EASTSIDE LEWISDALE GOLD MISSY

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Royal Winter Fair Fantasy Exhibitor – The Results

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Monday, November 11th, 2013

Even though I wrote the Royal Winter Fair Preview Article and titled it “Expect the Unexpected”, I have to admit that even I was shocked at the final results. Common sense tells us that we should always be prepared for the unusual because it all comes down to how each cow looks on the day and in the Judge’s opinion. There were just under 4,000 entries for this inaugural Royal Winter Fair Fantasy Exhibitor competition. Similar to the Holstein Show itself, you could not just pick the winners from Madison and expect to be a winner yourself.

Junior 2 Year Old

Belfast Goldwyn Lasenza
1st place Junior 2 year old
Belfast Holsteins & Mary Inn Holsteins, QC

After being upset by Petitclerc Sid Sunkiss at Expo International du Holstein Quebec (Read more: Expo Internationale Holstein Québec Results) Belfast Goldwyn Lasenza regained the top spot. Having said that, Sunkiss did offer a little better value for those who were trying to squeeze in some more expensive older cows (Please note that Sunkiss’s value was set prior to EIHQ). With almost 70% (36.9% Lasenza, and 32.7% Sunkiss) of the participants and all of the top 40 participants selecting these two cows, it really was a two-cow race. When Lasenza entered the ring, she looked the best she has yet. After viewing her strong rear seam, many who were hoping for an upset knew that it would not be happening on this day. Another great value pick would have been Jacobs Atwood Vedette, who at $120,000 and placing third and earning 10 points could have certainly helped the more than 100 participants that spent just over the $2,500,000 limit.

Petitclerc Sid Sunkiss
2nd place Junior 2 year old
Ferme Blondin & Yvon Sicard, QC

Senior 2 Year Old

Charwill Attic Marcy
1st place Senior Two Year old, and Reserve Intermediate Champion
Gen-Com Holsteins, QC

On a day that was full of surprises, the one sure thing was Charwill Attic Marcy. She looked amazing, as she has all year, and easily strolled to the top of the class. With Marcy also earning Reserve Intermediate Champion, she proved to be a very economical choice as well. For almost 40% of the participants and all of the top 40 Marcy was a must have in order to contend in this year’s competition.

Junior 3 Year Old

Phoenix Sanchez Geo
1st place Junior 3 year old
Breamont Holsteins, ON

Catching everyone by surprise was Phoenix Sanchez Geo. With less than 3% of the total competitors picking her and none of the top 40, this was certainly a curve ball that many did not see coming. With the two most popular picks Ehrhardt Gold Beauty, winner at Expo and the full sisters BVK ATWOOD ABRIANNA and BVK ATWOOD ANDREA not making it to the show, this class was certainly a write off for many competitors. Geo on a day of upsets turned out to be one of the greatest value picks in the entire competition!

Senior 3 Year Old

Aingers Advent Bambi
1st place Senior 3 year old and Intermediate Champion
Ferme Blondin, QC

Talking about upsets. Could there be a bigger upset than seeing Aingers Advent Bambi defeat Valleyville Rae Lynn and Butz-Butler Gold Barbara? Less than 15% of the competitors even included her on their team. Rae Lynn and Barbara have been much heralded this year and were expected to have a clash of the titans at the Royal. However, as Bambi’s upset of Barbara at EIHQ showed us, she is not to be forgotten. With Bambi winning Intermediate Champion and only costing $125,000, she was easily the greatest value in the whole competition. While many, including myself, discounted this three calf Senior 3 year old, (actually she has had four calves as there were twin heifers by Atwood), Bambi has certainly thrown her name into the ring. Even though Rae Lynn did earn honorable mention Intermediate Champion, and did so while milking over a year, at $625,000 in our competition, the price may have been too high for many to choose to include her. However, the real surprise was Barbara, at $625,000 and no bonus points, her third place finish was a team killer for many.

Valleyville Rae Lynn
2nd place Senior Three Year old and HM Intermediate Champion
Quality Holsteins, Ponderosa, Al-Be-Ro Land and Cattle, ON

4 Year Old

Robrook Goldwyn Cameron
1st place 4 year old and Grand Champion
St Jacobs, Clark Woodmansee, Budjon Farms & Peter and Lyn Vale, WI

In what was to be a rematch from Expo, where Cookview Goldwyn Monique got the upper hand, on this day it was all about Cameron who caught Judge Crowley’s attention and strolled to a convincing win in her class. Looking better as the day went along and peaking in the Grand Champion parade, Monique proved to be a pretty good choice as well. However, in order to contend in this year’s Fantasy Exhibitor Competition, you pretty well needed to choose Cameron. In fact, 75% of the top 40 competitors and 100% of the top 10 all chose Cameron to anchor their team.

Cookview Goldwyn Monique
2nd place 4 year old and Reserve Grand Champion
Jeff Butler and Joe and Amber Price, IL

5 Year Old

MS Goldwyn Alana
1st place 5 year old and HM Grand Champion
P Boulet, Ferme Fortale, Isabelle Verille, QC

With her dominant class win and Honorable Mention Senior and Grand Champion honors, MS Goldwyn Alana was a great pick for many. All but 1 of the top 40 competitors and over 40% of all competitors had chosen Alana to win. There were no real surprises in this class.

6+ Year Old Class

Calbrett Goldwyn Layla
1st place Mature Cow
Comestar, Speranza Holsteins and Ponderosa, QC

When it comes to the biggest shocker of the day, that honor has to go to Calbrett Goldwyn Layla. After finishing ninth at Expo, no one expected Layla to upset World Dairy Expo Supreme Champion, and 1^st place 6 year old from EIHQ, BONACCUEIL MAYA GOLDWYN. Less than 2% of the competitors even had Layla on their team. This victory had to be even more shocking than Bambi’s victory in the Senior Three Year Old Class. For those who had gone all in on Maya, her 2^nd place finish and no bonus points in Grand was the biggest team killer in the whole competition. Maya certainly looked good at the Royal, though she did not fit with the style of cow that Judge Crowley was looking for.

Bonaccueil Maya Goldwyn
2nd place Mature Cow
Ty-D Holsteins, Ferme Jacobs, Drolet and A & R Boulet, QC

What had to be a pleasant surprise for many, as well as to us, was Eastside Lewisdale Gold Missy winning the longtime production class. As we were not sure if this former World Dairy Expo and Royal Supreme Champion would be making the trip this year, she was left out of our competition. Nevertheless, seeing her extreme size and dairyness was certainly exciting for all.

Eastside Lewisdale Gold Missy
1st place Production Cow
Morsan, Van Runen Dairy, Mark Butz, Gert Andreasen, AM

The Dream Team

During the team selection period, it was a consistent challenge for many competitors to get all their favorites onto their teams. Though as it turned out, with the expect the unexpected theme of this year’s competition, the ultimate points team, that would have earned 217 points, would have only cost $2,085,000, almost $500,000 under the $2,500,000 budget. This team would have been, Belfast Goldwyn Lasenza, Charwill Attic Marcy, Phoenix Sanchez Geo, Aingers Advent Bambi, Robrook Goldwyn Cameron, Ms Goldwyn Alana and Calbrett Goldwyn Layla. Yes that is correct, you could have had all the class winners on your team and still had almost a half a million left in your pocket. It just goes to show, it’s not about how much you spend, but rather how wisely you spend it.

The Winners Are

Colin Uecker of Watertown Wisconsin had the winning team of Belfast Goldwyn Lasenza, Charwill Attic Marcy, Ehrhardt Gold Beauty, Aingers Advent Bambi, Robrook Goldwyn Cameron, Ms Goldwyn Alana and Willowholme Goldwyn Jessica. Earning 187 out of a possible 217 points. While a couple of the other top 5 competitors did have higher scoring teams, Colin took full advantage of the bonus points for getting his entry in early to squeak out the win. With so many upsets, it is not surprising that no one predicted the exact results.

