Springhaven Biddy 162 EX92 (pictured), owned by Robert Troy Jnr. from Newtownshandrum, Co. Cork, is the top EBI cow in the country with an EBI of €342. She is a Holstein cow currently in her 11th lactation with an average calving interval of 376 days. As well as having an EBI of €342 she also has a lifetime production of 56,908kgs milk, 4.22% Fat and 3.48% Protein. She is sired by Bagworth Zander Keet (BWZ).
Second on the list is a JEX cow owned by Rockwell College, Cashel, Co. Tipperary with an EBI of €323. This cow is on her 6th lactation. She is sired by Ballyhooly Blake Dr Ro (YHY). Third on the list is a 1st lactation Holstein/Friesian cow Ballykinash dbw Niamh 1286 G79 with an EBI of €321 owned by Jim Delahunt, Carrig, Birr, Co. Tipperary. This cow is sired by Doonmanagh dsu Bowser (DBW).
This listing includes 66 entries from Kieran Hearne, Carrick-On-Suir, Co. Waterford. Kieran also recently topped the Top 200 herds listing so this figure comes as no surprise. The list also includes 47 entries from Moorepark’s ‘Next Generation Herd’, a Teagasc herd established in 2012 to evaluate EBI genomic selection. This herd gives a forward view of where the national herd will be 10 years from now.
Other herds that feature strongly include; David Fitzgerald, Mallow, Co. Cork with 41 cows, David Lonergan, Ballyduff, Co. Waterford with 40 cows and Kevin Downing, Whitechurch, Co. Cork with 38 cows. Table 1 below displays the Top 11 herds.
The sires most prominent on the list include Highmount Kenny (HMY) with 83 daughters. Hazael Eminence Dano-ET (HZO) with 74 daughters and Dungourney Cremin (DGC) with 70. The top 10 represented sires are shown in the table below.
In total there are 145 cows with an EBI greater than or equal €250. There are 1530 cows genotyped which makes up just over 76% of all cows listed. This is an increase from 786 genotyped animals making the list one year ago. Of the 2,000 cows on the list there are 92 classified VG or EX. The average EBI of the Top 2,000 cows is €215 with €57 coming from the Milk Sub-Index and €117 from the Fertility Sub-Index. They have an average parity of 3.5 lactations. The list contains 8 different breeds including Friesian, Holstein, Jersey, MRI/MRY, Norwegian Red, Rotbunte, Danish Red and Swedish Red.
The Top 2,000 cows cand be found in the Genetic Evaluation – Dairy Results page, or click on the following link to download the file directly – Top 2000 Cows on EBI
Check to see if any of your cows make the list!