Three-breed rotational crossbreds of Montbéliarde, Viking Red, and Holstein compared with Holstein cows for dry matter intake, body traits, and production

Crossbreeding is a strategy to counter the declining fertility, resilience, and longevity of purebred Holstein (Ho) cows. However, little is known of the effects of long-term systematic rotational crossbreeding on milk technological properties and cheese yield (CY). In this study, we compared the individual milk composition, milk coagulation properties (MCP), and CY of 468 purebred Ho and 648 crossbred (CR) cows obtained from two 3-breed rotational crossbreeding systems using Viking Red (VR), Montbéliarde (Mo), and Ho sires over 4 generations. Individual milk samples were collected once from 1,116 primiparous and multiparous cows kept in 2 dairy herds, raised for the production of Grana Padano (high milk yield, total mixed ration based on corn silage) and Parmigiano Reggiano (moderate milk yield, only dry feeds) cheeses. In both herds, a 3-breed rotational mating system was used in which Ho cows were first inseminated with VR, whereas Mo and Ho semen was used in the subsequent generations. In one herd, the sequence Mo-VR-Ho was also used. Individual milk samples were analyzed for milk composition, single-point MCP, and parameters for modeling curd firming over time, whereas CY and milk nutrient recovery in the curd were assessed through a laboratory cheese-making procedure. Compared with Ho, CR cows produced 5.8% less milk, which had comparable fat but greater protein and casein contents and lower lactose contents and somatic cell scores. Milk from CR cows tended to reach a curd firmness of 20 mm more quickly and exhibited greater curd firmness at 45 and 60 min from rennet addition. Holstein and CR cows yielded milk with similar CY and recovery in the curd traits. The milk fat content, somatic cell scores, curd firmness traits, and CY of CR cows relative to the Ho cows differed in the 2 herds, and the favorable effects on the CR cows were more evident in the herd with the greatest milk yield and the worst MCP traits. Crossbred cows of the 4 generations performed similarly, with the exception of the better MCP of the milk from firstgeneration CR cows. The 2 rotational systems using different sire-breed sequences also performed similarly. In summary, both rotational crossbreeding programs exhibited some advantage over the Ho purebred breeding system in terms of milk composition and MCP but not CY. Future research is needed to investigate the interactions between crossbreeding schemes and dairy systems.

Section: Comparison Between Purebred Ho and Crossbred Cowssupporting

confidence: 93%

Section: Comparison Between Purebred Ho and Crossbred Cowssupporting

confidence: 81%

Milk coagulation traits and cheese yields of purebred Holsteins and 4 generations of 3-breed rotational crossbred cows from Viking Red, Montbéliarde, and Holstein bulls

Saha

Amalfitano

Bittante

et al. 2020

“…The advantage in theory lies in the maximization of hybrid vigor in later generations compared with a 2-way reciprocal mating strategy. Recently, 3-way rotational crossing has been shown to improve reproductive performance compared with purebred Holsteins in the United States (Hazel et al, 2014;Shonka-Martin et al, 2019). Ferris et al (2018) reported similar MSo production and improved functional traits (lower incidences of mastitis and ovarian dysfunction) for a 3-way cross of Swedish-Red × Jersey/Holstein compared with pure Holstein cows; however, this study comprised only a single lactation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 85%

“…The 3-way crossbred used by Ferris et al (2018) had significantly higher BCS compared with HF, which is supported by the results of our study. The positive effect on BCS that breeds such as Norwegian Red, Swedish Red, and so on contribute to an F 1 cross or backcross is evident and is due to the breeding programs of these breeds selecting for improved reproductive and functional traits (Walsh et al, 2008;Shonka-Martin et al, 2019).…”

Section: Bw Bcs and Functional Traitsmentioning

confidence: 99%

An assessment of the production, reproduction, and functional traits of Holstein-Friesian, Jersey × Holstein-Friesian, and Norwegian Red × (Jersey × Holstein-Friesian) cows in pasture-based systems

