Philip Patterson who is responsible for the day to day management of the herd with herdsman, Scott Cromwell, right

In recent years Philip Patterson has been responsible for the day to day running of the milking herd - he has always been keen to try new and innovative ways to manage the herd.

The 300 strong herd of Holsteins have been AI bred for the last four years using a mixture of proven and genomic sires from Genus ABS. Philip has taken the breeding policy a step further during the last 18 months, moving to a full Sexcel and beef strategy and employing a new herdsman to assist with the breeding of the cows, Scott Cromwell.

Sexcel is the name given to Genus ABSs proprietary technology for sexing bovine semen. This innovative technology does not subject the cells to the high pressures, electric currents and shear forces used to produce the sexed semen historically available to farmers. The result has been a superior sexed genetics product that has helped customers maximize their profitability in line with their individual economic herd goals.

Genus ABS have concentrated on developing a product with superior fertility. Data from UK RMS herds, based on 169,693 inseminations, has shown that the Relative Conception Rate (RCR) on maiden heifers is 92% and the improved performance from Sexcel is reaching as high as 94% in 3rd lactation cows. This data set has also shown that Sexcel has delivered up to a 92% skew rate, thats 92 female calves in every 100 born. So more pregnancies per service as well as more females per calving with Sexcel over any other sexed product.

Philip commented: I was keen to try Sexcel to minimise the number of low value Holstein bull calves using the very latest technology available. I started using it in February 2019 and have been extremely pleased with the results. The conception rates have been similar to what we were achieving with conventional semen.

Although the beef income will be important, the British Blue sires are selected to ensure that the cows calve down successfully and start milking well, so particular attention is paid to calving ease when selecting beef bulls.

Gareth Bell, Genus ABS, who works closely with Phillip said: We are aiming to create cows that are well balanced with a willingness to produce high volumes of milk. PLI is followed closely and with Genus having 20 of the top 30 PLI sires, there are lots of options when it comes to choosing sires that will leave more profit in the herd.

The Pattersons herd also uses Genus ABS to help with the day to day management of the herd, through the ABS Partner programme. Action lists are created on a weekly basis to aid with dry offs and also any fertility work carried out. These reports are then used by Scott to monitor the herds reproductive performance and highlight any areas that need attention.

The management reports have helped us become more structured in our approach to fertility. We can see the benefits of the improvements we have made, including increasing the herds overall conception rate and reducing the calving interval, said Scott.

For more information on Sexcel or other Genus ABS products please contact your local Genus ABS representative or the office on 028 38 334426.

More here:
Sexcel The basis of a new plan! - Farming Life

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