€uro-Stars changing are a consequence of having a highly integrated database which is receiving data on animals and their relatives from a wide range of sources. Data such as calving surveys, weights, carcass records and death dates are sent to ICBF from farmers, weight recorders, Linear Scorers, marts, factories etc. This information is then run through the evaluation system 6 times a year. All new information that will have gone into the database since the previous run is then reflected in the animal’s latest index.
It is crucial to remember that the €uro-Stars of your cow are not just affected by her performance and the progeny that she has produced in your herd. Her performance is included in her own €uro-Star evaluation, however the performances of all of her half-sisters and other relatives also has a large bearing on her figures.
Example: Your Limousin cow at home, with tag ending ‘293’ is your best suckler cow. She is doing everything that could be asked from a Suckler Cow in terms of her fertility and the quality of calf that she rears, however she is still only a 1 star cow! The reason for this is due to the poor performance of all of her half-sisters in other herds, which you do not know about.
The €uro-Star rating that your cow receives is a reflection as to how that entire bloodline is performing.
Overall, the daughters of your cow’s sire ‘Ocean’ (OCX) have poor fertility and are producing poor quality cattle. This is reflected in his 1 star €uro-Star rating and his index of €-26. However, even if the majority of daughters of a bull have poor milk & fertility, they can still sire the odd great individual cow.
Your best cow ‘293’ is getting credit for her great performance as her index of €32 is far higher than that of her 60 half sisters who only have an average index of -€25. She is nearly into the 2 Star category & when her genomic information is included, her index may then go even higher. Genomics will allow a cow to break further away from what the majority of her bloodline has done and increase her €uro-Stars.
For a more detailed analysis of how the Beef Evaluations are generated, please see Beef Evaluations Supporting Document