Place	First name	Last Name
1	Colin	Uecker
2	Ily	Genetics
3	Flavio	Junqueira Costa
4	Stephen	Mast
5	Luke	Instone
6	Wayne	Houdek
7	Colin	Leach
8	Tom	Pettit
9	Jean-Philippe	Charest
10	Darrel	Barkman
11	Kate	Cochrane
12	Hannah	Roberts
13	Andree	Menard
14	Emily	Stuff
15	James	Woodmansee Sr.
16	Alexandre	bapst
17	Gwyn	Murray
18	Bryant	Hlavaty
19	Maxime	Lauzon
20	Austen	Schmidt
21	Raphael	Chabot
22	Matthew	Keffer
23	Allan	Merkley
24	Anna	Meyer
25	Brett	Woker
26	Robin	Christman
27	Andy	Reynolds
28	Christopher	Burne
29	Mireille	Cloutier
30	Christian	Roberge
31	Olivier	Corriveau
32	Cameron	Davis
33	Christiaan	Viljoen
34	Alana	Brown
35	James	Whatman
36	Jeff	Merkley
37	Genevieve	Arbour
38	Brian	Coyne
39	Olivier	Lapointe
40	Cleocy	MendonÃ§a Jr.
41	Susan	Armstrong
42	Donna	Banowetz
43	Meaghan	Thornhill
44	Grant	Armstrong
45	Sandy	MacGillivary
46	Sean	Murray
47	Melissa	Marcoux
48	Lysanne	Pelletier
49	Fina	Martinez
50	Catherine	Lauzon
51	Annette	Killian
53	Scott	Crandlemire
53	Jon	Spoelstra
54	Tom	Peters
55	Blake	Zehr
56	Matt	Forestell
57	Nicole	Crosbie
58	Adam	Nelson
59	Tony	Van Lith
60	Sylvain	Cormier
61	Mandy	Brazil
62	Jacquin	Louis
63	James	Hoffman
64	Proulx	Jean-Philippe
65	Joe	Nash
66	Scott	Brown
67	Kevin	Jacobs
68	Annie	Chabot
69	Francis	Cournoyer
70	Amelie	Poulin
71	Anne-Marie	Loranger
72	Burnell	Zehr
73	Chris	Schulze
74	Chris	Steven
75	Shelby	Iager
76	Chad	Ryan
77	Tom	Uber
78	Anthony	Brenton-Robert
79	Mike	McLaughlin
80	Michael	Leclerc
81	Alejo	Guichon
82	Max	Petitclerc
83	Nathan	Ulmer
84	Eric	Houdek
85	Jake	Dueppengiesser
86	Ashley	Knapton
87	Jason	Pegg
88	Guillaume	Labee
89	Hannah	Jackson
90	Chad	Popp
91	Ricardo	Cuesta
92	Olimar	Rupli
93	Kevin	Vanzessen
94	Chris	Hill
95	Corey	Popp
96	Adam	Zehr
97	James	Woodmansee jr.
98	Deb	Knapton
99	Jack	Lomeo jr
100	Brent	Carmichael

Calculate Your Own Score

Class	Name	Price	Points
Jr 2 year old	Beckholm Goldwyn Deelila – $120,000	$120,000	0
Jr 2 year old	Belfast Goldwyn Lasenza – $300,000	$300,000	20
Jr 2 year old	Comestar Masha Sanchez – $105,000	$105,000	0
Jr 2 year old	Dream-Prairie GW Alberta – $135,000	$135,000	0
Jr 2 year old	Gen-Com Brett Madison – $105,000	$105,000	0
Jr 2 year old	Jacobs Atwood Vedette – $120,000	$120,000	10
Jr 2 year old	MS Aubrey Gold Addison – $135,000	$135,000	0
Jr 2 year old	Petitclerc Sid Sunkiss – $150,000	$150,000	15
Jr 2 year old	RF Duplex Caileigh – $105,000	$105,000	0
Jr 2 year old	Weeks Dundee Anika – $225,000	$225,000	6
Sr 2 year olds	Arcroix Goldwyn Jamaique-ET – $120,000	$120,000	0
Sr 2 year olds	Blondin Goldwyn Bordeau – $150,000	$150,000	0
Sr 2 year olds	Charwill Attic Marcy – $300,000	$300,000	28
Sr 2 year olds	Jacobs Duplex Anna – $225,000	$225,000	10
Sr 2 year olds	Kingsmill Atwood Allison-ET – $135,000	$135,000	0
Sr 2 year olds	Pierstein Atwood Rosine – $60,000	$60,000	6
Sr 2 year olds	Rosiers Blexy Goldwyn-ET – $105,000	$105,000	0
Sr 2 year olds	Starcrest Rhyme Casablanca – $120,000	$120,000	5
Jr 3 year old	BVK Atwood Abrianna-ET – $240,000	$240,000	0
Jr 3 year old	BVK Atwood Andrea-ET – $180,000	$180,000	0
Jr 3 year old	Ehrhardt Gold Beauty-ET – $340,000	$340,000	0
Jr 3 year old	Hardy Gold Diamond – $80,000	$80,000	0
Jr 3 year old	Jacobs Knowledge Harpe – $180,000	$180,000	10
Jr 3 year old	Kingsway Sanchez Arangtang – $140,000	$140,000	9
Jr 3 year old	Lindenright Atwood Bounce – $160,000	$160,000	0
Jr 3 year old	Ms Ken Dren Sanchez Feather – $100,000	$100,000	5
Jr 3 year old	Phoenix Gogo Sanchez – $160,000	$160,000	0
Jr 3 year old	Phoenix Sanchez Geo – $160,000	$160,000	20
Jr 3 year old	Roquet Jasmine Sanchez – $140,000	$140,000	0
Jr 3 year old	Tolamika Dundee Fanta – $120,000	$120,000	3
Sr 3 year old	Aingers Advent Bambi – $125,000	$125,000	30
Sr 3 year old	Butz-Butler Gold Barbara – $625,000	$625,000	10
Sr 3 year old	Cowtown Durham Grasshopper – $200,000	$200,000	0
Sr 3 year old	Eastriver Gold Deb 850-ET – $150,000	$150,000	4
Sr 3 year old	Ernest-Anthony Allure-ET – $125,000	$125,000	8
Sr 3 year old	Kingsway Goldwyn Abba Dabba – $225,000	$225,000	7
Sr 3 year old	TC Sanchez Kristina – $75,000	$75,000	3
Sr 3 year old	Valleyville Rae Lynn – $625,000	$625,000	21
Sr 3 year old	Vioris Alex Pandora – $100,000	$100,000	0
Sr 3 year old	Whitake-Kk Goldie Rose – $250,000	$250,000	6
4 year old	Cookview Goldwyn Monique – $720,000	$720,000	29
4 year old	Craigcrest Rubies Gold Rejoice $150,000	$150,000	3
4 year old	Drumlee Mischief Denison – $240,000	$240,000	10
4 year old	Jacobs Goldwyn Valana – $300,000	$300,000	9
4 year old	Lampada Goldwyn Katrina – $240,000	$240,000	0
4 year old	Ms Pride Gold Invite 761 – $210,000	$210,000	8
4 year old	Nordale Goldwyn Ricky – $90,000	$90,000	7
4 year old	Quality Gold Danzi – $240,000	$240,000	5
4 year old	Robrook Goldwyn Cameron – $570,000	$570,000	40
4 year old	RockyMountain Goldwyn Trisha – $240,000	$240,000	0
5 year old	Crestomere Lou Victoria – $330,000	$330,000	4
5 year old	Gerann Roy Grendel – $330,000	$330,000	15
5 year old	Glenwin Goldwyn Calypso – $330,000	$330,000	10
5 year old	Ms Goldwyn Alana – $510,000	$510,000	32
5 year old	Quality Goldwyn Flinsco – $210,000	$210,000	7
5 year old	Rayon D’or Goldwyn Adonial – $240,000	$240,000	5
5 year old	Robella Reg Macy – $270,000	$270,000	0
5 year old	Rocky Mountain Gold Winter – $240,000	$240,000	0
5 year old	Silvermaple Damion Camomile – $210,000	$210,000	0
5 year old	Tromley-Dairy Lheros Jewel – $330,000	$330,000	0
6+ year old	Bonaccueil Maya Goldwyn – $1,000,000	$1,000,000	15
6+ year old	Calbrett Goldwyn Layla – $120,000	$120,000	20
6+ year old	Cityview Metro Lucy – $210,000	$210,000	0
6+ year old	Jacobs Goldwyn Britany – $240,000	$240,000	9
6+ year old	Ms Dundee Belinda-ET – $210,000	$210,000	8
6+ year old	Pierstein Goldwyn Sunshine – $90,000	$90,000	5
6+ year old	Starbrite Lyster Lyndsay – $480,000	$480,000	9
6+ year old	Tween Bay Sara Goldwyn – $180,000	$180,000	7
6+ year old	Willowholme Goldwyn Jessica – $300,000	$300,000	10

