My Genex Employee Training Experience

My name is Callie Griffin and I am the Beef Research Support intern working under Sarah Thorson, the Beef Education Manager, this summer.  Growing up on a cow/ calf operation in Eastern Montana, I acquired a tremendous amount of interest and passion for the beef industry and agriculture.  I am majoring in Animal Science at Montana State University and hope that this internship will help guide me toward the career path that is right for me.  This summer, I am going to be working with progeny test herds to help gather information.  I am also going to be taking pictures and doing some linear scoring on beef bulls. 

I recently got the opportunity to go to Wisconsin for two weeks to attend the employee training session.  I met so many unique individuals and had an amazing time.  It was refreshing to see so many people my age with that much drive and interest in agriculture.  My knowledge was tested and I got to answer a lot of questions that they had about the beef industry – hopefully I’ll get some of them out to Montana sometime! As I’m sure you already realized, my emphasis is on beef cattle!  I had never seen so many dairy cows in my life and no one believed me when I said that I had never set foot on a dairy.  Needless to say, I learned a lot during the first few days of the training class.  The advancements that have been made in dairy genetics are to be admired.  I can’t help but look forward to the advancements that will be made in my lifetime within the dairy and beef industries. 

I enjoyed the diversity the training course had to offer.  The other trainees and I learned about everything from marketing and the goal of the company to synchronization protocols.  I feel that I left Shawano with a better overall understanding of everything Genex has to offer.  I also enjoyed the A.I. training.  My classmates had a pretty good time teasing me about my height – the stool and I became pretty close over those few days!  I guess I never realized how big some of those dairy cows are!  It was great to see everyone get so much more comfortable with their technique each day. 

I feel so fortunate to have been able to meet so many terrific people and learn so much about Genex and CRI.  I am excited to see where all of my classmates are in 10 years and will always remember my experience in Shawano.  Being back in Montana, I hope that I will be able to use some of the knowledge I gained at the training to become a successful intern!

 

The 2013 May/June Genex Cooperative, Inc. Basic Training Class

 

 

 

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Author Callie Griffin is our Beef Research Support intern this summer. She will be beginning her junior year at Montana State University in the fall and expects to graduate in the spring of 2015 with a degree in Animal Science and minor in Agricultural Business. She grew up on a ranch in Eastern Montana where her family raises Simmental/ Angus cattle and grows alfalfa and corn. 







Artificial Insemination – Not As Easy As They Make It Look!

As a kid, I used to watch our “technician”, Orville, quickly and easily breed cows.  Actually, I admired him.  At a time when other little girls dreamed of growing up to be princesses, I wanted to be Orville!  I wasn’t  exactly sure what he did, but I observed him doing his job efficiently and effectively.  He came into our barn, discussed what was happening in our community, opened the breeder box, read my father’s notes and went to the tank to get the correct semen.  Dad would follow him to the milk house, still chatting about the things farm men talk about, as he prepared the thaw box and his equipment.  Then it was to the cows, where the real magic happened.  Again, I didn’t fully understand what he was doing, but now that I do – I’m even more amazed.  I’m amazed that people figured out how to mimic natural reproduction.  I’m amazed that we discovered a way to collect, package and freeze semen so it can be shipped across the globe. And I’m amazed by the swift and expert hands that are able to produce reliable results.  No, I never became Orville, but I did try an A.I. class once.  I discovered that it is a difficult job.  I could not find the cervix, which for those of you that know A.I. know, is pretty important.  I am not giving up though.  I am planning to take another class, this one much more involved and informative. 

Perhaps you dreamed of growing up to be like the “Orville” on your farm, or maybe you would just like to add another tool to your herd management toolbox. You are in luck, and so am I!  Genex offers just the class to help you become the A.I. Technician you always dreamed you could be.

For additional information you can head to our webpage! http://genex.crinet.com/page393/AITrainingClasses

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Author Brenda Brady is our Communications Specialist.  Brenda graduated from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls with a degree in Agricultural Education.  She went on to teach high school agriculture for 13 years.  She recently joined the Cooperative Resources International team.  Brenda grew up on a small Registered Holstein farm in central Wisconsin and now farms with her husband and in-laws.

