health-hoof-traits-13.html
VikingNews UK 02 2017
14 / 28
14 vikingnews | june 2017 t oday, the
hoof
health
index
is used on a full scale, and it is a tool that we actually take for granted. we are so familiarized to this informa- tion on the bulls in our breeding programs but also on the individual animals when the breeding plan on the herd level is decided. thanks to a huge number of reliable registrations from
hoof
trimmers, it is possible to describe
hoof
health
from the breeding perspective and to achieve a really good strength behind the
index
.
hoof
health
has heritability at 4%, which is on the same level as, for example, udder
health
that has been a
hoof
health
matters by claus langdahl, holstein breed coordinator, vikinggenetics
hoof
health
is a key for success of dairy producers. with our ntm and the
hoof
health
index
we are helping dairymen around the world taking their business to a higher level. part of breeding with good results. without doubt, there is a significant genetic variation between animals, mean- ing a big difference between the most
health
y and the poorest animals. this information is gold for the dairy producers; because there is no doubt that there is eco- nomic interest behind the goal of improving the animals. studies behind the
index
most people have probably forgotten these two old bulls: var etlar and v curtis. they were used around 2003-2005 which was before we had the information on
hoof
health
. var etlar had a very good breeding profile, but was not that good for longevity. v curtis, on the contrary, performed really well on longevity. today, thanks to the advances of science in the genetic field and our registration system, we know that these two bulls are almost exact opposite of each other when it comes to
hoof
health
. with today?s
hoof
health
index
, var etlar has 72, while v curtis has an impressive
index
of 123; this is definitely the reasons why today we cannot find var et- lar in pedigrees of the good bulls from vikinggenetics, while we often see v curtis. he is the sire to d cole, which then is sire to vh clark ? known as one of the best daughter proven bulls on ntm and especially strong for
hoof
health
.
hoof
health
included in ntm the
hoof
health
index
has a weight of 8% in ntm for holstein, and thereby stands for 35% of the maximum genetic progress achieved for
hoof
health
. even though, there are a few other countries in the world that have some form of
hoof
health
index
, it is only at vikingge- netics that the
index
is included in the total merit
index
to secure the constant genetic progress for
hoof
health
. improving
hoof
health
like no othe r
hoof-health-index-15.html