“Connectedness” is an essential component of genetic evaluations. The degree of connectedness affects the accuracy of comparing estimated breeding values (EBVs) from one herd or contemporary group to the other. It c...“Connectedness” is an essential component of genetic evaluations. The degree of connectedness affects the accuracy of comparing estimated breeding values (EBVs) from one herd or contemporary group to the other. It can be measured through Connectedness Rating (CR) which is based on variances and covariance among the estimates of contemporary group effects. A computing algorithm and a computer program for estimating CR is available. The minimum required level of connectedness depends upon the size of the contemporary groups, the level of accuracy and the residual variance. About 48% CR is required to detect differences between EBVs that are greater than 20% of the standard deviation in the trait, for group sizes of about 100 animals. Higher levels are necessary for smaller group sizes and for more accurate comparisons. Breeders participating in a common genetic evaluation program should therefore exchange their superior genetics and possibly use some common testing facilities for meaningful estimates of breeding values. Maintaining a good connectedness level will make the genetic evaluation program more useful for selection of superior breeding animals and achieving faster rate of genetic progress.展开更多
The objectives of this study were to set up a new genetic evaluation procedure to predict the breeding values of Holstein herds in Heilongjiang Province of China for milk and fat production by utilizing Canadian pedig...The objectives of this study were to set up a new genetic evaluation procedure to predict the breeding values of Holstein herds in Heilongjiang Province of China for milk and fat production by utilizing Canadian pedigree and genetic evaluation information and to compare the breeding values of the sires from different countries. The data used for evaluating young sires for the Chinese Holstein population consisted of records selected from 21 herds in Heilongjiang Province. The first lactation records of 2 496 daughters collected in 1989 and 2000 were analyzed. A single-trait animal model including a fixed herd-year effect, random animal and residual effects was used by utilizing Canadian pedigree and genetic evaluation information of 5 126 sires released from the Canadian Dairy Network in August 2000. The BLUP procedure was used to evaluate all cattle in this study and the Estimated Breeding Values (EBV)for milk and fat production of 6 697 cattle (including 673 sires and 6 024 cows) were predicted. The genetic levels of the top 100 sires originated from different countries were compared. Unlike the BLUP procedure that is being used in conjunction with the single-trait sire model in Heilongjiang Province of China now, the genetic evaluation procedure used in this study not only can be used simultaneously to evaluate sires and cows but also increase the accuracy of evaluation due to using the relationships and genetic values of the Canadian evaluated sires with more daughters. The results showed that the new procedure was useful for genetic evaluation of dairy herds and the comparison of the breeding values of these sires imported from different countries showed that a significant genetic improvement has been achieved for milk production of the Heilongjiang Holstein dairy population by importing sires from foreign countries, especially from the United States due to the higher breeding values.展开更多
文摘“Connectedness” is an essential component of genetic evaluations. The degree of connectedness affects the accuracy of comparing estimated breeding values (EBVs) from one herd or contemporary group to the other. It can be measured through Connectedness Rating (CR) which is based on variances and covariance among the estimates of contemporary group effects. A computing algorithm and a computer program for estimating CR is available. The minimum required level of connectedness depends upon the size of the contemporary groups, the level of accuracy and the residual variance. About 48% CR is required to detect differences between EBVs that are greater than 20% of the standard deviation in the trait, for group sizes of about 100 animals. Higher levels are necessary for smaller group sizes and for more accurate comparisons. Breeders participating in a common genetic evaluation program should therefore exchange their superior genetics and possibly use some common testing facilities for meaningful estimates of breeding values. Maintaining a good connectedness level will make the genetic evaluation program more useful for selection of superior breeding animals and achieving faster rate of genetic progress.
文摘The objectives of this study were to set up a new genetic evaluation procedure to predict the breeding values of Holstein herds in Heilongjiang Province of China for milk and fat production by utilizing Canadian pedigree and genetic evaluation information and to compare the breeding values of the sires from different countries. The data used for evaluating young sires for the Chinese Holstein population consisted of records selected from 21 herds in Heilongjiang Province. The first lactation records of 2 496 daughters collected in 1989 and 2000 were analyzed. A single-trait animal model including a fixed herd-year effect, random animal and residual effects was used by utilizing Canadian pedigree and genetic evaluation information of 5 126 sires released from the Canadian Dairy Network in August 2000. The BLUP procedure was used to evaluate all cattle in this study and the Estimated Breeding Values (EBV)for milk and fat production of 6 697 cattle (including 673 sires and 6 024 cows) were predicted. The genetic levels of the top 100 sires originated from different countries were compared. Unlike the BLUP procedure that is being used in conjunction with the single-trait sire model in Heilongjiang Province of China now, the genetic evaluation procedure used in this study not only can be used simultaneously to evaluate sires and cows but also increase the accuracy of evaluation due to using the relationships and genetic values of the Canadian evaluated sires with more daughters. The results showed that the new procedure was useful for genetic evaluation of dairy herds and the comparison of the breeding values of these sires imported from different countries showed that a significant genetic improvement has been achieved for milk production of the Heilongjiang Holstein dairy population by importing sires from foreign countries, especially from the United States due to the higher breeding values.
