Calculating 2007 calf EPD's

[Alan]

I trying to figure out EPD's of this year calves before I register any of them. According to the AHA website, the EPDs are an average of the sires and dams EPD's. But it does not seem to work out when I use a heifer from last year. Maybe the EPD's have adjusted since the 2006 heifer was born (?) or is there more than just a exact average involved such as the acc. rate of the animal? Is the current year calves an exact average of the sire and dam?

Any help
Alan

 

[Nowland Farms]

Alan,

Any standard EPDs for a purebred breed of cows were selected years ago. Each pruebred breed selected a year that they wanted to use that years current EPDs for their standard (I can't remember the years that each breed selected, but they differ based on the breeds). These standard EPDs for the breed will not changed. Think of it this way, the standard EPDs will be the baseline that all cattle in the breed will be based against.

Your cow's EPDs are the difference in the standard EPDs for that breed and what your cow does. For example, let's say that the AHA selected the EPDs from 1970 to be there standard EPDs for the breed. If the Hereford cows in 1970 had a BW of 2 and you cow has a BW of 2.5, your cow would have a BW +.5.

Hope this helps.

 

[Alan]

Thanks for the response, but it was not quite what I'm after. Lets say my bull has a BW EPD of 2.4 and the cow has a BW EPD of 3.6. To figure their offspring, is it as simple as 2.6 + 3.6 divided by 2 = a BW epd of 3.1 for their calf? or is there more to it, such as the sires or dam acc. rate?

Thanks, hope this clears things up.

Alan

 

[dun]

Thanks for the response, but it was not quite what I'm after. Lets say my bull has a BW EPD of 2.4 and the cow has a BW EPD of 3.6. To figure their offspring, is it as simple as 2.6 + 3.6 divided by 2 = a BW epd of 3.1 for their calf? or is there more to it, such as the sires or dam acc. rate?

Thanks, hope this clears things up.

Alan

That method will give you the pedigree EPds. That's about as close as you'll come until the animal in question gets data submitted on it. The pedigree EPDs will chnage as the parents EPDs change

dun

 

[Frankie]

With Angus, EPDs are not always just the average between the sire and dam's EPDs. If there is performance data on the EPD database from siblings, half sibs, etc., they will also come into the equation. And, with Angus, when you register a calf will affect the EPDs and accuracy. The Assn runs a NCE twice a year and if a calf is registered between those runs, the EPDs may change when another is run. Making any sense? :)

And if either parent has Interim (I) EPDs the Angus calf won't have any EPDs. It gets sort of complicated....