"Reveal"ing Your Livestock Marking Solution

When it comes to heat detection, there are many different products available and Genex Cooperative carries a variety.  One heat detection aid that we are very excited about is the new Reveal™ Livestock Marker, which is a water-based, brush on tailpaint.  Now, you may be asking yourself – didn’t Genex already carry a brush on tailpaint?  The answer is yes; Reveal is replacing the paint previously marketed and the new paint is being exclusively produced and marketed by Genex and its subsidiaries. 

So what makes Reveal Livestock Marker so special? 

                -Made in the USA!

                -Contains a bittering agent to deter curious pen mates from licking.

                -Minimal touch-ups needed if animal has not been ridden.

                -Available in four fluorescent colors – red, yellow, blue and green.

                -Not only a heat detection aid.

                                -“Reveal” treated quarters to the next shift of milkers.

                                -“Reveal” breeding dates by writing it on the animal.

                                -Shot Cows?  “Reveal” them with a specific color for easily designation.

                                -“Reveal” cows that need to be sorted.

                -Available from your Genex Representative.

                -Available 24/7 on the Genex Profit Shop website.

Whatever your management style, there is a heat detection aid that will fit into your program.  Let your local Genex Representative help “Reveal” which options might fit best.

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Author Katie Wolf is our Product Program Manager.  She has been a member of the Genex team since 2002.  Katie graduated from the University of Wisconsin - Platteville, where she studied Agricultural Business.

FREDDIE still Fabulous

With 1HO08784 FREDDIE %-I ranking number 3 on the April LPI list after earning his first Canadian domestic proof, staff from Canada’s Holstein Journal requested information about FREDDIE from Genex Dairy Procurement Manager Paul Haskins.

Here’s what Paul had to say about the sire:

Schmidts Ponderosa Freddie 4660

FREDDIE continues to impress breeders with the April sire summaries by adding over 1,900 new milking daughters while maintaining or improving on his evaluation in all areas.  As the product of an O Man x Diehard pedigree combination, he is a fitness trait specialist siring trouble-free cows ideal for today’s modern and progressive dairies; daughters are medium-sized with plenty of width and dairy strength throughout, tracking well on ideal feet and legs. Mammary systems are pleasing and better than expected. His USA Udder Composite continues to climb as he adds more classified daughters. The udders are shallow and moderate in every other sense: smooth enough in the fore udder with plenty of height and width in the rear udder. Udder cleft is adequate but not extreme, and moderate teat size, shape, and placement are ideal for today’s breeding needs. This is a bull that can help moderate the current trend of teats that are too short and too close to be practical for milking in conventional and robotic milking operations. FREDDIE’s all-around performance in fitness, yield and conformation makes him appealing for many kinds of breeding programs, and his influence will continue through already extensive use of high-ranking sons, grandsons, daughters and granddaughters.

Second Lactation FREDDIE Daughters

April 2013 Jersey Proof Highlights

Genex continues to lead the industry in profitability, fertility and diversity.

Otter Morr Plus Smores

One highlight of the April sire summary was 1JE00711 PLUS. He added more than 200 daughters to his progeny proof, increased to over +2000 pounds of Milk and is now the no. 4 JPI™ bull in the breed among all bulls (not just progeny-proven bulls). PLUS daughters aren’t just good on paper; they are standouts in every milking string and heifer pen I have seen. The milking daughters have outstanding udder conformation, making all of that milk from shallow udders that are extremely wide and have great texture. They are tall, wide and have great openness and angularity.

PLUS is joined in the active list by 22 other bulls over +$500 Cheese Merit (CM). Among these are seven new additions. Five of these: 1JE00812 HAWTHORNE, 1JE00811 RADFORD, 1JE00815 PAYTON, 1JE00817 HOOKER and 1JE00807 SPRINGER are all Zuma sons, each from a different maternal grandsire. These five Zuma sons will sire shallow udders, excellent components, high Daughter Pregnancy Rate (DPR) and low Somatic Cell Score (SCS) which should make this group a strong complement to the many new milking daughters of Paramount Violet sons like Valentino, Vernon, Virgil and Victory.

Dam of PAYTON: Sun Valley Impuls Panda, EX-90%

Two other new additions are: 1JE00814 MAGUIRE, a Blitzen from a VG Tbone, and 1JE00818 LEGION, a Hendrix from an EX Blair that sires total performance and features a remarkable +2.57 SCS. Both LEGION and MAGUIRE have pedigrees that are completely free of Impuls and Paramount Violet.

