A Steak in Genomics™

My older son Jaden Decker competed in the Missouri Junior Hereford Association Illustrated Speech Contest.  The Show-Me-Select Replacement Heifer Program has been very successful helping farmers and ranchers better manage beef heifers. We recently received USDA funding to use reproductive tract scores, pelvic measurements, and fetal age from ultrasound to better predict heifer reproduction EPDs. We are recruiting 2,500 Hereford and 2,500 Red Angus heifers for this project. Jaden discusses using these management practices and collecting this data in his herd.

Written by Duane Dailey Beef cattlemen will gain insights into Show-Me-Select replacement heifers Friday, Jan. 4, at the start of their annual meeting in Columbia. The Missouri Cattlemen’s Association (www.mocattle.org) meeting runs Jan. 4-6, 2019, at the Holiday Inn Executive Center. The SMS group usually meets at the University of Missouri campus in Columbia. They will join on the first day for the heifer meetings. “Joining two groups benefits both,” says Dave Patterson, MU Extension beef reproduction specialist. “Both sides gain.” An educational seminar is planned for 2-5 p.m. on Jan. 4. Focus is on heifer development. Highlights are two SMS panels. The first covers “The Role of the Veterinarian in Heifer Development.” The other has five producers telling of success. Many veterinarians urge clients to follow breeding protocols of MU Extension for heifer development. A big SMS attraction to farmers is calving ease. Trouble-free calving also gains favor with veterinarians. Tha...

Written by Duane Dailey Replacement heifers to upgrade cow-calf herds will be offered in six Show-Me-Select sales this fall. Also, owners can restock cow herds culled in the drought. With strength in beef demand and rains growing pastures, herd owners can rebuild. Dry weather’s impact on forages had farmers concerned. “Optimism of cow-calf herd owners should return,” says David Patterson, University of Missouri Extension beef specialist. “The sales can help them.” Patterson has developed Show-Me-Select for more than two decades. The marketing sales are a small part of a year-round education program. The main parts are reproduction management and genetics. This year the sales reach beyond Missouri. All will be broadcast online at LiveAuctions.TV. Buyers anywhere can bid in every sale. Sales start Nov. 16 at Joplin and Kirksville. Consignors north and south in the state offer heifers guaranteed pregnant. Many of those will be timed-AI bred, giving a calving date and uni...

Position: Assistant Extension Professor of Animal Sciences, non-tenure track 100% Extension Responsibilities: The person is expected to develop a nationally recognized education and engagement program in cow-calf production with emphasis on reproduction and management of the beef cow. This includes training regional extension livestock specialists, veterinarians and veterinary students, and allied industry personnel, interacting with cattle producers and agribusiness firms, and providing support for the National Center for Applied Reproduction and Genomics in Beef Cattle. Qualifications: The individual must have a Ph.D. in Animal Science and an extensive knowledge of the beef cattle industry. Experience with and a strong interest in working with beef cattle producers and allied industries is necessary. Must be able to interact and collaborate effectively with faculty in reproductive biology and genomics. Location: The Division of Animal Sciences, University of Missouri, Columb...

Written by Logan Jackson College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources The Division of Animal Sciences at the University of Missouri College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources (CAFNR) boasts many strengths, including its vast research and work with beef cattle reproduction and genetics. The faculty, who have responsibilities not only in research, but also in teaching, extension and economic development, are experts in taking their findings and sharing them with farmers, ranchers and the Missouri community as a whole. With the help of a $300,000 grant from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the division will be able to expand on those leadership opportunities. The grant, through USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), will be used to develop The National Center for Applied Reproduction and Genomics (NCARG) in Beef Cattle. The goal of NCARG will be to promote the economic impact of the technologies Mizzou Animal Sciences fac...

On December 2, 2017 at 11:00 am at the Fruitland Livestock Auction, 80 bred heifers will be available for sale in the Southeast Missouri Show-Me-Select ™ Replacement Heifer Sale . Seven of these heifers are Show-Me-Plus ™ heifers.  A Show-Me-Plus™ heifer is a registered or commercial heifer that has genomic predictions. For a registered heifer, this means she has GE-EPDs. For commercial heifers, it means she has been tested with a DNA panel  providing genomic predictions. The following lots contain Show-Me-Plus™ heifers. Glen Birk Farms 1036 Co. Rd 341 Jackson, MO 63755 573-243-4874 12 Angus Heifers 7 Registered Angus 5 Commercial Angus 4 Show-Me-Plus Registered heifers: 1 is sired by KM Broken Bow 002, AI bred to Quaker Hill Rampage 0A36, bull calf due 2/8/18. This heifer qualifies as Tier II and has been i50K tested. 3 are sired by Birks O’Reilly Factor 83, AI bred to AAR Ten X 7008 SA, bull calves due 2/8/18. 1 is sired by GBF Upshot 4436, AI bred to ...

The Show-Me-Select ™ Replacement Heifer program will host a sale  December 8, 2017 at the Farmington Livestock Auction starting at 7:00 p.m. At the sale, 3 Show-Me-Plus ™  heifers will sell.  A Show-Me-Plus™ heifer is a registered or commercial heifer that has genomic predictions. For a registered heifer, this means she has GE-EPDs. For commercial heifers, it means she has been tested with a DNA panel providing genomic predictions. Below is information about the Show-Me-Plus™ heifers selling in Farmington, Missouri. Turner Farms Jon & Mary Ann Turner 10511 St. Hwy JJ Belgrade, MO 63622 (573) 766-5361 https://turnerangus.farm/ All three heifers are Registered Black Angus and have been GGP-LD genomic tested. All have been AI'ed and then pasture exposed to Briarwood Mr Bismarck 5014, a son of S A V Bismarck 5682. Two pregnancy checked AI bred; on natural service bred. One Tier-2 daughter of Connealy Courage 25L; natural bred to Briarwood Mr Bismarck 5...

Seven Show-Me-Plus ™  heifers will sell at the Show-Me-Select ™  Replacement Heifer Sale on November 25, 2017 at Kingsville Livestock Auction, starting at 11:00 a.m. A Show-Me-Plus ™  heifer is a registered or commercial heifer that has genomic predictions. For a registered heifer, this means she has GE-EPDs. For commercial heifers, it means she has been tested with a DNA panel providing genomic predictions. Below is information about the Show-Me-Plus ™  heifers selling in Kingsville. Balancer Heifers - Show Me Plus ™ ( 7 hd) Home-raised and very gentle, commercial Balancer heifers raised with low stress handling, rotational grazing and electric fenced trained.   Sired by Seedstock Plus Gelbvieh bulls that are full of performance and growth, maturing into super cows for the new owner.   Bred to Gelbvieh bulls full of performance, ranking in top 1% for milk, 5% for CE, TM and YG.   All heifers are genomically tested and qualify as Show Me Pl...

Guest post by Tamar Crum , University of Missouri Scott Speidel Colorado State University The concept of stayability was developed ~23 years ago. Stayability is simply, generally, the survivability to a certain age given the opportunity to reach that age. Multi-breed stayability analyses are difficult because of different definitions of stayability. Is the female present in the herd at 6 years old? (basic/generic definition) Did she wean a calf at 6 years old? Did she wean a calf at 6 years old while also calving at 2 years of age? Did she calve 5 consecutive times within the same calving season? Successful females for stayability varies depending on which of the definitions of stayability the breed association has adopted. It is shown that stayability to 6 years of age is a heritable trait. Stayability is a HUGE driver of herd profitability and accounts for 53-77% of the value of of the maternal indices. Currently, stayability is recorded as a binary trait. ...