It has been aptly stated that "your bull is half of your herd".
Using a poor or mismatched bull will certainly reflect on the expected
progeny from every serviced cow..
The matching of a bull with a particular cow, while only second nature, to
a few breeders, can be achieved by others through careful study.
The basic approach used by many is a study of ancestors from the
standard Association pedigree, extending over 3 or 4 generations.
This can be misleading and in some cases dangerous as there may be
close relationships further down the family tree.
To illustrate, using calculated Coefficients of Breeding for one of our
bulls at:
- 3 generations - 7%
5 generations - 19%
7 generations - 23%
10 generations - 23.5%
amount of otherwise hidden inbreeding.
If working from pedigrees, then consider at least 7 generations.
Pedigrees up to 9 generations can be obtained by following menu
item "Pedigrees"
A basic summary of breeding approaches is:
| Use of bull regardless of consequences (not advised) | |
|
| Detailed inspection of pedigree certs (min 7 gen.) | |
|
| Calculated Inbreeding Coefficients (preferred) | |
linebreeding and outcrossing (mainly dealing with dogs, but the
same principles apply).
Breeding Strategies by D P Sponenberg
Inbreeding and Linebreeding by Sue Ann Bowling
Linebreeding, Inbreeding and Outcrossing by Ermine Moreau-Sipiere
Let's Talk Linebreeding! by Claudia Waller Orlandi, Ph.D.
Profiling a Pedigree by Patricia Trotter
Inbreeding, Linebreeding and Outcrossing by Dr. Lean Sohn
