Through advances in DNA technology and a synergistic partnership with IGENITY®, a business unit of Merial, Select Sires is proud to become the first A.I. organization to designate a category of sires, called HealthMark£, which combines predicted transmitting ability (PTA) data for health and fertility traits with genetic marker information.
“To help dairy producers zero in on balanced health-trait bulls, Select Sires has developed HealthMark as an indicator of sires that transmit improved performances in SCS, DPR and PL,” said Chuck Sattler, vice president and manager of genetic programs for Select Sires. “HealthMark is a unique and powerful tool that identifies positive health trait bulls sooner than ever before and allows producers to meet their breeding goals faster.”
The comprehensive IGENITY profile now includes DNA markers for PL and dairy form (DF), both leading indicators of cow longevity. Bulls at Select Sires have been analyzed for these important traits using the IGENITY profile. HealthMark sires must score above average in all three health trait areas (SCS, DPR and PL) to qualify for this designation. Data from the bull’s IGENITY profile, which includes DNA marker analyses for PL and DF, provides extra information about each sire’s ability to transmit positive health traits.