Cherry Picking and Cattle

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There is a great post about picking cherries and raising cattle at the Black Ink blog. I really like how the husband and mother-in-law had different attitudes toward change. It is also interesting how the source of new information influenced the response.
What traditions in livestock genetics need to be questioned?
Do you have an example of how your operation questioned tradition and found an improved practice?
I would love to see your examples in the comments section.