Dairy Judging Training

Charles F. Hutchison, Ph.D.

LSU AgCenter March 23 & 24, 2010

Objectives of Training a Dairy Judging Team

 Gain a better understanding of what makes a productive and functional dairy cow  Improve observation & evaluation skills  Improve decision making skills and organizational skills  Improve critical thinking skills

Objectives of Training a Dairy Judging Team

 Improve communication skills     Public Speaking Speaking concisely Taking Notes Organizing thoughts  Being a team member  Build Self Confidence

Fundamentals

• Recognize the different breeds of dairy cattle • Learn the parts of the dairy cow • Learn what traits and parts are important • Evaluate and compare to the ideal • Learn comparative terminology • Evaluate and make a decision.

• Prepare and organize their thoughts and decisions; and present them in a logical, clear, concise and convincing manner both orally and written.

State Contest

• Conducted at LSU AgCenter Dairy Farm on Campus • All classes will be Holsteins • 3 Classes of lactating cows • 3 Classes of heifers • Placing on all 6 classes • Oral reasons on the 3 classes of cows at the 4-H Mini-farm building

RESOURCES

• www.holsteinfoundation.org

• CEV – videos and DVDs • Other Agents • Live animal training sessions

Breeds of Dairy Cattle

7 Major Breeds and Several Minor or Rare Breeds

Dairy Cattle Facts

Most were imported from Europe Most do better in temperate climates: Milk production goes down in extreme hot weather Most have horns: Physically removed (de-horned) when calves Few polled (born with no horns) bulls available

Dairy Cattle Terms

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bull - Mature male dairy animal

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cow - Mature female dairy; shows evidence of having produced one or more calves

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heifer - female dairy animal that has not borne a calf

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calf - male or female dairy animal under one year of age

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springer – cow or heifer showing signs of pregnancy

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breed characteristics - physical traits that differentiate one breed from another

Dairy Cattle Terms

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dairy herd improvement records (DHI) production records kept on producing dairy cattle

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mammary system - parts of the cow directly responsible for producing and storing milk

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disposition - manner in which an animal acts; quiet, docile, vicious

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pedigree - register of lines of ancestry

Dairy Cattle Terms

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dairy character - characteristics indicating the animal will be useful in the dairy industry

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butterfat - percent of fat in the milk

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milk production - amount in pounds of milk that a cow produces during a lactation period

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lactation - span of time that a cow is giving milk

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Dry Cow – mature cow that is not lactating but is in late gestation.

Holstein

• Origin: Netherlands • Second oldest of the pure dairy breeds • Color: Black and white or red and white with markings clearly defined.

• Head: Clean cut proportionate to body; forehead broad and moderately dished • Size: 1500 lb

Holstein

Largest of all U.S. Dairy Breeds -Account for 93% of all dairy breeds in the U.S.

Highest Milk Producer Lowest breed for milk components

Jersey

• Origin: Isle of Jersey • Color: usually a shade of fawn with or without white markings. Muzzle is black encircled by a light colored ring. Tongue and switch can be black, white or both.

• Head: clean cut proportionate to stature showing refinement; Face slightly double dished • Size: 900 – 1,000 lb

Guernsey

• Origin: Isle of Guernsey • Color: Shade of fawn with white markings clearly defined; a clear (buff) muzzle is preferred over a smoky or black muzzle • Head: clean cut, forehead broad and slightly dished • Size: 1100 – 1150 lb

Ayrshire

• Origin: Scotland • Color: Light to deep cherry red, mahogany, brown or a combination of any of these colors with white or white alone • Head: Clean cut, proportionate to body; forehead broad and moderately dished • Size: 1200 lb

Brown Swiss

• Origin: Switzerland • Color: Solid brown varying from very light to dark; muzzle is black encircled by a mealy colored ring • Head: Clean cut, proportionate to body; forehead broad and slightly dished • Size: 1400 lb

Milking Shorthorn

• Origin: England • Color: Either red, red and white or roan • Head: Clean cut proportionate to body; forehead broad and moderately dished • Size: 1250 – 1350 lb

Red & White

• Origin: Holland • Color: red and white • Head: Clean cut proportionate to body; forehead broad and slightly dished • Size: 1400 lb

Dairy Breeds Milk Production Facts Breed Holstein Ayrshire Jersey Brown Swiss Guernsey Percent Butterfat 3.66

3.95

4.75

4.03

4.57

Pounds Butterfat 703 569 618 606 611 Pounds Milk Prod 19,185 14,398 13,020 15,062 13,363 Think about this?

1. Which breed produced the most total pounds of milk? Why do think this is so?

2. Why would butterfat be important to milk?

3. What breed produced the lowest total pounds of butterfat?

4. What would you think the most popular breed of Dairy cattle would be judging from this data? Why?

5. What is the definition of milk production? Why would a cow be lactating?

Identify the Breed(s

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Identify the Breed(s)

Identify the Breed(s)

Identify the Breed(s)

Identify the Breed(s

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Identify the Breed(s

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Identify the Breed

Identify the Breed(s

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Minor Dairy Breed

• Dexter • Origin: obscure could be cross between Devon and Kerry • Native home is southern part of Ireland • Mature cow weighs less than 750 lb and 36” – 42” tall

Minor Dairy Breed

• Danish Red • Origin: Islands off the coast of Denmark • Mature cow will weigh about 1,400 lb and gives about 12,000 lb milk

Minor Dairy Breed

• Dutch Belted (Lakenvelder) • Origin: Holland • The Dutch Belted breed flourished in the U.S. as a dairy breed from around 1815-1940.

• Today they are one of the rare breeds of livestock in North America, with fewer than 200 registered cattle in the country.

Minor Dairy Breed

• The Swedish Red-and White is the most common dairy breed found in Sweden. It is red with small white markings.. The cows weigh around 1200 lb, and they give about 16,500 lb milk in one year. The SRB is a resilient breed of cattle and they are also used for meat production.

Minor Dairy Breed

• Milking Devon • Origin: Devonshire England • First imported to the U.S. in 1623 to Plymouth Colony.

• Triple purpose breed

Minor Dairy Breed

• Gir • Origin: Southwest India • Mature cow weighs about 900 lb and produces about 3,500 lb.

• Dual purpose breed

Dairy Breeds Parts of a Dairy Cow

Dairy Breeds Parts of a Dairy Cow Quiz

Parts of the Cow

Lets Practice!

 Look at each cow and think about the parts of the Unified Scorecard.

 Then write down several things that you like or dislike about that cow.  Finally, write down how you would place the pair of cows

Dairy Cattle Judging “Use What you have learned”

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Which animal would be considered desirable?

What terms would you use to describe the differences?

Which animal shows the best general appearance?

Are these cows or heifers? Why?

Dairy Cattle Judging “Use What you have learned”

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Which animal would be considered desirable?

What terms would you use to describe the differences?

Which shows more dairy character? What are the indicators?

What about the udder?