Trait Description
General
Age of Animal The age of animal is displayed on the main screen as follow:
• 0 - 634 days in Days
• 635 - 730 days in Months
• 731+ days in Years.
The age of animal is displayed on the main screen’s Horn Measurements view window as follow:
• 0 - 3 months in Days
• 4 - 24 months in Months
• 25+ months in Years When is calf considered
as being weaned? A calf is considered weaned if a Wean procedure has been recorded (Other Data >
Procedures).
Reproduction
Expected Calving Date Expected calving date calculations in BenguFarm depends firstly on whether a pregnancy test was done or not for the particular animal:
1. If a pregnancy test was done, the animal was pregnant and the period pregnant was recorded in BenguFarm, the expected calving date is calculated as follows:
Testing date MINUS Period pregnant on testing date PLUS Normal pregnancy period (as set up at Settings > Herds > Matings, Pregnancy and calving).
2. If no pregnancy test was done OR a pregnancy test was done, the animal was found pregnant but the period pregnant has not been recorded in BenguFarm, the expected calving date calculation depends on whether matings were recorded in BenguFarm or not:
2.1. If matings were recorded (as is normally the case in cattle and sheep where mating seasons are used), the earliest possible calving date (if selected at Settings > Herds > Matings, Pregnancies & Calving > Calculate First Possible Expected Calving Date) is calulated as follows: The first mating date since the last calving date OR where several pregnancy tests have been done since the last calving date, the first mating since the previous pregnancy test PLUS Normal pregnancy period.
2.2. With the setting "Calculate Expected Calving dates without Mating Data"
[Settings > Herds > Matings, Pregnancies & Calving] enabled (it is enabled by default for the GAME module), the expected calving date is calculated without any mating data or pregnancy tests recorded in the program.
2.2.1. For heifers older than "Minimum Age of Heifers at 1st Mating"
(Settings > Herds > Matings, Pregnancy and Calving) the expected calving date is calculated as date of “Minimum Age of Heifers at 1st Mating” PLUS the "Normal Period Pregnant".
2.2.2. For cows with days since last calving date more than the "Av. Period from Calving to Mated again" (Settings > Herds > Matings, Pregnancy and Calving) the expected calving date is calculated as the last calving date PLUS the "Av. Period from Calving to Mated again" (if > 0, else the "Ovulation Period") PLUS the "Normal Pregnancy Period”. This calculation is displayed on the main window and My Reports (Last Mating - No mating data but expected calving dates), Heifers and Cows Near Calving report, if "Minimum days since last calving (no matings)" is marked (default marked in the GAME module), and the
Heifers and Cows Calved/Not Calved" report. This method thus calculates the earliest possible calving date. By changing the default
“Minimum Age of Heifers at 1st Mating” and/or the "Av. Period from Calving to Mated again" settings, the expected calving date calculation can be made more accurate.
Trait Description Guidelines for Selection
Age Last Calving
(ALC) Age (in months) when the cow calved for the
last time. Not normally used in selection – only
informative info.
First Inter-calving Period
(First ICP) Period (in days) between first and second
calving dates. Cull cows with a high first
inter-calving period, taken into consideration when they were mated for the first time and the second time.
Last Inter-calving Period
(Last ICP) Period (in days) between the last two calving
dates. Cull cows with a high last
inter-calving period.
Av Inter-calving Period
(Av ICP) Average period (in days) between calvings
over all the calving dates. Cull cows with a high average inter-calving period.
Days Since Last Calving
(DSLC) The period (in days) since the last calving
date. Cull cows with a high Days Since
Last Calving value.
Reproduction Index
(RI) The RI evaluates the overall reproduction performance of a cow, taking AFC and average ICP into account. Please note that DSLC is, for technical reasons, not taken into account in the calculation of the RI.
Using the RI, cows with different AFC and ICPs can directly be compared, e.g. a cow that calved at 24, 48 and 60 months of age
(Contemp.) A contemporary group is a group of animals born in the same year and season (thus of similar age), at the same location (same herd or farm), of the same sex, and fed and managed alike from birth to the time of measurement.
It is of UTMOST IMPORTANCE that all horn growth indexes (see Reports > Weights, should be defined in such a way that all (or at least all significant) centimeters or mm as set up at Settings >
Traits per Species) per month from birth to the time of measurement.
Use the Horn Growth Index for selection - see below.
Horn Growth Index Horn Growth Index is calculated by dividing the animal's horn growth per month from birth to measurement date value by the average horn growth off of the particular group (contemporaries within gender), expressed as a percentage.
A horn growth index of 110 thus means that the animal's horn grew 10% faster than the average of the group in which he or she was compared.
The Horn Growth Index makes it easy to compare animals’ horn growth within a contemporary group. To select for animals with above average horn growth, select animals with a Horn Growth Index of above 100 within the particular contemporary group.
Corrected Horn Length Currently Corrected Horn Length in
BenguFarm-GAME is only calculated for Sable.
The user can select to which age (e.g. 365 days) the horn length should be corrected (or projected). The Corrected Horn Length makes it possible to compare animals’ horn lengths at the same age.
To select for animals with above average horn length, select animals with a Horn Growth Index of above 100 within the particular contemporary group.
Horn Growth between measurements (inch/
md or mm / month or cm / month)
The average horn growth per month from the previous to the current measurement. This calculation is only available on the Horn Measurements view screen on the main window. To enable this option, go to Display
> Horn Measurements View Screen Options.
Body Measurements Adjusted Scrotum Circumference (Adj. SC)
Adjusted Scrotum is not yet calculated in
BenguFarm-GAME.
Scrotum circumference is an indirect
evaluation of testes volume. Larger testes are associated with a larger volume of semen production and also, to a lesser extent, with higher quality of semen.
Cull bulls with low (10% or more below average) Adjusted Scrotum Circumference (e.g. herd average = 340mm – cull bulls with an Adjusted Scrotum Circumference below 315mm).