| Trait | Measurement |
|---|---|
| Calf Tag | 872G |
| Cow Tag |
872Y |
| Breed of Dam | ARARAR |
| Herd | 1 |
| Sire | MC123456 |
 |
|
| Born | March 10, 1997 |
| Calving Ease | Unassisted |
| Sex | Female |
| Birth Weight | 90 pounds |
| Gestation Length | 288 days |
| Weaned | October 30, 1997 |
| Weaning Weight | 655 pounds |
| 200 Day Weight | 573 pounds |
| On Test | November 11, 1997 |
| Off Test | March 6, 1998 |
| Average Daily Gain | 4.32 pounds per day |
| 365 Day Weight | 1236 pounds |
| Slaughtered | April 21, 1998 |
| Age | 407 days |
| Live Weight | 1238 pounds |
| Hot Carcass Weight | 724 pounds |
| Average Fat | 8.0 mm |
| Grade Fat | 7 mm |
| Quality Grade | AAA |
| Marbling Score | 75 |
| Cutability | 61.44% |
| Rib-eye Area | 13.80 square inches |
Traits that are tested include:
The C to C program evaluates a sire on the basis of the performance of his progeny in comparison to his contemporaries on the test. Careful program design and supervision ensures that all of the data collected is accurate.
Essential components of the program include:
C to C cowherds are from diverse environmental and management conditions. The commercial cows used in the program are representative of 90% of the commercial cowherd. The cows and the calves are managed under conditions that are dictated by the current commercial marketplace.
An attempt is made to breed each sire on the test to at least fifty random cows throughout the cowherds. This allows the probability of producing 35-40 calves per sire, providing a good sample for progeny testing. Virgin heifers are not used on the program.
Sires are bred randomly using artificial insemination. As cows come down the chute, cow number 1 is bred to Sire A, cow 2 to Sire B and so on until all the bulls have been used. Then the sire order is repeated. The maximum number of bulls enrolled on the program is usually set at ten. At calving time, the calves are tagged, and birthdates, birthweights and calving ease scores are reported on each calf. From this information, sires are then evaluated for percentage unassisted births, gestation length and birthweight.
At weaning both steers and heifers are weighed, purchased and assembled at the feedlot for post-weaning evaluation. Purchase is based upon a mutually agreeable auction market sale. For pre-weaning evaluation, weights are adjusted to 205 days of age and indexed across sire groups. No age of dam corrections are used as no virgin heifers are used on the program and the cows in the herds average approximately 5 years of age.
As calves come into the feedlot they are processed (normal medication and induction treatments), sorted by sex and assigned to pens. Following a warm-up period, the calves are officially weighed onto the post-weaning gain test. Rations used are standard feedlot step-up rations, similar to regular fattening programs. At the conclusion of a 112 day test, all calves are individually weighed and their average daily gains and yearling weights are calculated. Results are then indexed into sire groups. At the completion of the test period, calves remain on feed until they reach a visually estimated optimal slaughter endpoint. At this point calves are slaughtered, and all calves are graded using a "Blue Tag" protocol as originally developed by Agriculture Canada. Certified graders measure the amount of backfat, marbling and rib-eye area of each chilled carcass.
