I confess I have not read all the replys to thread. Some traits are more heritable than others.
California State University-Fresno animal
scientist Randy Perry says cows don't have
to be "pretty-uddered" to be functional in a
commercial beef herd. However, anecdotal
evidence suggests udder quality, on an
industry-wide basis, may have deteriorated.
Certainly, there is considerable variation
among and within herds.
Breed differences show there is a genetic
component to udder quality. It is considered
at least moderately heritable and geneticists
estimate its heritability is somewhere between
0.16 and 0.22
The boss is a bit demanding as far as udder quality, hoof quality oh yea then their is frame muscle depth of body come to think of it he is just pretty dang demanding on many levels. I make breeding selections based on strengths and weakness. If a cow has a weakness in a certain area then I try to select a bull that is know to be very strong for that trait. Bulls selected for natural service are going to be out of our top cows, and they will have been at the top end of the calf crop for performance. We don't have a perfect herd but it does get better every year, and I think that is what we should all be striving for. We should be looking for each calf crop to be better than the last. You can't correct a poor udder on a cow but you can breed that cow to a bull that will help improve the udder on her progeny. Knowing the strengths and weakness of your herd is the first step in correcting the weakness.
gizmom