keynote presentation at the 2024 Dairy Cattle Reproduction Council annual meeting. “That’s a pretty good sustainability story, but when you Google ‘sustainability and dairy cows,’ you see headlines about cow flatulence. Why is that?”

The 102nd Royal Agricultural Winter Fair that took place Nov. 1-10 did not disappoint. Showcasing some of the best of the best dairy cattle in North America, three dairy breed associations took to the main stage for dairy enthusiasts from around the world to celebrate in downtown Toronto, Ontario.

As with any legacy, it started with one cow. After the purchase of Fernhame PBL Penelope, Don and Wendy Chalack would soon acquire a dairy and buy 25 more cows, developing a business that would produce more than a dozen All-Canadian and All-American nominees, acquire three Master Breeder shields and become a household name in the North American registered dairy cattle industry.

The best robot cows combine four factors – milk production, milkability, milking speed and trips to the robot. Each of these factors can be measured, and the measurements can be combined to rank the best robot cows.