The Bullvine Bottom Line

In a year that was anything but expected, it is not surprising that this year’s results were all over the board. Congratulations to Colin Uecker !!! Be sure to watch for next year’s Fantasy Exhibitor. There will be many new features added to this amazing competition.

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Are You Breeding Purple Cows?

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Monday, April 29th, 2013

Face it, the tactics that have been used for the past 50 years don’t work anymore. The same old ads. In the same old magazine. Advertising the same old genetics. After you’ve seen one, or two, or 10, you’ve seen them all! Boring! However, a Purple Cow? Now that would be something. Are you remarkable enough to have a Purple Cow? In today’s day and age of in vitro fertilization, genomics and social media, you’re either remarkable or invisible.

Seth Godin’s book Purple Cow: Transform Your Business By Being Remarkable is perfectly titled for dairy breeders today. Godin’s understanding of dairy cattle is limited as represented by his comment “Cows, after you’ve seen one, or two, or 10, are boring,” but his point about needing to be remarkable, in order to stand out from the herd, is spot on.

Every day breeders come face to face with a lot of boring stuff – even a lot of the same old boring cows – but you can bet they would never forget a Purple Cow. Now getting a Purple Cow marketing idea doesn’t happen overnight. It’s not as if you can just wake up one morning and change your marketing to have your “Purple Cow” idea. You need to breed for it. You need to manage for it. And then and only then can you market it.

The Game Changers

For years, generation after generation of consistent breeding was enough to have your genetics in demand around the world. However, that is no longer enough thanks to in vitro fertilization (Read more: IVF: Boom or Bust for the Dairy Industry and FAST TRACK GENETICS: More Results in Less Time). With so many breeders leveraging this technology and producing more and more cattle at the top end of the genetic scale, there has been a shift in the marketplace. What used to be unique is becoming commonplace. In this recent spring sale season, I saw no less than three full sisters (Uno’s from the great Apple) selling at three different sales in a 1-week period. And then of course there were still more sisters at home. IVF has changed things so much that even at the very top end, owners of the very best genetics are having trouble differentiating their product. Genetics that at one time would have been sale headliners, are now selling in those lull sections of the sale that minimize profits. Combine that with the cost to produce these animals and the ROI is shrinking. Of course IVF is a catch 22 technology. If you don’t use it and other breeders are using it on their top genetics, you’re still left behind.

In one sense you could say Genomics has brought harmony to the world (Read more: The impact of genomics on cattle breeding and How Genomics is Killing the Dairy Cattle Breeding Industry). No longer are cattle from different countries viewed as inferior or of lesser genetic merit. Genomic testing has brought uniformity to the world market. But as a result it has also brought globalization to the industry and breeders can no longer differentiate their genetics by country of origin. This means that instead of the top 1% of the genetics in the world being in high demand, it is now the top 0.1% (Read more: An Insider’s Guide to What Sells at the Big Dairy Cattle Auctions). Either you are at the very top of the lists or you had better find a new niche or way to differentiate your genetics (Read more: Marketing Lessons from Glen Drummond Aero Flower).

AMMON-PEACHY SHAUNA a very popular purple cow

If you want to get your message out to the world, there is nothing better than social media. The power of tools like Facebook to let breeders around the world know what animals you have is amazing (Read more: 7 Reasons Why Your Dairy Farm Needs To Be On Facebook and The Anti-Social Farmer: On the Verge of Extinction?). The thing is, it still takes those animals that are the “Purple Cows” in order to be noticed. Hailey, O’Kalibra, Missy, Happy Go Lucky and Rae Lynn are cows whose show ring successes have also caused social media success for their breeders. On the genomic side, cows like Shauna, Lucia, and Hue have attracted a lot of attention. Another aspect that helps pictures on Facebook go viral is the ones that comply with the Dairy Marketers Code of Conduct (Read more: Introducing the Diary Marketing Code of Conduct and Dairy Cattle Photography – Over Exposed ). However, in order to achieve this sustained viral status you first need to be unique. You need to know your niche. You need to be a “Purple Cow.”

Valleyville Rae Lynn is certainly a Purple Cow

The Bullvine Bottom Line

In Purple Cow, Seth Godin urges you to put Purple Cow differentiation into everything you build and everything you do, to create something truly noticeable. It’s a manifesto for dairy breeders looking to take their genetics programs to a new level. Pretty ads, generations of VG or EX and nice cattle pictures will not pay the bills. Either you set yourself apart or you are wasting your time. What makes you unique? Have you found your Purple Cow breeding program or marketing idea?

To learn how to get your farm on Facebook download this free guide.

EASTSIDE LEWISDALE GOLD MISSY: 2012 Canadian Cow of the Year Nominee

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Tuesday, February 12th, 2013

Eastside Lewisdale Gold Missy EX 95 bred by the Thompsons and Lewis’s of Eastside and Lewisdale was bought 3 weeks prior to freshening on April 01, 2008 by Morsan Farms Ltd. Ponoka, Alberta from Frizzells Valleyville Farm Inc., Hunter River, PEI. Valleyville had purchased Missy as an embryo (Read more: Morsan Farms – Money Well Spent and Eastside Holsteins- Where Modern Marketing Rises to the Challenge). Missy has had a dominant career in the North American show ring. She and her offspring are moving the Holstein breeding industry forward. In 2009, Missy sold for $1.2 million in the Road to the Royal Sale.

EASTSIDE LEWISDALE GOLD MISSY EX-95-CAN
ALL-AMERICAN 5-YR,JR.3-YR,JR.2-YR
ALL-CANADIAN 5-YR,JR.2-YR
GRAND ROYAL 2011
GRAND MADISON 2011
RES.INT. MADISON 2009

Missy’s Gold Bearing Pedigree

Missy expresses the best that can be derived from her sire stack of Goldwyn x Outside x Progress x Southwind x He-Man. She has dairy strength, production and show ring prowess. Of course, she sparkles with that pure vein of gold derived from Braedale Goldwyn Extra ’05 and Gold Metal ’12 (USA). Missy also has the example set by her dam Stadacona Outside Abel VG 88 who hits all the right numbers too (Read more: St adacona Outside Abel: 2011 Canadian Cow of the Year Nominee) . With 1 Superior Lactation and 29* on 35 milking daughters, Abel has produced 5 EX and 28 Very Good daughters and was Honorable Mention All-Atlantic Intermediate Yearling in 2001. Missy has 7 VG full sisters. 3 EX Champion sisters and 3 full sisters yet to calve (Read more: You Can Bank on Amaze to Pump Up the Volume).

