{"id":3064,"date":"2021-04-13T04:19:28","date_gmt":"2021-04-13T04:19:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www-dev.absglobal.com\/au\/?p=3064"},"modified":"2021-04-13T23:04:35","modified_gmt":"2021-04-13T23:04:35","slug":"breeding-the-best-thanks-to-genomics-and-sexcel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www-dev.absglobal.com\/au\/2021\/04\/13\/breeding-the-best-thanks-to-genomics-and-sexcel\/","title":{"rendered":"Breeding the best thanks to genomics and Sexcel"},"content":{"rendered":"

Andrew Delaney isn\u2019t short of replacement heifers. In fact, the Nirranda dairy farmer has enough to satisfy his annual herd intake and plenty leftover to sell to the export market \u2013 making the most of recent high prices. But it\u2019s one thing to have quantity and something totally different to combine this with quality. Andrew and Jacqui Delaney have both.<\/p>\n

If a trip down the paddock to view their \u201ceven\u201d herd of rising two-year-old ABS JERONIMO-P<\/a> heifers \u2013 due to calve in mid-September to FB 53 Kenobi GIANNIS<\/a>.  \u2013 isn\u2019t proof enough, Andrew\u2019s genomic data tells an even more impressive story. In the most recent Australian Breeding Values (ABV) release, in April, the Delaneys not only held the top heifer spot, but they also bred six inside the top 100. These heifers were ranked according to their Balanced Performance Index (BPI) \u2013 an economic index which helps Australian dairy farmers independently select sires for their breeding program. The top Australian heifer was sired by the country\u2019s highest ranked Holstein JERONIMO-P and has a BPI$ of 544.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Underlying Andrew & Jacqui Delaneys\u2019 recent herd improvement acceleration has been their focus on selecting young genomic bulls with high BPI rankings and their use of ABS Sexcel\u00ae sexed genetics to deliver more heifer calves.<\/p><\/div>\n

Genomic testing results and the BPI underpin most breeding decisions for the Delaneys and, according to Andrew, the data doesn\u2019t lie. \u201cAs soon as I get my genomic numbers back, I work out \u2018there\u2019s my good ones and my bad ones\u2019 and \u2018there\u2019s my cut off point\u2019,\u201d he said. \u201cI work out my top 40-45 heifers, the ones I want, and then there is a line. Anything below that is gone.\u201d \u201cEven if it looks phenomenal and has a beautiful appearance, it\u2019s got to go,\u201d Jacqui added. Most recently this \u201cline\u201d was a BPI$ of 310. Anything below that number was sold. To put it in perspective, a BPI$ of 310 places the Delaney heifers among the top 2 per cent of females for BPI in Australia.<\/p>\n

According to the latest ABV release, the Delaneys\u2019 heifers in the top 100 \u2013 including five sired by JERONIMO-P and one by Boghill Glamour PERSUADE<\/a> \u2013 all had a BPI$ of more than 467. Andrew and Jacqui started genomic testing their heifers six years ago. Since then, their average BPI has risen 182 per cent, from 110 to 310 BPI$.<\/p>\n

Underlying the Delaneys\u2019 recent herd improvement acceleration has been their focus on selecting young genomic bulls with high BPI rankings and their use of ABS Sexcel\u00ae sexed genetics to deliver more heifer calves. The story behind the Delaneys\u2019 high-flying heifers started when a young genomic bull called ABS JERONIMO-P caught Andrew\u2019s attention two years ago. At the time, the bull was fresh from breaking Australian records as the first genomic sire to hit the Australian market with a BPI$ of more than 400. In April 2021, he was labelled Australia\u2019s highest-ranking sire with a BPI$ of 596 and a Health Weighted Index (HWI) score of 602.<\/p>\n

