Genes, genetics, genomics – cutting out the bull!

Choosing the right bull can be one of the most significant decisions a dairy farmer can make in terms of the genetic future of his or her herd. Choosing bull semen for artificial insemination is an increasingly challenging task – new competitors from overseas have changed semen marketing here forever.The problem is, ‘how do dairy farmers make sensible herd breeding decisions when faced with a complex array of information and marketing collateral. The Australia Dairy Herd Improvement Service (ADHIS) has solved this by analysing their data to re-evaluate bulls on the basis of the most ‘preferred’ characteristics. ADHIS has created a listing of the top 200 bulls that also measure up to Australia Breeding Values (ABVs). This ‘Good Bulls Guide’ gives dairy farmers an ability to choose the bulls they want; confident they’ll be among the top 200 bull on offer in Australia.