International Superstar, Swiss Red Holstein cow of recent decades, Suard-Red Jordan Irène EX-97, passed away at the age of almost 18. Irène was named Reserve Grand Champion, Best Udder and 1st Production cow at the 2019 Swiss Expo Red Holstein Show in Lausanne, Switzerland. She became the first Swiss Red Holstein to receive the maximum score in their current classification system and is currently the highest classified Red & White cow in Europe.
Only at the beginning of the year did the “Swiss farmer” headline “Great honor for Jordan Irène” on the front page, when the exceptional cow bred by Pierre Suard from Progens FR placed directly behind KHW Regiment Apple EX 96 in the highest award ever given for red cows. Irene, who made her career on the farm of the brothers Damien and Frédéric Schrago in Middes FR, will go down in history as the all-time RH vice world champion.
Message on Monday Evening
“Irène leaves us a phenomenal legacy. We are sad today but we are also excited to continue developing her unique lineage. We invite you to follow us day after day this week. We are going to try to share with you the most striking memories, the events that made Irène the most famous cow of her generation all over the world!” – Scharago Dairy
Junker discovered them in the “middle ranks”
It was cattle dealer Erhard Junker from Iffwil BE who discovered the first cow, which was only classified G+83 at a Freiburg district exhibition, in the “middle ranks”, as he recently told the “Schweizer Bauer”, and sold it to the Schrago brothers. “When I saw Irène for the first time, I recognized her enormous potential,” said Junker and enthused: “Her udder was unique.”
Vice World Champion
Irène became world champion in 2016 and 2019 and crowned this success with the aforementioned vice world champion of all times. The magazine “Holstein International” awarded the so-called All-Time Red World Champion title. Not only the readers could decide on this title, but also three official judges. And the latter chose the following podium: 1st place for Irene, 2nd place for KHW Regiment Apple EX-96 (US), 3rd place for Blondin Redman Seisme EX-97 (US & CA). The Dutch judge Jan Steegink (Heerenbrink Holsteins) justified the victory of the now 17-year-old Irène as follows: “She has retained her qualities into old age, if not even improved them. Irène is ahead of Apple, my number two, because she has a better shaped pelvis.”
Of the reader votes, however, 42.7 percent went to Apple and 34.7 percent to Irene. This resulted in a tie between Apple and Irène. In the event of a tie, the votes of the readers decide who wins. And in this case it went to Apple.
Irene, O’Kalibra and Elisa
Irène achieved a lifetime production of 114,849 kg milk with 4.73% fat and 3.38% protein. She achieved her highest performance in her 6th lactation with 14,223 kg milk, 4.86% fat, 3.13% protein.
She first achieved the unique classification of EX 97 (EX 96 / EX 97 / EX 97 / EX 97) in 2018 in her 8th and last lactation, in July 2019 she was classified EX 97 for the second time. This made Irène one of three exceptional cows classified EX 97 in Switzerland, along with the Holstein cow Decrausaz Iron O’Kalibra EX 97 and the Brown Swiss cow Adrian’s Jongleur Elisa EX 97.
After her great show successes (including double European Champion Red Holstein von Freiburg 2013 and Colmar 2016), Irene also let it rip as a breeding cow. She proved her bull dam qualities with the Alchemy son ‘Red Impulse.’ According to her owners, she was always extremely good at rinsing embryos. “We sold embryos as far away as Australia.” Unfortunately, because Irène tested positive for the Schmallenberg virus, genetics could not be exported to Canada and the USA, Damien Schrago said recently.
Breeding work continues
According to Schrago, Irène’s descendants make up around a third of the 100-strong dairy herd. He had the impression that the granddaughters were even better than the daughters, he said at the beginning of the “Swiss farmer”. They had daughters under one year old by her in the stable. There are calves by Power, Delta Lambda, King Royal etc. Schragos mated Irene to a wide variety of fathers, and they even developed a Swiss Fleckvieh line from her. “Recently we flushed a granddaughter of Irene, a daughter of the SF bull Swat.” In the meantime, they are already working with promising calves in the fifth generation.
Source: Schweizer Bauer