Joining these bulls in the +$500 CM club are: our CM leader 1JE00792 MACHETE; progeny-proven fertility standout 1JE00654 ALLSTAR; our first PLUS son, 1JE00794 ZAYD; and 1JE00791 DIVIDEND, a high JPI bull that combines extreme yield with elite udder conformation. All four are available in GenChoice™.

The Genex Jersey lineup averages an exceptional +1.4 Sire Conception Rate (SCR) on 23 evaluated bulls. They are led by 1JE00763 LANCE-GR at +4.4 and 1JE00759 BRUNO at +3.2. PLUS and ALLSTAR are also over +3.0 SCR.

The new PregCheck™ rating provides clear evidence that popular young genomic bulls 1JE00801 MADDEN, 1JE00809 WILLIE and 1JE00810 ENRIQUE have excellent fertility four months before they will have official SCRs.

We’re proud of the diversity of the Jersey lineup. In total, 24 different sires are represented, 17 different maternal grandsires and 20 different breeder prefixes. The profit-minded breeder can find a bull in the Genex catalog that will complement the pedigree of every cow in the herd and sire high CM$, excellent yield and quality udders. Most important, using semen from Genex bulls will result in pregnancies.

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Author Scott Carson has been a member of the Genex Dairy Cattle Genetics sire procurement team since 2009. Scott is a graduate of Virginia Tech University. He then went on to study at North Carolina State University with Dr. Ben McDaniel where he participated in research activities that led to the implementation of genetic evaluations for Rear Legs-Rear View. From 1991 to 2008, Scott and his wife owned and operated Celestial Jerseys in New Lebanon, N.Y., earning several accolades including the 1997 National Outstanding Young Jersey Breeder award and the 1999 William M. Etgen Virginia Tech Outstanding Young Alumnus Award.

Make Heat Detection Count!

DHIA records indicate that the level of detected heats is about 50%.  This means that one out of every two heats routinely goes unnoticed.  Here are a couple of tips to make sure that heat detection is being performed correctly on your farm or ranch.

1. Know the signs of heat!

Standing to be mounted is the primary sign of heat, but secondary signs of heat can include:  riding other cows, bellowing or bawling, displaying signs of nervousness, sniffing the vulva or urine of other animals, having a pink and swollen vulva with a clear mucous discharge, having a rough tail head, chin rubbing, or they seem to be searching for something.

2. Take the time to accurately detect heat and only detect heat!

People who are in charge of heat detection need to make heat detection their only priority when it comes time for heat detection.  They should position themselves in “hotspots” in the pen.  “Hotspots” are places where there is good footing where cows will gather to show mounting activity.  The observer should be positioned in a place where the cow’s id is easy to read.  Heat detection should occur 2-3 times per day for at least 20 minutes.

3. Heat detect at the right time!

Research indicates that more than 70% of the mounting activity takes place between 7:00 at night and 7:00 in the morning.  Factors such as high temperature, humidity, wind, and rain tend to inhibit the expression of heat during midday hours.  The moral of the story, you should make sure that out of the 2-3 times you heat detect each day, one should be in the late evening hours and one should be in the early morning hours.  This will ensure that you are heat detecting at the times when you are likely to see the most cows in heat.

While nothing replaces actually seeing and identifying the cow in heat Genex offers several heat detection aids to help simplify heat detection.  These heat detection aids include DETAIL™ Tail Paint, Kamar® Heatmount Detectors, EstroTects™ and PaintStiks.  

The newest heat detection aids available through Genex are DeLaval Activity Systems.  Because cows in heat tend to have activity levels of 2.5-3 times their average day, activity systems are a good option as a heat detection aid.  Also, since reduced daily activity may indicate health issues; these activity systems also have benefits from a herd health stand point.  The system's ability to detect estrus early and accurately facilitates timely artificial insemination and helps lower reproduction costs by reducing days open and services per conception. The activity system even detects weak heat signs, the so-called "silent heats."

 Written by:  Sarah Thorson

Beef Education Manager

2013 Beef Genetic Management Guide

The 2013 Beef Genetic Management Guide is now available on-line.  Watch your mail box for it in the next couple of weeks!