Accelerating (Enhancing) genetic improvement via genomic testing has been available to US dairy producers for more than five years. As a result of the learnings from the commercial usage of genomics, new findings are uncovering new facts in relation to historical alternatives used for heifer selection; such as focusing on increasing Average Daily Gain (ADG) to increase production. With the advent of genomic evaluations and the highly improved accuracy it brings to genetic estimates used in many former studies, it’s important to re-evaluate common standard beliefs. The sixth installment of this video series covers the following topic areas related to size-based traits and genomics:
- Common standard beliefs in heifer raising
- How do genomic size estimates relate to real life height and weight measurements?
- Standard #1 is evaluated: When should heifers start being bred?
- Standard #2 is evaluated: What is my best measure in calves to predict future performance?
Presenter
David Erf is a member of the Zoetis Dairy Technical Services team as a dairy geneticist. In this role, he assists with the CLARIFIDE dairy genomic testing program. He helps customers realize the full potential of genomic testing, and spends a great deal of time educating others in the dairy industry. David has over 20 years experience in the Artificial Insemination industry and has served on numerous boards and committees dealing with genetics in the dairy industry. Dave has a BS from the Ohio State University, and a M.S. in Dairy Cattle Breeding from the University of Minnesota. Dave and his family also manage and show cattle as part of Curvecrest Farm, a registered Brown Swiss herd, and he resides with his family in the Twin Cities area of Minnesota.
Genomic Webinar Series
A webinar series developed by Zoetis and Holstein Association USA will be an educational resource for current and prospective CLARIFIDE® customers and Enlight™ users.
Through a series of online presentations dairy producers will be able to better understand:
- How genomic testing works
- How genetic improvement and genomics can benefit the future of their herd
- How to utilize the data generated from genomic testing to make more effective management decisions.
The webinars will be moderated by The Bullvine with presentations by Zoetis or Holstein Association personnel. The Bullvine is an online source for dairy genetic and other industry happenings around the world, through their coverage via articles, videos and podcasts. Viewers will attend the presentation live at a specified time and date, and archived presentations will be accessible through other websites after each presentation.
The following webinars will take place from Noon Eastern time (9:00 a.m. Pacific time) as follows:
| Topic/Title | Speaker | Date |
| An introduction to genomics | Cheryl Marti | July 8 |
| Proving the technology works: How producers have benefited from using genomics | Dan Weigel | August 5 |
| Using genomics testing strategies to accelerate genetic progress | David Erf | August 26 |
| The economics of genomics | Cheryl Marti | October 7 |
| Putting genomic results to work | Lindsey Worden | November 4 |
| Moving Beyond Phenotype: genomics vs. size-based traits | David Erf | December 2 |
| Making progress on low heritability traits | Dan Weigel | January 6 |
This webinar is proudly sponsored by:
![zoetis[1]](https://www.thebullvine.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/zoetis1.jpg)
