Experiences with the Implementation of Stayability EPD Wade Shafer American Simmental Association Bozeman, MT.

Experiences with the Experiences with the Implementation of Implementation of

Stayability EPDStayability EPD

Wade ShaferAmerican Simmental AssociationBozeman, MT

•Fertility•Survivability•Structural Soundness•Disposition•Productivity

Traits Impacting StayabilityTraits Impacting Stayability

IT ’s IT ’s In In ThereThere!!

Does Increasing the Does Increasing the Stayability of Your Cowherd Stayability of Your Cowherd Improve Your Bottom Line?Improve Your Bottom Line?

Environment Genetics

Maybe Yes

What is the Most What is the Most Effective Way to Effective Way to

Genetically Improve Genetically Improve Stayability?Stayability?Crossbreed!!!!

The Biology of The Biology of CrossbreedingCrossbreeding

Breed Breed AA

Stayability

Carcass

Additive gene action

Non-additive gene actionEPDs

A x BA x B

Breed Breed BB

Heterosis

Does a Stayability EPD Does a Stayability EPD Have Value?Have Value?

Yes!Improving the additive component of Stayability is like adding icing to the cake

The Biology of The Biology of CrossbreedingCrossbreeding

Breed Breed AA

Stayability

Additive gene action

Non-additive gene actionEPDs

A x BA x B

Breed Breed BB

Heterosis

The Biology of The Biology of CrossbreedingCrossbreeding

Breed Breed AA

Stayability

Additive gene action

Non-additive gene actionEPDs

A x BA x B

Breed Breed BB

Heterosis

The Biology of The Biology of CrossbreedingCrossbreeding

Breed Breed AA

Stayability

Additive gene action

Non-additive gene actionEPDs

A x BA x B

Breed Breed BB

Heterosis

The Biology of The Biology of CrossbreedingCrossbreeding

Breed Breed AA

Stayability

Additive gene action

Non-additive gene actionEPDs

A x BA x B

Breed Breed BB

Heterosis

ASA’s All-Purpose Index

• Bred to all-aged females• Retain replacements• Culls sold grade and Yield• Straightbred AN cowherd• Prices and costs based on 5-yr

CattleFax average

Does a Stayability EPD Does a Stayability EPD Have Value?Have Value?

Using a sire two standard deviations better for Stayability (bottom to top third) improves your profitability by $45/cow exposed

LOTS!

• Is it an economically relevant trait?

Stayability EPD Stayability EPD ChecklistChecklist

Yes… VERY!

• Can it be selected for?

Yes… but…

Challenges with Challenges with StayabilityStayability

• Stayability is a lowly heritable trait expressed late in life

• Breed association data tends to be less than ideal for calculating Stay EPD

“I don’t need an EPD to make progress in stayability. I just send all my ‘problem’ cows to town.”

Challenges with Stay:Challenges with Stay: low low heritabilityheritability trait expressed trait expressed late in lifelate in life

Challenges with Stay:Challenges with Stay: low low heritabilityheritability trait expressed trait expressed late in lifelate in life

Without EPDs little if any progress is made in low-heritability traits Phenotypes

Stayability

Challenges with Stay:Challenges with Stay: low low heritabilityheritability trait expressed trait expressed late in lifelate in life

Without EPDs little if any progress is made in low-heritability traits low/med-acc EPD

Stayability

Challenges with Stay:Challenges with Stay: low low heritabilityheritability trait expressed trait expressed late in lifelate in life

Without EPDs little if any progress is made in low-heritability traits high-acc EPD

Stayability

“What good is an EPD that doesn’t have much accuracy until a sire is dead and gone?”

Challenges with Stay:Challenges with Stay: low low heritability trait heritability trait expressed expressed late in lifelate in life

Good Question!

Current options:

Challenges with Stay:Challenges with Stay: low low heritability trait heritability trait expressed expressed late in lifelate in life

Future developments:

Use the sure-bet “old man”Use several promising young bucks

Use all available information: Move away from pass/fail grading Add indicator traits to model

Gene markers

Challenges with Challenges with StayabilityStayability

• Breed association data tends to be less than ideal for calculating Stay EPD

Sketchy—potentially biased

May not be reflective of commercial culling

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1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010

Year of Birth

Stay

abili

ty

Traits Impacting StayabilityTraits Impacting Stayability

It’s It’s ALL in ALL in there!there!

FertilitySurvivabilityStructural SoundnessDispositionProductivityColor PatternPolled/hornedPopularity???

Challenges with Stay:Challenges with Stay: breed assoc. data tends to be breed assoc. data tends to be less than idealless than idealCurrent options:

Future developments:

Use common senseUse a few sure-bet “old men”Use several promising young bucks

Inventory-based reporting systemsUser-defined stayability

Do Challenges Warrant Do Challenges Warrant Ignoring Stay?Ignoring Stay?

I Don’t Think So

The icing may need work, but it still adds a lot to the cake