STADACONA OUTSIDE ABEL VG-88-4YR-CAN 29*
2011 Canadian Cow of the Year Finalist
Dam of Missy

Missy Is ALL Gold in the Show Ring Too

It seems like Missy has won everything. The following is the long list of show accomplishments that have made Missy a household name in show circles (Read more: Do All-Canadian Heifers Make All-Canadian Cows?). Note that there are no less than seven major titles.

All-Atlantic 4H Jr Yr – 2007
All-Can Jr 2 yr – 2008
All-American Jr 2 yr – 2008
All-American Jr 3 yr – 2009
All-Can 5 yr – 2011
All-American 5 yr – 2011
Supreme Champ WDE & Royal 2011

The plan is for Missy to continue writing her story in the show ring. She is due to calve in April 2013 (at 7-00 years) and hopefully will be back on the fall show circuit this year.

Missy Is Setting the Gold Standards

Only the best will do for Missy. When it comes to posting conformation scores, during her 1st lactation (152 days in milk) she received VG89 and Mammary System VG 89. Both maximum scores possible! During Missy’s 3^rd lactation (82 days in milk) she scored EX 95.

Missy’s production records are also sky high. Missy has 1 Super3 and 3 Superior Lactation Awards.
2-00 (305D)        10,673 kgs 4.5%F   3.2%P
3-01 (305D)    14,331 kgs 4.4%F   3.2%P
5-00 (305D)      16,208 kgs 4.2%F 3.2%P
3 lactations 48,379 kgs 4.4%F 3.3%P BCA’s 306-363-310 +58 +114 +62

On the Canadian gLPI Cow List, Missy has been as high as #86 gLPI cow.

Daughters of the Divine Miss “M”

In Missy`s biography the “M” will stand for mother. A star in her own right, this famous mother has produced 52 fabulous daughters. Imagine the impact they will have as they take their turns in front of the classifier. One daughter is in Germany and the remaining 51 are in North America: 15 were born in 2012 and 27 were born in 2011. Five daughters are VG 2 year olds (none lower) with four of these sired by Man-O-Man. Obviously the daughters are as eye-catching as their role model mother.

Missy’s oldest daughter, Valleyville Dolman Missy VG89, is just completing her second Superior Lactation. An interesting fact is that four of Missy’s five lactating daughters are currently projected to be making Superior Lactations. Missy’s highest gLPI daughter is a Numero Uno daughter, Morsan Miss Alined. She has 2425 gTPI and +3061 DGV PA gLPI with +16 for Conformation (Read more: Does Genomics Belong in the Show Ring?).

Some of the more popular mates in producing Missy daughters have been – Damion (9), Hero (7), Numero Uno (6), Man-O-Man (5), Sid (4), Snowman (4) and Shamrock (4).

MORSAN MISS CONGENIALITY VG-86-2YR-CAN
Man-O-Man daughter of Missy

Missy daughters are in demand at sales. In 2011 eighteen daughters changed ownership and in 2012, twelve went to new homes. Everyone wants a Missy!!!

Far and Near Missy Sons

Missy’s transmitting power is expected to continue with her sons. To date, her sons haven’t embarked on their proven careers. Seven sons are in AI by Man-O-Man, Showman, Shamrock and Shottle. Her highest PA gLPI son (+2818), sired by Man-O-Man, is in Germany. Her highest DGV PA gCONF son (+15), Morsan MR Snow Business (Snowman) is currently in his sampling period. Obviously, the Missy lineup is rapidly expanding and marked for success.

Missy Leads the Way to a Gold Mine

Missy is a definite hit! Dominant in the North American show ring, Missy has fulfilled her great pedigree, performed at the highest levels and is set to transmit both production and conformation to her progeny. Clearly Eastside Lewisdale Gold Missy, 2012 Canadian Cow of the Year Nominee, is ready to go for the gold!

Make Your Vote Count

Over the next few days we will be profiling the nominees and encourage you to get your vote in before the deadline. There are 4 ways of voting— Voting options for Holstein Canada members include mail in ballot; faxing your ballot; emailing your vote to cowoftheyear@holstein.ca; or voting online through your Holstein Canada account. Also share this on Facebook to make sure your fellow breeders get out and vote.

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Do All-Canadian Heifers Make All-Canadian Cows?

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Wednesday, January 16th, 2013

Every year as I am watching the yearling classes at Madison and the Royal I find myself thinking about this question. You watch those massive yearlings and can’t help but wonder how many of them will be topping the classes next year, once they have calved. In typical Bullvine form, we decided to let the numbers do the talking.

Since we needed 2yr classification scores, we decided to use All-Canadian results as our guide, since we could get current classifications plus 2-year-old classification score on all the Canadian animals through Holstein Canada’s website. The following is what we found.

All-Canadian 2yr Old Performance

CRAIGCREST RUBIES GOLD REJOICE VG-89-2YR-CAN
ALL-CANADIAN SR.2-YR,INT.1-YR,INT.CALF
ALL-AMERICAN SR.2-YR,INT.1-YR,INT.CALF

First we looked at the All-Canadian, Reserve All Canadian and Honorable Mention All Canadian Sr. and Jr 2yr olds over the past 5 years. This group is led by CRAIGCREST RUBIES GOLD REJOICE who came off her momentum of Junior Champion at Madison and Reserve Junior Champion at the Royal in 2010 to be 1^st place Senior 2yr old at both Madison and the Royal. There have been nine All-Canadian, Reserve or Honourable Mention 2yr olds that were also at least nominated for All Canadian as yearlings. The others are MILIBRO GOLDWYN ROSELILACE , ROCKYMOUNTAIN GOLDWYN TRISHA, IDEE GOLDWYN LULU, LONG-HAVEN GOLD ROCHELLE, CALBRETT DUNDEE GYPSY, CROVALLEY GIBSON ALLISON, COMCO ROY SPEARS and BLONDIN LYSTER BEAUTY.

Of interesting note is that, of these 30 cows who were Honourable mention or higher as 2yr olds, 9 (30%) of them have gone on to be at least nominated again in milking form. They are led by EASTSIDE LEWISDALE GOLD MISSY, the 2010 Royal and Madison Supreme Champion. The others are BLONDIN LYSTER BEAUTY, ABF SEPTEMBER CHEESE, LONG-HAVEN GOLD ROCHELLE, BRAINWAVE GOLDWYN LAURAMIE, DUBEAU DUNDEE HEZBOLLAH, SILVERMAPLE DAMION CAMOMILE, STANHOPE LEAH GOLDWYN and LYLEHAVEN DURHAM LEKYSYA.

As a group these 30 heifers scored an average of 88 points as 2yr olds and, with age, have increased to an average of 90 points. Highlights include EASTSIDE LEWISDALE GOLD MISSY, ABF SEPTEMBER CHEESE, and EBY016 PSS TRINITY, who presently are all over 93 points.

All-Canadian Yearling Performance

T-TRIPLE-T GOLD PRIZE EX92
1st 4 Year Old, 1st Udder 2012 WDE
Unanimous All-American Winter Yearling 2009
All-Canadian Winter Yearling 2009
1st Winter Yearling & Junior Champion 2009 RAWF and WDE

So, seeing that 1/3 of the All-Canadian 2 yr. olds were even nominated as heifers, how have the All-Canadian heifers been calving in? To answer this, we looked at the All-Canadian, Reserve and Honourable Mention Yearlings, for the four yearling groups, over the past 4 years to see what they scored as 2yr olds. What we found was that only 6 of the 48 (12.5%) of these animals went on to show ring success and All-Canadian, Reserve or Honourable Mention awards in milking form. In addition to Rejoice, Trisha and Roselilace mention above there are T-TRIPLE-T GOLD PRIZE, BONACCUEIL CAMEE FINAL CUT and SALEM GOLDWYN THERESA, who were ever nominated in milking form.

