Dam traits are vital in good suckler practice
Dam traits are vital in good suckler practice
SELECTING traits for the future suckler cow will see a move away from dairy crosses while still focusing on the maternal requirements of fertility and milkiness.
That is the message from researcher Ray Keatinge whose suckler trial at ADAS Redesdale is showing the importance of dam traits in economic suckler production.
"Weaned calf weights and costs of rearing are important economic targets for suckler production and are directly affected by the dam," he said.
In addition, better management of replacements can improve overall suckler performance: "Calving replacements at two years old could improve overall lifetime output, but careful rearing is required to ensure good fertility and integration into the main herd. Poor condition at first service could stunt growth later.
"Redesdale trials have shown that breeding Continental crosssuckler replacements can improve fertility at first service. Dairy crosses achieve a 59% conception rate whereas Continental crosses can achieve 75% where AI is used, stressed Mr Keatinge.
In contrast, Continental crosses take longer to resume to breeding activity after calving; 40 days opposed to 28 days for dairy crosses.