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Gain inside information about 15 economically important traits to make more confident
feeder-calf decisions
Producers make tough decisions every day that directly affect the profitability
of their herd. Fall brings decisions about feeder calves and questions about retaining
ownership. Kevin Good, senior analyst, Cattle-Fax, says cow/calf producers should
strongly consider holding onto feeder calves this fall.
"In 2008, calf prices dropped in the second half of the year so a lot of producers
retained ownership of their calves, and it paid for those producers to do that,"
he says. "When we consider that feeder-calf prices are likely to be depressed this
fall; corn prices have come down from their 2008 record highs; and historically,
it pays to hold calves into the feeding phase - we are recommending that cow/calf
producers take a hard look at retaining ownership of their 2009 calf crop."
Good adds that though all cow/calf producers stand to profit from retaining ownership,
those who know more about their herd's health and genetics are a step ahead.
"Producers who know about the genetics and health of their cattle are in better
shape to be profitable when retaining ownership," he says. "It definitely is a benefit
to have information about the cattle's potential to gain and perform for both yield
and grade."
Dr. Kevin DeHaan, technical services director, IGENITY®, says cow/calf producers
can gain inside information about quality, yield grade and more this fall in time
to make some important retained ownership decisions.
"The comprehensive IGENITY profile includes DNA analyses for 15 economically important
traits, several of which directly affect feeder-calf profitability," he says. "Producers
can use this information to make more confident decisions about feeder calves to
help ensure they are pointed in the most profitable direction based on their individual
genetic merit."
IGENITY offers analyses for average daily gain (ADG) and residual feed intake (RFI)
as well as the most comprehensive list of carcass traits, including tenderness,
marbling, quality grade, yield grade, fat thickness and ribeye area. Dr. DeHaan
says when producers combine this powerful information with the user-friendly software
from IGENITY, they can sort and manage feeder calves with more confidence.
"With the IGENITY custom sort software, producers can choose the traits that are
most important and sort calves based on their scores for those traits," he says.
"In the case of feeder calves, producers may choose to focus on ADG, RFI, quality
and yield grade. Then they can make decisions about calves based on where they fall
within the group for these traits."
For example, producers may choose to retain ownership of the group of calves that
genetically are the most likely to gain efficiently and succeed when they are marketed
on a grid/formula basis. The producer may choose to market the next group of calves
on a live basis because they are more likely to gain quickly but they don't have
the genetic potential to grade Choice or better.
"With this powerful information in hand, producers can point calves in the direction
that best suits each animal's genetic potential," Dr. DeHaan says. "There can be
a significant amount of variation even within a group of calves from the same operation."
Research has shown there can be as much as $370 per head difference in a group of
cattle from the same genetic population.1
"Using DNA technology to help sort feeder calves can help producers reduce some
of this variability within a population, resulting in more profitable calves because
they were marketed based on their individual genetic potential," Dr. DeHaan says.
Few decisions have the economic impact for cow/calf producers as those involved
with marketing and selling feeder cattle. Cattle-Fax says that market conditions
are favorable this year for retaining ownership, but producers can't afford to make
decisions about feeder calves without all of the information available.
"It is easy to understand how the comprehensive IGENITY profile can help producers
select and market breeding stock with more confidence," Dr. DeHaan says. "But the
power of DNA also can be used to help take some of the guesswork out of decisions
about feeder calves - helping ensure calves are pointed in a direction where they
are genetically more likely to succeed and be profitable."
1Mitchell C. Tools for selection. Gulf Coast Cattlemen. July 2009:12-14.
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