You've reached the Virginia Cooperative Extension Newsletter Archive. These files cover more than ten years of newsletters posted on our old website (through April/May 2009), and are provided for historical purposes only. As such, they may contain out-of-date references and broken links.
To see our latest newsletters and current information, visit our website at http://www.ext.vt.edu/news/.
Newsletter Archive index: http://sites.ext.vt.edu/newsletter-archive/
Change in Distribution of the Virginia Tech AI Sire Summary
Dairy Pipeline: September 2000
Bennet Cassell
Extension Dairy Scientist, Genetics and Management
Virginia Tech
(540) 231-4762
bcassell@vt.edu
We have decided to no longer print the Virginia Tech AI Sire Summary in the March and September issues of the Virginia Dairyman magazine. This doesn't mean that the information is not important. Genetic evaluations are as just as useful as they ever were, but times have changed and we need to change as well. We will no longer print the list because the proofs now change four times a year and we can "publish" the latest information much more quickly on our department web site. Many dairy producers now have access to information through the Worldwide Web and the convenience and timeliness of that method of obtaining information is really the way of the future. The web address for the Virginia Tech AI Sire Summary is - http://www.dasc.vt.edu/sires/index.html. You do not need to do without this information if you don't use a computer. If you want a printed copy of the Virginia Tech AI Sire Summary, please let me know and I will see to it that a copy is mailed to you. One piece of information that is in the Virginia Tech AI Sire Summary and not readily available elsewhere is the ERCR list on AI bulls. ERCR stands for Estimated Relative Conception Rate. It estimates fertility based on "non-return to service" data from DHI records through DRMS Raleigh. Contact me if you would like to receive this information. A very useful alternative to the Virginia Tech AI Sire Summary is a one page, front-and-back listing of the top 15 percent of Active AI bulls called the Top Sire List. We mail copies of this list to County Extension Offices around the state four times a year and can mail it directly to producers who are interested. The Top Sire List is printed very quickly after bull proofs are published. It includes the top bulls for Net Merit, the ones that provide the best opportunity for genetic improvement. The Top Sire List is also available at the web site shown above. If you wish to receive a copy through regular mail, just call my office, (540) 231-4762, or contact your local Extension Agent.