The dairy industry continues to adapt and embrace new technologies and STgenetics® is bringing you the genetics you need in this evolving market. Robotic milking systems have become more widespread in recent years as they reduce labor costs, improve animal welfare and increase milk yield. Now, STgenetics® has introduced the Robotic Cow Index (RCI) to maximize Robotic Milking efficiency.
“We now have data from actual robotic milking machines that can provide us with more comprehensive insights into the ability of cows to perform well in a robotic milking system, so STgenetics® has established an index that will identify females with superior genetics for robotic milking based on this data,” says Joseph Deeb, STgenetics® Technical Director of Genetics and Genomics. “RCI is the exclusive and only Robotic Milking Genetics built from robotic milking performance validated by robotic milking data for robotic milking systems.”
To develop this index, STgenetics® has collected data from over 4,600 cows and close to 900,000 daily milking records at the Ohio Heifer Center robotic milking facility and their partner farms since 2019. Among other data points, robotic milking systems report the amount of time that cows are in the robotic milking box as well as the time it takes to complete milking.
Box Time (BT) can fluctuate between cows for many reasons such as the temperament of the cow as she enters which affects the time it takes for the robot to attach as well as if the attachments stay secure throughout the milking process. Milking Speed (MS) is critical because cows that have more consistent flow milk faster which allows for more cows to be milked by a single robot. By combining the precise data from actual milking robots as well as the genomic data for the females in our facilities, STgenetics® identified genetic markers that predict cow performance for Box Time (BT) and Milking Speed (MS).
“In our research we found that both of these traits have high heritability with 40% for BT and 53% for MS respectively,” adds Deeb. “This means that by selecting for females with superior Box Time and Milking Speed, producers utilizing a robotic milking system can make dynamic genetic progress for future generations of robot milking cows.”
Other traits in RCI, besides MS and BT, include Mastitis (MAS), Teat Length (TL), Rear Teat Placement (RTP) and Front Teat Placement (FTP), from the Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding (CDCB).
STgenetics® continues to drive genetic innovations that benefit farmers’ profitability and sustainability and now offers a signature lineup of Robotic Milking designated sires that optimize productivity and profitability. All Robotic Milking sires are available in Ultraplus™, the newest and most innovative gender-sorted semen with 90% or higher gender accuracy and the highest Conception Rates ever seen in the dairy industry.
Consult the RCI Specialist Sires list below for the complete list of sires developed for robotic milking systems.
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Located in Navasota, Texas, STgenetics® is making the world greener, more sustainable and profitable. By improving herd genetics through science and technology, we believe that the best way to predict the future is to create it, while feeding the world with our passion for the beef and dairy industries. The STgenetics® Integrated Approach to management combines cutting edge genetics, innovation driven programs and gender-sorted semen to aid farmers in improving cattle performance to feed the world while reducing their carbon footprint.