For Andrew, the decision to use JERONIMO-P as a Sexcel product made both economic and practical sense. \u201cI was looking for good type, and a sire with a BPI$ of over 480, he also delivered a bit of width in the rear udder \u2013 what we were looking for,\u201d he said. One of these heifers, bred because of Andrew\u2019s decisions three years ago, is now Australia\u2019s highest BPI heifer. This heifer\u2019s dam was sired by De-Su 12128 TAILOR<\/a> and is one of 40 owned by the Delaneys due to be joined this month to Bomaz EPISODE<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Andrew and Jacqui, their children Beau 11, Jacob 8 and Amelia 6, farm with Andrew\u2019s parents Ted and Doreen. Ted and Doreen started using artificial insemination more than 50 years ago. While Andrew is pleased his family has bred the country\u2019s top heifer, he doesn\u2019t focus on individual cows when it comes to herd improvement. Instead, he looks to enhance the whole herd, preferring to lift the average rather than focusing on the odd outlier. To do this he joins all heifers and top genomic cows \u2013 those cows with a BPI of more than 240 \u2013 to Sexcel semen and chooses about three bulls for each joining.<\/p>\n

Two heifers by short gestation sire De-Su 13530 SEVILLE<\/a> were freshly calved at the Delaneys\u2019 in February. One of these SEVILLEs has a Production Index (PI) of 111, was producing 31.3 litres\/day or 2.15kg of milk solids a day. This included 1.13kg of protein and 1.02kg of butterfat.<\/p>\n

Outside of their highest-ranking genomic animals, the rest of the milking herd has been joined with conventional semen. But recently Andrew has been weighing up the economics of using ABS Beef InFocus\u2122 dairy-beef semen and making the most of the established supply chain. \u201cTo get a couple of hundred bucks for a beef calf that is a few days old, could work,\u201d he said. \u201cYou don\u2019t have to worry about rearing them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Andrew does all his own AI, having previously worked as a technician, and now he\u2019s witnessing first-hand the fertility improvements in his own herd as a result of selecting young genomic, high BPI sires. One example was during the December joining when he used 50 straws of EPISODE to join the first 50 cows on heat and 38 got in calf. He\u2019s also seen an improvement in the herd\u2019s average bulk milk cell count which, in March, sat at 114,000 cells\/ml \u2013 despite including 50 \u201colder\u201d cows due to be sold soon.<\/p>\n

Last year the Delaneys split calving Holstein herd made the most of favourable seasonal conditions, producing an average per cow production of 8100 litres, 289kg of butterfat and 284kg of protein across an average 305 day lactation.<\/p>\n

Andrew has always had an interest in genetics and enjoyed searching for the next avenue for herd improvement. He described breeding as his \u201chobby\u201d, while Jacqui insisted it was his \u201cpassion\u201d. \u201cHe only competes with himself,\u201d Jacqui said about Andrew\u2019s continual quest for herd improvement. \u201cHe does what works for his system, the herd is for his benefit.\u201d \u201cI want good cows to work with,\u201d Andrew added. \u201cAfter all, I see them every day, I\u2019m milking them every day.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Andrew Delaney isn\u2019t short of replacement heifers. In fact, the Nirranda dairy farmer has enough to satisfy his annual herd intake and plenty leftover to sell to the export market \u2013 making the most of recent high prices. But it\u2019s one thing to have quantity and something totally different to combine this with quality. Andrew and Jacqui Delaney…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":337,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3064","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-abs-australia-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nBreeding the best thanks to genomics and Sexcel - ABS Global Australia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www-dev.absglobal.com\/au\/2021\/04\/13\/breeding-the-best-thanks-to-genomics-and-sexcel\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Breeding the best thanks to genomics and Sexcel\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Andrew Delaney isn\u2019t short of replacement heifers. In fact, the Nirranda dairy farmer has enough to satisfy his annual herd intake and plenty leftover to sell to the export market \u2013 making the most of recent high prices. But it\u2019s one thing to have quantity and something totally different to combine this with quality. Andrew and Jacqui Delaney…\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www-dev.absglobal.com\/au\/2021\/04\/13\/breeding-the-best-thanks-to-genomics-and-sexcel\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"ABS Global Australia\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-04-13T04:19:28+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-04-13T23:04:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www-dev.absglobal.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2021\/04\/IMG_5819.jpg?w=1024\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www-dev.absglobal.com\/au\/2021\/04\/13\/breeding-the-best-thanks-to-genomics-and-sexcel\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www-dev.absglobal.com\/au\/2021\/04\/13\/breeding-the-best-thanks-to-genomics-and-sexcel\/\",\"name\":\"Breeding the best thanks to genomics and Sexcel - 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