The 48 animals do average an impressive 86.9 points as 2yr olds. Standouts in this group are Theresa, Prize, and Rejoice as well as WHITAKER STORMY RAE, ROB-CRI TRIBUTE SHIMMER and SIEMERS GOLDWYN GOLDIE who all scored 89 points as 2yr olds. Some have matured really well and scored an impressive 93 points or higher. Those ones are Theresa as well as GOLDENFLO ALLEN CANDLE, ATOZ GOLDWYN LIMO, JACOBS GOLDWYN EMORY and KINGSWAY DUNDEE ALABAMA.

The Bullvine Bottom Line

While the numbers would make you question just how good a job we are doing at predicting what yearling heifers will be the next great 2yr olds, you need to remember that the largest part of the Cow Judging Scorecard is mammary system (40 points), which is something that you cannot really predict as yearlings or heifers. I remember when I was first learning to judge and was taught to take a look at a heifer’s “udder promise” and try to predict what she would calve in like. After years of observation, the one thing I have learned is that, other than checking that there are four teats and no webbed ones, you cannot really tell which heifers are going to calve in great and which ones will not. For that you are far better to check out their maternal line and sire stack and go from there (Read more – Who’s The Next Great One? and 7 Sires to Use in Order to Breed the Next World Dairy Expo Champion ). While the numbers do show that great show heifers don’t always make great show cows, this exercise does highlight how the accomplishments of CRAIGCREST RUBIES GOLD REJOICE are truly outstanding.

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Durham vs. Goldwyn: A Clash of Two Titans

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Monday, January 14th, 2013

Inspired by the recent announcement of Regancrest Elton Durham siring the most excellent cows in the U.S. (Read more – Durham Passes Elevation to Become the Leading Sire of Excellent Cows in the U.S.) and Braedale Goldwyn the most in Canada (Read more – Goldwyn First Ever to 1000 EX Daughters in Canada), we here at The Bullvine thought it would be a great time to take a closer look at these genetic giants to see who has had more impact on the Holstein breed.

The Regancrest Elton Durham Story

Bred by Regancrest Farms, Waukon, Iowa, Durham was born in 1994 and would go on to be one of the most popular sires of the first decade of the new millennium. Durham’s pedigree combines Bell and Chief Mark bloodlines as he was by a son of Bell, and Snow-N Denises Dellia (EX). His dam was out of a Bell daughter. Also Dellia and Effie, his sire’s dam, were both from Chief sons and his pedigree shows four Ivanhoe crosses and two to Fond Matt. Durham has left a very consistent transmitting pattern in both his daughters and his sons. Due to his low production numbers, he was not used heavily as a sire of sons, but his daughters have seen extensive use as bull mothers.

For five consecutive years 2003-2007, Durham was Premier Sire at World Dairy Expo. This certainly establishes Durham as a once-in-a-lifetime sire of type. His pattern leaves long bodies, broad and flat rumps, udders that are well attached and wide rear udders. However what made him so successful in the show ring was that Durham also transmitted outstanding dairyness and style.

Durham Sons

Durham sons were extremely consistent in their pattern and, at one point, eight of them were in the top ten spots for P.T.A.T (2005). Some highlights include:

REGANCREST-MR DRHAM SAM
From the Saturday family, his dam was Sher-Est Emory Swanny (EX). Mr Sam is also the sire of the popular type sire Pine-Tree Sid, who is the sire of Micheret Alexandra Sid (VG-88-2YR) All-American (tied) and All-Canadian Senior 2yr old in 2010.
MESLAND DUPLEX
Sampled in Spain, Duplex was the highest type sire in the US for several summaries, with high numbers for udders and feet & legs. Similar to Mr Sam, Duplex was also from an Emory dam this time going back to Henkeseen Mark Marci (EX-94).
REGANCREST-LH MODEST
Modest was Durham’s highest production son from Meadow Bridge Aero Missy (EX).
TO-MAR D-FORTUNE
At one time, Fortune was in the top 10 on the Canadian LPI list. Probably best known now for being the sire of the winning 4 year old at the 2012 Royal, Macpes Fortune Koquine EX-94-Can.
WINDY-KNOLL-VIEW PRIMETIME
From a great maternal breeding family, Primetime was the Durham son of Windy-Knoll-View Peggy (EX-94), and had a high type proof and for a long time was among the top Herd Life sires in Canada. He was also the sire of the 2006 World Dairy Expo Junior Champion and All-American fall calf, Wm Ariannas Pt Aesha.

Durham Daughters

Daughters represent the area where Durham has had his greatest impact. There are many great daughters to choose from. Here are just a few:

KAMPS-HOLLOW ALTITUDE EX-95-2E-USA DOM 1*
Probably best known for being the dam of KHW Kite Advent who was Premier Sire of the Grand International Red and White show for three consecutive years and KHW Regiment Apple who was Grand Champion of the 2011 International Red & White Holstein show.
LYLEHAVEN LILA Z EX-94-CAN 14*
Probably best known for being the second highest selling cow in Canadian History (Read more – Lylehaven Lila Z: Was she really worth $1.15 Million? and 2012 Golden Dam Finalist) she is also the dam of 2012 Canadian Cow of the Year Nominee, Comestar Goldwyn Lilac (VG-89) who’s descendants led the way at the recent Genetics By Design Sale (Read more – Genetics By Design – Crosses the $4,000,000 Mark).
MD-DELIGHT DURHAM ATLEE EX-92-4YR-USA DOM GMD 6*
All-American in her own right as a 3yr old in 2005, Atlee is probably best known for her sons who dominate the current type evaluations: MS Atlees Sht Aftershock (+18 Conformation Dec*12); Maple-Downs-I G W Atwood (+17 Conformation Dec*12) and MR Atlees AltaAmazing (+16 Conformation Dec*12). Atlee herself traces back to the great brood cow AITKENBRAE STARBUCK ADA EX-CAN EX-94-2E-USA DOM 4* (Read more – MD DELIGHT DURHAM ATLEE – 2012 Golden Dam Finalist).
REGANCREST-PR BARBIE EX-92-7YR-USA DOM GMD 3*
BARBIE is the sixth generation of the Regancrest breeding program combining both the Dellias and the Brinas. Eleven of her daughters are ranked in the top 25 of the American type index list. Barbie’s offspring consistently generate top prices at international sales. In 2009, granddaughter and fellow 2012 Golden Dam finalist, Regancrest S Chassity EX 92, sold in a package with her offspring for $1.5 million. Barbie is the dam of 14 EX & 16 VG daughters and, currently, one of the breed’s leading type sires – Braxton EX-95.
MARKWELL DURHAM DAISY EX-92-6YR-USA GMD DOM
Daisy does it all. She has high production, fitness, longevity and outstanding type. This Excellent Durham granddaughter of Markwell Bstar Raven EX-95, who as a young cow made many waves at Madison, also transmits it all. Daisy’s dam Markwell Luke Rapture recently passed away at 18 years of age. Numerous daughters, granddaughters and their sons distinguish themselves in the genomic rankings. As a bull dam in 2010, Daisy had some fabulous results with the high-ranking O-Man sons Dakota (the Netherlands), Duke (Germany), and Osaka (Spain). In 2012, Daisy’s first progeny sampled grandson, Danillo, provided an impressive sequel with top position in the Netherlands. Also of note is her grandson Goldday (By Goldwyn) who is from A-L-H Destiny and currently the top International Sires on the BPI List (Read more – Bullvine Performance Index (BPI) – Top Sires December 2012)

While Durham daughters were not typically the hardest milkers they were some of the most trouble free cows and, as more attention is being given to this, Durham decedents are gaining more attention again. Because of their health traits, Durham daughters have been appearing on the Net-Merit lists and have A.I. studs using them heavily as dams of sons, not just to get type sires, but to also get Net-Merit list toppers.

