Friday General Session
Feedlot Marker-Assisted Management
Abstract:
Feedlot management strategies are often focused on improving production efficiency and/or managing carcass end point. These strategies may be as simple as an implant program or as complex as a multi-technology sorting program. A number of technologies are available to provide data to make sorting decisions. They are as simple as chute weights, breed type, hide color or visual appraisal, or as complex as ultrasound-based measures of body composition, external body measurements, or genetic information. However, any technology used needs to be responsive to shifting population trends and changes in management set points.
Unlike a seedstock or commercial cow-calf herd, our feedlot population is diverse and is subject to seasonal and geographic trends. In addition, our population comes from many different backgrounds (wheat pasture, grow yards and ranches across the country). In order to account for these varied environmental and genetic backgrounds, our approach to marker-assisted management has been to combine information from live animal evaluation with genetic information to make management decisions.
Cargill Cattle Feeders, while being focused on efficiency and cost of gain, has an even greater focus on end-point management due to our relationship with Excel. Due to this intensive focus on carcass end point, we have developed a management system based on an animal’s condition at reimplant and genetic information obtained from marker panels for economically important traits. This allows us to account for both environmental effects and the genetic potential of the animal.
At the feedlot level it is very difficult to manage individuals, but managing groups of similar individuals is feasible. By grouping individuals we create pens of cattle that have a specific end-point target. This grouping allows growth-promoting technologies to be applied in order to improve production efficiency while still meeting our specific end-point targets, the goal being to produce a high-quality product for our customer while maximizing production efficiency.
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About the speaker:
Bill Kolath grew up in Central Michigan where he attended Michigan State University, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in animal science in 2001. Following graduation, he pursued a doctorate at the University of Missouri. He studied under the direction of Monty Kerley and graduated in 2006. His dissertation research focused on examining relationships between residual feed intake (RFI) and mitochondrial metabolism.
Currently, Kolath is employed with Cargill Cattle Feeders as a research scientist. He oversees the research program and provides direction to nutrition- and production-related activities.
Editor’s Note: The above material is provided by and posted with permission of the Beef Improvement Federation. Please direct reprint requests to BIF via the “Contact BIF” page at www.beefimprovement.org.
