SG_USA_March_2023

How much is crossbreeding worth? Much of the classic heterosis research has been done at the U.S. Meat Animal Research Center in Clay Center, Neb. Scientists there demon strated that proper utilization of crossbreeding could improve total production in a cow-calf enterprise by more than 20 percent. More than half of this benefit is due to use of the crossbred cow. ADVANTAGES OF THE CROSSBRED CALF Trait Improvement %Heterosis Calving Rate (%) 3.2 4.4 Survival to Weaning (%) 1.4 1.9 Birth Weight (lbs.) 1.7 2.4 Weaning Weight (lbs.) 16.3 3.9 Avg. Daily Gain (lbs./day) 0.08 2.6 Yearling Weight (lbs.) 29.1 3.8 Adapted from Cundiff and Gregory, 1999 ADVANTAGES OF THE CROSSBRED COW Trait Improvement %Heterosis Longevity in herds (yrs.) 1.36 16.2 Lifetime # of calves 0.97 17.0 Cumulative WW (lbs.) 600 25.3 Adapted from Cundiff and Gregory, 1999 One of the main difficulties in utilizing heterosis is develop ing a sustainable crossbreeding program that optimizes hetero sis in both cows and calves. The National Beef Cattle Evalua tion Consortium Beef Sire Selection Manual ( www.nbcec.org )

has an excellent discussion of the implementation of various crossbreeding systems. Effective use of crossbreeding is one of the two tools a breeder has to improve production in the herd. Optimizing heterosis through mating systems results in a significant improvement in performance for many economically important beef production traits.

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MARCH 2023 • WWW.SANTAGERTRUDIS.COM