Direct and Indirect Sire Evaluations for Fat Test and Economic Merit

Abstract

Evaluations for milk, fat yield, and fat test for Holstein sires in artificial insemination were calculated from first lactation records of Holstein daughters by best linear unbiased prediction procedures. Indirect evaluations for fat test also were calculated by adding best linear unbiased predictions for milk and fat yield to breed averages for milk and fat yield to calculate test and then subtracting breed average fat test. The indirect evaluation for test had a simple correlation of .99 with fat test from best linear unbiased prediction. Dollar value indexes were calculated from evaluations for milk yield and from evaluations for fat test by best linear unbiased prediction or by the indirect method with a price of $17.64 per 100kg of milk and a fat test differential of $.1764 per .1%. The correlation between the dollar values was .99. Dollar value from best linear unbiased prediction of fat test was correlated .96, .93, and .23 with the best linear unbiased predictions for milk yield, fat yield, and fat test.