The Braedale Goldwyn Story

Goldwyn has been an extremely popular sire worldwide since his initial proof in 2004. This is not surprising given the strong maternal line behind him. His dam Braedale Baler Twine (VG-86 23*) was Canada’s cow of the year in 2007 and his second dam Braedale Gypsy Grand (VG-88 36*) was the Canadian Cow of the year in 2003. While many think that Goldwyn made the name for this cow family, long before Goldwyn was proven the family was already proving itself with Gypsy Grand sons Goodluck, Freelance, Spy, Freeman and Bold topping the bull list and daughters Cheetah, Second Cut, and Clairvoyant topping the cow lists. This explains why Baler Twine was contracted as a virgin heifer at a time when the family name was not as prevalent as it is now.

According to E.Y Morwick in his book The Holstein History, “The pedigree of Braedale Goldwyn offers a clinic on the art of successful line breeding. He carried three close crosses to Madawaska Aerostar: Sharemar James, his sire, was out of the Aerostar daughter, Stelbro Jenine Aerostar (VG); Braedale Baler Twine, his dam, was sired by Maughlin Storm, an Aerostar son; and Braedale Moonriver, dam of Braedale Gypsy Grand (Goldwyn’s maternal grand-dam), was an Aerostar daughter. In Goldwyn’s lineage were three crosses to Walkway Chief Mark: Shoremar James and Braedale Gypsy Grand were both by Mark CJ Gillbrook Grand, a Chief Mark son; while Gypsy’s maternal granddam was Sunnylodge Chief Vick (VG 2*), a Chief Mark daughter.”

By February of 2009, Goldwyn had racked up a pretty impressive list of accomplishments, including finishing in the top six on the Canadian LPI list 14 out of 15 times. He was number one once and number two twice. He was also the top rated sire for conformation 11 times. In 2008 when Goldwyn won Premier Sire at World Dairy Expo (ending Durham’s long reign), he was not only the youngest sire in 25 years to do so, but he was also the first bull who topped the LPI list to do so. With his win in 2012, Goldwyn has now tied Durham in achieving five consecutive Premier Sire awards at World Dairy Expo.

Goldwyn Sons

In addition to Goldday mentioned above, there have been impressive sons. While maybe not LPI or TPI list toppers, they have certainly passed on the high type traits that Goldwyn has to offer. They include:

CRACKHOLM FEVER
Underrated by many, Fever is more than just a high type sire (+16 Conformation Dec *12) he is also a great mastitis and fertility improvement sire making him a great sire to address the major herd culling problems and should probably get greater attention from many breeding programs (Read more – From Fantasy to Reality – Top Sires to Address Herd Culling Problems).
LIRR DREW DEMPSEY
Similar to Durham, many Goldwyn sons did not excel in production but did offer great improvement in conformation and health and fertility traits. Dempsey is one such case. His daughters would not WOW you with their production, but their strong components, outstanding udders and legs, combined with long herd life and low somatic cell score, certainly make them favorites among their owners.
MAPLE-DOWNS-I G W ATWOOD
Atwood is probably the sire that is going to give Goldwyn the closest run for his money, over the next few years, at the Royal and World Dairy Expo. His daughters are already putting up some impressive show results (Read more – Breeding The Next Show Winners) and he was among our picks for one of the sires to breed the next World Dairy Expo Champion (Read more – 7 Sires to Use in Order to Breed the Next World Dairy Expo Champion). Of course Atwood is from the magic cross of Goldwyn on Durham that has produced many great results. His dam is one of the top Durham daughters MD-DELIGHT DURHAM ATLEE EX-92-4YR-USA DOM GMD 6* (Mentioned above).
COMESTAR LAUTHORITY
Lauthority combines two of Canada’s greatest cow families, the Gypsy Grand’s and the Laurie Sheik’s. His dam is COMESTAR LAUTELMA IGNITER who is proving she can leave top sons and top daughters as proven by COMESTAR LAUTAMIE TITANIC VG-89-2YR-CAN 14* who was Reserve All-Canadian Jr. 2yr old in 2006.
FUSTEAD GOLDWYN GUTHRIE
Guthrie is currently Goldwyn’s highest proven LPI son at +2494 that has him in the top 50 MACE gLPI sires. Guthrie is one of the few Goldwyn sons over 1000 KG of milk and combines that with extreme type (+16 Conformation) and solid health and fertility traits.

Goldwyn Daughters

Similarly to Durham, Goldwyn has made a bigger impact through the maternal side. Some of his most notable daughters include:

RF GOLDWYN HAILEY EX-97-2E
Is there a more popular cow in the world than the reigning World Dairy Expo and Royal Winter Fair Champion? (Read more – The 2012 Royal Winter fair Holstein Show – One of the greatest stories ever told! and World Dairy Expo 2012 Holstein Show – A Battle for the Ages). Since spending 2011 in the shadow of fellow Goldwyn daughter Eastside Lewisdale Gold Missy, Hailey has been making waves all year, including when she and her full sister dominated Expo Quebec (Read more – The Story behind How Two Full Sisters Dominated Expo Quebec).
EASTSIDE LEWISDALE GOLD MISSY EX-95
From helping cement Morsan Farms position in the world genetics market (Read more – Morsan Farms – Money Well Spent) to helping put Eastside Holsteins on the world map (Read more – Eastside Holsteins – Where Modern Marketing Rises to the Challenge), Missy has certainly had a big impact since winning Supreme Champion at both World Dairy Expo and the Royal Winter Fair in 2011. One area I think many miss is that many of Missy’s granddaughters are also appearing on the top index list. This is no doubt due in part to the great maternal line she has. Her Dam Stadacona Outside Abel VG-88 26* was a 2011 Canadian Cow of the Year Finalist and Missy herself has been nominated this year (Read more – 2012 Canadian Cow of the Year Nominee).
WINTERBAY GOLDWYN LOTTO (EX-95)
Of course, before there was Hailey or Missy, there was Lotto. Lotto was the All-American and All-Canadian in 2009 and 2010 and Grand Champion of the Royal Winter Fair in 2010. (Read more – Winterbay Goldwyn Lotto (EX-95) dies). As well-known cattleman Brian Craswell points out in our interview with him, Lotto was the greatest investment he ever made in terms of profit and how the animal turned out (Read more – Crasdale Common Sense: Go for the total package).
COMESTAR GOLDWYN LILAC VG-89
Lilac was purchased by GenerVations, Maplewood, and O’Connor Land & Cattle Co. for just under $60,000 as a heifer and went on to help establish Lylehaven Lila Z (mentioned above) as one of the greatest breeding cows in the world. Lilac herself is proving to be one of the greats as proven by her recent nomination for Canadian Cow of the Year (2012 Canadian Cow of the Year Nominee). Lilac’s own daughter by Planet topped the #1 LPI list in Canada and sold with 10 daughters for a combined $2,119,500 at the recent Genetics by Design Sale (Read more – Genetics By Design – Crosses the $4,000,000 Mark).
MS CHASSITY GOLDWYN CASH VG-87-2YR
Success for Goldwyn daughters has not all been in Canada as is evident by Goldwyn Cash. Cash is the Goldwyn daughter of 2012 Golden Dam Finalist Regancrest S Chassity EX-92 DOM (Read more – REGANCREST S CHASSITY – 2012 GOLDEN DAM FINALIST). Cash is also the dam of popular sons Cashmoney, Cashcoin, Cash-O, and Casher. (Read more – The Sensational 6 Top North American Genomic Holsteins We Would Invest In)

The Bullvine Bottom Line

There is no doubt that Goldwyn and Durham are the two greatest type sires since the turn of the century. However, they have yet to leave that legacy son that tops the lists. While Goldwyn does have Atwood who is going to give him a run for his money at the upcoming North American shows, there is no top index sire to continue the tradition. For both sires the greatest impact is going to come through their daughters and in that area Goldwyn holds much more opportunity, since Durham was found to be a carrier for CVM and could not be used in countries like Canada, greatly limiting his potential impact. Which brings us to the question, “Is Goldwyn’s dominance because he has had a greater opportunity than Durham did (Read more – Braedale Goldwyn: Is He the Greatest Type Sire Ever?). What is clear is that Goldwyn daughters have fared much better in the show ring while Durham daughters have proven themselves more when it comes to proven sons. Though the quality of both these sires’ progeny is certainly of the highest level, it will take time to determine just which one of these two sires will have the greatest final impact.

