Prime_Time_summer_2019

Akaushi Matters Loni Soefje | Assistant to the Director | lsoefje@akaushi.com AMERICAN AKAUSHI ASSOCIAT ION UPDATE T he time to work calves is here for most of our breed-

ber in case the ear tag falls out or becomes unreadable. Sample Barcode The sample barcode is helpful, especially if tissue samples are being submitted, be- cause tissue samples do not allow room on the DNA sample to write a tag ID. Includ- ing the barcode number will make sure we know which sample belongs to which calf. Animal ID Including the animal ID enables the as- sociation to register cattle into the system correctly. The association would like for the DigitalBeef ® system to digitally reflect the herd as accurately as possible, so having the correct animal ID is very helpful. Sex M/F If the sex of the calf is not included, the calf will be uploaded as a steer. The asso- ciation is currently putting together new expected progeny differences (EPDs), and having the correct sex of the progeny will add to EPD accuracy. Date of Birth Age is important to make sure we are maximizing the potential of these cattle be- fore they reach 30 months of age. Realizing it is difficult to record calves' exact birth- dates, the association simply asks that the first birthdate is recorded for the set of DNA that is sent in. If the exact date of birth is known, then please include the specific date. Percentage Akaushi The percentage of Akaushi is very help- ful when it comes to matching parentage. If we know that the calves are halfbloods, we will not spend time matching parentage to a dam. If we know a calf is supposed to be three-quarters Akaushi, the association will know to match parentage to a half- blood dam and fullblood Akaushi bull. This applies to all percentage offspring greater than 50 percent Akaushi. Continued page 16

ers who have a spring calving season. Since the American Akaushi Association requires all Akaushi percentage cat- tle to be DNA verified, recordkeeping can be a

bit tedious. Our goal is to help increase the efficiency of our breeders’ operations by returning DNA results as quickly as pos- sible. In order for the DNA samples to be processed, sent to the lab and receive re- sults in a timely manner, it helps if breed- ers provide the correct information. The DNA Submission Form can be found at www.akaushi.com/forms . Make sure you download both the front and back of the form. Send the completed form in with the DNA sample. I figured I would take a moment to explain why the association needs the information included on the submission form. Please keep in mind that the information submitted with the DNA is used to register the cattle, so the more information the better. Electronic ID Number An electronic ID (EID) is simply a form of identification. We need the EID number listed to match it up to the calf’s tag num-

Akaushi Prime Time • Summer 2019

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