McClearn

Delaby

Gilliland

et al. 2020

Pasture-based production systems typically require highly fertile, healthy, and robust genetics, with greater emphasis on milk solids (MSo; kg of fat + protein) production as opposed to milk yield. This study assessed milk production, production efficiency, reproductive performance, body weight (BW), body condition score, and functional traits in 3 different dairy cow genotypes: Holstein-Friesian (HF), Jersey × Holstein-Friesian (JEX), and Norwegian Red × (Jersey × Holstein-Friesian) (3-way). The 3 genotypes were rotationally grazed on 4 different grazing treatments after calving in spring and were stocked at a rate of 2.75 cows/ha. Holstein-Friesian cows produced higher daily and total milk yields compared with JEX and 3-way cows (5,718 vs. 5,476 and 5,365 kg/cow, respectively). However, JEX and 3-way cows had higher milk fat and protein contents (4.86 and 4.75%, respectively, for JEX and 3.87 and 3.88%, respectively, for 3-way) compared with HF (4.52 and 3.72%), resulting in similar MSo yield for JEX and HF (469 and 460 kg/cow) and slightly lower MSo yield for 3-way (453 kg/cow) compared with JEX. As parity increased, milk and MSo yield per cow increased. Reproductive performance was not significantly different between the 3 genotypes, which had similar 24-d submission rates, 6-wk pregnancy rates, and overall pregnancy rates over the 4-yr period. No difference in calving difficulty, incidence of mastitis, or incidence of lameness was observed among the 3 genotypes. Body weight was significantly different among all 3 genotypes, with HF being the heaviest followed by 3-way and JEX (530, 499, and 478 kg, respectively), and 3-way cows had a higher body condition score throughout lactation compared with HF and JEX cows. The differences in BW coupled with similar MSo production resulted in JEX cows having the highest production efficiency (4.58 kg of MSo/kg of metabolic BW), 3-way cows being intermediate (4.30 kg of MSo/kg of metabolic BW), and HF cows having the lowest (4.16 kg of MSo/kg of metabolic BW). In conclusion, HF herds with poor reproductive performance and low milk fat and protein contents are likely to benefit considerably from crossbreeding with Jersey, and all herds are likely to benefit in terms of production efficiency. However, where herd performance, particularly in relation to reproductive performance, is comparable with HF in the current study, crossbreeding with Jersey or Norwegian Red is unlikely to lead to significant improvements in overall herd performance.

“…Aside from the opportunities offered by the use of sexed semen to produce purebred replacement heifers, it is worth noting that this technique could also be used in rotational dairy crossbreeding systems. Compared with Holstein-Friesian pure-breeding, some of these reproductive schemes are known to offer the potential of maintaining almost the same daily yield of milk fat and protein (Malchiodi et al, 2014b;Saha et al, 2017Saha et al, , 2018 and improving the fertility (Buckley et al, 2014;Malchiodi et al, 2014a), fitness, and survival (Clasen et al, 2017;Hazel et al, 2017) of dairy cows, thereby reducing the replacement rate and improving the feed efficiency (Shonka-Martin et al, 2019) and economic efficiency (Heins et al, 2012) of the cows and the profitability of the dairy farm (Dezetter et al, 2017). Clearly, sexed semen of 2 or 3 different dairy breeds could be used on crossbred heifers (and cows) in rotational dairy crossbreeding systems, and this scenario increases the net present value of the dairy herd compared with Holstein pure-breeding (Barrientos-Blanco et al, 2018).…”

Section: Combined Use Of Sexed Semen and Beef Semen To Increase The Profitability Of Dairy Farmsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pure-breeding with sexed semen and crossbreeding with semen of double-muscled sires to improve beef production from dairy herds: Factors affecting heifer and cow fertility and the sex ratio

Bittante

Negrini²,

Bergamaschi

et al. 2020

Using sexed semen to produce purebred replacement heifers makes it possible to mate a large proportion of dairy cows to double-muscled sires and to quantitatively and qualitatively improve beef production and increase the income from dairy herds. Net profit first depends on changes in the farm's overall fertility rate. The objective of this study was to analyze the conception rate in herds using a combination of conventional dairy semen (for pure-and crossbreeding), X-sorted dairy semen (to produce purebred replacement heifers), and conventional beef semen (for terminal crossbreeding). Data were obtained from 50,785 inseminations of 15,580 dairy cows (78% Holstein-Friesian, 15% Brown Swiss, 2% Simmental, and 5% crossbreds) from 106 dairy farms (average milk yield 35.1 ± 9.4 kg/d, with 3.76 ± 0.83% fat and 3.32 ± 0.39% protein contents). To account for the main potential confounders, we used separate generalized linear mixed-effects models for cows and virgin heifers. The results showed that the odds ratio of conception improved (1.00 to 1.34) with an increase in the average milk yield of the herd but worsened (1.12 to 0.70) with an increase in the milk yield of individual cows within herd. The summer months showed a strong reduction in the odds ratio of conception in cows (0.56 in July and August) but not in virgin heifers. Multiparous cows had a lower odds ratio of conception (0.85) than primiparous cows (1.00). The order of insemination did not affect the fertility of the cows or heifers, whereas the odds ratio of conception improved with advancing lactation (1.00 to 2.12). The Simmental cows were more fertile than Holstein-Friesians (1.37 vs. 1.00), whereas the fertility of the heifers was not affected by breed. Taking all these possible confounders into account simultaneously, in pure-breeding the odds ratio of conception using sexed semen did not differ from that using conventional dairy semen in cows (0.90 vs. 1.00) or in virgin heifers (0.95 vs. 1.00). However, crossbreeding using conventional beef and dairy semen improved the odds ratio of conception (1.10 and 1.17, respectively) in cows (1.37 using beef semen) and heifers (1.25 using dairy semen). The proportion of newborn heifer calves was ≥90% using sexed dairy semen. The combined use of sexed semen, especially on heifers, to produce purebred replacement females and beef semen to produce terminal crossbred calves was shown to have the potential to increase overall herd fertility, which could be further improved using sexed dairy semen to produce dairy crossbreds instead of purebred replacement heifers.