EASTSIDE HOLSTEINS – Where Modern Marketing Rises to the Challenge

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Tuesday, December 4th, 2012

For most of us The Eastside Lewisdale prefix is associated with the fame of “Missy”. Maria Jones, Marketing Manager for Eastside Holsteins modestly summarizes the connection. “Here at Eastside, we were lucky enough to have co-bred Eastside Lewisdale Gold Missy EX 95, Grand & Supreme Champion at World Dairy Expo and the Royal in 2011. That has really helped our exposure and marketing, not only of the Missy Family, but of other families here at Eastside”. As Bloyce Thompson, owner of Eastside Holsteins, points out, “When Missy took off as a Jr 2 yr old, we needed to be able to capitalize, get on board and go with her success.” The fact that Missy’s sister Amaze flushed well put even more marketing opportunities in front Eastside and partner Lewisdale (Read More – You Can Bank on Amaze to Pump up the Volume). “Our main focus has been selling embryos from well known families and making sure each customer is very satisfied with their purchase.”

EASTSIDE LEWISDALE GOLD MISSY EX-95-CAN
Supreme Champion WDE 2011. Grand Champion WDE 2011.
Supreme Champion RAWF 2011. Grand Champion RAWF 2011

Viewing the Future from EASTSIDE Out!

Bloyce and partner Jamie Lewis, of Lewisdale Holsteins, thought over the potential they were facing and decided to set up a new company Eastside-Lewisdale. They plan to have it underway early in 2013. One of their visions is of an embryo community. In order to do that, they know that they have to plan not only the financial side but also how to brand their genetic products. “We thought about it and decided we need email a web site” and all of the modern technology that puts PEI fully accessible to the marketplace. Bloyce admits “We knew we wanted someone who had great computer skills.” That’s where Maria Jones came into the picture.

Maria Jones
Marketing Manager at Eastside Holsteins

MISSY meets MARIA: Behind Every Super Star There is a Super Marketer!

It wasn’t long before the marketing part of the plan was put into action says Bloyce, with the hiring of Maria Jones. “I knew Maria had computer skills and that she was between jobs. She lived on PEI and started part time which has grown to almost two-thirds time now.” Maria has demonstrated her technical ability and how comfortable she is with global communication. Bloyce is enthusiastic, “She is a person I can give ideas to and she can take it from there.” Sales numbers are backing up the wisdom of the hiring a marketing person.”Since Maria started embryo sales are up 90%”

New Tools Greatly Enhance Familiar Methods

Modesty is contagious around PEI and Maria points out.”Of course, you have to have the product people want and be ready to roll.” As a marketing manager, she wears many different hats and faces the challenges and logistics of, not only marketing the products but getting them delivered. She notes,” In the cattle business it can be very complex and goes beyond the designing to record keeping, financial and managing the workload.” Time pressure is an added incentive. Bloyce states what he feels is obvious, “Holstein genomics is moving so fast that you must always be developing for the future market.” He gives an example. “Hailey has taken over From Missy so we must adapt to that.” Every tool is analysed and critiqued. “Embryo sales at World Dairy Expo time went well. We will likely try that again another year.”

More Information Sourced and Delivered with New Tools

Maria is well aware of modern tools. “We have been using Facebook and Twitter. It really helps communicate to our customers what is going on at Eastside. They know about our new purchases and what embryos we have available. We report show results and just about anything else that is happening.” They see the potential of using social media for real time updates. “On a daily basis, we broadcast to our audience around the world what is happening. It has been a very successful tool for Eastside.” Maria feels this asset also serves another valuable purpose, “It is a great advantage that we have two-way communication with others about what is going on in the industry.”

Good Two-Way Communication = Marketing Progress

Everyone at Eastside agrees that communication is important to their marketing strategy. Maria lists her favorite sources, “The internet, magazines, mixing and communicating with others at Shows and Sales are all great ways to keep up with the industry.” She is always eager to pick up something new. “I just keep an eye on what is going on around me and always notice everyone’s marketing efforts. I enjoy seeing all the new ideas and try to understand why they thought it was a good idea. I always keep in mind that they are in the same boat as I am!” She sums up the three L’s of her marketing philosophy, “I am never one to judge but I listen, look and learn!”

The Challenges of Dairy Marketing

In the fast paced world of modern dairy marketing it is important to know your priorities. Bloyce says the challenge is clear. “You must always plan ahead and have the current product that people want.” There are the usual business pressures to keep costs under control but this team feels that marketing must be able to reach the huge number of potential clients based around the world. Bloyce recalls, “A decade ago, living on PEI was a major disadvantage but, today, with the World Wide Web, location is not a problem.” This opportunity also presents the main challenge, “We are only touching a fraction of the market.” Both Bloyce and Maria recognize that creating interest means constantly facing deadlines. For instance “The website must be updated 3-4 times per week.” Although that might seem simple, it too turns on the speed of responses to email, phone calls and messages. Maria acknowledges,”It can be frustrating.” But admits that “Marketing can be a fun and enjoyable career.”

Walk in Your Buyer’s Boots and Walk Fast

Bloyce repeats business maxims we all know to be true, “The way that you position yourself, how you use words and how you treat customers are all very important.” He sees dairy breeding evolving to produce “a more functional cow with stronger immunity, better female reproduction and requiring minimum labour.” Maria agrees that the market drives demand, “We have turned to more of what the market will be looking for in the future, namely the polled breed and genomics.” Acknowledging that everyone is not interested in the same thing she feels that “Eastside has got you covered” by providing show cattle, type and genomics.

Develop Marketing Skills Where You Find Them

Drawing on his positive experience, Bloyce sums up the best advice he has for those looking to market their dairy genetics. First and foremost he feels “It is absolutely necessary that you have a product people want to buy.” Once you have met that hurdle, he suggests “Get with technology both on the farm and in marketing.” He points out what he feels is an obvious resource to develop, “Why not bring your children into the business via the marketing side of the farm, instead of just through the labour side.” He sums up his reasoning quite convincingly, “Kids run computers with their eyes closed.”

The Bullvine Bottom Line

At the end of the day, marketing only works if the story moves off the planning page and produces measureable results. Eastside and Lewisdale are banking on good marketing based on a philosophy of “Listen, Look and Learn” to promote their supply of genetics that the market is asking for. The future looks ready to shine brightly for Eastside-Lewisdale.

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Quality Cattle Look Good Every Day

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Monday, December 3rd, 2012

For years the comments have been made that show cows look very different in the ring than they do most other days of the year. I have heard breeders make comments about some great show cows that look All-World in the show ring and not even All-County in the barn. One of the biggest changes I have noticed in the past 10 years is how much this situation has changed.

More and more we are seeing cattle with consistent show pedigrees or type winning the shows. Does that mean that there are not as many “freaks” out there? Or, does it mean that show ethics and better management practices have led to the top genetic animals rising to the top? I think the latter is true.

Here are two great examples from my recent visit to Quality Holsteins

QUALITY GOLDWYN FLANSCO

This past week Flansco was scored EX-95 and I wanted to check her out. Flansco is the first third generation EX-95-CDN cow. Her dam was QUALITY GIBSON FINSCO who was HM. ALL-ONTARIO 5-YR 2008 & 2ND 5-YR ON DISCOVERY 2008 and her 2^nd dam was none other than QUALITY B C FRANTISCO EX-96-3E-CAN 18* and 2 time Royal Grand Champion as well as the 2005 Holstein Canada Cow of the Year. So there is no question that Flansco has a female line as well as strong type sire stack (Goldwyn x Gibson x Charles) behind her

Therefore it is certainly not surprising that I was able to get this great udder shot. After all, Flansco won grand at the recent Autumn Opportunity show (Read more – Autumn Opportunity Holsteins Show Results)

She looked this good when I visited just before milking time

VALLEYVILLE RAE LYNN

It’s also not surprising that, when I took a quick peek at Rae Lynn, the recent 2^nd Sr. 2yr Old from the Royal (Read more – The 2012 Royal Winter Fair Holstein Show – One of the greatest stories ever told!), I got this shot

She looked just as good on an average day on the farm

It’s obvious Rae Lynn has the complete package. Her dam is an EX 2E Champion sister to the 2011 Royal Winter Fair and Madison Supreme Champion EASTSIDE LEWISDALE GOLD MISSY, from the great STADACONA OUTSIDE ABEL VG-88-4YR-CAN 29*. Rae Lynn is also in the top 10 in Canada for her EBV for Conformation. However, as we all know it takes more than just great genetics to win at the big shows. More is exactly what these two cows have. The care they receive from the team at Quality Holsteins (Read more – Quality Holsteins – Well-Deserved Congratulations) and key team member Don Schwartz (Read more – Don Schwartz: “Love what you do and do the best you can!”) is second to none. It’s for that reason these cows that have the great genetics are all able to fulfill their potential. It is also the reason why these cows look so amazing day in and day out.

The Bullvine Bottom Line

Gone are the days when you could take a complete meat bag cow to a show and expect her to do well. Between the progress in show ethics and in how we evaluate cows, the cream really is rising to the top. For me there is nothing better than going to the herds where these top cows reside and seeing that they look just as good in the barn as they did in the show ring…..well with a little more sh*t on them.

Does Genomics Belong in The Show Ring?

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Friday, October 5th, 2012

In our recent article about the 7 Sires to Use In Order To Breed The Next World Dairy Expo Champion we highlighted six test sires and one proven sire as the best sires to use in order to breed the next generation of great show cattle. The response to this article has been insane. First from a readership perspective we had over 10,000 people reading the article in the first 2 days alone. Of even greater interest were the reactions that breeders had to this article (over 200 comments on Facebook, Twitter and our website). Many breeders felt that genomics had nothing to do with the show ring. Instead they felt that it was more important to stick to proven sires when mating their top type cattle.

Ignorance Is Not the Answer

This actually demonstrated to me that awareness of what genomics is and how to use it is desperately needed. Far too many breeders confuse genomics with the index system. Genomics is not a kin to Holstein USA’s TPI formula or the Canadian LPI formula. Rather, it is tool to use in order to predict each sires ability to transmit a certain trait.

Given that the genetic information for every animal is contained in its DNA, technology now makes it possible to predict a sire’s ability to transmit certain characteristics to their progeny. It has nothing to do with the relative weights or importance of one trait over another. Rather it is solely about a sire’s ability to transmit that specific trait. How you use that information and what weights you put on some traits over others is entirely up to you.

Less Science more Cow Talk

So that is all fine and good. It sounds very scientific but what does it mean at the show ring level? Let me take a stab at that in “show speak.” It doesn’t take much to know that some show cows are “managed” into greatness and others are bred for it. We have all seen the ones that on the average day look like they are a lucky to be “all-barn” let alone “all-world.” Those cows are the ones that I call managed into greatness. Then there are those other cows that have the complete package. They come from a strong type pedigree that and are sired by a sire who has proven to deliver top show cattle. These are the cattle that are bred to be great.

EASTSIDE LEWISDALE GOLD MISSY EX-95-CAN

A great example of this is last year’s World Dairy Expo Supreme Champion, EASTSIDE LEWISDALE GOLD MISSY EX-95-CAN. Missy comes from a strong type sire stack with a dam that has sired 35 daughters all have scored GP+, with 33 of them being VG+. No doubt that Missy’s dam, STADACONA OUTSIDE ABEL VG-88-4YR-CAN 29* is great at breading type cattle. In addition to that if you look at Missy’s own genomic test you will notice that she scores well above breed averages for type traits.

Another great example of a show cow that also has the genomic test to back it up are MD-DELIGHT DURHAM ATLEE EX-92-4YR-USA DOM GMD 2*. Of course, we all know Atlee as the All-American Sr. 3yr from 2005 where she also won Reserve Intermediate Champion at WDE. However, we also know Atlee as the dam of the top type sire MAPLE-DOWNS-I G W ATWOOD EX-90-4YR-USA. If you look at Atwood’s CDN type proof you see the following.

	Conformation	Mammary System	Feet & Legs	Dairy Strength	Rump
Official Proof	18	16	14	15	3
DGV	19	16	14	15	2
Parent Average	17	15	11	13	8
Estimated Daughter Performance	18	15	15	15	3

What you will notice is that his genomic test is the closest to his actual daughter performance. Rather than looking at the sires in his pedigree, or the performance of his maternal line (which by the way is one of the strongest type pedigrees in the world today), it’s his genomic test that would have accurately predicted that his rumps would not have been as strong as expected, and that his feet and legs would be better than expected. This is very valuable insight, when trying to breed the next great show cow.

So how does that help me breed a great one?

It’s great that we can show that genomics validates what we already know about sires like Atwood and great show cows like Missy and Atlee. However, how can we use that to help us to breed the next great show cow? To answer that question let’s take at two high genomic test type sires, MR ATWOOD BROKAW and CANYON-BREEZE AT AIRLIFT.

MR ATWOOD BROKAW

MR ATWOOD BROKAW is the Atwood son of REGANCREST MAC BIKASA VG-87-2YR-USA. In Brokaw you combine the two greatest type families in the breed today. No question that from all angles Brokaw has it all.

	Conformation	Mammary System	Feet & Legs	Dairy Strength	Rump
Official Proof	20	17	9	18	7
DGV	22	19	9	21	7
Parent Average	15	14	10	11	4

What we notice from his genomic test is that we can expect Brokaw to be far greater at transmitting dairy strength than his pedigree would indicate.

CANYON-BREEZE AT AIRLIFT

Then there is CANYON-BREEZE AT AIRLIFT the Atwood son from the same family as CANYON-BREEZE ALLEN.

	Conformation	Mammary System	Feet & Legs	Dairy Strength	Rump
Official Proof	17	12	18	16	16
DGV	19	12	21	18	21
Parent Average	15	12	11	13	4

What we notice here is that Airlift will sire rumps that are light years better than his pedigree would indicate while needing to be cautious on his mammary systems. Something that anyone who use enough Allen in their herd would attest to. What genomics does is it gives us this insight light years sooner that waiting for 100’s of daughters to help prove it out. That can be all the edge you need in breeding the next great show cow.

Do you think this is all hogwash?

Well let’s take a look at the current undisputed show ring champion BRAEDALE GOLDWYN GP-84-8YR-CAN EXTRA’05 GM’12. Here is a sire that by his own conformation would have never been considered potential for greatness in the show ring. A sire that by his maternal line of high classifying cattle had no great show history to them at all. So let’s look at the numbers:

	Conformation	Mammary System	Feet & Legs	Dairy Strength	Rump
Official Proof	12	11	13	7	3
DGV	10	9	13	6	4
Parent Average	5	5	-1	4	2
Estimated Daughter Performance	14	13	13	8	3

As you can see by the numbers, Goldwyn’s direct genomic values would have predicted his type prowess long before anyone would have suspected it. This is especially true in regards to feet & legs. Something no one would have expected from a James son.

The Bullvine Bottom Line

We all know that to win in the show ring it takes more than just great genetics. It takes genetics, management, and luck. Slacking on any parts of these means that you have to go “outside” the rules in order to make things happen. Instead of putting yourself in that precarious position, stick to what has been proven to work and use the best genomic sires available.

Not sure what all this hype about genomics is all about?

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So how does that help me breed a great one?

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Do you think this is all hogwash?

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